Proof of concept - Assistive technology for visual field loss

In 2015, 2 million people were living with sight-loss, costing the UK economy £28 billion.

Approximately 24% of the sight-loss population have visual field loss (VFL), a type of impairment that can occur following stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI).

There are 100,000 stroke and 160,000 TBI survivors annually in the UK, where 20% [1,2] and 10% [3] of those (respectively) also acquire VFL. Other causes of VFL include macular degeneration, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy.

Unlike impairments of acuity (i.e., refractive errors or cataracts) rehabilitation or restoration of visual fields is not currently possible. The damage is usually permanent and care is limited [2].

A few technologies support visual field loss, but can be expensive [4] and disorienting due to magnification, minification or distortion of the field of view [2]. There is an unmet need for affordable, non-disorienting and effective wearable assistive technologies for VFL [5].

Our proof-of-concept Virtual Reality software has shown positive results expanding the field of view (without image distortion), in a control population with simulated VFL.

Funding is now required to evidence that the solution is a valid, effective and commercially viable intervention that allows people with VFL to be independently mobile.

Three activities are planned, 1) obtain evidence that the proof-of-concept for field expansion is effective for VFL, 2) evaluate the digital readiness and adoption rate from potential users, 3) provide users an opportunity for early co-development.

Involving people with VFL in the co-design at this early stage of development de-risks the innovation, by increasing the likelihood of producing a technology that is fit for use by people with VFL.

Furthermore, while market research suggests that assistive technologies are too expensive for the visually impaired, it is unclear what people consider affordable, and what fears they may have using wearable technologies.