37th Annual CSUN Assistive Technology Conference Has Concluded

Tactile Graphics Creation by and for Visually Impaired Users

Date & Time

Thursday, March 17, 2022 - 3:20 PM PST

Location

Orange County

Description

After 25 years of making tactile graphics and braille embossers, ViewPlus has continued with a laser-like focus on making information accessible, specifically technical diagrams, charts, graphs, and charts. Our new accessible drawing tool honors that tradition with a tool created by and for visually impaired users. Using a combination of touch screen and keyboard input with voice and sound feedback, drawing, editing, and embossing/printing various shapes and objects is possible. When combined with the ViewPlus Rogue Trac and Rogue Sheet embossers, a visually impaired student or professional can self-sufficiently collaborate with others. Creating an accessible drawing tool from the start instead of making an existing tool accessible is an approach ViewPlus is uniquely qualified for after spending years helping create high-quality tactile graphics and software for others. Combining audio with tactile graphics is also something ViewPlus has been doing for many years. Using this tool, it is possible for a visually impaired user to: • Creating standard shape objects (e.g., rectangle, triangle, circle, line) • Advanced objects (e.g., number lines and data plots) • Add fill colors or patterns • Add voice, text, and braille labels • Print with ink and emboss tactile graphics • Support on Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android using standard keyboard, mouse, and touch screen devices This tool is intuitive by approaching the problem primarily from the visually impaired perspective. The tool is also aware of the capabilities of ViewPlus printers and embossers, so getting high-quality output is straightforward. Placing the output on a touch screen device allows interactive use or editing of the tactile graphics by the creator or other visually impaired users.

Audience

Higher Education
Disability Specific
K-12 Education
Entertainment & Recreation
Research & Development

Audience Level

Beginning

Session Summary (Abstract)

Whether visually impaired yourself or looking for an accessible drawing tool for a student, child, or colleague, this session combines 25 years of ViewPlus know-how and a desire to make tactile graphics creation accessible to all. Be self-sufficient with your own TIGER embosser.

Session Type

General Track

Topics