Braille Alphabet Recognition

The Braille Alphabet Recognition digital solution is a web service that recognizes the Braille language.

The service works via a standard web browser from a smartphone or from a desktop computer. 

It can work with the image of a curved sheet. It allows simultaneous recognition of the front and back side of a sheet with double-sided printing.

It recognizes Russian, English and Uzbek languages

Problem:

Lack of free written communication between sighted and blind people. Teachers and relatives of blind and visually impaired children face the problem of checking the child’s homework due to the lack of Braille reading skills. Also, automatic recognition of Braille texts will make it possible to republish specialized textbooks in Braille for which there are no digital sources and to ensure the interaction of visually impaired children with teachers working with ordinary children. 

Platform: web service http://angelina-reader.ru

Target audience: Organizations and individuals interacting with blind and visually impaired people, educational institutions and close relatives of blind and visually impaired children, blind and visually impaired people

Data sources: https://git.asi.ru/solutions/world-ai-and-data-challenge/angelina-braille-reader

Conditions for implementation

· Works via a standard web browser from a smartphone or from a desktop computer.

· Can work with the image of a curved sheet

· Allows simultaneous recognition of the front and back side of a sheet with double-sided printing

· Can process: photos taken directly in the application, image files (jpg, etc.), pdf files, zip archives with a set of images for recognition

· Recognizes Russian and English languages

Restrictions

· The sheet must be photographed from above. Some deviations from the vertical direction are allowed.

· The light should fall from the opposite side of the photographer

· Braille characters should not be too small. A standard A4 sheet should take up approximately the entire screen.

 Replication conditions

1.     The availability of a camera or phone with the possibility of photographing, the availability of a scanner with which you can make scans of texts in Braille in Russian, Uzbek, and English

2.     The light should fall from the opposite side of the photographer: the shadow of the object placed on the sheet should fall towards the photographer. No light is allowed from above, from the side or from the photographer’s side.

3.     Braille characters should not be too small. A standard A4 sheet should take up approximately the entire screen.

4.     The digital solution has no analogues in the world and can be used in educational institutions of the subjects of the Russian Federation. It increases the accessibility of education to special children and allows the use of various kinds of services for visually impaired people.