Varilux - 50 years of innovation
Improving the lives of spectacles wearers - this ambitious goal has driven half a century of research and innovation by Essilor. This is symbolized by VARILUX.
VARILUX is the leading example of Essilor's success in the field of innovation. Since its invention, these progressive lenses have changed the everyday lives of millions of presbyopics and revolutionized the world of ophthalmic optics. The man behind this fantastic success story is
Bernard Maitenaz.
In the 1950s, while trying on his father's bifocal lenses, Bernard Maitenaz decided that this concept was outdated. The young 25-year-old engineer, passionate about mechanics and optics, took on the challenge of creating a lens allowing wearers to see at all distances - the progressive lens. Nobody believed in his idea, but the inventor persevered and succeeded in manufacturing a revolutionary progressive surface.
Essilor has taken advantage of this technological lead for more than 50 years.The company continues to draw on its scientific expertise, with
more than 500 researchers and an extensive global network of academics and professionals.
Considerable progress in optics, mathematics and manufacturing processes have led to the development of new generations of VARILUX lenses, each adopting very different design approaches.
The two most recent of these have heralded a new era:
- VARILUX Physio 2.0 is the first lens designed for high-resolution vision, offering a clearer, more precise image with greater contrast, with a wider field of vision. The lens offers a better quality of vision, comparable to the image difference between a DVD and a VHS tape. Because the pupil has a direct impact on the quality of vision, variations in pupil size are taken into account for the first time in the design of VARILUX Physio 2.0 by incorporating W.A.V.E. 2.0 technology. This means optical performances are optimized at all distances and in any light.
- VARILUX Ipseo New Edition is the latest generation of progressive lenses, resulting from 3D virtual reality tests. This represents a spectacular step forward for wearers - a bespoke, personalized lens, tailored to each individual's visual behavior as well as to new uses.
LiveOptics scientific program - wearers at the heart of the innovation process All Varilux lenses are the result of a constant interaction between knowledge of the living system and knowledge of optical science. That is the founding principle of the
LiveOptics scientific program - wearers at the heart of the innovation process.
All Varilux lenses are systematically tested and approved by the end consumer before being commercialized.
Innovation is a major issue for Essilor.
By 2025, a third to the world's population will be affected by presbyopia.