[Art_beyond_sight_learning_tools] New graphic displays for the blind

[Shelley L. Rhodes]

PhysOrg.com
Wednesday, December 22, 2004

New graphic displays for the blind

The micro robotic group at the caesar research center has recently been 
awarded one of three research prizes by the ONCE foundation in Madrid. The 
ONCE foundation is dedicated to the social integration of the handicapped 
and blind in particular. With this EUR 60,000 prize, the Spanish 
organization acknowledges the invention of a new mechanism for graphical 
tactile displays for the blind by the researchers Dr. Bernhard Winzek, Dr. 
Sam Schmitz and Roman Vitushinsky, thus promoting the technical 
implementation of this principle.

Image: One single module with 10 x 10 metallic films. Graphic: Caesar

María Jesús San Segundo, Spanish Secretary of Education and Science, and 
Carlos Rubén Fernández, President of ONCE foundation, awarded the prize to 
the scientists at the historical Complutense University auditorium in 
Madrid. Georg Boomgaarden, German Ambassador to Spain, also participated in 
the festive award ceremony.

The displays use metallic films featuring various shape memory alloys which 
are produced layer by layer on silicon wafers using thin film technology. 
Display pixels are generated when the metallic film adjusts its curvature 
partially, similarly to bimetal snap plates for temperature switches. The 
movement of the films is then transferred to the touch panel via plastic 
pins und thus can be detected by the user. The combination of shape memory 
alloys is innovative. It enables switching the film to stable positions 
using different heat pulses without a permanent heat supply. Thus, only the 
switching operation requires electric current, whereas maintaining the 
status does not.

The benefits vis-à-vis traditional Braille displays are the display's 
compact structure featuring thin film technology, resulting in a cost 
reduction per pixel. Using conventional Braille-cell technology, costs for 
the graphic display of information emerging from the high number of pixels 
required are beyond the price range of the blind. With these innovative 
displays scientists make a significant contribution to the freedom in daily 
life of the handicapped.

The Bonn-based international research center caesar (center of advanced 
european studies and research) commenced research in 1999. With over 220 
employees, interdisciplinary teams conduct research in the areas of 
biotechnology, nanotechnology and medical technology. Research and 
industrial application cooperate smoothly: caesar develops innovative 
products and procedures, and supports scientists in initiating new ventures.

Source: Caesar

http://www.physorg.com/news2474.html




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