Seminario “Seoul artificial retina project for the blind”

The Seoul Artificial Retina Project has been designing artificial retina devices using polymers capable of monolithic, hermetic sealing since 2000. Through over a decade of research, a long-term reliable 16-channel artificial retina device with miniaturized, monolithic packaging using liquid crystal polymer (LCP) has been developed. Successful in vivo tests have also been conducted. However, LCP’s opacity presented a disadvantage in observing bleeding and other observations during surgery. Additionally, the high Young’s modulus and sharp edges of LCP were found to cause continuous damage to surrounding tissues after implantation.

Hence the research team is testing and studying various polymer materials to change the material for system packaging to be transparent and more biocompatible. The current main targets of the research are cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) and perfluoroalkoxy alkane (PFA). Both materials possess key characteristics such as high transparency and low water absorption rate, crucial for packaging materials. Furthermore, they have relatively superior mechanical properties compared to LCP. The research team has used these materials to create long-term reliable neural electrodes and has conducted ex-vivo tests. Currently, the team is working on system integration to achieve monolithic packaging by integrating wireless power/data transmission coils and application-specific integrated circuits. The artificial retina device under development features subretinal stimulation, 64 channels, and a single pair coil for power and data transmission. In vivo tests are being prepared, and the goal is to conduct acute tests soon.