I have no idea how advanced the research is into the technology but I do know there are already electronic aids that are hardwired to nerves. I think it is natural for our curiosity to experiment to improve the human animal.

Cochlear Implants
Cochlear implants are used to restore hearing to people with middle ear damage but have functional auditory nerves in the cochlea. These devices consist of an external piece similar to a hearing aid. Sound is converted into electrical pulses that travel to a series of electrodes coiled within the cochlea. Each electrode represents the sound of a particular frequency range within the cochlea, which then uses normal hearing mechanisms to send the sound to the brain along the auditory nerve.

Retinal Implants
Retinal implants consist of a chip with a series of photoreceptors used to create signals that can directly stimulate the optic nerve. In some cases, more conventional camera technology feeds into a computer that stimulates electrodes in the optical cortex of the brain. There is a lengthy learning process to create organized vision and the resolution is quite limited. In the case of the optical cortex, the patient must help map where the apparent position of light is when each electrode is stimulated and the computer is used to reorganize the inputs of the camera to be consistent with the mapping.

Think how far technology has advanced since the 1950's

And you thought Terminator was fiction.