ScienceAlert Homepage

The bionic eye will help improve the
quality of life of many suffering from
impaired vision, by producing electrical
impulses simulating the natural visual cues
picked up by the retina.
Image: iStockphoto

Imagine not being able to cross a road by yourself, read a book and know what shirt you’re wearing. Yet these were the humble ambitions recently listed by a group of vision-impaired people during a focus group outlining the impact that restored vision would have on their lives.

The focus group was organised by Professor Jill Keeffe and her team at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA), University of Melbourne. The focus group was conducted to help refine functionality requirements for an advanced bionic eye being developed by the Bionic Vision Australia (BVA) consortium of which the University of Melbourne is a key member.

In December 2009, development of this advanced bionic eye was given a huge boost, with the Federal Government awarding $42 million to BVA. This funding boost will assist the team with its goal of carrying out the first human implant by 2013 at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital.

Research Director of Bionic Vision Australia and Professor of Engineering at the University of Melbourne, Professor Anthony Burkitt, says the BVA research program is ambitious but the team’s extensive expertise will make the goal achievable.

“The new device will be far superior to other retinal implants being investigated by groups throughout the world,” he says.

The new device will use a video camera - fixed to a patient’s glasses - to capture images which are then translated into electrical impulses that stimulate electrodes inserted into the retina. The resulting electrical impulses stimulate the same area of the retina usually activated by visual cues, and over time the patient learns to interpret these nerve signals as useful vision.

The Melbourne Materials Institute, based at the University of Melbourne, will also contribute its expertise to the project. Director of the Institute, Professor Steven Prawer, says MMI will provide solutions to the many challenges presented by creating a suitable coating for the microchip that will ensure its longevity and safety once implanted into the retina.

Head of the Macular Research Unit at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA), and Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Melbourne, Dr Robyn Guymer says the new device will greatly improve the lives of her patients.

“This advanced bionic eye will not only provide users with increased mobility and independence, but hopefully also enable them to recognise faces and read large print,” she says.

It is almost three decades since a team from the University developed the bionic ear, and Professor Burkitt says the same multi-disciplinary approach used by BVA – using biomedical engineers, clinical experts and neuroscientists from across the country – is the key to success with this development.

“To be successful, an implant must not only function reliably in terms of its electronics, it must also be made of biocompatible materials that will last the lifetime of the patient and it must also be possible for surgeons to implant the device without damaging either the device or the patient,” he says.

Professor Guymer says it is a very exciting time for researchers at Bionic Vision Australia, and says that the hard work by all members of the group will soon pay off when the device is functioning and improving the quality of life for thousands.

Bionic Vision Australia is a consortium including the University of Melbourne, the University of New South Wales, the Bionic Ear Institute, Centre for Eye Research Australia and the Victoria Research Laboratory of NICTA. The project is also supported by researchers from the Australian National University and the University of Western Sydney.