Nowadays technology can replacehuman senses. New discoveries return vision to blind people, for example – and this was demonstrated by fully-functioning devices.

Scientists around the world are working hard on retina prostheses that people call „artificial eye“. The leading development in this category is called Argus II and the American company Second Sight has been set up, Martin Beltov from Smartnews.bg tells. The implant is worth $ 145,000 and is currently being used by about 80 people with vision impairment. Argus II is a two-part system: a retinal implant and a camera that is mounted in the eyeglass frames. The camera uses a small chip that handles the images it captures. They are sent wirelessly to the implant, which has 60 electrodes that transmit the data to the optic nerve. Unfortunately, the current state of Argus II allows only the contours of objects to be distinguished. Color vision is also not possible. Damaged cells in the retina do not allow colors to be seen, but the brain has the ability to adapt to Argus II. Over time, implant users have been able to read text (albeit in large letters), as well as crossing streets and boulevards on their own. The next generation of Argus will allow for color recognition as well as for more detailed images.

In Germany, a similar product is being developed in parallel. It is called Alpha IMS and is a complete artificial eye. Its sensor has 25 times more electrodes than Argus II and sends a signal directly to the optical nerve. The next step is to skip the „mediator“ – the eye, and create a device that works directly with the brain. This will allow to remove the limitation of interaction with damaged retinal cells. Such technology will give people with damaged retina (retinopathy) a greater chance of seeing. The future will surely give a chance to visually impaired people. There is even talk of adding extra features such as infrared vision. Source: https://vesti.bg/tehnologii/nauka-i-tehnika/mozhe-li-slepi-da-proglednat-chrez-tehnologiite-6029006