What's New in Eyeglass Lenses

Improve Your Golf Game in Varying Light Conditions

PALM HARBOR, Fla., June 2009 — If you're a golfer who wears multifocal lenses, new Definity Fairway Transitions SolFx lenses were designed to meet your needs, whether you're in the sun or the shade.

Definity lenses by Essilor of America have a multifocal design with Dual Add 2.0 Technology, which creates a fourth zone of vision for clearer vision when you look down.

In a study, golfers preferred Definity lenses by seven to one during course play. They reported less peripheral distortion, a 30 percent wider intermediate zone and smoother transitions between distance, intermediate and near vision zones.

In sun or shade, Definity Fairway Transitions SolFx lenses (left) are designed to improve contrast no matter the light conditions.

Essilor has paired the Definity lens with the SolFx sunglass technology by Transitions Optical. The sun-activated lenses adjust their degree of darkness to variable outdoor light conditions automatically, changing from amber to a darker brown and back again, as the light changes.

Contrast and depth perception improve, according to the company, so you can see the ball and the contour of the greens better.

Definity Fairway Transitions SolFx lenses also protect eyes against UV rays and come with Crizal Sun Mirror coatings to reduce back-side reflections and improve scratch resistance and cleanability.

Please click here to see a comparison with other sunglass lenses.

New Crizal Sun Lenses With Scotchgard Protector

DALLAS, April 2009 — Newly released Crizal Sun lenses with Scotchgard Protector provide freedom from annoying scratches and smudges, for optimal clarity.

The scratch-resistant layer has a slippery surface to reduce grease, dirt, smudges and water adhesion. A super-hydrophobic top coat allows for easy cleaning on both sides of the lenses; and a double-sided hard coat with glass-like silica particles heightens durability of the lenses.

Crizal Sun uses an anti-reflective technology on the backside of the lens to eliminate glare, reducing eye strain and discomfort. This is particularly important in bright environments where water, snow, sand and pavement may be present. The anti-reflective technology is not applied to the front side of the lens, so there is no undesirable color change. The lens coating technology also prevents peeling and fading over time.

Multifocal Lenses Enhance Intermediate Range

Power distribution in atLast! Enhanced Multifocals.

ROANOKE, Va., October 2008 — PixelOptics has incorporated an extra intermediate zone in new multifocal lenses that could aid computer users.

The lenses, atLast! Enhanced Multifocals, contain four zones for seeing at near, intermediate (18-20 inches), far-intermediate (29 inches to 5 feet) and distance ranges.

"We're confident atLast! will prove an excellent choice for computer users and serve as a second pair for progressive wearers seeking a lens that better meets the demand for intermediate vision," said Bill Spies, chief operating officer for PixelOptics.

Company officials say the lens is designed to eliminate obvious segment lines between zones, found in conventional bifocals and trifocals.

Gunnar Computer Lenses Designed To Reduce Eye Strain

SAN DIEGO, October 2008 — Non-prescription lenses by Gunnar Optiks include uniquely designed yellow tinting and anti-reflective coatings to reduce glare, ease eye muscle strain and create maximum comfort for computer users.

Gunnar's new i-AMP lens technology is incorporated into wraparound frames, to help maintain a more humid environment to moisten dry eyes common among computer users. Fifteen Gunnar styles come in four different collections, including the Sphere, Catalyst, Metallic and Attache.

The lenses are designed geometrically to intercept light rays entering the eye and optimize focusing ability.

According to Gunnar, yellow tinting helps reduce glare and eye fatigue, another common symptom of computer vision syndrome.

The lenses also optimize light transmission in environments such as offices, where harsh, fluorescent lighting is common.

Click here for a larger photo.

Eyeglass and Contact Lens Prescriptions Can Now Be Automated

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 2008 — Researchers say prescriptions for contact lenses and eyeglasses now can automatically and more precisely be determined with aberrometers.

These are instruments that produce wavefront measurements that can detect normal vision errors as well as abnormalities known as higher order aberrations (HOAs). Just as normal vision errors affect how the eye sees, so do HOAs.

Traditional eye exams usually aim to provide prescriptions for eyeglasses or contact lenses that can correct well known refractive errors such as nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.

A study reported in the Journal of Vision says a new model has been developed that can accurately and more precisely predict how prescriptions should be calculated to provide corrective lenses based on wavefront analysis of both normal refractive errors and HOAs.

The study by NASA Ames Research Center scientists also demonstrates that the new model for predicting vision correction outcomes based on wavefront analysis can be used for better accuracy in LASIK and other corrective vision surgery.

Outfitter 24 Safety Glasses Change Color Automatically

BYRON CENTER, Mich., December 2007 — Global Vision has introduced Outfitter 24 Safety Glasses, with anti-fog lenses that change tint from yellow to smoke while automatically adjusting to daylight or dark conditions.

Company officials say new photochromic technology provides darker shading than what is ordinarily available in polycarbonate, shatterproof lenses.

When the lens automatically lightens to yellow in darker conditions, the color provides improved depth perception, particularly on overcast days.

Outfitter 24 Safety Glasses can be worn over most regular prescription eyeglasses. Click here for a closeup photo.

Blue-Blocking Lenses May Improve Sleep

CLEVELAND, November 2007 — John Carroll University scientists in Cleveland have developed eyeglass lenses that block blue light as an aid for people who have difficulty falling asleep or sleeping through the night.

Researchers say sleep patterns are improved when people wear special glasses for a few hours before bedtime to block blue light rays, which delay melatonin production.

Melatonin is a hormone that helps induce sleep as part of the body's circadian rhythm or natural "biological clock."

Researchers also say blue-blocking glasses that help induce good sleep patterns have been shown to reduce symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Click here for a larger photo.

Coppertone Sunglasses Scheduled for Release in Early 2008

RAMSEY, Minn., October 2007 — Look for a February 2008 release of polarized sunglasses with the famous Coppertone brand name now associated with sun protection products for the skin.

The Coppertone brand will be teamed with the Vision-Ease Lens company's patented polarized sun lens technology that helps protect against high energy visible (HEV) light rays or "blue light." The polycarbonate lenses also will provide 100 percent protection against ultraviolet (UV) light and 97 percent protection from reflected glare.

Company officials say HEV light exposure may be associated with development of macular degeneration, a potentially blinding eye disease that affects many older Americans.

The Coppertone sunglass lenses, which also can be ordered as bifocals, will be available in brown or gray colors. Click here for a photo.

"Smart" Lenses Adapt by Changing Both Shade and Color

SEATTLE, March 2007 — University of Washington researchers say they have developed adjustable "smart" lenses that can change shading or coloring in varying conditions.

Experimental laboratory versions of new "smart lenses" some day may be converted to fashionable sunglasses that wearers can adjust to change both color and shading. (Photo courtesy of Chunye Xu, University of Washington)

"These lenses are more active, more intelligent, than today's sunglasses," said mechanical engineering research assistant professor Chunye Xu. "But because of the materials we're using, we don't think the price is going to be very different."

Researchers use electrochromic materials that enable changes in shading and color based on variations in electrical currents. While photochromic lenses change shading automatically in light or dark conditions, wearers of electrochromic lenses can make their own adjustments. Changes within the electrochromic lenses take place within just a few seconds.

Xu said commercial applications are being explored for the new "smart lenses," which could be available for retail sale in several years.

Progressive Lenses May Slow Myopia Progression
in Certain Children

BOSTON, March 2007 — A study has shown slower myopia progression in certain children who wear progressive-addition lenses (PALs), which establish zones for correcting vision at near, intermediate, and far ranges.

Traditionally, myopic children have worn single-vision eyeglass lenses that correct only blurry distance vision caused by nearsightedness.

The study conducted at various sites, including the New England College of Optometry, followed 232 myopic children ranging in ages from 11 to 16. With use of PALs, myopia progression was slower in the 87 children (37.5 percent) who each had two myopic parents.

Study results were published in the February 2007 issue of Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science.

Wavefront Technology in Progressive Lenses Sharpens Vision

LAS VEGAS, November 2006 — Progressive eyeglass lenses fabricated with wavefront technology significantly improved patient satisfaction, according to study results reported at the 2006 American Academy of Ophthalmology conference.

Progressive lenses provide near, intermediate, and distance correction in different lens zones for older people who develop presbyopia, usually noticed when near vision begins to blur. But with progressive lenses, adjustment problems can occur because the eye and brain automatically must "choose" the right zone for seeing at any given time. Also, some distortions may occur with conventional progressive lenses.

Most of the 609 people included in a study reported better vision when wavefront optics were used in progressive eyeglass lenses, said Marguerite McDonald, MD, of Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island in New York. In the study, 72 percent of patients reported better near vision with wavefront-optimized lenses, 67 percent reported better intermediate vision, and 65 percent reported better distance vision.

[Read more about wavefront lenses.]

New Lenses Can Darken Even When Drivers Are Behind Auto Windows

TORRANCE, Calif., October 2006 — Younger Optics (Torrance, Calif.), in cooperation with Transitions photochromic lenses, has introduced a new lens known as Drivewear, which can darken in bright conditions even when a driver is behind the shield of an automobile window.

These new photochromic lenses, which darken or lighten in response to lighting conditions, also contain polarizing features that protect eyes against bright, reflective surfaces and glare.

Younger Optics officials say that Drivewear lenses are the first with the capability of darkening when the wearer is behind the windshield of a car. Click here for closeup photos of how Drivewear works in various lighting conditions.

Eyeglass Lenses continued...

[Page updated June 2009]