The artificial eye

For years, restoring sight to the blind has been counted as nothing less than miraculous. Today, computer engineering, ophthalmology and biology are uniting in an effort to achieve just that. This article on bio-electronic vision or popularly, "the artificial eye" explains briefly how far the field has come and how far it has yet to go. The following topics are discussed: basic concepts; modeling the visual system; tracking the first visual prosthesis; cortical implants; ocular implants; people directly benefiting; next generation techniques.