--- title: Google Granted Patent For its Smart Contact Lens description: Google has been granted a patent for a contact lens with an embedded chip. canonical: https://time.com/3758763/google-smart-contact-lens/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-25T22:11:41.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:04:44.330Z article:section: Health og:title: Google Granted Patent For its Smart Contact Lens og:description: Google has been granted a patent for a contact lens with an embedded chip. og:url: https://time.com/3758763/google-smart-contact-lens/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt05ee2cd7c4a2ff0e/69869be2cd804dd48fccbf11/google-contact-lens.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Google This undated photo released by Google shows a contact lens Google is testing to explore tear glucose. Monitor og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Google Granted Patent For its Smart Contact Lens twitter:description: Google has been granted a patent for a contact lens with an embedded chip. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt05ee2cd7c4a2ff0e/69869be2cd804dd48fccbf11/google-contact-lens.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Google Granted Patent for Smart Contact Lens by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Mar 25, 2015 10:11 PM UTC  Google's smart contact lenses. Google's smart contact lenses.Google/AP by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Mar 25, 2015 10:11 PM UTC Google has been granted a patent for a contact lens with an embedded chip, The patent, which was discovered by [WebProNews](http://www.webpronews.com/google-was-just-granted-a-patent-for-manufacturing-contact-lenses-2015-03), features a sensor in the lens. Google has previously said that it is partnering with the pharmaceutical company Novartis to create a smart contact lens that could monitor blood sugar for people with diabetes. As TIME has [previously reported](http://techland.time.com/2014/01/16/google-contact-lens-will-measure-glucose-in-tears/), Google has been testing various prototypes of smart contact lens and is currently in talks with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about a lens that measures glucose levels in users’ tears. The company says the chip and sensor are embedded between two layers of contact lens material and a tiny pinhole lets tear fluid from the eye reach the glucose sensor, and the sensor can measure levels every second. Diabetics must currently prick their fingers throughout the day to measure blood sugar levels, but Google believes the contact lenses would be less invasive and allow people with diabetes to check glucose more often and more easily. When asked if the patent is indeed for the smart contact lens for diabetes patients, Google told TIME the company does not comment on patent filings. “We hold patents on a variety of ideas—some of those ideas later mature into real products or services, some don’t. 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