Adjustable glasses

(The Boston Globe, November 11, 2013)

Many Americans with poor vision can ill afford to pay hundreds of dollars for a spare pair of eyeglasses. In developing countries such as Rwanda, millions can’t afford glasses at all. Adlens, a British company that recently opened its US headquarters in Boston, thinks it has a solution to both problems by making two types of user-adjustable eyeglasses. The cheaper version uses “Alvarez lens” technology, using two lenses per eyepiece. The newly developed technology includes a liquid-filled membrane laminated between two layers of hard plastic. Turning a knob pressurizes the liquid and flexes the lens, adjusting its focus. Next year, Adlens will enter the mainstream market, planning to donate a pair of the plastic glasses to someone in Rwanda every time it makes a sale.