Jun 18, 2009 9:03 pm US/Eastern
Device, Researched In Pittsburgh, Helps Blind See
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ―
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Corporal Michael Jernigan demonstrates the Brainport.
KDKA
We never appreciate what we have until we lose it.
That's what philanthropist Louis Fox said this morning at a press conference.
The merchant banker and trader, who lost eyesight himself, has given a multi-million grant to the Center for Restorative Vision of UPMC.
The dean of Pitt's medical school Arthur Levine says it's the first center dedicated to restoring sight to the blind - case in point - Corporal Michael Jernigan.
Five years ago, while serving in Iraq a roadside bomb took his eyes, among other things.
"My entire forehead was crushed, basically from here, all the way down to the bridge of my nose," he shows, bringing a palm to his forehead and pointing to a scar extending from ear to ear.
Reconstructive surgery gave him back a forehead, but not his sight.
"I came back from Iraq and they gave me a stick, a stick and a tap on the butt, and said, 'Go ahead,'" Jernigan says disappointedly.
"Mike is Marine. He's not a quitter," Maj. Gen. (retired) Gale Pollock remarks emphatically. She is the executive director for the new center. She told him about a device called the Brainport to help him regain some sort of vision. At first, he was skeptical, but then excited.
"I've got hope again, and it's wonderful," says Jernigan.
The camera on the glasses converts images to electrical impulses he can feel on his tongue like champagne bubbles. The brain then interprets these impulses as objects. It's similar to Braille -- where bumps felt by the fingertips are interpreted as words by the brain.
Of course, this is just a research prototype -- simple shapes and outlines are all he can pick up.
"You don't really see. I think one of the common misconceptions with the Brainport is that it gives the blind sight. I don't get that picture in my head, that I used to get when I was using my eyeballs," Jernigan explains.
The current version is best for stationary objects. He hopes future models would help him move around and walk down the street, for instance.
"This adaptive technology is not the end all be all but it is an awesome thing to have in the interim," he remarks.
There are two research protocols -- one for military personnel, and one for non-military.
The device is made in Madison, Wisconsin, but research on it is taking place here in Pittsburgh at the McGowen Institute.
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