What is braille?
Braille is a tactile system for blind and partially sighted people to read and write. It is a sequence of raised (embossed) dots representing letters, numerals, punctuation and words.
The braille system now in use (Standard English Braille) was first established in 1932. The Braille Authority of the UK (BAUK) is the braille standard setting body for the UK. BAUK liaises on braille standards and developments with similar bodies in other countries
Types of Braille (grades)
There are three different types of braille: grades 1, 2 and 3.
Grade 1 comprises the standard braille alphabet, each letter represented by a braille cell. There are no contractions (abbreviations). Those who use grade 1 braille are people who are very new to reading by touch, older people who lose their sight late in life, and people with learning difficulties.
Grade 2 uses contractions that take up less space. The number of pages of a braille document can be up to five times as many as the print copy. Shortforms, such as 'bl' for 'blind', as well as single cell contractions for common words like 'and', 'for', 'the', 'with', make grade 2 a much faster and easier way to read braille.
There is no official standard for grade 3 in the UK. It is a form of braille shorthand similar to grade 2, with many more contractions (over 300 of them). Grade 3 also omits vowels, and decreases spacing between words and paragraphs. It is used almost solely for personal note-taking. There are very few books or documents published in grade 3.
Tactile representation
Diagrams, graphs and other illustrations can be produced as tactile representations. Diagrams are usually simplified for ease of production and use. The two main media used to produce tactile diagrams are:
- heat swell paper;
- thermoform.
Heat swell paper produces a relief of the lines or marks on the page and is a swift method of producing simple pictures. Thermoform diagrams are produced by building a collage, using layers and different textures to provide more complex diagrams. The thermoform diagram is produced by placing a plastic sheet over the collage and then heating it using a thermoform machine, which employs a vacuum to ensure the plastic sheet, when heated, faithfully moulds itself to the shape of the collage.
