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To: I1002812--IBMMAIL NFB R&D Committee
FROM: Steve Jacobson - IT Sales & Marketing Systems
3M Company - 555-01-03 Phone: (612) 733-9780
St. Paul, MN 55144 FAX: (612) 736-6037
Subject: Braille Plotter
It is with some hesitation that I write this note inasmuch as I don't
have the engineering background that many of you do, but I have a
question.
Although I understand the advantages of a driven spur wheel over a
braille embosser for graphing, I do not understand why a spur wheel
would yield superior results to some kind of freehand power stylus. The
dot spacing could be controlled by the rate of motion versus the
frequency of vibration. Possibly, the intensity of vibration could also
be controlled to provide a variation in texture. Since there would be a
single impact point at any point in time, the problems with sharp angles
and the changing of orientation of a wheel would be avoided.
There was such a device shown at the NFB convention in the late 70's or
early 80's, although it was not computer-controlled. A vibrating pin,
which could be started or stopped via a push button, was moved beneath
the paper as one moved a drawing handle on the top side. I believe a dot
forming element was connected to the drawing handle, and both were
mechanically linked to the vibrating pin beneath. As I recall, one could
achieve an almost smooth line, although the higher the density the
longer the time. In theory, such a device under computer control could
place braille labels on a drawing, although it would be slow compared to
an embosser in that respect. I believe that the projected cost of the
machine I saw was under $1,000, but I haven't heard of it since.
I am also wondering if anyone has had any hands-on experience with the
device shown in Detroit that raised an image placed on special paper by
a laser printer. One printed an image on special paper then ran that
copy through this device and it came out nicely raised. The add-on
device was $795, but the paper was something like $1 per sheet. I
thought the results were very good, and the initial cost relatively low.
However, the long-term costs in terms of the special paper were high.
Again, sorry if my ignorance is showing!
Regards,
Steve Jacobson
INTERNET: USMMMXBL@IBMMAIL.COM
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