One dollar glasses

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The one dollar glasses

The EinDollarBrille (English OneDollarGlasses ) is one of the German former teacher Martin Aufmuth designed for the population of the poorest countries in the world spectacle that is produced locally by locals. The term EinDollarBrille refers to the cost of the material glasses, not on the selling price of the spectacles of a few dollars is.

So far, around 100,000 people worldwide have been provided with one dollar glasses. The non-profit association EinDollarGrille e. V. has set itself the goal of producing and selling 150 million specimens of glasses worldwide. This figure is based on calculations by the World Health Organization and affects all people on earth who urgently need glasses, but cannot afford them.

history

The math and physics teacher Martin Aufmuth began developing the OneDollarGlasses and the tools required to manufacture them in 2010. On April 29, 2010, he registered the utility models DE202010006431U1 and DE202010006432U1 for the glasses.

In June 2012 he founded the EinDollarBrille e. V. in Erlangen. He has not been a teacher since 2014 in order to be able to devote himself entirely to his idea. In January 2015, Aufmuth presented the glasses and its concept at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris as part of the opening event of the International Year of Light proclaimed by the United Nations .

Due to the convincing concept (see awards ) and the positive response in the media, Martin Aufmuth and his employees are now supported by numerous partners, helpers and donors. Regional groups have been set up in Germany to further promote the idea. They also serve as contact points for interested parties. Such regional groups exist in Berlin , Bremen , Erlangen , Frankfurt am Main , Hamburg , Hanover , Cologne , Munich and Stuttgart . The OneDollarGlasses Switzerland association based in Zurich was founded as partner organizations in December 2015 and the non-profit organization OneDollarGlasses USA in January 2018.

The glasses

The glasses are made of sturdy spring steel , polycarbonate lenses , shrink tubing and, if desired, up to two colored pearls . The material for a pair of glasses costs about one US dollar.

Steel wire

A special spring steel wire is used for the glasses frame, which is also used for braces, for example. This is nickel-free, hypoallergenic, highly flexible and break-proof. The original model of the OneDollarGlasses was made from just one piece of wire. Currently the basic model consists of three wire parts (middle part and two brackets). Since 2017, angular glasses frames (for angular lenses) and frames with side double arms have also been manufactured. With these variants for more demanding customers, higher prices can be achieved.

Plastic glasses

The glasses are specially made from break-proof polycarbonate with a hardened, scratch-resistant surface, which are spherically cast in polished shapes and do not require any post-processing, so that expensive machines are not required for grinding and milling the glasses. The glasses are produced in China. The quality is checked regularly in Germany. The range initially consisted of glasses with strengths of −6.0 to +6.0 diopters in steps of 0.5 diopters. Lenses with up to −10.0 and +8.0 diopters have even been available since 2016, and square lenses and optical sunglasses lenses have also been added to the range.

To fix the lenses in the frame, two notches are milled into the side of the lenses.

Shrink tubing

Colored or colorless shrink tubing made of polyolefin is used where the skin touches the metal of the glasses: on the nose bridge and on the temple ends.

Jewelry pearls

The buyers choose the jewelry pearls themselves, which are available in numerous colors. The pearls give the glasses an individual design and enable customers to buy glasses according to their personal ideas.

Manufacturing

Bending machine for the production of one dollar glasses. On the left in the picture, the thumb shows the marking up to which the lever must be guided in order to bend the wire at a 90-degree angle. The colored dots on the black plate allow the glasses size to be set to match the customer's eye relief .

The glasses are produced on site after thorough training by employees of the association as required, which creates additional new jobs in the respective country.

The most important prerequisite for the production of one dollar glasses is the bending machine designed by Martin Aufmuth, with which the frame of the glasses made of steel wire is bent into shape. The eleventh generation of the bending machine was already in use in 2013 and the twelfth generation from the end of 2016. The machine can be used to produce glasses for three different pupillary distances . There is a lever on the bending machine for bending 90 degree angles. A separate tool is used to produce the curves for the lenses and on the nose bridge . The machines are financed from donations and, including accessories, made available free of charge in the project countries.

An eye test is carried out individually for each customer to determine which refractive power (in dioptres ) their lenses must have. Then the appropriate glasses are taken from the glasses case and inserted into the glasses frame by simply clicking them. Finally, the ends of the temples are bent down by hand so that the glasses rest comfortably on the ears and sit well.

It only takes about ten minutes to make a pair of glasses. A team of six people can produce up to 30,000 glasses per year with a bending machine and the associated tools.

distribution

Pricing

The selling price for glasses for the standard model with elliptical lenses is around two to three times the normal local daily wage. The newer special models with square lenses or dark optical lenses (sunglasses with a correction function) are usually sold more expensive. The price is independent of the refractive power of the lenses, but it varies depending on the purchasing power in the region. For example, the following converted sales prices were reported in 2017: generally around 5 euros; for the standard model in Ouagadougou (capital of Burkina Faso ) around 7 euros, for special models in Burkina Faso 7 to 15 euros. For comparison: conventional glasses for opticians in developing countries cost at least 30 euros, often much more. The eye test is generally offered free of charge. The sales proceeds are used to pay for the material, the wages for eyewear manufacturers and opticians, and the travel expenses to the buyers.

Project countries

Child in Malawi with one dollar glasses

OneDollarGlasses are currently manufactured and sold in eight project countries: in Malawi (the first project country), Burkina Faso, Kenya and Ethiopia in Africa, as well as in Brazil , Bolivia , Mexico in Latin America and, since September 2017, India . The activities in Rwanda and Nicaragua have been suspended until further notice.

Regions in Uganda and Nepal are also supplied with one-dollar glasses via a newer sales model with partners, which is to be expanded to other countries in the future .

In Germany the EinDollarBrille is not placed on the market. However, you can contact a regional group and be instructed in the manufacture of glasses. You can then take your own glasses home with you.

Awards

Martin Aufmuth and his concept of the OneDollarGlasses have received many awards:

Web links

Commons : OneDollarGlasses  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. How glasses can change life sueddeutsche.de, November 6, 2013. Quote: “The material costs are around one US dollar. The glasses are sold for three to six dollars, depending on the country and type of glasses. "
  2. Annual report 2017 ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. des OneDollarGlasses e. V., p. 6 (PDF). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.eindollarbrille.de
  3. Utility model DE202010006431U1 : glasses with decorative element. Applicant: Martin Aufmuth.
  4. Utility model DE202010006432U1 : glasses. Applicant: Martin Aufmuth.
  5. International Year of Light - Launch IYL 2015 Opening Ceremony. In: light2015.org. December 18, 2014, accessed October 5, 2015 .
  6. media coverage eindollarbrille.de
  7. Partner and supporter eingollarbrille.de
  8. a b Annual Report 2017 ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. des OneDollarGlasses e. V., p. 35 (PDF). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.eindollarbrille.de
  9. OneDollarGlasses Switzerland: About us onedollarglasses.ch
  10. OneDollarGlasses USA founded in January 2018. Accessed March 4, 2020 .
  11. Annual report 2017 ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. des OneDollarGlasses e. V., p. 8 and 48 (PDF). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.eindollarbrille.de
  12. The glasses eingollarbrille.de
  13. a b The one-dollar glasses open eyes Mittelbayerische Zeitung , December 6, 2014
  14. Annual report 2016 of EinDollarBrille e. V., p. 7 (PDF).
  15. Annual report 2013 of EinDollarBrille e. V., p. 25 (PDF).
  16. Annual report 2016 of EinDollarBrille e. V., p. 36 (PDF).
  17. The bending machine eingollarbrille.de
  18. For the individual work steps, see picture presentation: EinDollarGrille in Uganda 2014 (PDF), pp. 28–50.
  19. Lecture: EinDollarGrille in Uganda 2014 (PDF), p. 48.
  20. In older publications, the maximum production capacity of the bending machine was stated as 50,000 glasses per year, as in the 2016 annual report of EinDollarBrille e. V., p. 7. The same information is also available on the association's website under Die Biegemaschine (as of July 2018). This very high figure was an optimistic estimate. In the 2017 annual report ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. the statement has been corrected downwards: “Their production capacity is up to 30,000 glasses per year” (p. 10). With this more recent estimate, too, a division of labor in a team of “around six people” is assumed. In a strategy paper from May 2017, the maximum productivity of the bending machine is set a little lower, with 25,000 glasses per year (p. 4 f.). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.eindollarbrille.de
  21. The EinDollarGrille eingollarbrille.de
  22. Strategy paper, status May 2017 , p. 4 (PDF).
  23. Strategy paper, as of May 2017 , p. 6 f. (PDF)
  24. Strategy paper, status May 2017 , p. 3 (PDF).
  25. Strategy paper, status May 2017 (PDF), p. 7.
  26. Annual report 2017 ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. des OneDollarGlasses e. V., p. 12 ff. (PDF). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.eindollarbrille.de
  27. Annual report 2017 ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. des OneDollarGlasses e. V., p. 37 (PDF). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.eindollarbrille.de
  28. Awards eingollarbrille.de
  29. Winner of the empowering people. Award for outstanding technical inventions received at siemens-stiftung.org, press release of October 30, 2013.
  30. OneDollarGlasses e. V. is the “Good Example 2016” br.de, press release from May 5, 2016. See also the application video for this competition.