Man explains why he replaced his lost eye with a wireless camera
- The ‘Eyeborg’, filmmaker, Rob Spence, has a wireless camera for an eye
- After losing his eye, he decided against a traditional prosthetic
- Now, he’s explained why
Published on Aug 15, 2024 at 7:28 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Aug 16, 2024 at 8:20 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
Filmmaker Rob Spence – aka the ‘Eyeborg’ – has finally explained why he decided to replace his lost eye with a wireless camera in 2007.
His eye had to be surgically removed following a shooting accident when he was a child.
However, he decided against a traditional prosthetic.
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How he suffered a lost eye
“I was messing around with a 12 gauge shotgun [and] I tried to shoot a pile of cow crap, but I wasn’t the gun properly,” he told CNN Business in 2011 about the lost eye.
“I had my eye right against the gun like a cowboy in the movies and there was an accident.”
Following several surgical attempts to try to save the organ, his cornea degenerated and he ultimately had the eye removed in 2007.
Afterward, he made an unusual decision – rather than getting a traditional prosthetic, he replaced his eye with a camera.
The wireless camera
Spence employed designer Kosta Grammatis to help him design the innovative wireless camera that is placed behind a prosthetic eye.
Meanwhile, electrical engineer Martin Ling helped create a tiny circuit board that takes data from the camera and sends it to a receiver, LiveScience reported.
The wireless camera includes a micro transmitter, small battery, miniature camera, and a magnetic switch for him to turn it on and off.
It can film up to 30 minutes of video before it needs to be recharged.
While not connected to his optic nerve, he has used his unique point-of-view in his filmmaking work.
“The great thing about engineers is that the love science fiction and pop culture, and this is a very science fiction-y/pop culture thing to do,” he told CNN.
According to his website, his prosthetic-eye wardrobe has three options: a clear shell that reveals the tech inside, a biologically realistic one, and a glowing red version reminiscent of the Terminator.
The exclusive and record-breaking tech saw him be named the man with the first bionic-camera-equipped false eye in the Guinness World Book of Records in 2009.
In other camera technology, this AI-powered ‘Poetry Camera’ transforms photos into poems in a world first.
However, it wasn’t Arnie’s iconic role that gave him the idea.
Per an interview with the BBC, he drew inspiration from a Six Million Dollar Man action figure he had as a child.
In other prosthetic innovation, one engineer built a DIY prosthetic hand that doesn’t require a battery or electricity.
It’s all very reminiscent of Elon Musk’s claims Neuralink patients will soon be able to outperform pro gamers with their brain-chip implants.
All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
