Digital Braille Watch Alice Tang | Alison Boumeester Vidhya Raju | Anika Lohrentz Advisor – Thomas Yen, Ph. D. Client - Holly and Colton Albrecht

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Outline Background Problem statement Design requirements Design proposals Design evaluation Future work Acknowledgements

Background Current watches Analog may be misread Audible causes disruptions to others http://www.geocities.com/Eureka/Concourse/3294/cortblind.jpg http://www.ncbi.ie/files/images/watch2.jpg

BRAILLE NUMBERS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Problem Statement Goal: Create digital Braille watch Should not cause disruptions Appropriately sized Differentiate between Braille dots Compact

Design Requirements Must use Braille Digital display Military time Silent Wristwatch or pocketwatch

Design Proposals Electrocutaneous Vibrotactile Mechanical Wheel

ELECTROCUTANEOUS DISPLAY Tactile sensation on skin via small current Display size dependent on skin’s sensitivity Control over stimulus intensity; sensation http://www.star.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/projects/tactile-display/ElectroTactileMouseKakudai.jpg http://www.star.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/projects/gelforce/index-img.jpg

ELECTROCUTANEOUS DISPLAY Pros Could be read without fingers Versatile display Applications beyond Braille Cons Costly, time consuming research Demanding power requirements Risks of shock

VIBROTACTILE DISPLAY Pin Mechanism Vibration Mechanism http://www-civil.eng.ox.ac.uk/people/zy/research/stent.jpg Pin Mechanism NiTi “smart metal” Microsolenoid BrailleNote © cells Vibration Mechanism Shaftless vibro-motor Vibration cues active dot http://web.mit.edu/erblan/www/Graphics/solenoid-big.jpg http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=8449

VIBROTACTILE DISPLAY Pros Cons Simple components User friendly Similar to current products Cons Larger size Potentially costly components

Mechanical Wheel Based on old “folding clock” design Interface clock circuit with mechanical components http://jacklambert.files.wordpress.com/2006/06/flipclock.jpg

Mechanical Wheel Pros Relatively low power usage Low cost (no special parts) Can use fingertips to read Cons Difficult to build Vulnerable to failure Relies on AC power

Design Evaluation

VIBROTACTILE

Future Work Convert digital signal to Braille Interface clock circuit with Braille display Consider human factors Ergonomics Safety

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Colton and Holly Albrecht Professor Thomas Yen Professor Mitchell Tyler Professor Kurt Kaczmarek