Does anyone have a use for Braille Keycaps?(self.Blind)
submitted by absoluteembo
Hey everyone.
First off, I'm not visually impaired so my knowledge is quite surface but I believe that i should, at least try, to help people. So I'm a maker whose into 3D Printing and Programming and i had an Idea for making Braille keycaps for visually impaired people, Is this even something anyone wants? I found some online but they were ranging from 50€ to 120€ means 55,57 usd to 133,36 usd which i think is quite a hefty price since the manufacturing is probably not very high, I was planning on pricing being around 20€. If this is something any of you are interested in let me know and let me know if its not useful or your thoughts about the idea in general.
Have a nice day!
akrazyho2 points1y ago
The amount of material you need to do a keyboard is insane. Also keycaps very differently from brand brand there is an a universal key cap. The logistics behind everything is a lot more complicated than you thought but if somebody’s willing to buy it from you then go ahead and give it a shot
absoluteembo [OP]1 points1y ago
Thanks for the feedback, It came to mind for my as a person who can see and sometimes does have to look down at the keyboard to type but i understand what you mean.
retrolental_morose2 points1y ago
Not something I'd buy. The whole idea of touch-typing is that you type without looking, you could say it was ready-made for the blind really!
absoluteembo [OP]1 points1y ago
Thanks for the feedback, thats why i asked before making some
TechnicalPragmatist1 points1y ago
I have no need for this nor want for this. And I have actually tried typing on a keyboard with braille letters and everything labled. It was/is so really distracting. I couldn’t do it.
As a computer person,
Besides most good even sited computer people touch type and don’t look down at their keyboard and touch type and know their shortcut keys.
The goal is to get people to touchtype not to encourage them to type on a keyboard with letters.and give them that independence on whatever keyboard they have to type with. Touch typing is actually faster and hunt and pecking keys is slow, slows you down and not efficient.
[deleted]1 points1y ago
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SoapyRiley1 points1y ago
I’m a really bad touch typer so this would be good for the function keys for me, but puff paint is cheaper. I just hope work doesn’t decide I’ve defaced company property.
Shadowwynd1 points1y ago
I’ve toyed with the same idea; here are the limiting factors:
1) There is no universal key cap. Certain keyboards/key switches, such as the cherry MX, are fairly standard, but that means buying a mechanical keyboard that might cost $150 not including any special key caps.
2). Braille is not impossible to print, and neither are key caps, but the tolerances are very tight. The recommended way to do this and make money is by using a home DIY injection molding machine (perhaps using 3d printed molds or originals.
3). There is a worry that PLA or other hobbyist filament will wear down fast if being used for typing.
GreatSunJester1 points1y ago
PLA is not great for keycaps. I printed a couple custom MX keycaps for fun, but would not want to try it for anything that needs durability.
I would not do any keycaps for real world use in anything less than ABS, and even that may not have a long lifespan.
As for Braille keycaps, I would rather use good bump dots on a (very) few keys and teach good typing and muscle memory so the user is not reliant upon the braille or one specific keyboard. If the user learns to type, most keyboards are their tools.
mehgcap1 points1y ago
I can't see my keyboard, so got blank caps specifically to drive my coworkers nuts. It was fun to let them react every time they had to use my keyboard for something. These days I'm very happily typing on an Ergodox EZ and still have blank caps. :)
I wouldn't find braille caps useful, but I know people who like to put stickers or other tactile marks on certain keys. f4, Windows, up arrow, and so on. It depends on a person's comfort with typing, and the keyboard they use. If there were caps with small marks on them--or better still, customizeable marks like an x or pattern of dots--some people might use them. That said, I doubt you'd see enough interest to make it worth your time. There's also the problem that many people type on whatever they get cheap from Amazon, or what came with their computer, and those are rarely MX-compatible.
Thanks for being willing to help, and thanks for checking in first.
tyrelcraig2 points1y ago
Are you me? Blanks on Ergodox Ez as well
mehgcap1 points1y ago
Really? Nice! *high five* I took a chance on this crazy keyboard back in 2020, and have never been happier with a keyboard. Between the split design, the thumb keys, and QMK, this is the best keyboard ever.
MostlyBlindGamer1 points1y ago
I use black, blank DSA Cherry style keycaps on a 40% ortholinear keyboard. I would pay to further taunt sighted people.
Tarnagona1 points1y ago
Well, I type DVORAK on a QWERTY keyboard, so I only look at the keys when I have to remind myself to type QWERTY. XD
This is one of those things that might be useful for someone as they are learning to type. But the point of touch typing is specifically that you’re not looking at the keyboard. As long as you have the bumps on the F and J keys, and maybe on the 5 keys, once you’re proficient, you don’t really need anything else.
I’m also not sure if there is a standard for keycaps; there might be, but I feel like there are at least a few types of keyboards. Braille stickers that can be stuck to existing keycaps would probably be more universal.
So there’s probably a few people out in the world for whom this would be useful, but not really many at all.
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