Hybrid Microenergy Harvesters for Smart Contact Lenses

Smart electronic contact lenses typically integrate communications modules, electronic circuitry, sensors and an energy storage reservoir. These smart contact lenses can be used in medical applications that include monitoring patient glucose and intraocular pressure (IOP). However, due to the health hazards associated with chemical batteries, as well as the inconvenience of consistently charging the energy storage reservoir, a sustainable and reliable energy harvesting system is required. Therefore, the aim of this research is to design and develop an optimised harvester for a contact lens application. In fact, this paper introduces a novel hybrid microenergy harvester concept, which aims to produce sufficient electricity to power an electronic contact lens using light and electromagnetic radiation that are scavenged from photovoltaic cells and radio frequency technology.