Hoya is piloting Audio Glass, sports sunglasses that allow users to listen to music while playing sports.
The sunglasses have embedded bone conduction speakers that connect via Bluetooth to a smartphone. Bone conduction speakers communicate vibrations directly to the auditory nerves via the skull, which are recognised by humans as ‘sound’.
Users can take advantage of hands-free smartphone voice recognition and navigation functions, and make phone calls without cutting out external sounds. The audio glasses come fitted with Hoya photochromic lenses and equipped with a rechargeable battery embedded into the left and right temples.
Hoya hopes to sell the glasses to individuals who engage in recreational sports, particularly cycling and jogging.
This Hoya cross-divisional innovation is now in a commercial pilot phase and under consideration for geographical expansion.
