Paper Title
A Study on the Simulation of Visual Prosthesis for the Restoration of Functional Vision to the Blind
Abstract
Persons suffering with Retinitis Pigmentosa , Age-related Macular Degeneration leads to vision impairment. Loss
of vision pose both social and technological challenges which has an overpowering influence on the quality of life and blunts
one’s propensity to function independently.Because of this they suffer from pain, depression and ultimately they feel
humiliated. So, the persons with such weaknesses and impairments are often prescribed for corneal transplantation, eye
surgery like laser in-situ keratomileusis, photorefractive keratectomy but with the recent development in nanotechnology ,
research scholars and scientists have come up with a new idea which can restore vision to some extent and make living easier
for the blind people.. These devices generally known as visual prosthesis or bionic eye are designed to assist in restoring and
improving the vision. Designs of three optoelectronic retinal prosthesis (Artificial Silicon Retina ,MARC systemand Argus II)
which detect light and convert it into electrical impulses which are processed and sent via the optic nerve to the brain. But all
these efforts end in vain when the optic nerve is damaged which is the main limitation of the existing devices.Therefore in this
research paper, it was decided to study the simulation of visual prosthesis for the restoration of functional vision to the blind by
finding an alternative technique to replace the functional property of the optic nerve when damaged and creating a ray of hope
to the visionless people around the globe.
Keywords- Retinitis Pigmentosa(RP), Age related Macular Degeneration(AMD), Artificial Silicon Retina, MARC, optic
nerve damage, Vision impairment, Blindness, Corneal transplantation, eye surgery.