Last week I discovered this "cyborg eyeball project" on Hackaday. Some mad scientist somewhere must have pulled this torture device out of a depraved mind. If you don't like looking at things related to eyeballs, don't click on the link above.

What started as a joke, these luminescent contact lenses look like something out of Cyberpunk 2077. The creator, Christopher Herman, is not quite ready to bring them to market yet, but they certainly have potential in the future of body modification.

In one attempt, Herrmann has pushed the limits of what can be done with OSHPark's flexible PCB. With this ultra-thin custom PCB, he was able to get a professional-looking design. He notes that it could not withstand the heat of a soldering iron, which unfortunately caused his eyeballs to hurt. Also, it is a little too thick, and every time he blinks, it is pushed against his upper eyelid.

However, the above was not a downright failure, as he learned something in the process:

"It turns out that it is indeed possible to have a wire come out between your eyelids and not die. That's a good thing."

Helpful.

The project log details another attempt, this time with the thinnest wire imaginable and a tiny little LED. Somehow, Herman managed to solder these tiny LEDs together in the open air using adhesive tape. This is the kind of resourcefulness I can get behind.

This version was much more flexible and oddly thin, but incredibly fragile and quickly bent into a "potato shaped mess."

Other attempts used the same flexible custom PCB, but to compensate for the lack of flexibility, Herman chose to "cut a gap in the ring and glue the ends together. This gives the PCB a slightly conical shape. A great idea, but not the most practical solution.

I believe he is still modifying the design, so by 2077 we may be visiting Herman at the Lippard Dock Theater for a modification of the glowing eyeballs.