Bionic eye bypasses optic nerve

Add Portugal to the list of countries working on new technologies to enable the blind to see. In this case, the procedure, developed by Dr. William Dobelle of the Dobelle Medical Institute in Portugal, links the brain directly to a set of eyeglass-mounted cameras. The cams capture images, transfer it to a shoulder-mounted computer and upload the info to the brain. The device is designed specifically for individuals who have lost their eyes and/or use of their optic nerves, and currently has been tested with just 16 patients, including one eyeless woman from the US. Using the $120,000 setup, she can now see flashes of light, though her vision is expected to improve with greater computer power.

[Via MobileMag]

[Jonathan Keim @ Apr 3rd 2006 5:11PM]

I love it when I hear they are working on this. I"m on the computer for 5-12 hours a day and am only 16, so I do get worried about my vision in 30 years

[JCG @ Apr 3rd 2006 5:12PM]

We are borg? resistance is futile..

Sorry, i just had to say that.
But if find this really interresting, first place because maybe the blind can see thank to this.
And secondly, how will it can before they can make it better then human eyes? Think infrared eyes

[scott @ Apr 3rd 2006 5:17PM]

ok... so if you connected these dohickies to a quad-core intel G5 and loaded the particulars that make this work...

Would she be able to see say... a square?

[Henry @ Apr 3rd 2006 5:33PM]

Intel G5? No such thing, Scott, no such thing.

[KenC @ Apr 3rd 2006 5:40PM]

Being completly blind in one eye due to an unfortunate mishap (it split the optic nerve) when I was in Junior high I think this is totatally cool. And hope to see their work progress

[ike @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:10PM]

yeah, wouldnt really ever let anyone 'see' if they were born blind.
you need to have the use of your eyes from birth to 'learn' how to process vision.
theyve done experiments with people who were born without eyesight and given surgery to give them 'sight' - but they remain 'blind' because they cannot process the signals.

[scott @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:16PM]

"Intel G5? No such thing, Scott, no such thing."

Oops... true dat..

anyways #6, iv never heard of anything like this, makes sense though

[Pacey @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:35PM]

Quick, someone get LeVar Burton on the phone...

[jnasato @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:46PM]

I was watching a show on Discovery channel that had something like this, but the resoultion was much better. A 10x10 grid, or something like that. The man lost his sight as a child and saw for the first time in 30 something years.

[Justin @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:52PM]

I, for one, welcome our robotic overlords

[esch @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:55PM]

Am I the only one who read that as "Bionic eye *surpasses* optic nerve"? I suppose I'm too excitable, heh.

[jamesthejust @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:56PM]

#5

Catch!

[bpc @ Apr 3rd 2006 7:15PM]

This is awesome technology for people who've lost their eyesight, and I'm all for it.

However, there will always be trouble for people who have never had vision to associate what their new eyes see (ex. a red shape, a little taller than it is wide) and the idea of what the object is (a can of Coke).

Check out the story "To See and Not See" in Oliver Sacks' book An Anthropologist on Mars to learn more.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679756973/sr=8-1/qid=1144106084/ref=sr_1_1/103-8327644-5466260?%5Fencoding=UTF8

[jnasato @ Apr 3rd 2006 8:03PM]

In the show I watched, the guy was at a marketplace and couldn't tell the difference between vegetables/fruits and cans. But he conlcuded that the can's weren't vegetables, because they were too perfectly shaped.

[Anthony @ Apr 3rd 2006 8:22PM]

none of you watched miracle worker about a week ago? They made a kid that was born blind see. Only ine one eye since the other never or whatever it was was already damaged. That show is quite amazing its on ABC at 10pm every Monday

[joeyo @ Apr 3rd 2006 8:44PM]

William Dobelle passed away in 2004. Much of his work was funded out of his own pocket or through other non-traditional means and as a result he published very little about his research and devices in the usual peer-reviewed journals. Many have feared that the progress he made would be lost with his death, so it's good to see that this work did not die with him.

[Ryan L @ Apr 3rd 2006 9:12PM]

This and other breakthroughs in neuroscience/computing mark the beginning of the next computer interface: full-fledged virtual reality. In about 20 years, we will be able to use virtual reality to do everything we use computers for now, only better: communication, commerce, gaming, and more.

[Harry @ Apr 3rd 2006 9:28PM]

Sounds great and i'm all for it, but more power straight to the brain?
Talk about zapping the most vital organs in your body with more electricity, we may be seeing fried chicken someday.

[S. Kemp @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:20PM]

#6 you're partly Right, If your brain has fully developed (which happens in the early 20's) it would be near impossible for someone who has never processed a visual stimulus to ever be able to percieve what the visual signals were. If someone is born blind and they were to recieve a more advanced version of these before the age of 3 it's fairly likely that they would be able to see just as well if not better than you. The later in life said blind person recieves the Bionic Eye's the harder it would be for them to build neural pathways in the brain to process the visual stimulus. if you want more info on that type of stuff you can look at studies they've done on cat's. I would go into detail but i'm afraid i'd miss-inform you all. But it's amazing how cool it would be if one day we could all see life like Jordy does.

[snoopy @ Apr 4th 2006 12:29AM]

congratulations to all the downers out there who just want to rain on this particular parade. At least these people are trying ot help the physically impaired. what are you doing for them? little worried about direct input to brain though. Can anyone say "MATRIX"

[SandMan @ Apr 4th 2006 12:56AM]

This is all pretty cool, but my friend told me about his neighbor from back home who's some crazy scientist. He helped develop this thing you put on your tounge that takes sensory input and then translates it and sends it to the brain. No visual stimulus is needed so eyes aren't needed. It's kind of crazy complicated stuff, but here's a link to some complicated stuff. Just read the end which says how it should help people recognize things and better navigate. http://cogimage.dsi.cnrs.fr/seminaires/resume_danilov_2005.htm

[DrEldarion @ Apr 4th 2006 1:28AM]

#18 - Your brain already operates on electric impulses. If this technology includes safeguards against going over the natural electric current, I don't see any danger.

[Nibor @ Apr 4th 2006 2:35AM]

Surpassing the optic nerve? Sounds great to me. Once it's properly developed they'll no doubt want to start overclocking by increasing the voltage.

[Danny @ Apr 4th 2006 2:55AM]

My mother lost her sight about 10 years ago. This tech is great news! Here's to great advancments in visual science.

[paralipsis @ Apr 4th 2006 4:24AM]

For a fictional look at the potential applications of this technology, "Virtual Light" (1993) by William Gibson is worth a look

[Kyle @ Apr 4th 2006 4:48AM]

This is awesome, now I can go out and buy that red rider bb gun I�ve always wanted!

[DR Cross @ Apr 4th 2006 5:44AM]

The article is poorly written, with none of the specs of the machinery used. I wish they would give us some real world statistics like the power of the processor needed, how the wiring is arranged, where the implant enters the head, expected resolution etc. Its a great story I only wish the article was a bit more informative.

[Peter Meijer @ Apr 4th 2006 6:50AM]

More information about this vision technology
at http://www.seeingwithsound.com/etumble.htm

[russia @ Apr 4th 2006 4:09PM]

tight, im adding this to the cyborg suit thingy, and together we shall become... chief... and battle aliens on the second hidden ringworld "halo again dmit"

[cdk @ Apr 4th 2006 4:28PM]

I'm assuming that all posters here have sight in both eyes.

I would like you to patch one of your eyes for a day and do EVERYTHING without that second eye (including driving and working on a computer).

Then read the article again and think to yourself, "what if I didn't have my other eye..."

Now you will understand how I see the world - with only one eye.

[Balls @ Apr 4th 2006 6:04PM]

I did a major research paper back in college about retinal prosthetics.

I agree with everyone else, this is very cool.

Just make sure the eyeball doesn't run Windows :)

[shawn @ Apr 5th 2006 11:56AM]

imagery uploaded to the brain via computer.... genius..

but what if the devices controlling the imagery were programmed to slip in imagery that portrayed a false sense of reality ..

yeah.. uh .. think about that...

[Zalmaki @ Jun 10th 2006 6:14PM]

"none of you watched miracle worker about a week ago? They made a kid that was born blind see."

Also note "The Miracle Worker", the play about Helen Keller's teacher. Conceptual breakthroughs are possible with or without exquisite technology... the tech may, however, make them both more necessary and more likely. Oooh, have I got my fingers crossed!

Also:

"but what if the devices controlling the imagery were programmed to slip in imagery that portrayed a false sense of reality .. "

Cue "Twilight Zone" theme...