Polyester non-woven fabric finger cover as a TRUCT braille reading assistance tool for braille learners

Recently, transparent-resinous-ultravioletcuring- type (TRUCT) Braille signs are becoming more and more popular in Japan, especially when they are printed together with visual characters. These signs are made by screen printing whose technique can be applied to various base materials, such as paper, metal, and plastic. TRUCT Braille signs have begun to be used in public facilities, such as on tactile maps and on handrails. Naturally, it is expected that Braille beginners will utilize these signs. However, it has been pointed out that the friction between the forefinger and the base material may affect TRUCT Braille reading. In this study, we invented soft and thin material finger cover to reduce friction during Braille reading. And also we have carried out a study to investigate the effect of using a finger cover. The subjects were 12 Braille learners with acquired visual impairment, who were asked to read randomly selected characters with and without wearing the finger cover. The results show that most participants could read TRUCT Braille significantly faster and more correctly with a finger cover than without it regardless of dot height. This result suggests that wearing finger cover enables the Braille learners to read TRUCT Braille more efficiently. The finger cover can be used as a Braille reading assistance tool for Braille learners. Effectiveness of finger cover may include the safety factor that forefinger remains clean. In other words, with the finger cover, forefinger will not become dirty. After one or two years, we will put into practical use finger cover in Japan.