Speaker: Dawn Bilpuch

Untangling the Wires: Why Connecting and Charging your Braille Display with USB Doesn’t Always Work (Extra 79)

USB, or Universal Serial Bus, has been a feature of braille displays for over twenty years. Originally a standard for connectivity, it has evolved over time to also provide power and charging capabilities. However, if USB is supposed to be Universal, why are some chargers faster than others, and why won’t some chargers and cables work at all?

On Tuesday 29 October 2024, we unravelled the answer to this far from straightforward question. Along the way, we covered:

  • A brief history of USB
  • Common USB connecters and how to tell the difference between them
  • How and when the USB cable you use may impact performance
  • What happens behind the scenes when you connect your braille display to a USB charger
  • What to look for when buying replacement cables and chargers
  • Whether or not a power bank is a viable solution for charging your braille display on the go
  • Things to try if your braille display won’t charge

The session was presented by Mobeen Iqbal from Taira Technology, an independent provider of bespoke and specialist hardware, software and support solutions. Mo has over fifteen years’ experience working with hardware of all shapes and sizes, from custom-built desktop and laptop computers to TV set top boxes and remote controls, and has a passion for improving the ease of use of technology for blind and partially sighted people.

Links from Mo

Comments in the Chat from Andrew Flatres

There are trade offs with having replacements batteries. In addition most braille displays have to have a medical certification which also plays a big role on deciding a replacement battery.

EU parliament has voted on a law that will require User replaceable batteries. I believe this should be in force by 2027. From a HumanWare perspective, we want to ensure products have a good life battery span and made light. An approach like the BI 20x where the battery is replaceable but held with two Phillips screw. We also have to consider battery collaboration. To respond to the medical certification, I will try and get a response from our team on this. This is a really good discussion.

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Braille On Display Launch Event (Episode 63)

We are excited to announce the launch of a new eBook!

Whether you’re new to braille or you’ve been using braille technology for decades, choosing your braille display can be daunting. They’re so expensive, there’s so much to consider, and just when you thought you’d investigated all your options, you come across another one you hadn’t heard of before!

Braille On Display has been helping prospective users choose the braille display which best meets their individual needs since 2016, and to celebrate National Braille Week and World Sight Day, we are delighted to unveil the third edition of this comprehensive compendium.

At a special launch event on Thursday 10 October, we heard first hand from its author, Jackie Brown, about what this publication has to offer and what has been added in this brand new edition. Jackie was joined by Jonathan Mosen, an esteemed ambassador from the assistive technology industry, who added his own commentary on the book, and we heard from Braillists Chairman Dave Williams and Trustee Stuart Lawler.

We also revealed details of how you can obtain your own copy of the book, and there was a meet and greet session with Jackie towards the end of the event.

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Braille Screen Input: What’s New in iOS and iPad OS 18? (Extra 77)

Braille Screen Input has been overhauled!

iOS and iPad OS 18, released on Monday 16 September, include the biggest refresh of Braille Screen Input since the feature was first introduced in iOS 8. Although you can, for the most part, still use Braille Screen Input as you always have done, the new functionality in Apple’s latest flagship operating systems is a source of much excitement throughout the blind community and will almost certainly take your Braille Screen Input experience to the next level.

Join us in this episode as Matthew Horspool talks us through what’s new.

Summary of New Features

  • New gestures for entering and exiting: double tap the far edges of the screen with two fingers to enter. To exit, pinch outwards or inwards, or perform a two finger scrub. BSI is also still available in the rotor and if this is enabled, the rotor gesture still works to exit, but it does not work if BSI is removed from the rotor.
  • You can now braille a for sign.
  • There are keyboard clicks and haptics during text entry, the same as those for the QWERTY on-screen keyboard.
  • When searching for apps on the home screen, you can now use grade 2.
  • You now have access to a Braille Item Chooser from within Braille Screen Input. It works in a similar way to searching for apps on the home screen, but functions within apps.
  • You can now enter Braille Screen Input automatically when encountering a text field.
  • Braille Screen Input now uses the Braille Table options in Settings, Accessibility, VoiceOver, Braille to determine whether input is contracted, uncontracted etc. Swipe up with two fingers to change braille table.
  • There is a new Command Mode, accessible via a three finger swipe left or right from within Braille Screen Input, or a tripple tap with two fingers at the far edges of the screen from elsewhere. Gestures in Command Mode are akin to braille display commands with the space bar held down, e.g. type the letter h in Command Mode to go to the home screen. You can also move the cursor and perform text selection with one finger and two finger swipe gestures.
  • When using the Braille Item Chooser or searching for apps on the home screen using Braille Screen Input, you can opt to remain in Command Mode when swiping right with two fingers rather than exiting Braille Screen Input altogether.
  • When in Command Mode, if the setting to enter Braille Screen Input when encountering a text box is enabled, VoiceOver will automatically switch from Command Mode to Braille Entry Mode when a text box is encountered.
  • There are new sounds for entering and exiting Braille Screen Input, calibrating the dots and changing between Command Mode and Braille Entry Mode.
  • There is now a setting to determine whether translated text appears on the screen whilst Braille Screen Input is active.
  • All Braille Screen Input gesture assignments, plus the assignments for entering Braille Screen Input, can be customised.
  • Braille Screen Input now supports Japanese braille.

N.B. if the master toggle for VoiceOver sounds is switched off in Settings, Accessibility, VoiceOver, Sounds and Haptics, the new Braille Screen Input sounds will not play.

Supported Devices

  • iPhone 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max, 2024
  • iPad Pro (M4), 2024
  • iPad Air (M2), 2024
  • iPad Pro 11-inch 5th generation, 2024
  • iPad Air 6th generation, 2024
  • iPhone 15, 15 Plus, 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, 2023
  • iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max, 2022
  • iPad Pro 12.9-inch 6th generation, 2022
  • iPad Pro 11-inch 4th generation, 2022
  • iPad Air 5th generation, 2022
  • iPad 10th generation, 2022
  • iPhone SE 3rd generation, 2022
  • iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max, 2021
  • iPad Pro 12.9-inch 5th generation, 2021
  • iPad Pro 11-inch 3rd generation, 2021
  • iPad 9th generation, 2021
  • iPad mini 6th generation, 2021
  • iPhone 12, 12 mini, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max, 2020
  • iPad Pro 12.9-inch 4th generation, 2020
  • iPad Pro 11-inch 2nd generation, 2020
  • iPad Air 4th generation, 2020
  • iPad 8th generation, 2020
  • iPhone SE 2nd generation, 2020
  • iPad 7th generation, 2019
  • iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max, 2019
  • iPad Air 3rd generation, 2019
  • iPad mini 5th generation, 2019
  • iPad Pro 12.9-inch 3rd generation, 2018
  • iPad Pro 11-inch 1st generation, 2018
  • iPhone XS, XS Max and XR, 2018

Apple Support Articles

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Free Braille Translators: Biblos, Sao Mai Braille and Send to Braille (Extra 71)

Following our exploration of braille translators during National Braille Week, we were delighted to be joined by esteemed assistive technology pioneer Dean Martineau. Dean is a long term braille user and has spent many years developing his own personal braille shorthand system.

In this Masterclass, Dean introduced us to the Biblos braille translator and demonstrated how he uses it to translate text into his personalised shorthand system. He also covered some more conventional uses of the program and compared it with other free translators on the market, including Send to Braille and Sao Mai Braille.

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Revitalise your Braille Reading Technique (Extra 59)

Whether you’re new to braille or an experienced braillist, reading is an important and fundamental process. To fully appreciate the brilliance of braille for use in daily life, reading is something you should enjoy and feel comfortable with. But what can you do to improve your reading skills once you have learned all the letters and perhaps some contractions as well? How can you enhance your reading speed and accuracy even if you’ve been doing braille for a while?

On Tuesday 20 June 2023, Chantelle Griffiths, Co-Founder and CEO of New Zealand’s Tactile and Technology Literacy Centre, shared some practical tips and tricks to get you on the right track with your reading, no matter how much braille you’ve done or where you are on your braille journey. There is something here for everyone.

We learnt:

  • What actually happens when we read and how reading by touch is different — or not — from reading visually.
  • How to press the “reset button” for your fingers and brain when you’re just not feeling it. Literally.
  • The fundamental braille technique you didn’t know you knew and how it enhances your reading.
  • The three C’s of braille reading; what they are and how they work together to help you connect the dots between your brain and fingers.
  • How playing the viola relates to reading in a straight line and how you can experience something similar yourself, even if you’re not a musician.
  • How to start from exactly where you are and enjoy the process.
  • Lots more practical tips, ideas and experiments you can try on your own.

This was a very practical session. If you’d like to follow along with the recording, please have some hardcopy or electronic braille handy and a couple of random objects that feel nothing like braille.

For further information please visit the Braillists Foundation Media Page.

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Braille for Beginners On-Demand (Episode 41)

Find out all about the Braillists Foundation’s new Braille for Beginners On-Demand programme in this archive of the launch event which took place on Monday 10 October 2022.

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Battle of the Braille Keyboards (Extra 46)

There are two well-known braille keyboards on the market today, the Orbit Writer and the Hable One. What are the similarities? What are the differences? Which one would suit your needs best?

On Tuesday 4 October 2022, we were joined by a user of each keyboard. They told us more about how their preferred keyboard works and why they like it, and we learnt how they compare against each other.

For further information please visit the Braillists Foundation Media Page.

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Getting to Know RNIB Reading Services (Extra 45)

Connor Scott-Gardner is an avid reader, and on Tuesday 6 September 2022 he demonstrated how to download books from RNIB Reading Services, transfer them to a braille display and read them. He also explained how Reading Services differs from other offerings from RNIB and elsewhere.

For further information please visit the Braillists Foundation Media Page.

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Braille Without a Braille Display: Braille Screen Input and More (Extra 44)

If you have an iPhone, iPad or Android device, it’s highly likely that you can braille in grade 2 directly on the touch screen and have it back translated instantly – a perfect replacement for the on screen keyboard. In this episode, Matthew Horspool and special guest Chris Norman demonstrate how this works on both iOS and Android.

We also briefly explored other ways of entering braille without a braille display, including the popular Perky Duck program from Duxbury Systems.

This session was recorded on Tuesday 5 July 2022. For further information please visit the Braillists Foundation Media Page.

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