Project description
Looking good with new fluid-filled doublets
Around the age of 40, the human eye starts to lose its ability to accommodate to and focus on short distances. This is what’s known as age-related loss of near vision (presbyopia). The EU-funded SEECLEAR project is developing adaptive eyeglasses for presbyopia correction. What sets these ones apart from other glasses is that they offer clear vision at all distances without levelling down aesthetic standards. How did the project do this? With a disruptive fluid-filled doublet-lens activated by low-power microfluidic actuators inserted in the eyeglass arms and driven by a miniature infrared distance sensor. The lens also offers a large field of view. Moreover, it is transparent and compatible with most lens shapes and frame styles.
Objective
Laclarée develops adaptive eyeglasses for presbyopia correction. Based on a patented technology, these eyeglasses offer presbyopes clear vision at all distances without levelling down aesthetic standards.
Presbyopia appears by age 40-45 with increasing difficulties to focus at near distances and affects 400 million people in Europe, Japan and North America. Progressive lenses, featuring a vertical gradient of optical power, are today the best compromise to presbyopia correction. Still about 10% of presbyopes are very unsatisfied with these lenses, experiencing a reduced quality of life.
Laclarée’s product has been designed to answer to this demand, corresponding to about 2 b€/y. Our solution relies on a disruptive fluid-filled doublet-lens activated by low-power microfluidic actuators inserted in the eyeglass arms and driven by a miniature infrared distance sensor. The lens offers a large field of view, is as transparent as any other ophthalmic lens and is compatible with most lens shapes and frame styles.
Laclarée’s team is highly motivated and gathers extensive skills in optics, microfluidic and vision science. The founder of Laclarée is an experienced entrepreneur, he has successfully established a world-leading company in variable optics for cameras.
The team has achieved the Proof of Concept, with a fully functional demonstrator, enabling a small scale trial with presbyopic people and raising a marked interest the ecosystem. Laclarée is preparing a seed round: a term sheet has been signed with one French and one German financial investors, discussions are ongoing with one industrial leader investor.
Laclarée would like to launch a feasibility study on the user interface: mode switching between automatic and manual operations is needed and making it natural and easy-to-use is a difficult task, considering the age of presbyopes and the constraints of the product. The success of this feasibility study is crucial for market acceptance of our eyeglasses.
Fields of science
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesclassical mechanicsfluid mechanicsmicrofluidics
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorsoptical sensors
- social scienceseconomics and businessbusiness and managemententrepreneurship
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesoptics
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
69008 LYON
France
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.