When L/Cpl Craig Lundberg of the British armed forces, serving in Iraq in the year 2007 was hit by a rocket propelled grenade, he lost his eyesight and couldn’t imagine being able to ever see again. However, with the help of revolutionary breakthrough in medical science, Craig is now able to read words, identify shapes and even walk without any support, thanks to a Brainport device that, allows him to see with the help of his tongue.
The all new Brainport device essentially is made up of a small video camera, that is attached to sunglasses, that in turn is then calibrated with a a plastic “lolly pop”, that is placed on the user’s tongue. This device then converts the visual images to electrical impulses pattern, that are delivered to the user’s tongue.
Craig Lundberg was picked up by the Ministry of Defense for this one of a kind experimental project and is currently formulating plans to buy the Brainport device for $27,518 and will initiate training programs on this device for other similar cases as well.
According to Craig Lundberg,
“You get lines and shapes of things, it sees in
black and white so you get a two dimensional image on your tongue, it’s
a bit like a pins and needles sensation. It’s only a prototype, but the
potential to change my life is massive, it’s got a lot of potential to
advance things for blind people. One of the things it has enabled me to
do is pick up objects straight away, I can reach out and pick them up
when before I would be fumbling around to feel for them.”
