Bell’s Law of Computer Classes illustrates the process by which computers steadily evolve into ever smaller and more efficient models. The law, which works in correlation with Moore’s Law of exponentially escalating processing muscle describes how whole new classes of computers arise roughly once a decade. The process can be traced from ENIAC-esque behemoths, which gave way to consumer desktops, which lead the way for laptops, which in turn paved the way for the smart phone revolution.

Each new class not only takes up less physical space than its predecessor, but manages to leap over the previous generation in regards to processing prowess.

And the process of evolving mini might continues today. Just as we are getting used to carrying a sophisticated piece of machinery in our pockets, we may be on the precipice of the next incarnation: computers on a scale of millimeters.

A team at the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering has created a fully-functioning itty-bitty prototype that some are calling the world’s smallest computer. This micro PC is specifically designed to be implanted in the human eyeball in order to monitor pressure resulting from glaucoma. Checking in at just over one cubic millimeter, the system houses an ultra low-power microprocessor, a pressure sensor, memory, a thin-film battery, a solar cell, and a wireless radio with an antenna that can transmit data to an external reader placed near the eye.

In order to save on energy, the UoM prototype uses an “extreme sleep mode,” where it will only wake up every 15 minutes to take a measurement, a task which consumes around 5.3 nanowatts. The device can remain charged with 10 hours of indoor light each or 1.5 hours of sunlight and is able to store up to a week’s worth of information.

The system is a more compact model than a Swiss firm’s eye-pressure model which was built into an unsightly contact lens (see our profile here).

The one thing the device lacks is the ability to talk to other devices like it. However, the team thinks that they will be able to create a node-to-node communication system by utilizing an antenna designed for one specific frequency based on its geometry. This does away with the bulky external crystal that engineers use to facilitate a conversation between two isolated devices.

Initial hopes for this technology are for the medical field, where various micro nodes could be placed throughout the body to monitor various physical signs remotely with limited intrusion. Once the team is able hammer out the node-to-node communications, you could imagine micro machines being able to perform coordinated tactical surgical procedures without ever opening the body. Have kidney stones? A simple pill could unleash a flood of micro bots which could go and make waste of the offending blockage and you’ll be back to doing your bathroom business like nothing happened. Congratulations.

Beyond medicine, mini computers like this could make every object trackable and linked-in. In effect, every object could be made “smart.” In the future, you will never have to fear losing your favorite pen ever again; no sock will ever lose its twin; and your tie would be able to give you GPS-guided directions.

The inanimate objects of today already seem lazy by comparison.