Researchers make prototype of automatically functioning ‘varifocal’ glasses

American researchers have created a prototype of glasses that automatically adjust the focus to what the wearer is looking at. The glasses are connected to a telephone via bluetooth, on which the user has to fill in his strengths.

The glasses are intended for people who need glasses for near and far, something that can now only be done by using two different glasses or getting ‘varifocal’ glasses that have a section at the bottom of the lenses for close-up focusing. The self-focusing glasses should appear on the market in about three years, the researchers at the American University of Utah think.

The glasses work via an infrared transmitter and receiver on the bridge of the nose, which continuously measures the distance to the object the user is looking at. The glasses contain lenses made of glycerine and devices in the glasses adjust the curvature of the lens as the distance to the object changes. By adjusting the curvature, the focal length also changes and, in theory, users can always see clearly.

The current prototype is large and cumbersome, but the researchers hope to be able to use the technology in a smaller design within three years. They created a company called SharpEyes to market the glasses. The researchers have published details about how the glasses work in the professional journal Optics Express.