Phosphene vision: development of a portable visual prosthesis system for the blind

There exists mounting evidence that the realization of a visual prosthesis for the blind is now a question of 'when' rather than a question of 'if'. In light of the encouraging results of the handful of research teams working towards chronic implantation of epi-retinal neurostimulators, it is now prudent to consider means to facilitate testing of such a device clinically. The present paper describes the work of the authors towards devising a truly portable visual prosthesis through the use of embedded systems control in conjunction with the authors' ongoing work in implantable neuroprostheses. The hardware is described and benchmarked from image acquisition to delivery of stimulus, achieving performance greater than 840 stimulation events per second.