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. A braille cell is made up of six dots arranged in two columns of three dots. In the early nineteenth century there were over 20 different types of embossed type. A French army captain, Charles Barbier de la Serre invented a system of 12 dot cells. Originally this system was to be used by soldiers to communicate without having to talk, which could give away their position. This system, called 'sonography', used the 12 dot cells to represent sounds rather than letters or words. The French Army did not use the system because it was too complicated. Louis Braille, who lost his sight at an early age, devised a system of dots in the 1820's that forms the basis of today's braille code. Braille developed de la Serre's idea but decided that the 12 dot cells and the phonetic basis of the system made its use too clumsy. Braille experimented until he found the ideal configuration of 6 dot cells based on the alphabet. As a teacher and musician, Braille went on to devise the braille codes for mathematics and music. Following Braille's early death at the age of 43 in 1852, it seemed as if this system might fall into disuse. But in 1852, France officially recognised braille as the approved method of reading and writing for blind people. 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. The image below shows the difference between print and grade 1 and 2 braille. Grade 1 braille is transcribed letter for letter, but the grade 2 sentence is much shorter as there are several contractions, for instance, 'braille' contracts to 'brl', and 'knowledge' is just the letter 'k'. See the Pia alphabet card here. If you'd like an embossed copy contact us. 
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 and 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. The braille system now in use (Standard English Braille) was first established in 1932. The Braille Authority of the UK (BAUK) was the braille standard setting body for the UK until it merged with other organisations to form the UK Association for Accessible Formats (UKAAF) in January 2009. It is now UKAAF's responsibility to liaise on braille standards and developments with similar bodies in other countries. Here's the braille alphabet: 
If you'd like your own alphabet card, contact us.
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