Research & Development World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE

Electroactive polymer key to durable full-screen Braille displays

By R&D Editors | March 27, 2012

A team of North Carolina
State University
researchers are one step closer to creating a workable, affordable full-screen
Braille computer display that would allow the blind to scan Web pages in much
the same way that sighted people do.

The team, composed of textile, electrical, and computer engineers, had
previously introduced a design that could translate both words and images into
tactile displays. They wanted to test different materials for use in the
actuators, which move the pins that create the Braille dots, to ensure that the
raised dots would support the weight of readers’ fingers and enable them to
scroll through the material quickly.

Textile engineer Tushar Ghosh, PhD, developed an actuator based on silicone
tubes, and found that this material resulted in lighter-weight, less-expensive
devices that still performed as expected.

“Conventional refreshable Braille displays usually incorporate ceramics, or
hard materials, in order to do the work of moving the pins up and down to
create letters,” says Ghosh. “But they are heavy, difficult to work with and
expensive. Electroactive polymer-based silicone tubes are lightweight,
flexible, can be processed easily and are inexpensive to manufacture.”

“The result is a device that brings us closer to durable, lightweight, and
affordable full-screen refreshable Braille displays,” Ghosh says.

The research, which was funded by the United States Department of Education,
appears in Sensors and Actuators A.

North Carolina State University

Related Articles Read More >

Five cases where shaky science snowballed into public confusion
Caltech, Fermilab, and collaborators test quantum sensors for future particle physics experiments
2025 R&D layoffs tracker: 83,543 and counting
NSF layoffs in 2025: Deep budget cuts headed for U.S. research sector
rd newsletter
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest info on technologies, trends, and strategies in Research & Development.
RD 25 Power Index

R&D World Digital Issues

Fall 2024 issue

Browse the most current issue of R&D World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading R&D magazine today.

Research & Development World
  • Subscribe to R&D World Magazine
  • Enews Sign Up
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Drug Discovery & Development
  • Pharmaceutical Processing
  • Global Funding Forecast

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search R&D World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE