A method for automatically translating print books into electronic Braille books

Science China Information Sciences volume 59, Article number: 072101 (2016) Cite this article

Abstract

In this paper, a method for automatically translating scanned images from print books into electronic Braille books is proposed with the objective of reducing the amount of time and cost required for producing Braille books. The proposed method consists of processes for identifying character and image areas in a scanned image, automatically translating characters and images into Braille and tactile graphics, respectively, and positioning Braille and tactile graphics into an electronic Braille page. Experimental results show that the proposed method drastically reduces the time required to translate a print book into an electronic Braille book. Despite the drastic reduction in translation time, the method proposed in this paper does not compromise the ability to recognize information for the visually impaired compared to manually produced Braille books, demonstrating its feasibility in practical applications. Therefore, the proposed method is expected to significantly reduce the time and cost required for producing Braille books, and provide more reading materials for the visually impaired, making significant contributions to enhancing their knowledge and welfare.

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Author information

Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Computer Engineering, Dankook University, Gyeonggi-do, 448-701, Republic of Korea

    Taekeun Park

  2. Department of IT Convergence Engineering, Gachon University, Gyeonggi-do, 461-701, Republic of Korea

    Jungil Jung

  3. Department of Computer Engineering, Gachon University, Gyeonggi-do, 461-701, Republic of Korea

    Jinsoo Cho

Authors
  1. Taekeun Park
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  2. Jungil Jung
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  3. Jinsoo Cho
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Correspondence to Jinsoo Cho.

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Park, T., Jung, J. & Cho, J. A method for automatically translating print books into electronic Braille books. Sci. China Inf. Sci. 59, 072101 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11432-016-5575-z

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Keywords

  • Braille
  • tactile graphic
  • electronic Braille book
  • automatic translation
  • the visually impaired