New Japanese glasses bring tears to the eyes

(AFP PHOTO / Yoshikazu TSUNO)

The Japanese eyewear company behind Sarah Palin's designer glasses has come up with a high-tech solution for obsessive video-gamers and bookworms whose eyes dry out from lack of blinking.

Masunaga Optical Manufacturing Co. Ltd. said Tuesday its "Wink Glasses" -- retailing for 40,000 yen (430 dollars) -- were an answer to the ocular dehydration caused for instance by prolonged computer use.

When a sensor detects that the wearer has not blinked for more than five seconds, the glasses "fog up" by gradually making a liquid crystal display over one eye turn opaque.

A simple blink clears the lens again.

Masunaga, based in the central Japanese city of Fukui, has enjoyed a boost in sales since Palin burst to international prominence last year as the Republicans' vice presidential pick in the United States.