The Mojo Vision smart contact lens was previously developed but development was halted due to various issues such as short battery life. Researchers in Singapore have solved this power source issue with their smart contact lenses using tear-powered batteries.
Researchers from Nanyang Technological University used a battery with a glucose oxidase enzyme. When this enzyme interacts with tears on the surface of the eye it will produce an electric current. In tests in the laboratory a current of up to 45 microamperes and a maximum power of 201 microwatts have been recorded. This, according to researchers, is enough for the power requirements of a smart contact lens to transmit data for up to 12 hours a day.
Each battery is only 0.5mm thick which makes it not very thick when used on contact lenses. In science fiction contact lenses like this will replace smartphones in the future.
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