0.2 Phy1004: manual creation of tactile graphics  (Page 2/6)

You will find a good explanation of Scalable Vector Graphics in the Wikipedia article titled Scalable Vector Graphics .

Can be scaled without corruption

For my purposes, the major advantage of using svg files is that they can be enlarged or reduced in size without corrupting the image. For example, the images in the svg filesthat I will provide are designed to be printed on 8.5x11 inch paper stock. However, if you have access to a printer that can handle larger paper, you canuse a program such as the free svg editing program named Inkscape to enlarge the images without corrupting them. You can then print the larger images on larger paper stock.

Download the svg file

You will need to download an svg graphics file named 1.svg to complete the work in this module. Click this link to download a zip file named 1004.zip containing the file named 1.svg.

The need for graphics in physics

It is very difficult to learn introductory physics without having access to a variety of pictures, charts, and diagrams. Many of you are likely to need those materialsin tactile form. While we can transmit words, sounds, and pictures via the Internet, we still don't have the ability to transmit tactilegraphics via the Internet.

This means that it will be necessary for you to use the svg files that I provide and to make your own arrangements for having those files converted into tactilegraphics.

A range of options

Depending on the resources that you have available, you have a range of options for the creation and exploration of tactile graphics.

My plan is to provide the necessary svg graphics files to produce tactile graphics for a range of different resources.

Machine embossing of tactile graphics

One of the available options for creating (and exploring) machine-embossed tactile graphics (on paper) is the IVEO Hands on Learning System from ViewPlus Technologies . (See the disclaimer below.)

The svg files that I will provide are intended to be compatible with the IVEO Learning System.

The opposite end of the budgetary spectrum

At the opposite end of the budgetary spectrum is the student whose only resource for tactile graphics is a human embosser using various tools from a tactile graphics kit to manually emboss printed versions of the svg files. The files (and the supplementary information that I will provide)are designed to support manual embossing as well as machine embossing. (The file that I will provide for this module is intended for manualembossing only. Future modules will include the necessary files for machine embossing.)

Steps

There are two steps involved in first creating and then using tactile graphics:

1. Embossing a paper copy of the graphic
2. Exploring the embossed copy of the graphic using touch, and in some cases, sound.

Embossing the graphic

There are at least two ways to emboss the paper copy of the graphic:

1. Manual embossing
2. Machine embossing using a graphics-compatible Braille printer such as thosefrom ViewPlus Technologies .

Exploring the graphic

There are at least two possibilities for exploring the graphic: