GADGET: Google’s planning to put cameras in your eyes!

Google Glass isn’t the only futuristic eyewear that the search giant is working on, as back in January, we spotted that the secretive Google X Labs is working on a smart contact lens that could save your life. But now the Mountain View-based giant has another smart contact lens in the works – and it could put cameras in your eyes! Is this the next-gen version of Google Glass?

According to Patent Bolt, Google has filed a new patent application for a contact lens that comes with embedded cameras for a range of various uses, including photographing what the user is seeing, as well as being an assistive device for the visually impaired.

This new system could also use the built-in cameras to spot obstacles in the way of the viewer, such as cars in the road, and when combined with a smartphone, it could alert you if it’s safe or not to cross the road. If you have healthy vision, Google’s new contact lens can still assist you: for example, processed image data could be presented onto a display in the lens, such as giving you a quick heads-up with an LED if cars could potentially behazardous. It could be used as a built-in pair of binoculars, letting you zoom in on objects without having to lug a pair around with you, making it perfect for gigs and events. You could also imagine that this lens could be the future of Google Glass, and you won’t have to wear a pair of glasses to be embedded with futuristic tech – it’ll be right in your eyeballs instead. For better or worse.

Of course, big tech companies apply for patents all the time, and not all of them make it to reality – but with the way that Google’s developing its Glass platform and its current health-oriented contact lens, this camera-infused contact lens could be a future reality, for both the vision impaired and for geeky tech fans. Would you want to see this hit the shops?