California Company Selling Jordy Goggles to Enhance Vision of Nearly Blind

Throughout the world, 37 million people suffer from blindness. However, many people may regain use of their eyes due to a NASA-developed product now being sold commercially.

The new product, called JORDY, is a Low Vision Enhancement System (LVES). Worn like goggles, it magnifies printed type by thirty to fifty times and allows users to manually adjust brightness and clarity.

These goggles allow people who are nearly blind due to low vision disabilities to again see. Currently, these sight disabilities result in people using magnifying glasses, held very close to text, to read. Watching television, movies, theatre and other events is usually impossible for people suffering from low vision impairment since they have only about five percent of the vision of most people.

The goggle's name of JORDY was borrowed from Geordi La Forge, a character on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. Geordi, who was blind, used special glasses that enabled him to see.

One of the first people to use JORDY was NASA engineer Paul Mogan, who suffers from low vision. In his work, he was particularly troubled by his inability to lift heavy engineering books close enough to read them and take notes.

However, a new world was opened to Mogan when he began assisting in developing JORDY. "I was in the office of a low-vision specialist, and I was pretty thrilled to be able to read the 20/20 line on the eye chart," Mogan recalls.

While the Low Vision Enhancement System (LVES) was only commercially available for a short time through NASA, its potential was understood by Enhanced Vision Systems of Huntingon Beach, California. Enhanced Vision Systems began research into creating an improved low-vision headset and newer versions of JORDY are incorporating the technology into much smaller glasses for everyday use.

After Mogan began using JORDY 1 he contacted the company with some suggestions, including adding image stabilization. This relationship continued as later versions of the device were released.

"I have personally made trips to see the lead designer at Enhanced Vision Systems on several occasions and am part of their Beta test group," he explains.

The goggles were also successfully used by the grandfather of U.S. speed skater Casey FitzRandolph. FitzRandolph's grandfather was able to watch from the Olympic grandstands when his grandson won a gold medal by wearing JORDY.

Enhanced Vision Systems is currently developing miniaturized versions of JORDY which will fit onto what appears to be standardized eyeglasses.

Enhanced Vision Systems is located in Solano, California. Their website is www.enhancedvision.com and their phone number is 1-888-811-3161.

NASA created this space-age wonder to assist their astronauts. However, the true wonder may yet occur for those who regain their sight due to this technology.