Chapel Hill, North Carolina— OCUTECH, one of the world’s foremost innovators in developing optical devices to aid the visually impaired, is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
September 30, 2004 (Press Release) --
Chapel Hill, North Carolina— OCUTECH, one of the world’s foremost innovators in developing optical devices to aid the visually impaired, is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Established in 1984, Ocutech was born to develop and commercialize an optical design patented by its founder and President, Dr. J. Russ Pekar.
Pekar, born visually impaired himself, knew first hand the challenges that individuals face making their way in the world of the normally sighted. “While there were devices available that would allow him to see beyond the length of his arm, they were clumsy, heavy, and unsightly. “It struck me that by combining a periscope and telescope together I might be able to produce a device that was easier to wear, optically superior, and less conspicuous,” said Pekar. That was the basis for what is now an internationally known firm that manufactures and ships its very special eyeglasses to vision rehabilitation specialists throughout the world.
Recent studies show that the incidence of visual impairment will increase as baby boomers age, and while exciting medical progress is being made to control vision threatening diseases such as macular degeneration, diabetes and glaucoma, even with treatment, individuals may be left with less than normal vision. These individuals, who are described as having “low vision,” need good lighting and significant magnification to read up close, and special telescopic glasses, called bioptics, to see at a distance.
Dr. Henry Greene is Vice President of Ocutech. An optometrist and Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology, and Director of the Vision Rehabilitation Service at the University of North Carolina, Greene helped to direct the development projects. He has found that these new devices have been able to open up the world for many individuals, children, adults and seniors, who previously had been told that nothing more could be done for them. “While no device can help every visually impaired person, the success we have achieved with these devices has been very heart warming indeed,” Greene said.
Ocutech systems, some of which resemble a small camera perched across the top of regular eyeglasses, have evolved over the years. From devices that were focused by hand to view objects at different distances, to the breakthrough Ocutech VES-Autofocus, the first ever self-focusing telescopic eyeglasses for the visually impaired, Ocutech has strived to make their devices easier and more natural to use.
Pekar, born visually impaired himself, knew first hand the challenges that individuals face making their way in the world of the normally sighted. “While there were devices available that would allow him to see beyond the length of his arm, they were clumsy, heavy, and unsightly. “It struck me that by combining a periscope and telescope together I might be able to produce a device that was easier to wear, optically superior, and less conspicuous,” said Pekar. That was the basis for what is now an internationally known firm that manufactures and ships its very special eyeglasses to vision rehabilitation specialists throughout the world.
Recent studies show that the incidence of visual impairment will increase as baby boomers age, and while exciting medical progress is being made to control vision threatening diseases such as macular degeneration, diabetes and glaucoma, even with treatment, individuals may be left with less than normal vision. These individuals, who are described as having “low vision,” need good lighting and significant magnification to read up close, and special telescopic glasses, called bioptics, to see at a distance.
Dr. Henry Greene is Vice President of Ocutech. An optometrist and Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology, and Director of the Vision Rehabilitation Service at the University of North Carolina, Greene helped to direct the development projects. He has found that these new devices have been able to open up the world for many individuals, children, adults and seniors, who previously had been told that nothing more could be done for them. “While no device can help every visually impaired person, the success we have achieved with these devices has been very heart warming indeed,” Greene said.
Ocutech systems, some of which resemble a small camera perched across the top of regular eyeglasses, have evolved over the years. From devices that were focused by hand to view objects at different distances, to the breakthrough Ocutech VES-Autofocus, the first ever self-focusing telescopic eyeglasses for the visually impaired, Ocutech has strived to make their devices easier and more natural to use.
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