February 14, 2012 Making Tactile Graphics

Slide 1: 
Welcome to the Accessible Technology Webinar Series 
The Accessible Technology Webinar Series is sponsored by the Great Lakes ADA Center and the Pacific ADA Center, both members of the ADA National Network. The Session is Scheduled to begin at 1:00 pm CDT We will be testing sound quality periodically. The content and materials of this training cannot be used or distributed without permission. This training is funded under award #H133A060097 from the U.S. Department of Education through the auspices of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR. For permission to use training content or obtain copies of materials used as part of this program please contact us by email at adata@adagreatlakes.org or toll free (800) 949-4232 (V/TTY) in IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, and WI.  For other all other states call (312) 413-1407

Slide 2: 
Tactile Graphics
Clara Van Gerven, Access Technology Content Specialist, National Federation of the Blind, Jernigan Institute 

Slide 3: 
Webinar Features
Closed captioning – click CC icon (top of screen) or control-F8 and adjust your screen
Questions - type and submit questions in the Chat Area Text box or press control-M and enter text in the Chat Area. Please do not use emoticons or hand-raising features during this session

Slide 4: 
What are tactile graphics?
Images designed to be explored by touch
How do you use them?
How do you design them?

Slide 5: 
What makes a good tactile graphic?
Not too complex
Clear outlines
Spacing
Variety of heights
Contrasting textures
Sufficient difference between textures and heights

Slide 6: 
Other considerations when designing tactile graphics
Consistency in representation
Durability
Exactness (e.g. math, science)
Time to read
See BANA guidelines at http://www.tactilegraphics.org/

Slide 7: 
Braille embossers – TGD Pro
Pro
No extra equipment
Fast
TGD Pro will also work to create Swellform graphics
Can import Scientific Notebook graphs
Con
Lower resolution
Less flexible
Only XP and older

Slide 8: 
Swellform
 Image of Swellform machine (Pictures In a Flash) 

Slide 9: 
Swellform 
Pro
Simple process, though no software is provided or suggested for creation
Sturdy material
Can be re-used by student or teacher
Con
Braille is not as consistent or well-defined
Harder to produce large quantities
High cost per page ($1)
Paper can get stuck in copiers at higher volumes
Requires copier or HP inkjet printer

Slide 10: 
Thermoform
 Image of a thermoform machine 

Slide 11: 
Thermoform 
Pro
Well-defined shapes
Flexible format
Durable
Con
Very manual – user has to create a tactile image for thermoform
Every copy is unique, and recreating graphics can be tricky
Be careful with heat-sensitive materials

Slide 12: 
Viewplus Tiger Software Suite
Pro
Easy to create labels
Easy to reproduce
Easy to create consistent Braille and Braille and graphics combinations
Excel friendly
Con
Time consuming
More complex

Slide 13: 
TSS Demo _ Image of a viewPlus Premier embosser 

Slide 14: 
Phoenix embosser  Produces high resolution tactile graphics
Bundled with simple translator and graphics editor
Interface is simple, somewhat limited
Only some image types can be imported (BMP, EEG, GIF, JPEG/JPG/JPE, PNG & TIFF/TIF)
Force of impact can be adjusted
Image of the Enabling Technologies Phoenix embosser 

Slide 15: 
Firebird Graphic Editor demo _ Screenshot of a map of India in Firebird Graphic Editor 

Slide 16: 
Additional hardware options
STEM binder (Talking Tactile Pen + apps)
Great potential, esp. for STEM content 
Layered information
Combines tactile, audio, large print
Screen shot Touch Graphics table of elements. Touch Graphics Talking Tactile Pen 

Slide 17: 
Additional hardware options (cont.)
IVEO 
Don’t neglect what equipment and expertise you may have on hand:
Rapid prototyping/3D printing (e.g. Markerbot Replicator, Roland MDX40A)
Milling machine
Sowing machine
Etc.

Slide 18: 
A sample 3D printer
Max. size 225 x145 x150 millimeters or 8.9 x 5.7 x 5.9 inches
About $2,000 depending on options, starting at $1,749
About $50 per spool of ABS
Image of a Makerbot Replicator 3D printer 
Slide 19: 
Don’t reinvent the wheel
Use existing tactile images and models
National Braille Press
Touch Graphics
Creative Adaptations for Learning
Commercial models and model kits
Etc.

Slide 20: 
Questions?

Slide 21: 
Resources 
See handout!

Slide 22: 
Contact me
National Federation of the Blind
Clara Van Gerven 
200 E. Wells Street at Jernigan Place
Baltimore, MD 21230
Phone: 410-659-9314 ext. 2410
cvangerven@nfb.org 

Slide 23: 
Thank You
Thank you for participating in today’s session.
Please Evaluate the session at  http://ada-conferences.February142012.sgizmo.com 
Please join us for our next session:  April 10, 2012- Improving the Web Accessibility Game Plan with Karl Grove, Deque System.  http://ada-audio.org for more information.