And The Blind Shall See: Bionic Eyes In Britain

For the first time in Britain two blind patients have been implanted with bionic eyes. The procedure was preformed at Moorfields Eye Hospital in central London last week and the two patients are said to be “doing well.”

Surgeons implanted an electronic device into the back of the eye to allow the patients to distinguish objects as pictures made up of spots of light.

The device works with a tiny camera mounted in a pair of glasses which transmits a wireless signal via a small processor on a belt into a receiver and a panel of electrodes placed in the back of the eye. Telegraph

When I first read about this, I envisioned a scene from Once Upon A Time In Mexico where Johnny Depp gets his eyes drilled out, but it appears that patients get to keep their original eyes. Early trials in America have shown progress, and the hope is that someday the procedure will enable the vision-impaired to lead independent lives.