Without the generous support of our sponsors, it would have been extremely challenging to plan the World Braille Day conference. We extend our thanks to them all for their support of this event, and we are looking forward to seeing many of them in person tomorrow.
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. Their primary product is the Optima, a braille laptop computer which combines the functionality of a braille display with mainstream computing technology.
The optima is designed to be modular, offering consumers the chance to choose from different types of braille cells, laptop processers, memory, and storage, so that they can purchase a product that meets their specific needs.
You can listen to the team behind the Optima discuss the product and their hopes for it on this episode of TechTalk, which was recorded in 2023.
All Formats has been producing Braille, large print, audio and accessible digital information for 30 years. If you are someone who receives bills, bank statements, or other documents through the post, it’s possible that you’ve benefited from the transcription service offered by All Formats without even knowing it. All Formats believes in ensuring that everyone has access to the information they need, and they work to the highest standards to ensure that the braille you receive will be clear and perfectly matches the print copy.
All Formats is a not-for-profit company owned by Queen Alexandra Charity with roots tracing back through Birmingham Royal Institute for the Blind, established 1848; the opening of a school for blind and partially sighted children and the continuous teaching of Braille to the present day. The expertise of the All Formats team, combined with their links to the college, means they truly understand how critical it is that blind people are given access to information.
If you’re wondering just how much they celebrate braille, you can read this blog post by Paul, an All Formats staff member who is also blind, talking about how braille has had a positive impact on his life.
Email: [email protected]
Aspire Consultancy is an independent company which provides training and advice on assistive technology for blind and visually impaired people. They work with private clients and individuals, as well as businesses and education providers across the UK.
Aspire Consultancy are UK distributors for the orbit research family of products. Orbit Research is a company that develops innovative and affordable braille and tactile products designed to enhance accessibility for people who are blind or visually impaired. Orbit products are known for being cost effective when compared with more traditional braille products. Their products are robust and designed to withstand frequent use, and they focus on creating user friendly interfaces that work across multiple languages.
Their line-up includes products for both reading and writing braille, viewing tactile graphics, and establishing communication between braille and non-braille users.
Beyond braille, Aspire Consultancy sells many other interesting products, such as white canes, magnifiers, and media players.
In 2011, Bristol Braille Technology CIC decided that their goal to create more affordable braille wasn’t enough. They wanted to build a multi line display that blind people could use for reading books, music, and looking at diagrams. In 2019, after many years developing the product in consultation with blind people, they launched the Canute 360. The Canute has 9 lines of 40 cells, meaning that the device gives the user a total of 360 cells of braille.
Since then they have gone on to develop the Canute Console. It has the same number of cells as the original Canute 360, however rather than being a stand-alone display, it is built on a Linux terminal. Users can create their own code to run on the device, as well as making use of existing projects, which include a city map viewer and classic games. They will be bringing the Canute Console along to the Braillists conference, and you can contact them if you would like more information.
Dot is changing the way blind people access not only braille, but tactile graphics as well. A standout product is the Dot Pad, the first smart tactile graphics display. Equipped with 300 cells in an equally spaced array, it can render both Braille text and tactile graphics in real-time, allowing users to access visual content such as maps, graphs, photos, and equations from any source. The device includes an additional 20-cell Braille display for text, enabling simultaneous interaction with text and graphics.
Dot’s technology is integrated into public transportation kiosks in Busan, Korea, enabling blind people to access essential information such as tactile maps when they are travelling in the city. It’s one of the most interesting new developments in tactile navigation, as it works alongside a custom-built navigation app, that blind people can use to find the accessible kiosks within the station. Once there, a destination can be selected and then explored on the Dot Pad. Having on-demand access to tactile maps would certainly have an impact on how many blind people travel.
Most braille users will have come across a HumanWare product at one time or another. Whether you used an early 2000s BrailleNote, or have just got your hands on the latest Brailliant, HumanWare braille is a part of many of our lives.
Since 1988, HumanWare has developed over 50 different products that have benefited the lives of blind and visually impaired people. Their products are used in classrooms, workplaces, in the home, and on the move.
Their latest offering is Monarch, a multi-line dynamic Braille display that renders both Braille and tactile graphics simultaneously. Whether you want to zoom in and out of a map or read a book you can do it with 10 lines of 32 cells.
Index Braille is the world market leader when it comes to Braille embosser production. By continuously raising the technical level, Index Braille has made braille more accessible for people worldwide.
One thing you might not know about Index is that they are committed to having a positive impact on the environment, and reducing any environmental harm that arises from producing their devices. Their electricity comes from renewable sources such as solar, wind, and water. They also commit to being absolutely sure that all of their electricity is fossil-free at all times.
In 1984, Index started out as a business ran from a garage. In 2016, they released the V5 line of products, which includes user-friendly features like remote support and a web interface, as well as WiFi and Bluetooth. They continually work with their users to create products that have a positive impact, not only on braille readers, but on the world around us.
If you’ve ever thought it would be cool if you could use your Perkins in conjunction with the technology that you own, now you can. Paige Connect is an affordable adaptation for your classic braille writer that connects it wirelessly to any phone, tablet or laptop for instant braille translation and gamified learning. The Paige Connect board is posted to you in a package that fits through your letterbox and simply replaces the base of your braille writer to transform it into a Bluetooth keyboard. This makes it compatible with any software that accepts SDFJKL braille input.
It’s perfect for braille learners and the team behind the Paige Connect made sure they worked with blind students to create a product that would be genuinely useful. A blind person can write on their Perkins, contributing to a collaborative document that sighted students are also working on.
If you’re curious about how you might use the Paige Connect, you can book an online demo at paigebraille.com/buy
Sight and Sound Technology is the leading supplier of assistive technology in the UK and Ireland. They offer assistive technology training as well as selling a variety of products, including popular software such as JAWS. They sell a wide variety of braille displays, including the Focus product line, the BrailleSense and Braille EMotion, as well as the Paige Connect and the Canute. Sight and Sound works with over 35000 customers, supporting them to access life-changing technology.
Sight and Sound Technology keeps the community up-to-date with assistive technology through their webinars and podcasts, which are all made available on their website.
Thomas Pocklington Trust strives for equality of blind and partially sighted people in every aspect of society. Over half of their staff are blind or partially sighted, and they work directly with the community to ensure that everyone’s views are heard and represented. They are committed to making a genuine difference to the lives of blind people, and a project which has made a significant impact is their Get Set Progress internships. They work with partner organisations to offer nine month paid internships to blind and partially sighted people who may either be looking to get on the career ladder for the first time, or who are wanting to return to work after a break.
They also work with blind and partially sighted students to ensure that they receive access to an equitable education. Students can get in contact with the Student Support Service if they are experiencing any barriers that are preventing them from fully accessing their education. As well as this, Thomas Pocklington Trust supports those who are working with blind students, to make sure they have all of the necessary resources so that their students can thrive.