Dr. Muhammad Mustaqim Mohd ZarifDirector,

Centre for General StudiesIslamic Science University of Malaysia

Structure of PresentationBraille System:

- Its Structure (cont.) & type- Its Transcription

Anatomy of a Brailler

Braille Structure (cont.)Braille Structure (cont.) 4 types of Braille codes in use:

i. Literary Braille Codeii. Nemeth Braille Codeiii. Computer Braille Codeiv. Music Braille Code

i. Literary Braille Code Used for most literary works of fiction and

nonfiction, including textbooks, reports, books, articles, Quran, hadith, etc

Consist of a set of symbols signifying specific alphabets, numbers, and punctuation marks.

Three grades of Braille Literary Code:

Grade 1 BrailleIt is a direct “character by character”

transcription of Braille.Each Braille cell corresponds with the written

character in totality.Basic method used by beginners in Braille Straightforward & not complicated although

not used in publishing except in the case of Quranic Braille

Example: The word “ayam” is spelt as follows:

● ○○ ○○ ○

● ●○ ●● ●

● ○○ ○○ ○

● ●○ ○● ○

a y a m

Grade 2 BrailleIt is a system that has a set of contractions

in addition to the basic characters used in Grade 1 Braille

What is a contraction?“the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope”

Or in our case:“a word formed from two or more words by omitting or combining some sounds”

Contraction rules differ from one Braille language to another. i.e. Malay language contraction rule is different from English contraction

Contraction rules must be fully understood and comprehended before use so as to avoid confusion and misunderstanding in the meaning of the word

Example: American Braille has more than 250 symbols used for contractions

Example:

“about”

Grade 1:

Grade 2:

● ○ ○ ○○ ○

● ○● ○ ○ ○

● ○ ○ ●● ○

● ○○ ○● ●

○ ●● ●● ○

a b o u t

● ○○ ○○ ○

● ○● ○ ○ ○

a b

Another example: “b”Grade 1: an alphabet

Grade 2: “but”

● ○● ○ ○ ○

b

Why use contraction?Reduce the numbers of Braille cells used to:

i. Make reading Braille easier & faster

ii. Reduce number of paper used

Imagine…Imagine… Transcription of one page of ordinary

written/printed text (font 12) in size A4 will require:

Grade 1: Grade 1: 5 pages in Braille5 pages in Braille

Grade 2:Grade 2: 3 pages in Braille3 pages in Braille

2 main criteria to evaluate a contraction system used:

The effectiveness of the contraction in saving space and paper as well as increasing reading speed. (contraction requires the reader to think more of the meaning implied)

The rule of the contraction system used & the ability of the reader to understand & master it (should not be complicated & difficult)

Some example of contractions used in Malay Braille Grade 2

Prefix “me” uses only Dot 3 and 4.

Consonant “ny” uses only 2 and 4 6.

○ ●○ ○ ● ○

me

○ ●● ○○ ●

ny

Comparison between Grade 1 & 2 (Malay Braille)

Printed Printed WordWord

Braille TranscriptionBraille Transcription

menyanyi

Grade 1 ● ●○ ○● ○

● ○○ ●○ ○

● ●○ ●● ○

● ●○ ●● ●

● ○○ ○○ ○

● ●○ ●● ○

● ●○ ●● ●

○ ●● ○ ○ ○

m e n y a n y i

Grade 2 ○ ● ○ ○ ● ○

○ ● ● ○ ○ ●

● ○○ ○○ ○

○ ● ● ○ ○ ●

○ ●● ○ ○ ○

me ny a ny i

Due to its space and character saving properties, Grade 2 Braille is widely used in transcribing official documents, books, and information for public use such as in lifts, remote controls, etc

Grade 3 BrailleIt is a system based only on the use of

contractions.Very short & space saving but difficult &

complicated to learnComparable to “shorthand writing” used by

secretaries in officesOnly used at the personal level & has never

been adopted in any official Braille code.

ii. Nemeth Braille CodeIt is a special set of codes to represent

symbols and terminologies used in the fields of Science & Mathematics.

It is different from Literary Braille Code & shouldn’t be used together so as to avoid complication and confusion

Main references: The Nemeth Braille Code for Mathematics and Science Notation (1972) & Learning the Nemeth Code by Ruth H. Craig

iii. Computer Braille Code (CBC)This code is devised to transcribe

terminologies & symbols concerning computer & programming.

It is a unique code that is combined with Literary Braille Code as well as Nemeth Code

CBC is based on ASCII (American Standard Code for Information); a widely used format in computer

iv. Braille Music CodeIt is a specialized code used to transcribe

musical symbols and notes into Braille

Due to its complicated nature, an extensive knowledge of music is necessary to transcribe music accurately into Braille

8-Dot BrailleIt is used for some special purposes &

computer online Braille displays.A new unified Braille code based on 8 dots

is being developed to accommodate various needs. Currently used in certain countries in Europe in matters relating to computer.

6 dots braille is limited, while 8 dots Braille has 256 possibilities (including blank cell)

This can reduce the use of cell thus saving space & paper

Structure of 8-Dot Braille 1 4

2 5

3 6

7 8

No consistency in the use of dots 7 and 8.Many computers use dot 7 to indicate Capital

letterVery little has been published using 8-Dot

BrailleOther countries that use 8-Dot Braille: Korea,

Japan, and China

Braille TranscriptionHow to produce Braille?- Traditional method: Slate & Stylus (pocket

frame)

Most common method: Using a Brailler or Braille Writer.

A Brailler is similar to a typewriter, except that it has only six keys, a spacebar, a back-spacer, and a line spacer. Paper is inserted into the brailler, and multiple keys are pressed at once, creating an entire braille cell with each chordic key press.

Brands of brailler include Stainsby (UK), Marburg (Germany), Perkins (USA), Atkinson (USA), and IBM Braille Electric Typewriter (USA).

Improved Stainsby Brailler

Marburg BM Brailler

IBM Braille Electric Typewriter

Atkinson Portable Braille Writer

Certain types of machines can only produce Braille on one side of the paper only (such as Marburg & Perkins)

Other machines such as Stainsby can write on both side of paper.

Perkins Brailler: most famous & widely used brand used in the world until today.

It was built by David Abraham and was first produced in 1951 by Howe Press; an company under Perkins School for the Blind

Perkins Brailler is easy to be used & quite durable

“Manual” transcription of Braille can only be done by a Braille expert. It is time consuming & requires lots of energy

Materials produced are also difficult to be duplicated in a short time & produced in a large quantity

This problems led to the introduction on the use of computer in Braille transcription since the 1970s

Special computer software to translate computer files (written texts) into Braille were produced.

However, the use of computer and embosser was very costly at that time

Now, due to advancement in computer technology, it is getting cheaper & more affordable (computer software is quite cheap but its embosser is quite expensive; a medium size embosser costs around RM 20,000 per unit)

Examples of softwares produced: Duxbury Braille Translator, Pokadot, MegaDots, WinBraille, etc

How to transcribe Braille using Computer?

There are 2 ways:

1. Manual translation of written text (by human) using computer software. (f: dot 1, d: dot 2, s: dot 3, j: dot 4, k: dot 5, l: dot 6). - The Person must know Braille codes. - After editing for mistakes, it is ready to be published using an embossing machine (comparable to a printer)

2. Written texts are scanned into computer and translated using a pre-configured computer software. This is followed by an editing process and then it is ready to be embossed.

Important: No translation programme (computer software) is 100% accurate, due to complications in the use of contractions, etc.

Thus, document must be edited and proofread to ensure text is error-free.

MAB: Manual transcription of a book into Braille usually take 2-3 months, but can be reduced up to 2-3 days only if using computer….

Anatomy of a Brailler

Inserting PaperTurn paper feed knobs all the way from you until they will not turn any more.

Pull paper release lever toward you.

Slide paper horizontally over the top of the paper support bar and stripper plate, and under embossing head and grooved roller.

Be sure left edge of paper goes under paper guide roller.

Push paper release lever away from you to clamp paper into place.

Roll paper feed knobs toward you until all paper is inside Perkins Brailler and knobs will no longer turn.

Press line spacer key once to set paper in place.

The Perkins Brailler is now ready

Braille letters are made by pressing the appropriate keys for each letter.Example: The letter ‘d’ is made of the dots 1, 4 & 5 so all three of those keys need to be pressed simultaneously.

Thank You