Lens innovations from Basel

Optiswiss AG is currently making headlines with its innovation: biometric progressive lenses. Their cooperation with Luxexcel is interesting for the VR and AR world. This involves 3D-printed smart spectacle lenses.

The acceptance of smart eyewear has been severely hampered by numerous challenges over the last ten years. Google can tell you a thing or two about this with Google Glass. But the issue is broader than that. To date, no truly innovative answer has been found for the production of data glasses for people who require prescription lenses. On the other hand, smartglasses still prioritise technology over looks.

Last autumn, the Basel-based company Optiswiss AG from Switzerland announced its cooperation with Luxexcel from the Netherlands in the production of 3D-printed smart spectacle lenses, which was intended to change this.

Accelerating the use of smart lenses

According to eyebizz, it remains to be seen how productive the cooperation with Luxexcel can become. The joint production of 3D-printed prescription lenses made in Switzerland is initially intended to accelerate the use of smart lenses. Luxexcel's newly developed VisionPlatform7, which is already in use in Basel and complements the pioneering, state-of-the-art production lines there, which are among the largest in Europe, serves as the basis. The platform enables many new fields of application for the production of different prescription lenses - for example for augmented reality - or self-tinting glasses.

For CEO André Zaugg, 3D-printed lenses are the blueprint for what the company should stand for:

"We have been working with Luxexcel for several years now. With VisionPlatform 7, we now have a digital production platform to manufacture lenses using state-of-the-art printing technology. Our aim is to achieve series production in the near future. Together with Luxexcel, we can develop innovative products and bring them to market in a short space of time. By utilising such innovative technologies, we will hopefully be able to offer our customers and business partners exciting products in the future and give them an edge over the competition."

VisionPlatform 7 is technology-independent, which means that manufacturers of smart glasses can integrate different types of AR-enabled technologies into the 3D-printed lenses. The lenses can therefore be customised to the customer's needs.

Fabio Esposito, CEO of Luxexcel, explains:

"The launch of VisionPlatform 7 marks the beginning of a new era in the manufacture of smart prescription lenses. More than 75 % of the world's adult population now require prescription lenses. Luxexcel offers a breakthrough solution that seamlessly combines smart technology with prescription eyewear instead of adding prescription to the device. Luxexcel accelerates the time-to-market of true consumer eyewear by enabling technology companies to manufacture smart prescription eyewear from the comfort of their own homes."

Source: eyebizz / 3d-grenzenlos