Technologies Humanware Inc.

Essilor International

Gregory Stilson

Dominic R Labbé

Luc Blanchette

Éric Lapointe

Georges Bourque

Guy Santerre

Maryse Legault

Sébastien McKenzie-Faucher

Grégory Saint-Jean

Maude Giasson

A computer-implemented method for dynamically calibrating a virtual Braille keyboard implemented on a touch screen is provided. The virtual Braille keyboard includes a plurality of virtual keys each associated with a corresponding finger of a user and with a variable key location on the touch screen. The method includes detecting typing events, each involving one or more of the fingers of the user contacting the touch screen at corresponding touch locations and defining one or more active fingers for the typing event. The method also includes updating, in real-time, the variable key location of the virtual key associated with each active finger in view of the corresponding touch location detected during a current one of the typing events. A computer-implemented method for reinitializing a calibration of a virtual Braille keyboard for a single one of the two hands of a user is also provided.

Dynamic calibrating of a touch-screen-implemented virtual braille keyboard

A single-unit portable Braille device is provided that can include a housing and a touch-sensitive surface provided on the housing and configured to implement a virtual Braille keyboard including a plurality of virtual keys each associated with a key location on the touch-sensitive surface. The virtual Braille keyboard is configured for entry of input Braille data from a user contacting the touch-sensitive surface at one or more of the key locations. The portable Braille device also includes a refreshable Braille display provided on the housing and configured for outputting output Braille data for tactile reading by the user, and a processing unit in the housing and configured to receive the input Braille data from the touch-sensitive surface and to transmit the output Braille data to the refreshable Braille display. In some implementations, the portable Braille device includes a visual display located under the touch-sensitive surface.

Portable device with virtual tactile keyboard and refreshable Braille display

Growing community of inventors

Madison, WI, United States of America

Gregory Stilson