This extra eye will see for you while you’re zoned out on your smartphone.

We’ve either seen it or we’ve been guilty of it, but one thing’s for sure is that almost everyone looks at their phone while walking. It happens all the time… and it can be dangerous.

Most people think they can pay attention to both their screen and the world around them, but they’re usually wrong. The result? “Smartphone zombies” that wander around causing preventable accidents left and right.

Most of us just roll our eyes at this strange phenomenon… but this inventor has decided to do something about it.

A high-tech “third eye”

 

Paeng Min-wook is a South Korean industrial engineer who’s come up with a way to help those “smartphone zombies.”

(That’s his name for people who are hyper-focused on their phones and can’t stop themselves from crashing into things.)

Paeng created a robotic “eyeball” he calls “The Third Eye.” It works simply by strapping it to the user’s forehead and activates while looking down.

But this eye can’t actually see… it detects what’s in front of the user, then beeps to alert them if an object (or person) is in their way.

Paeng stated, “This is the look of future mankind with three eyes. As we cannot take our eyes off from smartphones, the extra eye will be needed in future.”

How does it “see”?

The “eyelid” opens using a gyro sensor that measures the angle of the user’s neck.

An ultrasonic sensor is used to determine the distance between the eye and the objects it’s “viewing.”

Both of these sensors are connected to an open-source single-board microcontroller that’s powered by a battery pack.

Paeng developed The Third Eye as a satirical commentary on the current state of people’s smartphone addictions… which sometimes can be deadly.

He said, “By presenting this satirical solution, I hope people will recognize the severity of their gadget addiction and look back at themselves.”

What do you think about people’s addiction to their smartphones? Should we create even more technology to help curb the addiction?

Let us know what you think down below.