Accessible Test
U.S. & Canada Basic Atlas
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U.S. & Canada Basic Atlas(New) Purpose To produce new volumes of high-quality tactile thematic maps by continuing partnership with The Princeton Braillists. Project Staff Fred Otto, Project Leader Katherine Corcoran, Model and Pattern Maker Terri Gilmore, Design Nancy Amick, The Princeton Braillists
An earlier collaboration with The Princeton Braillists resulted in the product World Maps, which has been well received. This project aims to address a deficiency in APH's offerings in the way of detailed thematic maps showing land use, elevation, major cities, and so on. It is based on the multi-volume set Northern North America by The Princeton Braillists, but has fewer and simpler maps and will be contained in one volume. A major advance represented in this set of maps is the addition of color and print maps, making the volume more accessible to low-vision or sighted students and students. Work during FY 2009 The medium on which the tactile maps must be produced for best readability―a thin vinyl―limited the methods by which the print maps could be provided. Through various trials, project staff decided to produce the tactile maps on a clear vinyl and the print maps as paper underlay sheets. These will be put in a binder so that pages can be removed as desired. The chosen format also has the advantage of using all in-house processes, so no coordination with outside vendors is needed. The project leader and Ms. Amick agreed on the maps to be included and the simplifications needed for each. The model maker created vacuumform patterns, poured molds, and revised the production patterns. Because the content of the maps is already determined, a full field evaluation was deemed unnecessary; an expert review of the clear map/print underlay format will be conducted. Several representative maps were chosen for this purpose. These were scanned, and color was added along with print labels. The expert reviewers were selected, and review materials were sent to them. Work planned for FY 2010 The reviews will be considered and if they are positive, final changes and preparation will be made. The maps and specifications will move into the production process. TG TV(New) Purpose To create an instructional video that gives real-time, specific examples of the thinking that goes into adapting print images into tactile graphics Project Staff Fred Otto, Project Leader Background The existing videos relating to tactile graphics, from APH and elsewhere, speak either in very general terms about philosophy or in specific terms about working with materials. What is apparently lacking is an understanding of how to adapt the print graphic after deciding what is to be shown―that is, how to convert it into a readable design for a tactile. The project leader has experimented with "screen-capture" programs, which record the onscreen editing of images in a drawing program along with voice-over narration. This seems promising as a relatively low-cost and direct way of illustrating the processes and should form the foundation of the video. Work during FY 2009 The project has received approval and been placed on active status, but no significant development has taken place as of this writing. Work planned for FY 2010 The project leader will consult videographers and in-house tactile graphics staff to develop a storyboard and outline. Appropriate software will be selected and obtained, and shooting will be done. The process of editing and preparing accompanying materials will begin. Model/Pattern MakerModel ShopProduct Involvement during FY 2009Tom Poppe.…………………………………………………………….……... Supervisor/Pattern/Model Maker Katherine Corcoran………………………………………………………………………….. Pattern/Model Maker Anita Rutledge………………………………………………………….………Pattern/Model Maker (part-time) The Model Shop is part of the APH Research Department and provides a unique service to the APH product development process. With regard to Research endeavors, the Model/Pattern Makers frequently interface with project leaders to build prototypes of early product concepts, planning for eventual mass production that will take place in-house, by an outside vendor, or a combination of both. The Model/Pattern Makers are regular participants in a product’s evolution, from the early prototype stage to the final tooling, eventually offering direct monitoring and guidance during actual production runs. With regard to Production efforts, the Model Shop provides direct support by preparing hard tooling associated with thermoform masters, molds, repairs to older equipment, and initial orientation to production setups/processes needed to produce a given product. The Model Shop frequently furnishes Technical Research staff with final specifications/drawings for the construction of various product components; these are inserted into the final specifications documentation. Typical efforts engaged in by the Model Shop in the pursuit of new product designs include:
Notable achievements include the efficient preparation of numerous thermoform patterns requiring additional storage space outside the Model Shop. The Model Shop established a brisk pace of prototype development and production of hard tooling that resulted in a backlog of products awaiting specifications put out by Technical Research. The following are specific examples of the Model Shop’s contributions to projects developed during FY 2009: All-In-One Magnetic-Velcro Board Tom Poppe originated the entire design of an adjustable, two-sided magnetic/Velcro board. This involved:
The Model Maker was active not only in aiding the project leader in finding suitable dry-erase/wet erase magnetic boards, but also active in dealing with the outside vendor who will supply the specially-molded handles and mounting brackets. The Model Maker furnished design specifications of the entire board to Technical Research for duplication purposes in the final Specifications document. The Model Maker assisted in overseeing the received parts from vendors and the in-house construction of the board itself. When vendor difficulties arose in preparing a suitable-sized carrying bag, Tom Poppe modified the vendor-presented sample bag to model its expected size and style. This product has experienced outstanding sales. Azer's Interactive Periodic Table Study Set Tom Poppe was responsible for troubleshooting die-cutting problems with the outside vendor as related to the Atomic Models. After locating a proper substrate (styrene versus ExCell), as well as a better quality Veltex®, the die-cutting issue was quickly resolved by the end of the fiscal year and expected production processes were in place for mass production purposes. Best for a Nest The tactile manipulatives required for field test of this storybook were built by Tom Poppe. Movable, interactive story-page items included a tree trunk with branches, clusters of leaves, a bird’s nest, bird eggs, birds, a cat, and grassy areas. Each tactile element is described in the story. The tactile, die-cut pieces attach to a background board using hook and loop material. Tom Poppe drew the designs of steel-rule cutting dies and sent these to an outside vendor for construction purposes. Enough material (of various textures) was purchased to make twelve sets of interactive parts. These story-page parts were provided to the project leader for field test purposes. Braille Plus Mobile Manager Just as the Braille Plus was nearing its ship date, the Model Shop was asked to design and produce a tactile key with braille identifications for the Mobile Manager. An enlarged tactile version of this device was made, a rubber mold poured, and an epoxy pattern was prepared by Katherine Corcoran. Braille pins were inserted into the epoxy pattern for identification of each symbol. The project was completed in October. Building on Patterns The project leader had written a teacher’s guide that included an activity requiring student identification of various animal crackers by shape. Identification of some of the cookies can be confusing, so Katherine Corcoran designed an insert page that can be torn out of the teacher’s guidebook and distributed to the class. This page has each of the different animal crackers identified with a braille label, plus a cut-out for each animal shape. Feel n’ Peel Sheets: Carousel of Textures Based upon product specifications provided by the project leader, the Model Shop thermoformed various textures into 8.5” x 11” rigid vinyl sheets in five different colors. These unique textures (bumpy and rough), created and established by Tom Poppe and the project leader for numerous past products (e.g., Web Chase, Textured Sorting Circles and Shapes), have become commonplace and used repeatedly by other project leaders in recent projects (e.g., MathBuilders). Flip-Over Concept Books This project continued to be a production “guinea pig” to determine if the pages can be full-color printed using alternative processes. If successful, this will lead to significant cost savings and alleviate APH in-house production staff of time-intensive and expensive silkscreening methods. The Model Maker was involved in arranging vendors to do the printing on the project. Numerous meetings have been attended. Color and printing tests were made, tested, and/or rejected. Once outside printing capabilities were proven out, the Model Maker proceeded to prepare production thermoform patterns, as well as related artwork to ensure accurate registration. Original thermoform patterns (a total of seven) were required for both the LINE PATHS book and the PARTS OF A WHOLE book. LINE PATHS involved the extra chore of preparing both thermoform patterns and print artwork for accompanying worksheets. The Model Maker determined the best way to set up these patterns to yield the most copies for multiple kits. Crucial to the design of this product was the Model Maker’s origination of a collation process for binding three separate stacks of panels onto Pro-Click rings. Food Pyramid The Model Shop was consulted to determine the best approach for this project. Several concept models were made and later refined into the finished prototype. There are two levels of the project: one for elementary-aged students and one for students in secondary grades. Both convey basically the same information. Katherine Corcoran completed all necessary thermoform patterns for prototype purposes, as well as oversaw the plate production of the elementary version of the chart. Game of Squares The Game of Squares is currently being redesigned by Karen Poppe. The game design is being simplified to cut production costs. The size of the board, game tokens, visual appeal, and storage style are being improved. The Model Shop staff began the fabrication of the master pattern for the grid and brainstormed token ideas with the project leader. Hands-On Trays Due to an outside vendor facility fire, Tom Poppe repaired a mold for the urethane “Clothes-Line Stringer” tray included in the Hands-On Preschool Activities Kit. The Model Maker was able to locate the original pattern he created for this product in the 1980s. He then modified the pattern somewhat in order to minimize the weight of the tray and to reduce material consumption without sacrificing function. A duplicate pattern was made and sent to the urethane vendor for production and re-introduction into the APH product line. Life Science Tactile Graphics This project consists of 61, 8.5 x 11 printed and thermoformed science graphics. The project leader did basic drawings of all the graphics. Katherine Corcoran then made temporary field-test thermoform patterns (16 total) used to create the field test prototypes. After field testing, some modifications, and in some instances, complete redesign of the original tactile model had to be done. The project was temporarily sidelined as the project leader awaited the outcome of wide-format printing options investigated for the Flip-Over Concept Books. With the completion of the thermoform patterns, the product is now awaiting print artwork for the visual overlays. MathBuilders Unit 7 Two new complete fiberglass thermoform patterns were designed by Tom Poppe and made to duplicate, as nearly as possible, the parts used for field testing. Fixtures were also designed to register parts for silk-screening. Artwork for screen printing is yet to be readied. One of the thermoform patterns will form trays to hold fractional parts of a whole. The other thermoform pattern will make circular raised borders to hold various pie-shape fractional parts. MathBuilders Unit 8 In November, the model makers began tooling various graphic grids for this math program. It involved cutting ¼-inch, symmetrical wooden components to construct each of the four grids. When completed, a rubber mold was made from each grid and an epoxy pattern was made for thermoforming. In addition to the grids, two spinners were included in the kit. Using the existing APH spinner hardware, model shop staff designed two new spinner overlays according to the project leader’s specifications. Molds were then routed in styrene and an epoxy pattern was made directly from the styrene master. The staff then tested each pattern, checking for potential problems. Unfortunately, one of the grid thermoform patterns experienced some problems with warping after it was used for a short time in production. Some buckling occurred that could not be satisfactorily repaired. A new thermoform pattern was made and is working satisfactorily. Meter Stick The American Printing House for the Blind has outside vendors who supply some of our educational aids products. The facilities belonging to the vendor who supplies our urethane foam materials experienced a fire damaging many product patterns belonging to APH. The Meter Stick was one such pattern that was lost in the fire. Fortunately, Tom Poppe located the original mold that he had built many years ago and it was still in excellent condition. After a series of castings and molds were made, a new pattern was produced of the proper length and surface quality for the vendor to use to produce the product. On the Way to Literacy One of the several patterns for the thermoformed parts in the On the Way to Literacy books was in need of revision. Several patterns are required to generate the tactile pages in Jellybean Jungle; each pattern makes three pages within the storybook. One of the patterns was being used to yield only one page; the other two spaces on the pattern were intentionally left black and were therefore wasting two-thirds of the pieces of plastic used on that pattern. Tom Poppe changed the pattern so that it would produce three identical pages, thus not wasting plastic in future production runs. Pattern Matching Cards for Giant Textured Beads Tom Poppe worked directly with the project leader to design the holding tray and matching tactile/visual cards for this product. Temporary thermoform patterns were made, silkscreen art was originated, and steel rule cutting dies were designed (based on the Model Maker’s technical drawings). The tactile/visual pattern matching cards were die-cut and applied to 6mm color foam backing. A total of 15 sets were produced for field test purposes. Picture Maker Accessories: Geometric Textured Shapes Tom Poppe and the project leader designed tactile sorting puzzles that will be included with the kit. They also provided Technical Research with a full listing of the dimensions, type of material, and quantity of all the shapes included in the kit—essentially all of the specifications needed for the production of the kit. Thermoform patterns were readied for the production of the textured puzzles. Sense of Science: Astronomy After field test completion, Tom Poppe continued to work with the project leader to finalize the tactile graphic representations encountered in this kit. Hard tooling involved many complicated thermoform patterns to produce the tactile overlays, two custom-designed trays, and interactive, two-dimensional displays (i.e., the Northern Circumpolar Dome, a fold-out Relative Distances of the Planets, and Our Solar System fold-out display with movable braille/print labels). All of the manipulatives of this kit were designed by the Model Maker and project leader. Die drawings were originated in the Model Shop and provided to Technical Research for duplication, as well as the overlay artwork for scanning. Stick-On Number Line The Stick-On Number Line is designed for the student’s desktop. It has a low-tack adhesive backing for easy re-positioning and is vacuum-formed in .010 white vinyl. The Model Shop staff made the epoxy/fiberglass thermoform pattern directly from the routed styrene mold supplied by Technical Research. Braille pins were then added for number identification. The pattern will yield ten number lines at a time. Sudoku Puzzle This popular, recreational puzzle seemed quite simple in nature at the outset, but it quickly presented technical problems. The model shop staff tested various materials to use for the product that would maintain its “snap” after repeated use. The staff used rapid prototyping methods to produce the prototype thermoform master and to add braille dots to the small bumps in each square. Model shop staff will soon be testing and comparing the use of steel pins to epoxy pins on these ¼-inch round bumps for durability during the production stage. SQUID: Tactile Activities Magazine [Issue 6] Katherine Corcoran prepared thermoform patterns according to the project leader’s original art designs. This issue required three rubber molds and three master patterns of epoxy and fiberglass. The tooling was completed in October 2008. Tactile Town: 3-D O&M Kit Tom Poppe met frequently with the project leader to determine needed tangibles for the kit. Multiple preliminary sketches were made and preliminary concept models were built. Master models of the tangible items were duplicated and sent to three possible vendors for price quotes. Multiple prototypes of all the interactive pieces were designed exclusively by the Model Maker and the project leader. These included four each of three building designs, four cars, four pedestrians, and four stop signs―all made via liquid resin casting. Various shapes of green loop Velcro-compatible material to represent grassy areas were assembled. Twelve-inch “railroad tracks” were designed and thermoformed. Other shapes included a pond, sidewalk strips, crosswalks, cul-de-sacs, traffic lights, and dashed road lines. Field testing took place during the fiscal year. Very positive feedback was received, however, and evaluators requested yet more parts (e.g., additional buildings and free-standing traffic lights). The Model Maker will be responsible for the entire hard tooling of this product for mass production purposes. Tangrams The Model Shop cut ¼-inch wooden trapezoid profiles to form the outline of each of 23 different design layouts. To build multiple field test prototypes, these patterns were then vacuum-formed in .010” clear vinyl and cut to a size that can be used with an APH light box. The puzzle components were made from 1/8” and 1/4” foam which were die cut into the geometric shapes that form each unique design. Fifteen sets of red Plexiglass Tangram parts were made to fit properly into the thermoformed puzzle frames. Textured Sorting Circles and Shapes Tom Poppe and the project leader designed the die layout duplicated by Technical Research for the production of the various parts. The Model Maker consulted with an outside die maker to determine the best radius for the star pieces. The Model Maker also prepared two thermoform patterns similar in size—roughly 22 inches by 24 inches. One is used to generate the texture in sheets of plastic; the other is used to generate the braille “attribute” labels. The Model Maker also worked with Technical Research to develop the print layouts and cutting die specifications for production of the braille “attribute” labels. Touch ‘em All Baseball Game The Model Shop constructed 15 field test samples of the newly re-designed version of the APH baseball game. The game consists of a 12” x 12” cardboard game board with a ball diamond made from green and orange felt. The infield and outfield are different levels. There are two spinners in the game that determine the players’ next move. Katherine Corcoran designed a pointer for the spinners that can stop each wheel indiscriminately and remain fixed until the wheel is spun again. Each player has 12 tokens to represent the players on his team.
The Model Shop staff worked with the project leader to design the game board. A mock-up of the board was made to test peg shapes and determine the best peg-hole diameter, spacing, depth, and so forth. Many prototype test pegs were made and tested. In all, 15 complete sets of pegs were made along with multiple boards and overlays. Additional work by the Model Shop staff involved slightly redesigning the game tokens to make them easier and cheaper to mass produce. Unfortunately, the urethane pattern for the game board was one of the victims of the Tri-Plastic fire and is awaiting rebuilding and duplication for production purposes. Twist, Turn, and Learn: Fine Motor Materials It became evident after many years of production that the thermoform patterns for the Fine Motor trays were not performing as required. There was apparently some leakage in some of the many air passages in this rather complex double pattern. Tom Poppe completely disassembled, cleaned, and drilled larger air passages into the patterns. New fiber board parts were made. As a result, the new pattern behaved in production as expected. US and Canada Basic Atlas In January, the Model Shop was given 27 individual maps which were expertly made in aluminum diagramming foil by Nancy Amick, the outside project consultant. Each map measured 11.5” x 11” and required a rubber mold and subsequent epoxy/fiberglass pattern for mass production purposes. Katherine Corcoran added a set of five keys to the aforementioned graphics, bringing the total number of pages to 32. The maps were designed and vacuum-formed in .005 clear vinyl with a printed overlay supplying the color highlights for each. All hard tooling for this project was completed in March 2009. US Puzzle Map Seven patterns used to produce the U.S. Puzzle Map were damaged in a vendor facility fire. Fortunately, the Model Maker still had the original patterns he had created for this product. The patterns were still in excellent condition. No modifications were made to the original patterns, with the exception of an additional finger hole for puzzle piece removal (as requested by the project leader). Molds were then generated and delivered to the outside vendor for both the outer puzzle frame and six state-mounting boards. Wilson Magnetic Tiles In December, the model shop began work on the Wilson Magnetic Tiles. This project originated in Technical Research with a CAD layout design on clear acetate film. Using this film, Katherine Corcoran inserted approximately 1400 individual braille pins into an epoxy pattern previously made for the product. Each pin measures .030 inches in diameter. This process has become the standard for producing durable braille patterns which will be used for production at APH for decades. The new pattern will be thoroughly tested by the Model Shop staff before production use. Wings of Freedom Award Tom Poppe made the base for the Wings of Freedom Award—an award presented during APH’s 141st Annual Meeting to a person who does outstanding work in the field of blindness. The base is made from walnut and has an oil finish. Braille plates with the honoree’s name are affixed to the base. Yüklə 1,48 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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