The Visual Environment Evaluation Tool (VEET) is a pair of temple arms that gather quantitative data on characteristics of light near the eye without disrupting the wearer’s normal activities. Each temple arm is an independent instrument that uses state-of-the-art sensors to measure illumination intensity, spectrum, optical distance to near objects, and motion.

The VEET is intended for researchers studying human ocular development in controlled experiments and studies under supervision of their Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) or equivalent. The VEET is not intended for sale, general distribution, or use in clinical settings.

The goal of the VEET project is to support researchers collecting large-scale datasets on how the modern visual diet influences emmetropization (the process by which the eye develops normal vision) to better understand causal factors involved in the onset and progression of myopia.

The VEET is a free tool to accelerate a massive research undertaking that is essential for both perceptual science research and the public good. The VEET logs data about the spectrum, intensity, and temporal characteristics of light in the research participants’ environments, as well as their motion and optical distance to near objects.

The traditional method of collecting visual experience data is subjective assessment, typically in the form surveys filled out by participants’ parents. Subjective reports correlate poorly with objective measurements of device use or time outdoors.

Furthermore, these methods cannot collect accurate quantified information about the light (e.g. luminance, spectrum) that reaches research participants’ eyes.

Myopia (nearsightedness) is a condition where light from distant objects focuses in front of, rather than on, the retina. Myopia is the most common vision defect, impacting 1.5 billion people worldwide – and leading to an increased risk of permanent vision loss from conditions such as retinal detachment and macular degeneration.

Myopia is caused by the eyeball growing too long — a failure of eye growth regulation. Myopia researchers do not fully understand why eye growth regulation fails. Along with genetics, environmental inputs such as time spent indoors and focusing distance are potential contributing factors.

The VEET is a tool to assist researchers in building large-scale datasets to study the impact of these environmental inputs on myopia development.

No. The VEET does not quantify the risk of myopia, nor does it prevent or treat myopia. It is not meant to be used with patients including measuring patient biometrics for a medical purpose. The VEET is not approved for clinical or medical use. It is a tool meant exclusively to help researchers gather large-scale datasets on visual experiences.

The VEET gathers data without compromising the wearer’s privacy. The VEET has no camera, no microphone, no bluetooth or wifi connectivity, and does not record any personally identifying information. The data stays on the instrument, and is only accessible by the researcher.

While there have been many valuable individual studies on visual experience, they have typically operated independently, with no way to aggregate data to address this challenging research problem at scale. 

The VEET project is part of an open science model in which researchers not only publish their work, but also their data and the metadata artifacts necessary to interpret them according to FAIR Data Principles.

An open science model allows for additional comparison, harmonization, reproducibility, and federated analysis of datasets by other researchers, enabling a collaborative effort to solve the riddle of visual experience’s role in myopia development.

If the VEET and our open science approach to myopia research are aligned with your research goals, please see our Open Science Research Initiative page. Find more information on current opportunities, such as how to apply for grants and VEET research kits. If you have further questions about the VEET project, contact us by filling out the form on this page.