Facilitation of contact lenses with capacitive sensors
View Patent ↗Apparatus, systems and methods employing contact lens with capacitive sensors are provided. In some aspects, a contact lens includes: a substrate; a capacitive sensor, disposed on or within the substrate, that senses a capacitance on the contact lens; and a circuit disposed on or within the substrate. In some aspects, the circuit can include a capacitance analysis component that determines a condition of an eyelid associated with the eye over which the contact lens is disposed and/or a parameter associated with the eye over which the contact lens is disposed. In some aspects, the condition can be a blink of an eyelid. In some aspects, the parameter can be at least one of a pressure of an object in proximity to the contact lens, a thickness or type of a layer of material disposed on or within the contact lens or a composition of material on the contact lens.
1. An apparatus, comprising:
a contact lens, comprising:
a substrate;
a capacitive sensor, disposed on or within the substrate, that senses capacitance on the contact lens; and
a circuit disposed on or within the substrate that determines information indicative of the capacitance from the capacitive sensor and comprising a capacitance analysis component that determines an amount or composition of tear fluid in contact with the contact lens, based on the sensed capacitance.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the capacitive sensor is a capacitive proximity sensor.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the capacitive sensor is a capacitive pressure sensor.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the circuit comprises a communication component that:
transmits the information to a reader.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the circuit further comprises a capacitance analysis component that determines a condition of an eyelid associated with an eye over which the contact lens is disposed.
6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the condition comprises a blink of the eyelid.
7. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the condition comprises an orientation of the contact lens.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a reader that receives information transmitted from the contact lens.
9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the circuit further comprises a communication component that at least one of: transmits the information to the reader or receives information from a source external to the contact lens.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the circuit further comprises a processing component that performs an action on the contact lens based, at least, on the information indicative of the capacitance.
11. A method, comprising:
using a sensor on a contact lens to detect capacitance;
determining change in the capacitance;
determining or inferring a change in condition of an eye based on the change in the capacitance; and
determining, based on the detected capacitance, an amount or composition of tear fluid in contact with the contact lens.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the capacitance is detected in response to proximity of an object to the contact lens.
13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the capacitance is detected in response to at least one of a presence of a material sensed on the contact lens, or pressure on the contact lens.
14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the parameter is a pressure of an object in proximity to the contact lens.