Abstract: A transmitter coil inductively couples to a receiver coil contained in a contact lens. In one approach, the transmitter coil is contained in a headgear, for example a head band. When the user wears the headgear, the transmitter coil is positioned on a side of the user's head and between the user's ear and the user's eye opening. In one implementation, a head band loops from one ear behind the user's head to the other ear, and also extends slightly forward of each ear. The transmitter coil(s) may be located in the portion of the headband that extends forward of each ear. This places the transmitter coil close to the receiver coil, typically within 40-50 mm of the user's eye opening, while still maintaining an unobtrusive aesthetic.

Abstract: A transmitter coil inductively couples to a receiver coil contained in a contact lens. In one approach, the transmitter coil is contained in a headgear, for example a head band. When the user wears the headgear, the transmitter coil is positioned on a side of the user's head and between the user's ear and the user's eye opening. In one implementation, a head band loops from one ear behind the user's head to the other ear, and also extends slightly forward of each ear. The transmitter coil(s) may be located in the portion of the headband that extends forward of each ear. This places the transmitter coil close to the receiver coil, typically within 40-50 mm of the user's eye opening, while still maintaining an unobtrusive aesthetic.

Abstract: A system controls a brightness of an augmented reality (AR) eye-mounted device. The system includes an eye-mounted display, a photodetector system, and a controller. The eye-mounted display includes a contact lens and a femtoprojector. The femtoprojector is contained in the contact lens and is configured to project an AR image to a user's retina. The AR image is overlaid on an external scene viewed by the user through the contact lens. The photodetector system detects a brightness level of the external scene. Based on the brightness level of the external scene, the controller adjusts a brightness level of the AR image projected to the user's retina. In some embodiments, the eye-mounted display receives image data defining the AR image and the controller adjusts a bit depth of the image data based on the brightness level of the AR image.

Abstract: A variety of femtoprojector optical systems are described. Each of them can be made small enough to fit in a contact lens using plastic injection molding, diamond turning, photolithography and etching, or other techniques. Most, but not all, of the systems include a solid cylindrical transparent substrate with a curved primary mirror formed on one end and a secondary mirror formed on the other end. Any of the designs may use light blocking, light-redirecting, absorbing coatings or other types of baffle structures as needed to reduce stray light.

Abstract: A variety of femtoprojector optical systems are described. The optical bodies for the systems may be made in batches by wafer-level optics. Each individual system may be made small enough to fit in a contact lens. In some designs, the optical systems include a solid transparent body with a curved primary mirror, a secondary mirror, an entrance window, an exit window, and at least one groove. The grooves function as a light trap that reduces the amount of stray light exiting the body of the optical system. The grooves may also create a snap point which allows removal of individual bodies from the wafer through controlled breakage. The designs may also include various light blocking, light-redirecting, absorbing coatings, or other types structures to reduce stray light.

Abstract: An unobtrusive augmented reality (AR) system can be used to assist the wearer in every day interactions by projecting information from the contact lens display onto the retina of the wearer's eye. The unobtrusive augmented reality system includes a necklace and a contact lens display that are unobtrusive to the wearer and the wearer's surrounding environment. The necklace of the unobtrusive augmented reality system generates power and data for the contact lens displays. The necklace and contact lens display include conductive coils inductively coupled by a magnetic field. The inductive coupling allows data and power generated by the necklace to be transferred to the contact lens display. A projector in the contact lens display projects images generated from the data onto the retina of the wearers eye.

Abstract: An eye-mounted device includes a contact lens, a femtocamera, and a femtoprojector. The femtocamera and femtoprojector are both contained in the contact lens. The femtocamera detects imagery of a user's surrounding environment, and the femtoprojector projects corresponding imagery to the user's retina. A line of sight of the femtocamera and a line of projection of the femtoprojector can be parallel to, or even collinear with, each other. Imagery signal paths from the femtocamera to the femtoprojector are also contained in the contact lens. In some embodiments, the imagery signal paths are register-less and asynchronous. The eye-mounted device can include other components, such as image processing circuitry. Also, the eye-mounted device can communicate with another device worn by the user, e.g., in a necklace or a headpiece.

Abstract: An eye-mounted device includes a contact lens and an embedded imaging system. The front aperture of the imaging system faces away from the user's eye so that the image sensor in the imaging system detects imagery of a user's external environment. The optics for the imaging system has a folded optical path, which is advantageous for fitting the imaging system into the limited space within the contact lens. In one design, the optics for the imaging system is based on a two mirror design, with a concave mirror followed by a convex mirror.

Abstract: A variety of femtoprojector optical systems are described. Each of them can be made small enough to fit in a contact lens using plastic injection molding, diamond turning, photolithography and etching, or other techniques. Most, but not all, of the systems include a solid cylindrical transparent substrate with a curved primary mirror formed on one end and a secondary mirror formed on the other end. Any of the designs may use light blocking, light-redirecting, absorbing coatings or other types of baffle structures as needed to reduce stray light.

Abstract: A contact lens having a cap, core, and base forming three layers to allow for the contact lens to be thick enough to accommodate a payload, while ensuring sufficient oxygenation of the wearer's eye. The cap and base are each a thin layer of gas-permeable material, each shaped to form an air gap between them and the core. The two air gaps are connected by air passages that traverse the core. Oxygen from an outside environment passes through the gas-permeable cap to reach the outer air gap, through the air passages to the inner air gap, and through the gas-permeable base to reach the cornea of the wearer's eye. The cap may be annular in form, having a center hole such that the cap does not extend over the central zone of the core, reducing a thickness of the contact lens.

Abstract: An unobtrusive augmented reality (AR) system can be used to assist the wearer in every day interactions by projecting information from the contact lens display onto the retina of the wearer's eye. The unobtrusive augmented reality system includes a necklace and a contact lens display that are unobtrusive to the wearer and the wearer's surrounding environment. The necklace of the unobtrusive augmented reality system generates power and data for the contact lens displays. The necklace and contact lens display include conductive coils inductively coupled by a magnetic field. The inductive coupling allows data and power generated by the necklace to be transferred to the contact lens display. A projector in the contact lens display projects images generated from the data onto the retina of the wearers eye.

Abstract: A method for customizing active contact lenses, such as contact lens displays, for a plurality of wearers includes the following: Contact lens precursors are obtained for a plurality of wearers. The contact lens precursors include active electronics. The same contact lens precursors are used as a starting point to generate active contact lenses for many different individuals, but they are processed into active contact lenses that are customized for each individual wearer.

Abstract: An eye-mounted device includes a contact lens and an embedded imaging system. The front aperture of the imaging system faces away from the user's eye so that the image sensor in the imaging system detects imagery of a user's external environment. The optics for the imaging system has a folded optical path, which is advantageous for fitting the imaging system into the limited space within the contact lens. In one design, the optics for the imaging system is based on a two mirror design, with a concave mirror followed by a convex mirror.

Abstract: A system controls a brightness of an augmented reality (AR) eye-mounted device. The system includes an eye-mounted display, a photodetector system, and a controller. The eye-mounted display includes a contact lens and a femtoprojector. The femtoprojector is contained in the contact lens and is configured to project an AR image to a user's retina. The AR image is overlaid on an external scene viewed by the user through the contact lens. The photodetector system detects a brightness level of the external scene. Based on the brightness level of the external scene, the controller adjusts a brightness level of the AR image projected to the user's retina. In some embodiments, the eye-mounted display receives image data defining the AR image and the controller adjusts a bit depth of the image data based on the brightness level of the AR image.

Abstract: In one approach to eye tracking, a contact lens contains a network of twelve accelerometers. The accelerometers are positioned within the contact lens so that the measurements of acceleration can be used to estimate a position and an orientation of the eye relative to an external reference frame. One advantage of accelerometers is that they can be made relatively small and do not require much power. However, because the contact lens has a curved shape and is relatively thin, the possible locations for the accelerometers are limited. Various geometries for the accelerometer network and approaches to optimizing these geometries are described.

Abstract: An eye-mounted device includes a contact lens and an embedded camera, which for convenience will be referred to as a femtocamera. The front aperture of the femtocamera faces away from the user's eye so that the image sensor in the femtocamera detects imagery of a user's external environment. The femtocamera optics has a folded optical path, which is advantageous for fitting the femtocamera into the limited space within the contact lens. In one design, the optics for the femtocamera is based on a two mirror design, with a concave mirror followed by a convex mirror. In an alternate design, the optics for the camera includes an imaging lens near the front aperture.

Abstract: An augmented reality system including a necklace and a contact lens display can be used to project information from the contact lens display onto the retina of the wearer's eye. In one example, the necklace generates a time-varying magnetic field (TVMF) that provides energy and information to the contact lens display via inductive coupling. The necklace can be configured to minimize the amount of energy absorbed by the body of the wearer while maintaining power transfer to the contact lens display. In one example, the necklace includes multiple conductive coils generating constructively interfering TVMs to effectively transmit energy while reducing the amount of energy absorbed by the human body. In another example, the necklace includes a parasitic coil generating a destructively interfering TVMF and a magnetic shield to effectively transmit energy while reducing the amount of energy absorbed by the human body.

Abstract: An eye-mounted device includes a contact lens and an embedded camera, which for convenience will be referred to as a femtocamera. The front aperture of the femtocamera faces away from the user's eye so that the image sensor in the femtocamera detects imagery of a user's external environment. The femtocamera optics has a folded optical path, which is advantageous for fitting the femtocamera into the limited space within the contact lens. In one design, the optics for the femtocamera is based on a two mirror design, with a concave mirror followed by a convex mirror. In an alternate design, the optics for the camera includes an imaging lens near the front aperture.

Abstract: A system controls a brightness of an augmented reality (AR) eye-mounted device. The system includes an eye-mounted display, a photodetector system, and a controller. The eye-mounted display includes a contact lens and a femtoprojector. The femtoprojector is contained in the contact lens and is configured to project an AR image to a user's retina. The AR image is overlaid on an external scene viewed by the user through the contact lens. The photodetector system detects a brightness level of the external scene. Based on the brightness level of the external scene, the controller adjusts a brightness level of the AR image projected to the user's retina. In some embodiments, the eye-mounted display receives image data defining the AR image and the controller adjusts a bit depth of the image data based on the brightness level of the AR image.

Abstract: An eye-mounted display is used to enhance vision of a user with visual impairment. Images of a user's unimpaired view of a surrounding environment are captured. These image are modified to compensate for the user's visual impairment. For example, the captured images can be magnified, an angular extent of the captured images can be compressed, or a contrast of the captured images can be enhanced. Also, the captured images can be modified by including identification of an object, a face, or an emotion. For a captured image including text, the text in the captured images can be modified. The eye-mounted display projects the compensated images onto the user's retina. When the user's retina has a damaged section, the eye-mounted display projects the compensated images away from the damaged section.