Materialise and HOYA Collaborate for 3D Printed Vision Examination System

Materialise has teamed up with med-tech company HOYA Group’s vision care division to develop and manufacture parts for high-quality visualisation equipment and vision examination systems for opticians.

HOYA works Materialise’s experienced design and engineering team as well as manufacturing facilities to create a range of tools that empower eye care professionals to deliver an enhanced customer experience.

The first systems to be brought to market as a result of this collaboration are HOYA Vision Simulator and HOYA EyeGenius. The first is a highly innovative tool that allows consumers to experience their new lenses before they buy them, in store by means of virtual reality. The second is a complete vision examination system with a new method to detect and correct fixation disparity.

Materialise Executive Vice President of Production, Bart Van der Schueren, said: “HOYA has a known commitment to using creativity and innovation to become the leading company in niche markets, making them not only an ideal co-creation partner, but also a company ready to utilize Materialise’s certified manufacturing for high-quality, end-use products. With the first products already making their way onto the market, with great initial feedback, together with HOYA we are proving the added-value that 3D printing is ready to deliver to the entire eyewear industry.”

“In Materialise, we have found an ideal partner for co-creating, engineering and manufacturing new innovations that can quickly be brought to the market with the quality expected of the HOYA name,” stated Felix España, New Media Manager EMEA for Hoya Vision Care, “Materialise’s design and engineering experts work closely with our own to identify the designs, technologies and materials needed to introduce true innovation into the eyewear industry and deliver a premium consumer experience. Materialise’s software expertise and manufacturing capacity are then able to turn these concepts into high-quality, end-use products in quantities that meet the demands of our customers.”