For the last six years Diane Ralph has not seen her little niece Lorna.

Despite the young girl being a big part of the 50-year-old's life, for 13 years Diane has been registered blind.

But her family are hoping a pair of electronic glasses fitted with a high-tech camera which will help her regain her sight - and allow her to see family members she has never seen before.

Diane, who worked as a nurse in Aberdeen up until 1994, was just 26 when she retired due to degenerative spinal discs and arthritis.

In 2004, as she worked towards an Open University degree in Arts and Humanities, she started having trouble reading her textbooks.

"My eyes wouldn't focus and I had bright sparkles, like fireworks, in my vision," Diane explains.

"When I saw an eye specialist, my central vision had deteriorated to the point I only had a small amount of peripheral vision left. After more tests, I was subsequently diagnosed with Stargardt disease which was devastating."

Stargardt disease is a rare inherited disorder which affects the retina of the eye. It causes progressive damage to central vision in both eyes, the areas used for detailed vision for everyday activities like reading or driving.

Symptoms can include loss of detailed vision and colour perception, wavy vision, blurriness, blind spots and difficulty adapting to low light levels. There is currently no cure for the disease.

Diane lives with a friend who acts as her carer and while she has some vision out of the corner of her eyes, Grant explains she cannot do many of the things he takes for granted, such as reading a book or watching television.

But if the family are able to raise the £11,000 needed to purchase the special electronic glasses, it could transform Diane's life.

It was a Facebook video that popped up on her brother-in-law Grant's timeline, that alerted him to the restorative powers a pair of electronic glasses could have.

A clip from an American talk show, it showed a man with Stargardt disease putting on the glasses and seeing his son for the first time.

"My daughter is now six and her auntie has never seen her," says Grant.

Determined to help his sister-in-law, Grant teamed up with his wife and Diane's sister Alison, to search for the glasses in Scotland.

The family were able to travel from their home in Sandhaven, Aberdeenshire to Glasgow to test the new technology with the help of UK distributors Associated Optical.

Developed by Canadian company eSight, the glasses communicate what they see through a camera and enhanced video system which can then be interpreted correctly by the optical nerve, giving back sight.

A high-speed, high resolution camera in the middle of the eSight electronic glasses, captures what a user is looking at in real time.

Enhanced full colour video images can be seen by the person using the glasses with visual clarity and no perceptible delay.

For Diane, being able to see again was a moment she never anticipated would happen.

"I couldn't believe it when I tried on the electronic glasses, it was like coming out of darkness into the light," she says.

"I could see again and was easily able to read a newspaper, see cars and road signs and I also got to see my family for the first time in years which was very special."

To raise the £11,000 required for the glasses, Diane's family are doing all they can to save for the life-changing piece of technology. Her brother-in-law plans to run a half marathon in Aberdeen while her young niece will run The Wee Shortie 1k in Huntly for her aunt.

"We're not taking a family holiday this year, we just want to do everything we can to help her," says Grant.

Setting up a crowdfunding page to help raise the funds, he says the response has been fantastic, with both friends and strangers donating to Diane's cause.

"The guy who invented the glasses even made a small donation," says Grant. "He said 'it makes my heart soar every time I hear about somebody whose life can be dramatically improved by the eyewear'."

If the family manage to raise £11,000 for the high tech glasses, which need to be fitted with Diane's own unique prescription, she will regain her independence and be able to go for walks or pop out for a coffee unaided.

"We don't know how long it will take to raise the money but I really hope we reach the target," says Diane.

"The glasses will make an enormous difference to me and how I am able to live my life."