Neuroscientist Paul Bach-y-Rita hypothesized in the 1960s that “we see with our brains not our eyes.” Now, a new device trades on that thinking and aims to partially restore the experience of vision for the blind and visually impaired by relying on the nerves on the tongue’s surface to send light signals to the brain.
Legal blindness is defined by U.S. law as vision that is 20/200 or worse, or has a field of view that is less than 20 degrees in diameter. The condition afflicts more than one million Americans over the age of 40, according to the National Institutes of Health. Adult vision loss costs the country about $51.4 billion per year.
About two million optic nerves are required to transmit visual signals from the retina—the portion of the eye where light information is decoded or translated into nerve pulses—to the brain’s primary visual cortex. With BrainPort, the device being developed by neuroscientists at Middleton, Wisc.–based Wicab, Inc. (a company co-founded by the late Back-y-Rita), visual data are collected through a small digital video camera about 1.5 centimeters in diameter that sits in the center of a pair of sunglasses worn by the user. Bypassing the eyes, the data are transmitted to a handheld base unit, which is a little larger than a cell phone. This unit houses such features as zoom control, light settings and shock intensity levels as well as a central processing unit (CPU), which converts the digital signal into electrical pulses—replacing the function of the retina.
From the CPU, the signals are sent to the tongue via a “lollipop,” an electrode array about nine square centimeters that sits directly on the tongue. Each electrode corresponds to a set of pixels. White pixels yield a strong electrical pulse, whereas black pixels translate into no signal. Densely packed nerves at the tongue surface receive the incoming electrical signals, which feel a little like Pop Rocks or champagne bubbles to the user.
It remains unclear whether the information is then transferred to the brain’s visual cortex, where sight information is normally sent, or to its somatosensory cortex, where touch data from the tongue is interpreted, Wicab neuroscientist Aimee Arnoldussen says. “We don’t know with certainty,” she adds.
Scientific American (Thanks Berber)
Absolutely, genuinely fascinating!
The photo of the “lollypop” on the Scientific American site is so weird. Reminds me of a device I saw in a Jonathan Creek episode, where a man died while looking out his window. There were small holes in the floor under his bare feet, and when he stood at the window small metal pins were raised up into his feet to electrocute him.
I hope this lollypop doesn’t do the same thing!
wow no comments on a post? no people confused? no codes, nothing? I think people are getting tired :p
BTW, is that Fiddo in the picture the footballer from tricks of the mind s01e02?
part of me thinks that any progress to help people who suffer blindness is a positive thing, but a part of me wonders could they not have developed the technology for somewhere other than the tongue. its a bit impractical! i’m sure they’ll work it out though and hope they do!
That’s actually really cool…and kind of freaky. I have to admit though, the post scared me when it said 20/200 was legal blindness because I’m way above that. Then I looked it up and it’s 20/200 or worse after correction. Silly me.
wouldn.t it be cool if they invented sunglasses with sat nav and motion sensors in.
WOW! If it works then it is actually amazing!! Think of all the people it could eventually help!
As blind Psychologist who had to learn an AWFUL lot about vision science for his degree. SO I’m well aware how the visual cortex is mapped and can be remapped. I’m still saying nothanks, I’ll stick with my Guide Doggy if it’s all the same to these guys. :p
Too bad this might not become available to most blind people, even if they wished to have it. Lots of the latest technologies will never be available for ordinary people, with not lots of money. Take the artificial teeth .. the implants are still not available for everyone …..and there are no signs that this will change soon.
And that\’s only teeth, but concerns the whole population. Not to be compared with being blind ofcourse.
And the device wont work for all blind people either I guess. Certain structures have to be intact. And to others it might be an extra tool next to their ears, nose and guide dog. But that’s apart from the learning process. Childeren learn still way easier. Although things maybe different for a lot of blind people than for those who can see.
DIDN’T Read the article (yet), but the guy in the picture must be very popular with the ladies!