Someone call 50 Cent. A Pittsburgh-based (say hi to Bruno Sammartino for me, guys) start-up called Dynamic Eye has developed a pair of LCD sunglasses that only work when they have to. The idea of dynamic lenses isn’t exactly new, but Dynamic Eye’s specific implementation is worth a mention.
The glasses are powered by an LCD and on-board camera tag team. The camera measures the amount of light entering the lens, and, most importantly, where the light is brightest, and then the LCD responds in kind, darkening and lightening where appropriate.
Whereas traditional polarized lenses will darken or lighten entirely, Dynamic Eye’s glasses will only darken the part of the lens where it’s brightest.
Dynamic Eye sez:
You can do what you want to do, look where you want to look, and see what you want to see. You no longer need to squint or tense up when you face the sun, or use the sunshade when driving. Instead of shifting to get your eyes in the shadow of your rearview mirror, you drive comfortably, confident that your sunglasses will protect you from the sun no matter where it appears.
Sounds genuinely useful, right? I’d say so. That’s why it’s a shame that the glasses aren’t in full production yet. It would seem the company could use a couple more dollars of funding before any of this fully sees the light of day. (See: puns can be fun for everyone!)