What does Top-Braille do?
Top-Braille addresses one of the greatest challenges for vision-impaired people: to instantly and reliably read standard printed text in any situation. As the name suggests, Top-Braille reads printed characters and instantly outputs the Braille equivalent via a built-in character pad shaped like a Braille cell. By moving the unit along a page or item of printed text, the user can read words and sentences in real-time.
Top-Braille can also speak the words aloud, letter-by-letter, in conjunction with Braille output.
How does it work?
As the user moves the Top-Braille along a line of text, a high definition lens scans each character. Built-in software then immediately translates the character to Braille, and the resulting character is displayed on a Braille matrix. So, by simply resting a finger on the Braille matrix whilst moving the Top-Braille horizontally, the user receives an instant Braille translation of the text being scanned. Navigation dots above and below the Braille cell, as well as audio cues, locate text in a document and guide and orient the user in order to remain aligned with the text being read. Rollers enable a smooth, flowing movement across the text.
Optionally, Top-Braille can also be set to process each completed word and read it aloud, either through the built-in speaker or via earphones. This integrated speech feature makes it a perfect pedagogical tool for learning Braille.
Top-Braille is discreet, lightweight and ergonomic and has rapidly become essential in the daily lives of vision-impaired people.
Key Functions
Recognition of all printed text with Braille and speech output
Recognition of all printed text with Braille output only
Colour recognition
Reading of preloaded (USB) text with Braille and speech output
Characteristics
Reading speeds of up to 20 characters per second, depending on user’s ability in Braille
Up to 6 hours usage per battery charge
Braille cell specifically developed by Metec™ includes 6 dots for reading and 2 dots for navigation purposes