WO2008122719A1

WO2008122719A1 - Writing method for making characters readable by persons with no, partial or total visual impairment

Info

Publication number: WO2008122719A1
Application number: PCT/FR2008/000248
Authority: WO
Inventors: Eric Binnert; Sophie Laxenaire; Rafael Lain; Angela Detanico
Original assignee: Eric Binnert; Sophie Laxenaire; Rafael Lain; Angela Detanico
Priority date: 2007-02-26
Filing date: 2008-02-25
Publication date: 2008-10-16
Also published as: FR2913133A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a writing method for making said writing readable by persons with no, partial or total visual impairment. The invention comprises providing at least one character in Braille that can be read with the fingers and superimposing on each finger-readable Braille character the visually readable character corresponding thereto, said visually readable character being substantially drawn in the space defined by the six points of the Braille matrix. The invention can be used for books or signalling panels.

Description

Writing process to make characters readable by both sighted and visually impaired people

The present invention relates to a method of writing to make readable characters both by LEDs, visually impaired and blind.

Braille writing is currently one of the only writing and reading systems accessible to the visually impaired and visually impaired. This system consists in making a series of six points in relief on a delimited space that will be called matrix or Braille cell. Thus, one character of this writing system is represented by one to six points distributed over two columns of three rows, measuring from 6 to 8 millimeters in height and from 3 to 4 millimeters in width. In a very schematic and simplistic way, we can say that the arrangement and the arrangement of the points in relief on all these six locations defined in a Braille matrix makes it possible to define all the letters of the alphabet as well as the accents and umlauts. The Braille writing system consists of 64 characters of fundamental meaning called basic value.

As a result, a poor or blind person can read a document using his sense of touch with the tip of his finger. However, one of the limitations of this writing system is that there are relatively few Braille documents. On the other hand, in a world where people who are poorly or visually impaired and visually impaired are side by side, there is no real access to Braille writing for sighted people. Indeed, in some cases, it may be interesting for sighted persons and blind or blind people to read the same text at the same time.

For this purpose, devices have been proposed for transposing visually readable text into audible text or tactile readable text. In European patent EP 0925570 B1, it is proposed in particular a portable reading device for the blind person equipped with a plurality of optical sensors recognizing the letters readable visually. This device is provided with a housing for the finger and movable and retractable pins coming into contact with the finger pulp inserted into the housing. Thus, each letter of the alphabet being associated with a given configuration of pins according to the Braille system, a direct transposition of a visually readable text in a tactile readable text (in Braille) is then possible, the device translating into Braille character each printed character read. This same device can also be coupled to an audio headset, the transposition of visually readable text to an audible text. Such a device thus makes the world of readable visually accessible to the world of evil or blind. However, not all people who are poorly or visually impaired are equipped with such a device. In addition, the world of Braille writing remains inaccessible to sighted people.

There are, of course, books that contain both text written in character. Braille for example on one page and the corresponding text in print on the other page. However, it is usually not possible for a sighted person to make the link between the Braille character and the corresponding print character it is reading.

According to other forms of presentation, devices and methods for providing the same text or characters readable by both the sighted and the visually impaired have been proposed which propose a provision in which the visually readable text can be read. just below the readable text, with the lines interspersed. These provisions allow a reading at the same time by sighted and blind or visually impaired through this intercalation of lines but there is still no direct correspondence between the two texts or characters. In particular, the sighted person does not know how to indicate to the bad or blind person where Braille text is located. Similarly, if the text in Braille is, for example, a name for a medicine on the box of this medicine, a sighted person can not know it before a person who is ill or blind does not read this text in Braille out loud.

Thus, the devices of the prior art do not allow to read both types of writing at the same time and also do not allow to know if the bad or blind person reads exactly the same thing as the sighted person. There is no direct and fast correspondence to observe between the two types of characters or texts. In addition, when there is a Braille and print version of the two texts, such an arrangement requires a more important place since it occupies two pages opposite, or it requires to insert the lines of Braille writing and writing lines in print.

In US 2005/032026, a system has been proposed for integrating a tactile character (Braille) with alphanumeric characters. To do this, we print an alphanumeric character defining an area in which the tactile character is superimposed. The process aims so first to realize the alphanumeric character and then to realize the tactile character for example Braille superimposed manner. It is therefore the tactile character that falls within the limits of the alphanumeric character.

However, it has been realized that by proposing to superimpose the Braille character on the area delimited by the alphanumeric character, we end up with disruptions in the reading of Braille, since the codes of the Braille writing are not taken. into account. Thus, as can be seen in the representations made of two fonts, for the letter M or W, we can see that the space delimited by the alphanumeric character is larger than the space of the Braille matrix, the rules of spacing between Braille characters can not be followed, which disrupts reading by visually impaired or blind people.

In US 2006/001913 and US2006 / 134587 it has been proposed to possibly superimpose a tactile character on a printed character. However, if the characters may appear superimposed, the alphanumeric character is always made first, and again the Braille codes are disturbed since the visually readable character is drawn independently of the Braille matrix space.

Therefore, the methods proposed above do not allow a simultaneous reading by a sighted person and a person without or without vision.

There is therefore a need to be able to make visible to both sighted and visually impaired people the same text, in particular by allowing the sighted people to associate the tactile sensation and the visual sensation facilitating their access to Braille.

Furthermore, as regards the signage, the provision of information, it generally produces a line of information written in a visually readable character and a substantially equivalent line in tactile readable character. Therefore, it is necessary to have a sufficient surface to be able to carry the mentions in one and the other of the writings, which generates generally a greater cost.

As a result, in general, information intended for the blind or the visually impaired is limited or non-existent. Also, in order to facilitate the access to the information, the signage, etc., of the blind male people, it appears important to be able to propose a method of writing with which one can give this type of information in a limited spatial space, corresponding to the size of the writing in print.

For this purpose, the present invention aims at overcoming the various disadvantages of the prior art by proposing a writing method intended to make said writing readable by both LEDs and non-visually impaired persons and this substantially in the same way. space.

Thus, the subject of the present invention is a writing method intended to make the written information readable by both blind or visually impaired persons, characterized in that it consists in producing at least one character in Braille, readable tactilely and superimposed on each character in Braille readable tactil visually readable character corresponding thereto, said visually readable character being traced mainly in the space delimited by the six points of the Braille matrix.

Thus, in a very advantageous manner, each visually readable character is directly associated with the tactile readable character in Braille corresponding to it so that the same information is given to the sighted persons and to the blind persons mainly in the same space, that is to say say the matrix or cell of writing in Braille.

The method according to the present invention advantageously makes it possible to take into account as reference space the Braille matrix for the tracing of alphanumeric characters and thus avoids the inconvenience of the disruption of the reading in Braille as was the case in the processes proposed until now that took as reference the alphanumeric character to trace the character readable tactilely. Thus, the character is made in Braille readable tactilely and then superimposed on it the visibly readable character that corresponds to it, the latter being registered primarily in the Braille matrix.

In addition, the text in Braille is directly translated for a person seeing, character by character which makes it accessible and therefore familiar, this writing readable tactilely. By character we mean letters, numbers, punctuation, etc. The method according to the present invention thus offers the advantage of proposing a superposition of the two writings: visually readable writing and tactile readable writing. However, it is not a simple superposition, a text of character in relief and a text of character drawn or printed since the method makes it possible to obtain a direct correspondence between said two scripts by imposing rules dimensioning the readability of the readable character visually directly related to the rules for achieving the tactile readability that corresponds to it.

Thus, the writing method according to the invention has the advantage of proposing the two writings and this, without the Braille writing codes are disturbed since the visually readable character is drawn so as to be circumscribed in the space of the Braille matrix.

The writing method thus makes it possible to superimpose a written text readable visually on a written text readable tactilely without disturbing the writing rules in Braille, which saves space compared to the texts proposed in advance which, for example, needed to insert lines written in Braille with lines written in block letters.

Such a method makes it possible to obtain in a simple manner a simultaneous reading possible by the sighted and the partially sighted. Such a method makes it possible in particular to make readable to a clairvoyant what reads a visually impaired.

The Braille system is a writing made using raised dots arranged in a defined space and delimited by up to 6 points. This space corresponds to two points in width and three points in height. Each letter of the alphabet readable visually estiealized in braille using a particular arrangement of points in relief. For example, at "a" will correspond a single point located at the top left of the space defined by the 6 points, at "b" will correspond two points arranged at the top and middle left of the said space defined by the 6 points, and and so on...

Advantageously, the writing method according to the invention therefore proposes to draw each visually readable character in this six-point space so that a sighted person can immediately see the relief configuration of the tactile readable character corresponding to the character that she reads visually. Such a writing method according to the invention allows a simple way to make a text, information, information, accessible both to sighted people and to people who are poor or blind on the same medium (books, packaging, printed document, billboards, etc.).

It is conceivable to use such a writing method in order to make signs at the entrance of premises. The writing method according to the invention can also be used to carry out a marking of products such as medicaments, the pharmacist then being able to understand the Braille inscription which can be carried by certain packages and to indicate to the users poorly or blindly they will find the mention of the name of the product on the box.

According to the writing method of the invention, it is possible to perform the readable characters tactilely and one can then perform on each character readable tactilically, the readable character visually corresponding to it. Similarly, one can realize the readable character visually and can then realize, at the level of each visually readable character, the tactile readable character that corresponds to it.

The subject of the invention is also a process for printing documents making it possible to edit documents which can be read by touch and visually, characterized in that it consists in printing in relief at least one character that can be read in Braille and printed in a superimposed manner. on each character in Tactile Readable Braille, the visually readable character corresponding to it, said visually readable character being defined in the space delimited by the six points of the Braille matrix. .

The method according to the invention therefore makes it possible to edit documents that can be read by sighted persons and persons who are poorly or visually impaired.

The invention also relates to a printing device for implementing said method.

Similarly, the subject of the invention is a printing font characterized in that the characters of said font are defined in the space delimited by the six points of the Braille matrix. The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the drawing in which:

FIG. 1 represents a plan view of a matrix of the Braille system and an example of the character "a" represented according to the method of the invention;

Figure la represents another example of the character "a" made according to the method of the invention;

FIG. 2 represents a plan view of an exemplary embodiment of an alphabet obtained by the writing method according to the invention; and

FIG. 3 represents a plan view of examples of texts produced according to the method of the invention.

As can be seen in Figure 1, the matrix of the Braille system consists of six locations 1 to 6 defined in two columns and three rows and is 6 to 8 millimeters in height and 3 to 4 millimeters in width. For the sake of clarity, the whole is represented on a larger scale.

Each letter of the alphabet is thus defined by one or more points distributed on this matrix. Thus, the "a" is formed by a point P in relief (the relief being symbolized by the white in the figures) placed at the location 1 in the top left as can be seen in the figure ^' 1 and in the figure the.

According to the writing method of the invention, it is therefore proposed to draw the visually readable character which corresponds to this character readable substantially in the space defined by the matrix of six points. Thus, we draw as a character an "a" in this matrix as can be seen in Figure 1. '

The graphic representation of the letter "a" is, in figure 1, that of the capital A, - however another representation of the "a" could have been chosen as it is visible in the figure la, the only constraint being simply of plot this representation in the matrix o

of the six points to be superimposed, to match the character "a" readable visually and the character "a" readable tactilely.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, the alphabet can therefore be represented in its entirety according to the writing method of the invention.

Each visually readable character is therefore mapped mainly in the matrix defined by the six points. However, for reasons of legibility, certain parts of the visually legible character may be provided outside this matrix such as the point of the "i" and the "j" or the vertical bar of "b", "d" and of the "t" as shown in Figure 2. These character parts being overflowing above or below the matrix, they do not disturb the spacing between Braille characters. The relief of the points P in relief is here symbolized by the white. It is understood that the black ink, for example, tracing the character may cover the raised dot.

The graphic representation chosen for each character thus forming a printing font is here given as an example of a graphic representation and is in no way limiting, any other graphic representation of each character falling within the scope of protection of the invention.

As can be seen in FIG. 3, examples of texts written according to the method of the invention are represented substantially at the actual size. One writes thus a text which is at the same time readable tactilely by the points in reliefs P (represented by the white points P for the sake of clarity) and readable visually.

The invention is of course not limited to the examples given but encompasses the variants defined in the claims.

Claims

1. Writing method for rendering said writing readable by both LEDs and partially sighted or visually impaired, characterized in that it consists in producing at least one character in Braille that can be read by touch and superimposed on each character in Braille readable tactilely, the visually readable character corresponding thereto, said visually readable character being drawn mainly in the space delimited by the six points of the Braille matrix.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that one realizes the readable characters tactilely and then carries out, on each character readable tactil, visually readable character corresponding thereto.

3. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that it achieves the visually readable character and then carries out, at the level of each visually readable character, the tactile readable character corresponding thereto.

4. A method of printing documents for editing readable documents visually and tactilically, characterized in that it consists in printing in relief at least one character readable tactilely in Braille and print superimposed on each character in Braille readable tactually, the visually readable character that corresponds to it, said visually readable character being drawn mainly in the space delimited by the six points of the Braille matrix.

5. Print font, characterized in that the characters of said font are defined in the space delimited by the six points of the Braille matrix.