This news report gave me tingles down my spine, it’s such a wonderful opportunity for the blind to see.

A British soldier blinded by a grenade in Iraq has said his life has been turned around by technology that allows him to “see” with his tongue.

Craig lost his eye sight in 2007 after being hit by a rocket propelled grenade in Iraq. With the help of the device which comprises of a tiny video camera attached to a pair of sunglasses linked to a plastic “lolly pop” which the user places on their tongue to read the electrical pulses, Craig can see black and white 2d images that the device draws on his tongue

“One of the things it has enabled me to do is pick up objects straight away” says Craig “I can reach out and pick them up when before I would be fumbling around to feel for them.”

Craig Lundberg, 24, from Walton, Merseyside, can read words, identify shapes and walk unaided using the Brain Port device which is like a lolly pop placed in his mouth.

The device sends pulses on to the tongue which with training the brain can translate the signals into images

While the machine converts visual images into a series of electrical pulses which are sent to his tongue, Craig experiences a pins and needles sensation across his tongue.

Users cannot speak or eat while using the Brain Port so designers are hoping to create a smaller device that could be permanently fixed behind the teeth or to the roof of the mouth enabling more natural use in the future.