USC scientists are preparing to test a retinal implant with four times the resolution of previous models. The implant will aid those suffering from retinal-degeneration diseases, which cause a loss of the cells that enable the eye to transfer light information to the brain. A wireless camera mounted on a pair of glasses worn by the user captures and transmits visual information to the implant -- a chip with 60 "hair-thin" electrodes -- which, when implanted in the retina, transmits the signals to the eye's neural cells. The implant will let patients distinguish between simple objects, but is just precursor to the next model, which will boast 500 electrodes and improve resolution by a factor of almost 10.
Next-Generation Retinal Implant [Technology Review]
