Spherical camera mimics eye

US researchers have developed a spherical camera with some of the advantages of the human eye.

The camera sensor is curved to fit the interior of the sphere, like the retina of the eye, according to a report in MIT Technology Review.

This allows it to offer a wide angle of view with minimal distortion using a single simple lens – again just like the eye, says lead researcher John Rogers.

The sensor is made by tiny solid silicon cells linked by thin strips of polymer and metal that allow it to be flexed and stretched.

It is formed flat and is then attached to a hemispherical piece of rubber that has been squashed flat; the rubber is then allowed to resume its former shape.

The experimental model has just 256 cells because of the limitations on fabrication in the lab.

Rogers is quoted as saying he is not ruling out the possibility of using the technology for an artificial eye but a more immediate use would be in military field cameras.