The perfect surface – lenses between human and machine The EssilorLuxottica Group operates hundreds of ophthalmic lens production facilities worldwide. Some of them are located in Europe, and one plant is even in the middle of Germany. For 80 years, high-quality ophthalmic lenses have been manufactured in Braunschweig.
Based on 20 years of experience, a world-renowned Japanese manufacturer has completed a fully
automated dry tinting system. The digital tinting method works completely differently compared to
traditional dipping and is said to have a number of advantages in terms of productivity, environmental
impact, and material versatility as a result.
Without doubt, the most significant development in spectacle lens design is the change in the
manufacturing process from lapping to computer numerically controlled milling methods usually
referred to as freeform or digital surfacing. The first part of this paper is designed to remind you of the principles of design which have led to the modern personalized and optimized progressive power lens.
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The process of measuring the position of the spectacles frame in relation to a user’s face and pupils is called the centering process. Its purpose is to provide the optician with the necessary measurements to correctly order the lenses. For a long time, this process was carried out by hand, but there are now numerous digital methods and even technology using AI to improve the process.
AI has dramatically evolved across various industries, from gaming to manufacturing. A striking example is chess, where AI transitioned from rudimentary programs weaker than humans in the 1950’s to AlphaZero’s unprecedented dominance in 2017. This evolution mirrors the progress in cosmetic inspection of ophthalmic lenses, where machines are moving from simple assistance to eventual full automation.
What does the future of subjective refraction look like? A Swiss start-up has an answer: refraction should be digital, offer almost unlimited display options, and also be independently manageable by the customer. Subjective refraction with the help of light field displays would therefore change the traditional way of doing the subjective refraction with a phoropter or trial frame set tremendously. Even a “refraction automate” in a shopping center is theoretically conceivable in the future.
The eyewear industry has long relied on conventional methods for lens production and coating. In terms of coatings, the start-up flō Optics now wants to revolutionize this market. The first market-ready machine will soon be presented. Find out what’s behind the technology.
A Belgian start-up has a product that many people have long dreamed of: glasses with combined far and near correction, but with the comfort of a unifocal lens. The addition is done electronically and activated via touch of a button. The 3D-printed smart glasses are already on sale in some regions. MAFO visited the company to see the production process and test the smart glasses.
In the ophthalmic industry, the process of lens surfacing has been largely dominated by alloy blocking. A blocking alternative is Alloy Replacement Technology (ART) which has been widely adopted in hundreds of lines around the world. Now, however, a new technology is emerging, and the industry faces a significant question: to what extent will the future of lens surfacing be blockless?
