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In South Korea, researchers have succeeded in developing contact lenses with a small screen that can display various information in augmented reality, thanks to an unprecedented 3D printing phenomenon.
Researchers from Korea Institute of Electrotechnical Research (KERI) and Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology have developed a new smart contact lens 3D printing technology.
These intelligent lenses, which are placed in contact with the eye, can provide several pre-printed information which is displayed using a slight electrical impulse. They have an electrochromic screen. This means that pre-printed elements may appear as a result of an electrochemical reaction.
To achieve such a result, these South Korean researchers projected a chemical compound, Prussian blue, onto the screen. The feat is to have succeeded in printing these micro-patterns using a 3D printer which crystallized the Prussian blue on a support which is not flat. This process should in the future contribute to the miniaturization of augmented reality devices, knowing that the micro-patterns obtained here are only 7.2 micrometers thick.
As part of lenses, custom models could very well help with orientation in space or playing certain video games. It is however for the moment only a prototype in the laboratory and it is not yet possible to trade it.