While there are both flexible solar panels, and small solar panels, there hasn’t yet been a wearable that has implemented this sort of energy technology, let alone on something a tiny as a contact lens. Google has been awarded a patent for a wearable communication device, shaped like a contact lens, with sensors, memory and a microprocessor. This would be the first wearable to implement the energy technology used in small and flexible solar panels. The patent, which was granted on May 19, 2013, covers an array of sensors that could detect when someone is wearing the device or even if they are not wearing it. The lens could send information to another device about the wearer’s temperature or blood-alcohol level. It could sense allergens and “hazardous materials” in the air, communicate with computers and mobile devices, and read information such as price tags. As always with patent issuances, a production-run is not guaranteed, but the design extends another Google lens project, which helps diabetics track glucose levels and charges through radio frequency.
Google has been awarded a patent for a wearable communication device, shaped like a contact lens, with sensors, memory and a microprocessor. This would be the first wearable to implement the energy technology used in small and flexible solar panels. The patent, which was granted on May 19, 2013, covers an array of sensors that could detect when someone is wearing the device or even if they are not wearing it. The lens could send information to another device about the wearer’s temperature or blood-alcohol level. It could sense allergens and “hazardous materials” in the air, communicate with computers and mobile devices, and read information such as price tags. As always with patent issuances, a production-run is not guaranteed, but the design extends another Google lens project, which helps diabetics track glucose levels and charges through radio frequency.