Saturday September 12, 2009, 5:20 am
The company, eSight Corp., received a $500,000 grant from the Ontario government this week to develop its evSpex product as part of a special $4.5 million fund to help 10 start-up companies bring products to market.

The device, which resembles a pair of large sunglasses, has a high-resolution camera on the outside and tiny LCD screens on the inside that project images to the wearer's eyes.

Before the image is projected, it's custom-processed by a tiny computer, said company president Rob Hilkes.

"So that when it's presented to a person who has diseased eyes … it's presented to the pieces of their vision that are most functional," he added.

Réjean Munger, a senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute who helped develop the glasses, said that can help people with a variety of diseases.

"We can take advantage of every bit of vision they have," he said.

The company hopes to start commercial production next year.
Sister of company chairman inspiration for glasses

The glasses have a camera in the front and LCD screens on the inside that transmit images to the eyes. They are customized to maximize a user's remaining vision.The glasses have a camera in the front and LCD screens on the inside that transmit images to the eyes. They are customized to maximize a user's remaining vision. (Simon Gardner/CBC)Anne Lewis, who is legally blind as a result of Stargardt's disease, has been testing the prototype and is very excited about it.

"I see this product as a gift; I truly do," she said at the news conference announcing the funding.

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Sunday September 13, 2009, 4:14 pm
This product would be a gift to those with visual impairments. Thank you, Karen for this story. It seems to be a promising invention.

Tuesday September 15, 2009, 3:55 am
Please remember that this is "assisting" those with low vision. They DO NOT take the place of good training, learning Braille, or pursuing other avenues for adjusting to blindness (or low vision).

It is a step that's needed, but not all low vision people will benefit from, or have a chance to be helped by them.

Thanks for the article. It's great to keep up on what technology is doing for the visually impaired.

Tuesday September 15, 2009, 8:11 am
Thannxxx.. am sure that this will be a blessing for those that battle with tehir eye sight.. giving them a better quiality o life