Google has a new patent, and privacy activists aren’t especially happy. The technology company is pushing for a new contact lens that carries a tiny little embedded camera — a touted benefit for society that could help visually impaired wearers avoid hazardous objects and stretch their peripheral vision, researchers said.
Google filed the patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office last month, Digital Trends reported, crediting the blog Patent Bolt with making the discovery.
The new device is made up of a control circuit, a camera and an image sensor, and could be powerful enough to help even a blind person who’s approaching a busy intersection, Digital Trends reported.
How? The device could send audio messages to the user’s smartphone and advise when it’s safe to cross the street, the media outlet explained.
Privacy advocates, however, are on edge and say the company could expand on the technology to allow the user to take photos or videos — or tap into a facial-recognition system — with the blink of an eye, Digital Trends said.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.