Product: 32°N
Top Line: DeepOptics, an Israeli startup company developing liquid crystal tunable lens technology and dynamic focal glasses, announced the launch of its new product, 32°N (pronounced 32 North), the first and only adaptive focus sunglasses, on Kickstarter. Designed for presbyopes, 32°N sunglasses enable wearers to select several different reading magnification powers with a single pair of glasses.
Close Up: 32°N can dynamically correct for reading while serving as functional sunglasses. The glasses mimic natural human vision, allowing users to seamlessly switch between “reading mode” for near vision and “scenic mode” for far distances with a simple swipe. This eliminates the need to switch between sunglasses and reading glasses while overcoming the limitations of progressive lenses and bifocals.
“We are on a mission to improve human vision through dynamic optics,” said Yariv Haddad, the CEO and co-founder of DeepOptics. “Presbyopia is a problem that affects a great many people, for much of the time. 32°N is the first product of several on our roadmap. It was developed to provide a seamless technological solution to a problem facing many users. We believe the fastest way to get our tech into the hands of consumers who can benefit from it was crowdfunding on Kickstarter.”
Vital Stats: 32°N sunglasses feature pixelated liquid crystal (LC) layers that are split into tiny pixels, capable of rotation at every point of the panel. When the user swipes, they activate the tiny processor embedded in the glasses’ temple. The processor calculates the user’s personal data and sends that data to form the desired lens prescription. Millions of tiny pixels inside the lens change their electrical state according to the new data to form the lens and bring the close object into focus. Completely silent, and without any extra weight or moving parts, DeepOptics’ LC lens enables an unlimited number of dynamic, high-quality lenses that can be changed at any moment.
The wearer’s initial reading magnification power is determined through a simple set-up process using a special phone app. The distance between centers of active lenses can be controlled and changed according to the wearer’s inter-pupilary-distance (IPD). The IPD can be modified for different viewing conditions.
The 32°N's magnification ranges from 0-2 diopters. Wearers can define a special mode that goes up to +5D (in a limited part of the active lens) that operates like a magnifying glass.
Similar to mobile phones or Bluetooth earbuds, each full charge of 32°N lasts for a full day.
Investors of DeepOptics include EssilorLuxottica and Samsung Ventures.
“Essilor has been proud to partner with Deep Optics for several years in developing smart eyewear solutions that adapt to the user’s environment and needs,” said Denis Cohen-Tannoudji, senior vice president smart vision solutions at Essilor. “We are pleased with the company’s rollout of 32°N and happy to support this project with our engineering and design know-how.”
www.deepoptics.com