Progressive glasses can be used to see far, medium and near distances with one pair of glasses, which can solve the problem of "myopia and presbyopia". The optical transition is smooth and there is no obvious discontinuity in the degree. However, the fitting requirements are high and the corresponding fitting parameters also require more precision. Among them, how to measure and select the progressive channel is a headache for many optical shops.

Nowadays, with the high penetration of the Internet, the middle-aged and elderly people have officially entered the era of small screens, and their eye health problems have been rapidly magnified. Adult progressive lenses can greatly meet the needs of presbyopic people to see both near and far with one pair of glasses.

However, progressive glasses have high requirements for fitting, and how to accurately and quickly measure the key fitting parameters - channel and ADD, has troubled many colleagues in optical shops. At this year's Shanghai exhibition, a very practical tool was discovered that can quickly and accurately measure the progressive channel.

What is a progressive channel?

Simply put, the channel is the transition length of the progressive lens from far to near. Proper channel selection is one of the key factors in whether the progressive lens is comfortable and convenient to wear.

Note: The channel length of progressive lenses of different brands is different, so please ask clearly when ordering! Example: The channel length of Zeiss progressive lenses is the vertical distance from the fitting cross to the starting part of the near area.

When the distance diopter and ADD are determined, the longer the channel length, the smoother the change from near diopter to distance diopter. However, when selecting a long channel, the downward rotation ability of the eye should be considered. Insufficient downward rotation force can easily cause unclear near vision.

Tools Recommendation | Rapid Calculation of Progressive Channel

How to accurately measure the length of the progressive channel? Measure the position of the pupil on the support piece when using it for distance and near respectively, and then measure the vertical distance between the two.

How to use the progressive measuring device to measure channels quickly and accurately

��Clamp the tool [progressive gauge] on the frame after the customer puts on the frame.

��Align the top edge of the glasses with the bottom edge of the [progressive gauge] beam, and align the glasses with the [progressive gauge] in the center.

��Use the near vision chart to mark the distance pupil height and near pupil height respectively.

��Accurately measure the distance between the distance pupil height and the near pupil height. Preliminary progressive channel is obtained.

��Finally, the most suitable progressive channel is selected based on the customer's selected lenses, frames, age, eye posture, frame height, old glasses and other factors.

Channel Selection Considerations

How do we choose relatively appropriate channel parameters for consumers after using above-mentioned gadget [Progressive Meter] to quickly and accurately measure the progressive channel?

1. Age

Assuming that the distance vision is adequately corrected, the older the person (over 55 years old), the more light added under ADD is usually greater than +2.00D. In this case, a long channel can be selected. At this time, it is also necessary to consider whether the customer's downward rotation ability can meet the selected channel length.

2. Eye posture

The customer's eye posture/habit is very important for choosing a channel. If you are used to moving your eyes but not your head, you can choose a long or short channel. If you are used to moving your head but not your eyes, it is recommended to choose a short channel.

For regular eye use, when the eyes are used frequently at close range, such as reading, writing, and browsing mobile phones, the near-use area is large enough to facilitate close viewing. The above-mentioned groups are relatively suitable for short channels.

3. Frame

Calculate the range of channels based on the frame height, pupil height, distance zone, and near zone. In particular, avoid cutting and abrasion of the near zone due to processing, which will result in a small near zone and unclear near vision.

4. Previous Channel Date Record  

If it is not the first time for the customer to wear progressive glasses and he is used to the old glasses channel, the channel can refer to the old glasses when choosing new glasses to ensure the comfort of the new glasses for near use.

Above briefly shared a practical tool [Progressive Measurement] that I saw during the Shanghai exhibition. It can effectively help us quickly and accurately measure the progressive channel and other wearing parameters (such as pupil distance, pupil height, lens eye distance, mirror angle, etc.) when fitting progressive glasses. Good tools can help us better serve customers and improve the professionalism and satisfaction of our services.

"Knowledge gained from books is always shallow", and the continuous accumulation of success/failure cases is the source of our confidence in fitting progressive glasses. After completing the quick and accurate measurement, the selection of channels also needs to consider factors such as lenses, frames, age, eye habits, and old glasses, and flexibly select according to actual conditions.