Designing an artificial eye using an electronically variable focal length lens

Session Details

Session Title: Presented Poster Session: Dry Eye and Inflammation

Session Date/Time: Monday 07/09/2015 | 15:00-16:30

Paper Time: 16:00

Venue: Poster Village: Pod 3

First Author: : J.Esteve-Taboada SPAIN

Co Author(s): :    A. Del Aguila-Carrasco   P. Bernal-Molina   N. Lopez-Gil   R. Montes-Mico     

Abstract Details

Purpose:

To design, build and test an artificial eye to be used as a research testing bed when studying the properties of the dynamics in the accommodative response of the human visual system.

Setting:

University of Valencia and University of Murcia, Spain

Methods:

The eye model consisted on an infrared LED (850 nm) illuminating a pinhole (1 mm) together with a diffuser acting as an active retina. A focal length tunable lens, based on an elastic polymer filled with fluid (EL-10-30-NIR-LD, Optotune-AG), allowed the change of the eye's accommodative state by means of electronic control. The lens was placed horizontally to avoid the induction of coma-like aberrations produced by the effect of gravity. The electrical current variations in the lens changed only its spherical power, thus its focal length could be accordingly tuned to the desired value within the controlled tuning range.

Results:

To characterize the accommodative artificial eye repeated wavefront measurements were taken. The refraction of the artificial eye was defined as the equivalent sphere provided by a commercially available wavefront sensor. The artificial eye changed its diopter range covering an accommodative amplitude of 14 D. Typical value of high-order aberrations RMS for 5 mm pupil was 0.1 microns. The artificial eye response was almost linear in all the electrical current interval, except for electrical currents greater than 280 mA. Increasing the current applied to the tunable lens beyond 280 mA had little effect in changing the shape of the elastic polymer.

Conclusions:

A new opto-mechanical eye model has been designed, assembled and characterized. Results indicated that it can be used as a tool to dynamically simulate the accommodative response of a human eye.

Financial Interest:

NONE