Anyone who's played "Call of Duty" or other modern first-person-shooter games is familiar with on-screen displays of maps, troops positions and other vital information, which allow the player to navigate his or her surroundings without taking an eye off of the action.
But what if that kind of information were available to real soldiers in actual combat situations?
Innovega's iOptik system, an innovative heads-up display (HUD) might deliver just that. According to a press release from the Bellevue, Washington-based company, a new system featuring "light-weight eyewear working with advanced contact lenses," would provide sharpened real-world vision while projecting an immersive display into the wearer's line of sight.
Scroll Down For Video Illustrating The iOptik System
The hands-free system could provide map data, as well as potentially receive live feeds from fellow soldiers' head-mounted cameras, drones and satellites -- and display them all on a translucent screen that doesn't impede one's field of vision, according to FOX News.
The company hopes to receive FDA approval for its product this year, and has already received an order for a prototype from the Department of Defense, FOX News reports.
While this kind of battlefield technology has been attempted before, it usually ends up manifested as a bulky helmet with a limited field of vision, according to Innovega's website.
The "micro- and nano-fabricated optical elements" in Innovega's contact lenses would eliminate the need for awkward headgear and open up the display to the full range of human vision -- about 120 degrees.
In the below video recorded at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, Innovega CTO Randall Sprague talks about the commercial applications of the product's augmented reality (AR) display, likening it to one's "own personal IMAX."
The overlay of data onto real-world vision that Sprague describes bears some similarity to Google's Project Glass. Other companies, such as eyewear manufacturer Oakley, have also been working on their own augmented reality displays.
WATCH: Combat Applications Of Innovega's iOptik System