Improving the visibility and safety of pedestrians, roadworkers and cyclists. Pedestrian and cyclist fatalities cost Australia ~$2 billion/year, accounting for a third of road users killed or seriously injured. Late visual recognition by motorists is the main reason these collisions occur. While visibility aids to improve pedestrian and cyclist conspicuity have been advocated, they have had limited success. We will use innovative driving measurement techniques to advance understanding of pedest ....Improving the visibility and safety of pedestrians, roadworkers and cyclists. Pedestrian and cyclist fatalities cost Australia ~$2 billion/year, accounting for a third of road users killed or seriously injured. Late visual recognition by motorists is the main reason these collisions occur. While visibility aids to improve pedestrian and cyclist conspicuity have been advocated, they have had limited success. We will use innovative driving measurement techniques to advance understanding of pedestrian and cyclist visibility and the effectiveness of different visibility aids for enhancing pedestrians and cyclist recognition. We will develop novel visibility aids to maximise pedestrian and cyclist conspicuity and evidence-based educational programs to improve the safety of vulnerable road users.Read moreRead less
Using 'biological motion' to enhance the nighttime safety of road workers, cyclists, and pedestrians. Pedestrian and cyclist fatalities are a major road safety problem, accounting for a third of road fatalities at an estimated cost of $2.5 billion/year. Late recognition of pedestrians and cyclist by drivers is the main reason for these collisions. We have shown that innovative visibility designs which involve strategic placement of reflective markers on the moveable joints can greatly enhance vi ....Using 'biological motion' to enhance the nighttime safety of road workers, cyclists, and pedestrians. Pedestrian and cyclist fatalities are a major road safety problem, accounting for a third of road fatalities at an estimated cost of $2.5 billion/year. Late recognition of pedestrians and cyclist by drivers is the main reason for these collisions. We have shown that innovative visibility designs which involve strategic placement of reflective markers on the moveable joints can greatly enhance visibility and hence safety of these vulnerable road users. We will extend this research to incorporate evaluation of these visibility solutions in real-world environments and encourage the widespread use of these designs in the real-world through education and policy change.Read moreRead less
The future of corneal refractive reshaping: can we control myopia or is the risk of corneal compromise too great? Refinement of corneal reshaping lens designs, optimised for visual outcomes through manipulation of aberrations, will significantly benefit local contact lens manufacturing and export by expanding the existing market base. This research will also strategically position Australian lens manufacturing to capitalise on the market for myopia-control contact lenses, particularly in the As ....The future of corneal refractive reshaping: can we control myopia or is the risk of corneal compromise too great? Refinement of corneal reshaping lens designs, optimised for visual outcomes through manipulation of aberrations, will significantly benefit local contact lens manufacturing and export by expanding the existing market base. This research will also strategically position Australian lens manufacturing to capitalise on the market for myopia-control contact lenses, particularly in the Asian region. Significant intellectual property will be generated for Australia in terms of enhanced understanding of the role of manipulation of corneal shape in modulating progressive myopia. Outcomes from this project will enhance the international reputation of the UNSW research group, keeping Australian science at the forefront of this area of research.Read moreRead less
Vision performance in relationship to spectacle lens design. Refractive errors such as short-sightedness, long-sightedness or presbyopia (age related decline in near vision) are the leading causes of visual impairment in the world. Of these, presbyopia affects almost 100% of the population above 45 years of age. This represents over 40% of all Australians. Although spectacles provide a safe and easy means of correcting refractive errors, they affect quality of life due to distorted vision, disco ....Vision performance in relationship to spectacle lens design. Refractive errors such as short-sightedness, long-sightedness or presbyopia (age related decline in near vision) are the leading causes of visual impairment in the world. Of these, presbyopia affects almost 100% of the population above 45 years of age. This represents over 40% of all Australians. Although spectacles provide a safe and easy means of correcting refractive errors, they affect quality of life due to distorted vision, discomfort such as head and neck ache and cosmetic effects. The goals of the project are to better understand the visual performance of young and old people who wear glasses and to develop improved spectacle lens designs to provide clear and comfortable vision over a range of distances.Read moreRead less
Harnessing contact lens design to optimise optics and vision through corneal refractive reshaping. Development of innovative OK lens designs to correct presbyopia and astigmatism, optimised for visual performance through manipulation of optical aberrations, will place Australian rigid contact lens manufacturing at the international forefront of OK lens production. Lens designs to control myopia progression will strategically position Australian lens manufacturing to capitalise on the potential m ....Harnessing contact lens design to optimise optics and vision through corneal refractive reshaping. Development of innovative OK lens designs to correct presbyopia and astigmatism, optimised for visual performance through manipulation of optical aberrations, will place Australian rigid contact lens manufacturing at the international forefront of OK lens production. Lens designs to control myopia progression will strategically position Australian lens manufacturing to capitalise on the potential market in Asia, where myopia is prevalent. Significant intellectual property will be generated for Australia through greater understanding of OK lens design manipulation to optimise visual outcomes. This project promises to enhance the international reputation of UNSW researchers, keeping Australian science at the forefront of this research area.Read moreRead less
Adopting innovative strategies to manipulate and refine desirable optical outcomes from contact lens wear and corneal refractive reshaping. Corneal refractive reshaping is a contact lens-based technique that moulds the front surface of the eye to correct refractive errors. The corneal reshaping process is slow, making research in this area inefficient. This project will reshape the front surface of large diameter rigid lenses, allowing immediate evaluation of optical outcomes.
Pharmacological modification of retinal and visual function and relation to control of refractive error. Myopia (short-sightedness) affects many hundreds of millions of people worldwide and can lead to blindness. Drug treatments that prevent myopia are being developed, however there is no efficient way of determining who is at risk of myopia or who will benefit from these treatments. This fundamental research project will determine the retinal and visual effects of pharmacologic agents that inhi ....Pharmacological modification of retinal and visual function and relation to control of refractive error. Myopia (short-sightedness) affects many hundreds of millions of people worldwide and can lead to blindness. Drug treatments that prevent myopia are being developed, however there is no efficient way of determining who is at risk of myopia or who will benefit from these treatments. This fundamental research project will determine the retinal and visual effects of pharmacologic agents that inhibit myopia, with the aim of determining an ocular measure that is related to myopia, which is altered by drugs that are known to slow myopia progression, and that could be used as an indication of an agent's likely effectiveness.Read moreRead less