Charles Van Hook Portfolio

Project overview

This project aimed to enhance digital accessibility for the visually impaired by creating a refreshable braille ebook. The goal was to develop a device capable of dynamically displaying text content, including materials from sources like Kindle, in tactile braille format.

Timeline

4 months (November 2023-May 2024)

Team

2 Electrical Engineers

Role

Lead Designer & Engineer

Components

Embedded systems development

PCB design

Networking

Awards

Best Freshman Design Dean's Imagineering 2024

STATUS

V1 Prototype Finished

Tools

Fusion 360

Arduino IDE (C++)

Altium

Kindle API

Design Process

The core of BrailleVue's mechanical design was a refreshable tactile display system. It utilized an array of miniature electromagnets, each paired with a cam mechanism. When an electromagnet was energized, it actuated its corresponding cam, which in turn physically lifted a pin. These pins, arranged in standard Braille cell configurations, protruded through a surface plate to form readable Braille characters. The design focused on achieving reliable pin actuation, consistent pin height for clear tactile feedback, and the necessary density to represent multiple lines of text within an ebook form factor.

3D Render/CAD

Software / Electronics

A custom-designed Printed Circuit Board (PCB) formed the electrical heart of the system, responsible for delivering precisely controlled current pulses to the individual electromagnets. This allowed specific pins to be raised or lowered on command. The software architecture was multifaceted: it included an interface with the Amazon Kindle API to source reading material, robust parsing capabilities to handle various text inputs (including PDFs), and a sophisticated translation engine to convert standard text into the Braille code, accommodating multiple languages. This software layer then translated the Braille data into control signals sent to the custom PCB to dynamically update the physical display.

Electronics

SOFTWARE

Challenges

Significant challenges included the miniaturization of the electromagnet-cam-pin assemblies to achieve a practical device size and resolution. Power management was critical, as activating numerous electromagnets simultaneously could draw considerable current, impacting battery life and potentially generating heat. Ensuring the mechanical reliability and durability of the moving parts over many refresh cycles was another hurdle. On the software side, accurately parsing diverse document formats, handling different language Braille standards flawlessly, and managing the real-time conversion and display refresh presented considerable complexity. Integrating the Kindle API and ensuring seamless content delivery added another layer of difficulty.

MEDIA

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