Samsung Files Patent For Smart Contact Lenses

In 2014 Samsung filed patent number 1020140129517.  The patent application was titled, “Smart contact lens for augmented reality and methods of manufacturing and operating the same.”  Yesterday it was published and made available to the public.  The patent is written completely in Korean but thanks to Google Translate and our friends at SamMobile we are able to see a bit of what is being worked on.

The patent indicates that the Smart Contact Lens (possibly the Gear Blink?) will come with a various sensors, an antenna and a built-in display.  The display will project images directly in to the eye to give a complete augmented reality beyond what you can do with today’s virtual reality headsets.  It will be controlled by some of the sensors detecting blinks and the closing of your eyes.

The contacts will need a separate smart device that will handle the processing of data and complex tasks.

When Google Glass first came out it came with a lot of privacy concerns, and not too long after it was released the term “Glassholes” was coined.  With lenses like these it will be much easier to invade someone’s privacy and the concerns that were expressed over Google Glass.  It will be interesting to see what comes about if these contact lenses are ever released.

To me there is an unanswered question that is much more important than the privacy concerns.  Since you will be wearing these contacts directly on your eyes, what happens when you close them?  Do you still see the projected images?  It gives a whole new meaning to counting sheep when you are trying to go to bed!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Source Links: SamMobile | Kipris.or.kr