Who Invented Contact Lenses And When?
Who invented contact lenses? This question may have many answers. The answer to the question depends on how you define the word "invented" Does this mean this person who first came up with the idea of covering your eyes with glass or plastic or who actually made the idea into a product that can be used by consumers. Well the idea on paper was first introduced by the Italian artist , scientist, inventor Leonardo da Vinci. Da Vinci was a genuis and is credited with creating on paper more useful inventions than any other known inventor other than Thomas Edison. . Da Vinci actually sketched the details of his idea of contact lenses . However, there was no way in the year 1508 that the idea of contact lenses could be fabricated into a viable product. The first contact lens that could be used by humans was invented by Sir John Herschel who contemplated the use of a mold of the eye of the wearer. This was an innovative idea that formed the basic formulation for how contact lenses are made. Having the lens conform to the eye surface perfectly was the seeds of the eventual creation of a comfortable light product that could be fitted to the eyes. . A German born glassblower F.A. Muller took Herschel's ideas to the next level and actually developed the first glass contact lens. So theoretically, the question - Who invented the first contact lenses could have many answers. The response would depend on whether the idea is really the invention. Or does the physical reality of the invention make the person the inventor. In 1887 a Swiss physician A.E. Fick, and an Optician, Edouard Kalt combined their expertise and actually fabricated a pairs of contact lenses that corrected the problems of nearsightedness and farsightedness. The lenses covered the front surface of the eyes. However, these contact lenses created by Fick and Kalt were created from the same idea that F.A. Muller originated. These lenses were made of glass. Glass seemed to be the obvious material for contact lenses but glass presented some problems. These glass contact lenses were heavy. The glass lenses proved to be very uncomfortable to wear. In addition, the glass contact lenses proved difficult for the average optician to fit perfectly to the eyes of optical patients. Between 1936 and 1938 several improvements were made in the manufacturing process of contact lenses New York Optometrist William Feinbloom introduced contact lenses made of plastic that was surrounded by a band of plastic that covered the sclera. California optician Kevin Tuohy manufactured a contact lens that was completely made of plastic. The lenses that Keven Tuohy manufactured were smaller in size than those of Feinbloom but still covered the entire cornea. In 1948, George Butterfield, an optometrist from Oregon improved the design of Tuohy's lens design. The design improvement included a flatter peripheral curve to the lens so it matched the shape of the cornea. These lenses were much more comfortable and more reliable. These contact lenses did pop out as easily. Today's contact lenses are made of light plastics. There are also contact lenses made of gels that are even more comfortable and easy to wear. The lenses made of glass are no longer in vogue but represented the beginning of a way to enhance vision and a make fashion accessory. So Who created the contact lens? The answer to this question may be like beauty... In the eyes of the beholder.
