(Pocket-lint) - Autoglass has today announced a scientific breakthrough by developing glass that repairs itself, Pocket-lint has learnt.

According to scientists at the company's headquarters in Bedford, the company has designed a new type of glass that, when broken or cracked, automatically fixes itself.

"For the last couple of years, particularly since interacting with fans on Twitter and Facebook, we’ve had countless requests to fix people’s cracked smartphone screens using the resin we use to mend vehicle windscreens and windows,” John Aubrey, the lead scientist for Autoglass exclusively told Pocket-lint.

“Eventually, we realised we were potentially missing a trick, so started to work on a project under the radar to develop a revolutionary new glass which mends itself.”

The self-repairing glass works by having a thin layer of a pioneering synthetic, silicon-like compound that turns to liquid on impact. It then fills the gaps and reseals the crack instantly.

Autoglass is calling the new resin, Pro-Fill SOA (Self-Optimising Adhesive).

"It doesn’t work if the screen is completely shattered, but for simple cracks it works like magic. The next stage is to actually get it into phones, tablets or maybe even windscreens and we plan a series of meetings with manufacturers to discuss the way forward,” Aubrey explains.

Check out the video to see the new tech in action.

Writing by Stuart Miles.