Low-Cost Refreshable Full-Page Braille Display with High Reliability

Project SummaryPolyK Technologies, LLCSBIR Phase IAn estimated 314 million people live with vision impairment. Nowadays, much information and knowledge are obtained by reading from computers, tablets, and smartphones. Refreshable Braille display is becoming the mainstream tool for the blind to access digital information. In the refreshable Braille display, the up-and-down of Braille dots is independently controlled by sending electrical signals to the actuators underneath the Braille dots.Even after many decades of effort, there are still two apparent limitations for the market dominated refreshable Braille displays: 1) the commercial refreshable Braille displays are still limited to a single text line, which cannot process graphics, mathematic data (typically presented in a columnar format, not horizontal format), or large amounts of structured and dynamic information. 2) these Braille displays are based on piezoceramic actuators, which are fragile and ponderous.In this project, we will develop a full-page Braille display system. It is enabled by the two recent patented innovations, i.e., a new generation high performance electroactive polymer composition with ultrahigh actuation strain (developed in 2021) and an innovative actuator design which greatly reduces the Braille cell size by 80% and simplifies the assembly of a full-page Braille display. The project will be conducted by an interdisciplinary team consisting of material scientists, electrical engineer, blind entrepreneur, and braille press.The proposed full-page Braille display system will be compact (80% size reduction), lightweight and durable (based on piezoelectric polymer actuators), and low cost (can be roll-to-roll manufactured). It will revolutionize the way the blind access information, especially for graphics or dynamic database which is currently inaccessible to them. It will greatly improve the education and employment opportunities for blind people (a giant leap for blind people to learn subjects like mathematics and science) and enhance their life quality (web surfing and viewing arts and photographs).