Touchable online braille generator

ABSTRACT

Using the force feedback technology which has been used in video games for years, a prototype of an online Braille generator was developed for the visually impaired or blind user. Without any expensive devices, the prototype lets sightless persons use the information on the web by touching the output Braille displays on screen with a mouse. User studies will be conducted with blind people, and their data will provide valuable information about the optimal conditions for the online Braille display in the prototype, such as how strong the force should be and how big those Braille dots should be. The final product of this research will enable visually impaired people to enjoy all the library services and resources as well as the enormous amount of information on the web more freely.

REFERENCES

• 1: http://www.section508.gov/
• 2: http://www.loc.gov/nls/
• 3: http://www.artictech.com/
• 4: http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_jaws.asp
• 5: http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/factsheet/visualdisplay.htm
• 6: http://www.kgs-america.com/dvs.htm
• 7: http://www.duxburysystems.com/
• 8: Wooseob Jeong , Myke Gluck, Multimodal geographic information systems: adding haptic and auditory display, Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, v.54 n.3, p.229-242, February 1, 2003 [doi>10.1002/asi.10202]
• 9: Jeong, Wooseob and Gluck, Myke (2002) Multimodal Bivariate Thematic Maps: Auditory and Haptic Display, Contributed Paper, ASIST 2002, November 2-8, Philadelphia.
• 10: http://www.immersion.com
• 11: http://www.gutenberg.org/

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6)
          Subjects: User-centered design

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6)
          Subjects: Haptic I/O

General Terms:
Design, Human Factors

Keywords:
blind, force feedback, online braille, visually impaired