There are plenty of options out there for adding some sunglass-grade tint to a pair of prescription eyeglasses, from clip-on shades, to clear-to-dark electrochromic glasses. Colorado startup EyKuver has a different idea that’s lighter, simpler, quite affordable and rather intuitive: easily removable tinted film patches that slap onto the individual eyeglass lenses and create temporary sunglasses to block UV light.
With roots in manufacturing and medical device engineering, EyKuver founder Marcus Boggs has formulated a patent-pending custom film specifically for the purpose of bringing sunglass capabilities to prescription eyeglasses. The EyKuver film patches do not use chemical adhesives and are instead designed to “cling” to the lenses like a non-adhesive window sticker, cutting glare and blocking UVA and UVB rays.
EyKuvers are designed to peel off as easily as they press on, without leaving behind any residue or damaging the lenses in any way. The company states they can be disposed of after removal or reused later, recommending washing them before reuse to ensure they don’t retain any dirt or grit that could scratch the eyeglass lenses.
EyeKuver has developed two sizes it says will fit about 80 percent of prescription glasses out there, though it admits that many glass wearers won’t get a precise, custom fit. Instead, the EyKuver will end up a little too big or too small for the lens.
Designing a custom fit kit seems like it could be an easy solution for the fit issue, but EyKuver isn’t marketing the product as a permanent solution for transforming old prescription eyeglasses into sunglasses (which would also be quite useful). Instead, it imagines them serving as a temporary fix for times when someone forgets their prescription sunglasses or clip-ons, but still needs eye protection.
The EyKuvers are inexpensive enough to be attractive as a temporary solution and small enough to pack in a purse, jacket pocket or even wallet, ensuring you always have a backup when out and about. The precut form works better than a custom cut-to-fit kit for those types of on-the-move situations.
After launching its product late last year, EyKuver is currently pushing to get it out there, both locally in Colorado and on a larger scale. Headquartered in Steamboat Springs, a Colorado mountain town that calls itself both Bike and Ski Town USA, EyKuver is focusing advertising on the outdoor recreation and travel markets, where EyKuvers could serve as a useful accessory to keep outdoor lovers moving, even if they forget their primary prescription sunglasses.
So far, EyKuvers are available in medium and large sizes, and gray and blue tints. EyKuver sells three-packs on its website for US$9.99, or as little as $8.49 each on orders of three or more. Each individual package in the three-pack contains a pair of EyKuvers.
Inexpensive tinted stickers turn eyeglasses into sunglasses [New Atlas]