RoboBraille – Automated Braille Translation by Means of an E-Mail Robot

Abstract

As society becomes increasingly dependent on literacy, the problems of textual information inaccessible to print-impaired people are likely to grow. This paper discusses the problems of decentralised, user-driven Braille translation and proposes an alternative: The centralised, email-based RoboBraille service capable of translating to and from contracted Braille, including any pre- or post processing steps required to convert between document types, formats and character sets. As such, the RoboBraille service attempts to solve a universal problem as it makes textual information accessible to people who would otherwise find it inaccessible due to disability or reading difficulties. Originally a Danish service, a pan-European consortium is currently validating RoboBraille in six European countries with financial support from the European Commission.