Communications of the ACM
Google Is Developing a Smart Contact Lens
The smart contact lens under development by Google features tiny chips, sensors and antennas that will continuously test the sugar levels of wearers' tears, an extremely useful feature to those suffering from diabetes.
Credit: Google
Google researchers are developing a smart contact lens that uses tiny chips, sensors, and antennas to continuously test diabetics' blood sugar levels. The technology uses wireless chips and miniaturized glucose sensors to measure glucose levels in the user's tears.
"At GoogleX, we wondered if miniaturized electronics--think chips and sensors so small they look like bits of glitter, and an antenna thinner than a human hair--might be a way to crack the mystery of tear glucose and measure it with greater accuracy," according to the project's founders. "We're testing prototypes that can generate a reading once per second."
The researchers also are studying the potential of the lenses to serve as an early warning for wearers when glucose levels get too low. "This type of 'in-eye' technology is the precursor to having Google Glass directly in our eyes," says analyst Patrick Moorhead. "To many, this is fascinating and inspiring. To others it is creepy and scary."
He notes the project could offer insights into the future development of Google Glass. "If you project this forward a few years and add a flexible display, a display controller, and a radio that can talk to your smart watch, then you have Google Glass of the future."
From Computerworld
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