Author: Matthew Horspool

• Closing date: Wednesday 31 May 2023
• Who: 5 to 17 years

Put the power of literacy at your fingertips! Write a short story, essay, or poem on any topic in braille.

Since 1997, CNIB has organised a Canada-wide Braille Creative Writing Contest for children and young people. This important competition celebrates braille literacy and encourages young people to flex their creative muscles while practicing their braille skills.

VICTA is delighted to be a part of this contest for 2023 and we look forward to reading your entries!

Why enter

Everyone that enters the contest will receive a small participation prize.

Under 10?

You can use this entry to go towards your ‘Create’ badge as part of your Young Achievers Award. You could also use it to enter the BBC’s ‘500 Words’ competition coming in September.

Over 10?

You can use this as evidence to demonstrate great communication as well as working under pressure on your VICTA Vault profile. If you are 10 or 11, you can also use it to enter the BBC’s ‘500 Words’ competition coming in September.

To find out more about the entry criteria and how to enter, follow the link below!

Find out more and enter

We’re excited to announce that the Optima Braille Laptop Computer will integrate the Framework Ecosystem! The highly customizable, upgradable and repairable platform will offer unprecedented flexibility and performance to assistive technology products.

The Framework ecosystem is known for its modular design, which allows users to easily replace and upgrade individual components such as the processor, memory, and storage. This makes it easy to keep the device up to date and running smoothly, and also reduces electronic waste by minimizing the need for full device replacements. In addition, the Framework Laptop is built with sustainability in mind, using recycled materials and providing detailed information about the origin and environmental impact of each component.

The Optima transforms the assistive technology landscape which has traditionally seen custom-designed proprietary computing products, by offering all the power, features, functionality, configurability and upgradability that people have come to expect from common desktop computers. It is an optimal combination of a full-featured mainstream computer with braille and speech output and a QWERTY keyboard in a sleek and compact handheld form-factor; a high-performance Windows-based machine that can accomplish any task from word-processing and internet-surfing to highly demanding professional workloads such as video editing and software development. The Optima is the only product that puts users in complete control by offering them configurability before they purchase it and full upgradability after.

A plain text version of the press release is included below:

The ecosystem brings mainstream performance and flexibility to the assistive technology space, marking the end of the era of proprietary notetaker devices

Wilmington, Delaware – April 6, 2023 –

Orbit Research, a leader in the field of assistive technology, announced today that the company will integrate the Framework ecosystem into its products starting with the Optima Braille Laptop Computer from AccessMind, a new enterprise founded by Orbit Research and a team of veteran software developers. The highly customizable, upgradable and repairable platform will offer unprecedented flexibility and performance to assistive technology products.

The Optima transforms the assistive technology landscape which has traditionally seen custom-designed proprietary computing products, by offering all the power, features, functionality, configurability and upgradability that people have come to expect from common desktop computers. It is an optimal combination of a full-featured mainstream computer with braille and speech output and a QWERTY keyboard in a sleek and compact handheld form-factor; a high-performance Windows-based machine that can accomplish any task from word-processing and internet-surfing to highly demanding professional workloads such as video editing and software development. The Optima is the only product that puts users in complete control by offering them configurability before they purchase it and full upgradability after.

“We’re amazed to see how Orbit Research has leveraged modules from the Framework ecosystem to enable a high-performance braille laptop” said Nirav Patel, CEO of Framework. “We designed our modules from the start to be reusable outside of the Framework Laptop, but this goes beyond anything we envisioned.”

The Framework ecosystem is known for its modular design, which allows users to easily replace and upgrade individual components such as the processor, memory, and storage. This makes it easy to keep the device up to date and running smoothly, and also reduces electronic waste by minimizing the need for full device replacements. In addition, the Framework Laptop is built with sustainability in mind, using recycled materials and providing detailed information about the origin and environmental impact of each component.

“By integrating the Framework ecosystem into the Optima braille laptop computer, we are able to offer a level of configurability, upgradability and repairability that has never been possible in the assistive technology market. Orbit’s quarter-century of experience in designing and manufacturing highly complex and advanced systems such as the Graphiti have enabled us to engineer the Optima in a manner that offers the flexibility of the Framework ecosystem with the robustness of the Orbit TrueBraille platform while accommodating it in the unique ergonomic and compact form-factor of the Optima.” said Venkatesh Chari, CEO of Orbit Research and co-founder and CEO of AccessMind. “This allows us to provide users with truly innovative and sustainable products that will meet their needs for years to come. For far too long, users have only had the choice of traditional braille notetakers which are extremely expensive, have very limited hardware capabilities, and lock users into a closed system that is obsolete the day it is released. These notetakers require both students and teachers to learn specialized proprietary user-interfaces and then re-learn the use of mainstream computing platforms such as Windows or Mac computers as they enter the workforce. The Optima changes this forever. Orbit’s disruptive educational and braille products have set the bar for breakthrough functionality, performance, quality and affordability by developing solutions based on mainstream manufacturing practices. Integration of this flexible platform is yet another milestone in our journey towards leveling the playing field by introducing to the assistive technology industry the benefits of cutting-edge mainstream computing technology, and the ease of configurability and upgradability that the Framework ecosystem pioneers.”

“We believe that technology should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their abilities or needs,” said Adi Kushnir, co-founder and CTO of AccessMind and a veteran developer of assistive technology software. “By integrating the Framework ecosystem, we are taking an important step towards making that goal a reality. The Optima offers a no-compromise solution that bridges the gap between mainstream and assistive technology products by providing options in configurability, not only in hardware but also in software. Having been built to run standard Windows, the Framework ecosystem is future-proof with respect to operating system updates and the Optima also offers AccessMind’s specially developed BrailleUI software. BrailleUI provides a simple notetaker-like custom-designed braille-first user experience for a set of common applications such as a book reader, braille editor, calculator and file manager to seamlessly bridge the gap between a simple dedicated user interface and the mainstream Windows experience.”

The Optima will be available in Q1 2024 and customers will be able to choose from a variety of configurations and customization options, including different state-of-the-art processors, memory, storage, braille technologies and keyboard layouts.

Visit www.orbitresearch.com/product/Optima for more information.

About Framework:

Framework is a San Francisco-based company that creates technology products with sustainability, customization, and repairability in mind. Its flagship product, the Framework Laptop 13, is a highly customizable and upgradable laptop computer that features a modular design, easy repairability, and detailed information about the origin and environmental impact of each component. For more information, visit https://frame.work.

About Orbit Research:

Orbit Research is a global leader in the development of innovative and affordable products for people who are blind and visually impaired. Founded with the mission to fulfill the urgent need for affordable assistive technology products, the company has introduced breakthrough products like the Orion family of accessible scientific and graphing calculators, the Orbit Reader family of refreshable braille displays, the Orbit Slate family of multi-line refreshable braille displays, and the Graphiti family of tactile graphic displays that define the state-of-the-art in features, functionality, and affordability.

About AccessMind:

AccessMind is a new enterprise founded by Orbit Research and a team comprising Adi Kushnir and Avi Mann, with a mission to transform the Assistive Technology industry by bringing the benefits of mainstream technologies to products for people who are blind or visually impaired. With decades of experience in the Assistive Technology industry and a proven track record in developing world-leading breakthrough products and technologies at affordable prices, the AccessMind team brings a unique combination of a modern, innovative mindset and tremendous depth of skills and experience to usher in a new era in Assistive Technology.

Contact details:

Carla Morris
Orbit Research LLC
Tel: +1-888-606-7248
Email: [email protected]
https://www.orbitresearch.com

Anaheim, California – March 14, 2023 –

AccessMind and Orbit Research announced the launch of the Optima™ Braille Laptop Computer today at the 38th Annual CSUN Assistive Technology Conference. Providing all the capabilities of a state-of-the-art laptop computer and adding complete modularity and flexibility in hardware and software, the Optima Braille Laptop pioneers an entirely new class of products.

Traditional braille notetakers are extremely expensive, have very limited hardware capabilities, lock users into a closed system that is obsolete the day it is released and offer software upgrades that are few and far between. These notetakers require both students and teachers to learn specialized proprietary user-interfaces and then have to re-learn the use of mainstream computing platforms such as Windows or Mac computers as they enter the workplace.

The Optima changes this forever by offering all the power, features, functionality, configurability and upgradability that people have come to expect from common desktop computers. It is an optimal combination of a full-featured mainstream computer with braille and speech output and a QWERTY keyboard in a sleek and compact handheld form-factor; a high-performance Windows-based machine that can accomplish any task from word-processing and internet-surfing to highly demanding professional workloads such as video editing and software development. It is the only product that puts users in complete control by offering them complete configurability before they purchase it and full upgradability after.

The modular platform allows users to configure every aspect of the hardware and software. Built upon state-of-the-art hardware, the Optima offers the latest generation of Intel Core i5 and i7 laptop processors, memory options from 8GB to 64GB, onboard storage from 256GB to a massive 2 terabytes and beyond. A choice of braille technology options is also available – Orbit’s signage-quality and affordable TrueBraille™ or traditional piezo cells.

With the latest WiFi 6E standard and Bluetooth 5.2 technology, Optima allows fast and reliable wireless network speeds. The product is also the first Thunderbolt 4 certified Braille device, offering industry-leading data transfer capabilities with speeds of up to 40 GBPS. It also includes the peripherals expected in a high-performance mainstream laptop, such as high-quality stereo speakers, beam-forming microphones, and a fingerprint sensor and adds accessibility enhancements such as haptic (vibration) feedback.

Optima’s hardware flexibility extends to its ports, allowing users to pick any four from a wide range of popular ports including, USB Type C, USB A, HDMI, SD cards and storage expansion modules. The modular ports offer plug-and-play interchangeability and can even be swapped on the fly. Optima also provides a Braille Terminal mode and can be connected to any smartphone or computer and used as a braille display and keyboard.

The software on the Optima Braille Laptop is equally flexible. The unit comes pre-installed with the Microsoft Windows 11 operating system, the best mainstream computing platform for accessibility and productivity. With Optima, users no longer have to use out-of-date versions of operating systems or wait for the device vendor to push updates to them. They can always stay secure and up-to-date through Microsoft’s upgrade facilities. Since it is a standard Windows computer, the user also has a choice of screen readers, with support for NVDA, JAWS, Narrator, and Supernova screen readers. The Optima comes with the NVDA Screen Reader pre-installed, configured with speech and braille output and ready to use out of the box.

For users who prefer a dedicated braille-optimized user interface, the Optima includes AccessMind’s specially developed BrailleUI software. BrailleUI provides a simple notetaker-like custom-designed braille-first user experience for a set of common applications such as a book reader, braille editor, calculator and file manager to seamlessly bridge the gap between a dedicated user interface and the mainstream Windows experience. BrailleUI also includes high-quality speech synthesis from Cerence (Vocalizer), in addition to the voices built into the Windows operating system.

Weighing just over 3 lb. and measuring 11.7 x 7.5 x 1.3 inches, the Optima is compact and lightweight but rugged and durable. The Optima Braille Laptop will begin shipping in the first quarter of 2024.

After the transformative changes that have been brought about in the educational and professional assistive technology field by Orbit’s breakthrough products such as the Orbit Reader and the Graphiti, the Optima now further levels the playing field by offering a no-compromise solution that bridges the gap between mainstream and assistive technology products.

Visit www.orbitresearch.com/product/Optima for more information.

About Orbit Research:

Orbit Research develops and manufactures innovative and affordable products that enable an independent lifestyle for people who are blind or visually impaired. Founded with the mission to fulfill the urgent need for affordable assistive technology products, the company has introduced breakthrough products like the Orion family of accessible scientific and graphing calculators, the iBill Talking Banknote Identifier Orbit Reader family of refreshable braille displays, the Orbit Slate family of multi-line refreshable braille displays, the O and the Graphiti family of interactive tactile graphic displays that define the state-of-the-art in features, functionality, convenience, and affordability. For more information, visit www.orbitresearch.com.

About AccessMind:

AccessMind is a new enterprise founded by Orbit Research and a team comprising Adi Kushnir and Avi Mann, with a mission to transform the Assistive Technology industry by bringing the benefits of mainstream technologies to products for people who are blind or visually impaired. With decades of experience in the Assistive Technology industry and a proven track record in developing world-leading breakthrough products and technologies at affordable prices, the AccessMind team brings a unique combination of a modern, innovative mindset and tremendous depth of skills and experience to usher in a new era in Assistive Technology. For more information, visit www.accessmind.net.

Contact details:

Carla Morris
Orbit Research LLC
Tel: 1-888-606-7248
Email: [email protected]
www.orbitresearch.com

The brochure text follows –

• All-in-one Braille laptop computer
  • 40 braille cells
  • QWERTY Keyboard
• Mainstream Hardware and Software
  • Latest-generation Intel Core i5 and i7 laptop processors
  • Microsoft Windows 11 and beyond
• Modular design is fully configurable before you buy it and upgradable after you do
  • Braille technology options – Orbit TrueBraille™ or Piezo
  • Processors – Intel Core i5 or i7
  • Memory – 8GB to 64GB
  • Storage – 256GB to 2TB
• Powerful Connectivity
  • Latest WiFi 6E standard
  • Bluetooth 5.2
  • The first Thunderbolt 4 certified Braille device
• Choice of popular ports – pick any 4 you want
  • Wide range of hot-swappable ports, Plug-and-Play interchangeability
  • Thunderbolt/USB C, USB A
  • HDMI
  • SD Card
• BrailleUI – Braille-optimized user interface
  • Simple notetaker-like interface
  • Built-in apps: braille editor, calculator, book reader, file manager
  • High-quality Cerence (Vocalizer) TTS voices
  • Easily switch between BrailleUI and standard Windows
• Choice of screen-readers
  • Pre-installed with NVDA
  • Narrator, JAWS, Supernova
• Mainstream peripherals you expect
  • High-quality stereo speakers
  • Microphone
  • Fingerprint sensor
  • Haptic (vibration) feedback
• Braille Terminal Mode
  • Connect as a braille display and keyboard
  • Operate your smartphone or PC
• Compact, lightweight and rugged
  • 3.4 lb., 11.7 x 7.5 x 1.3 inches
  • 1.5 kg, 29.6 x 19.0 x 3.3 cm

Award supports advancement of microfluidic technology in pursuit of developing an affordable refreshable braille and tactile graphics display for blind people

ANN ARBOR, Mich., April 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ —

NewHaptics, an innovative tactile display technology company, announced today it has been awarded a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). This $1M grant is the fourth SBIR award received by NewHaptics to date and supports the company’s continued progress towards delivering a multiline refreshable braille display for the blind at an accessible price point.

This assistive technology will enable increased access to braille in digital form and enable blind people to read and interact with digitized spatial content including mathematical equations, graphs, and maps. It supports NewHaptics’ mission to improve information access for people who are blind and enable them to reach information parity with their sighted counterparts, particularly in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The device, along with its supporting software, will help remove barriers to collaboration in classrooms and workplaces and in document preparation in the workplace. Achieving this will increase braille literacy, create opportunities to enter careers in STEM, and ultimately help support the employment success and independence of people who are blind.

About NewHaptics

NewHaptics was founded with the goal of improving the lives of people who are blind by enabling true digital interaction using the sense of touch. The company has its roots in the affectionately named “Holy Braille Project” funded in part by the National Science Foundation that focused on developing novel technology to enable the creation of a large-area tactile display for the blind. Since spinning off from the University of Michigan in 2018, NewHaptics has raised funding from federal and state grants to support research and development.

Please visit the Company’s website at newhaptics.com and connect on Twitter and LinkedIn for more information.

One of our members has drawn attention to this Facebook group, which we thought might be of interest.

If you have a Facebook account and would like a braille pen pal, please click here to join the Braille Pen Pals Facebook group.

We are pleased to be bringing you our first Braille and Beer event of 2023, taking place immediately after Sight Village Wales.

We will be meeting at The North Star, 131 North Road, Maindy, Cardiff, CF14 3AE.

The pub is about half a mile away from the All Nations Centre, the venue for Sight Village Wales, and we think it will take about 10-15 minutes to walk there after the exhibition.

All are welcome, whether or not you are attending Sight Village, and you don’t need to register in advance. However, if you see this announcement in time and you are thinking of coming, it would be really helpful if you could email us to let us know so we can make the pub aware of roughly how many people to expect. There are no penalties if you tell us you’re coming but don’t make it on the day, so please do let us know if you can! The email address, as ever, is: [email protected]

If you haven’t let us know you’re coming but you decide on the day that you’d like to join us, you’ll still be made very welcome.

A party of us will be walking over from the exhibition at about 3:30 PM. If you’d like to join us, please meet us in the foyer, or call us on 020 3893 3392. Otherwise, please just meet us at the pub.

We are advertising a finish time of 7:00 PM as the North Star have a pub quiz starting shortly after that time. However, there are secluded areas of the pub where the quiz will not be a distraction, so if you would like to stay later than 7:00 PM, please feel free to do so.

Walking directions from the All Nations Centre to the North Star are included below. We look forward to seeing you there!

Getting to Braille and Beer from Sight Village Wales

Sight Village Address: All Nations Centre, Sachville Avenue, Cardiff, CF14 3NY

Braille and Beer Address: The North Star, 131 North Road, Maindy, Cardiff, CF14 3AE

The walk is mostly flat.

1. From Sight Village, walk south-east for 276 feet towards Banastre Avenue.
2. In 151 feet, turn right onto Banastre Avenue.
3. In 331 feet, cross the road and turn left onto Whitchurch Road/A469.
4. In 0.3 miles, cross the road and turn right onto Newfoundland Road.
5. In 0.1 miles, cross the road and turn left onto North Road/A470.
6. In 30 feet, cross the road and turn right towards North Road/A470.
7. In 105 feet, cross the road and turn left onto North Road/A470.
8. Cross the road. The destination will be on the right.

The Braillists is now closed for the Easter holidays, to give our staff and volunteers some time for rest and recuperation.

There will be no Braille Bar on Tuesday 11 April.

There will be no Masterclass on Tuesday 18 April.

There will be no Book Club on Thursdays 13 and 20 April.

Zoom events will restart with the Braille Bar on Tuesday 25 April and the Book Club on Thursday 27 April.

There will be a severely reduced service from the help address during this period.

Happy Easter!

STOP PRESS! Ed Rogers, Stuart Lawler and Ilka Staeglin will be hosting a Braillists event at a location to be decided in Drumcondra. It will take place during the afternoon of Thursday 30 March. Dublin was the second local group the Braillists ran back in 2014, so we’re pleased to be bringing it back after a few years of quiet.

What will be discussed and tested at the meeting?

• Ed will be bringing the Canute Console from Bristol Braille Technology for people to test and feedback on. We will be asking people to suggest things they would like to see demonstrated on it.
• We will be talking through the direction the Braillists can and should go in next. If you have an idea for a project that embodies “more Braille!”, then likely as not that can be supported by the Braillists.
• Talking about all the latest technology which was showcased at CSUN.
• If other braille technology companies besides Bristol Braille Technology would like to attend the meeting, or would like the meeting to test and provide feedback on their braille products, please email [email protected].

How do you attend?

Simply email [email protected] so we know you’re interested in coming! We’ll keep people updated when we have exact times and places.

We can’t wait to welcome you to our latest masterclass this Tuesday at 7:30 PM GMT.

We’ve got a lot to cram into what will be the last of our computer science-themed classes. We’ll start with a quick refresher about what we’ve covered so far before taking a deep dive into what it takes to write software and build hardware with a particular focus on the accessibility elements of the process. As per usual we’ll be leaving time for all of your questions at the end of the session, so make sure you have all of your coding / Linux / Git / anything computer sciencey questions ready!

Register for the Masterclass here.

To join by phone, please use these details:

• Phone number: 0131 460 1196
• Meeting ID: 824 7645 2710
• Passcode: 123456

STOP PRESS! Dave Williams and Ed Rogers will be at CSUN, Anaheim, California, USA between Wednesday 15 and Friday 17 March. As part of the trip, they will be holding a Braillists meeting in the foyer of the Hilton Hotel (just over the way from the Marriott) at 6:00 PM on Wednesday 15 March. If Newsletter readers would like to attend, please email [email protected] so they know how many people to expect!

What will be discussed and tested at the meeting?

• Ed will be bringing the Canute Console from Bristol Braille Technology for people to test and feedback on. We will be asking people to suggest things they would like to see demonstrated on it.
• We will be talking through the direction the Braillists can and should go in next. If you have an idea for a project that embodies “more Braille!”, then likely as not that can be supported by the Braillists.
• Talking about all the latest technology being showcased at CSUN.
• If other braille technology companies besides Bristol Braille Technology would like to attend the meeting, or would like the meeting to test and provide feedback on their braille products, please email [email protected].

How do you attend?

Simply email [email protected] so we know you’re interested in coming! We’ll keep people updated when we have exact times and places.