[nfb-talk] Your Design Thesis

Tue Mar 15 19:43:58 UTC 2011

How about sticky hot dogs? hmmm pigs in a blanket, maybe? ok, I'm not
helping at all. lol.

On 3/15/11, Margo and Arrow <margo.downey at verizon.net> wrote:
> Buddy, I was just about to mention the adhesive dogs.  why, I put dogs on my
> oven and they set the temp for me.  they're kind of small dogs, though--like
> pomeranians.
>
> Lol!
>
> I just filled out the survey and gently told this nice lady that I didn't
> think any of her products were necessary and I wouldn't buy them except a
> remote maybe on the cutting board.
>
> margo and Arrow
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Buddy Brannan" <buddy at brannan.name>
> To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: <kubasa at my.uwstout.edu>
> Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 3:08 PM
> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Your Design Thesis
>
>
> Oh wow. I just noticed I typed "adhesive dogs", when I meant "adhesive
> dots". I admit that my dog sticks to me a lot, but I don't think I'd like to
> stick him to my food storage containers.
> --
> Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
> Phone: (814) 860-3194 or 888-75-BUDDY
>
>
>
> On Mar 15, 2011, at 2:55 PM, Powers, Terry (NIH/OD/DEAS) [E] wrote:
>
>> Good job, Buddy.  We used to have metal canisters with raised letters, on
>> them, when I was a kid.
>>
>> Terry Powers
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Buddy Brannan [mailto:buddy at brannan.name]
>> Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 1:30 PM
>> To: kubasa at my.uwstout.edu
>> Cc: NFB Talk Mailing List
>> Subject: [nfb-talk] Your Design Thesis
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> Your message was forwarded to some Email lists for blind people, and I
>> wanted to respond.
>>
>> First, I'm sorry if you get any negative "dog pile" responses. Much of
>> that sort of thing is reaction to history that you are probably not privy
>> to, where groups would design "helpful" thigs for us without our input,
>> coming from a premise that blindness necessarily equates to ineptitude or
>> worse. That's the Reader's Digest version, anyway. So, first, I really
>> want to thank you for reaching out to us, the community that your design
>> thesis seeks to assist. It would have been easy for you to take your
>> professor's recommendations and run with them, without seeking our input
>> at all. That you had the good sense to go beyond and reach out to us is
>> commendable. Thanks!
>>
>> Now, I'm afraid my comments below might throw your project into a bit of a
>>
>> tailspin. I, at least, didn't find that I'd have much of a use for any of
>> the six products that you propose. Now please don't misunderstand. I'm
>> glad you're thinking about these problems. The trouble is, as I'm sure you
>>
>> recognized when you thought it would be a good idea to ask, that you've
>> approached the product exploration from the point of view that, "If I were
>>
>> struck blind tomorrow, what would I find difficult to do?". Fortunately,
>> many of us have had a lot more practice at it, and those who haven't are
>> very teachable. :-)
>>
>> Please find some comments on how we solve what I believe are the problems
>> you attempt to address by your product ideas.
>>
>> One common theme I notice here is cooking. I'm the cook at our house, and
>> I'm blind myself. I guess I'm OKat it, my family is well fed and still
>> walking around, and no one's died from my cooking yet. (I guess there's
>> still tomorrow...) By this, I perceive that you have some question as to
>> how we'd handle ourselves in the kitchen.
>>
>>
>> Below is a list of 6 concept designs followed by a brief description of
>> each. I would like to know which 3 products you would be most interested
>> in purchasing if they were to be put on the market. At the end of the
>> survey there is room for you to provide feedback for
>> improvements/adjustments about the individual designs as well as write any
>>
>> suggestions about products you are interested in that I might not have
>> considered for designing.  Thank you for your interest and helping me with
>>
>> my Senior Project!
>>
>>
>>
>> 1.     Electrical Outlet: This outlet would have recessed grooves that
>> serve as guides to direct the user towards safely inserting prongs into
>> the power source.
>>
>> My response:
>> Outlets are actually not that difficult. We already know that holding a
>> plug by the prongs is a bad idea. I can probably count the number of times
>>
>> I've been zapped by wayward electrons on one hand. U.S. outlets are
>> actually not too difficult, especially the three-conductor kind. European
>> outlets are, of course, even easier.
>>
>> 2.     Salt and Pepper Shakers: Shakers would have raised tactile marks to
>>
>> determine which is the salt and which is the pepper without having to
>> sample the contents of the shaker beforehand.
>>
>> My comments:
>> We have a couple of ways to tell the difference already. One is, of
>> course, smell. Another is weight; pepper will generally be lighter than
>> salt when you pick up the shakers.
>>
>> 3.     Measuring Cups: Cups would be marked with tactile indicators to
>> inform the user which one is ¼ cup, ½ cup, 1/3 cup, etc.
>>
>> I use nested measuring cups that stack. These are very easy to tell apart,
>>
>> smallest to largest. I even have a set that isn't nesting, but it has
>> raised 1/2, 1/3, 1/4 and 1 cup markings on them. Same thing with measuring
>>
>> spoons.
>>
>> 4.     Silverware: Utensils would be weighted and designed in such a way
>> that the user would instinctively grab them in the appropriate direction
>> (in other words, when someone picks up the knife for example, he or she
>> automatically knows which way is blade side down by how the handle feels
>> in his or her hand).
>>
>> Most knives are already designed this way. Forks and spoons also have a
>> natural curve to them, easily discernible without modification. Try laying
>>
>> a fork down on a table upside down. You'll probably know it without
>> looking. (The only possible exception to this would be those sets of
>> silverware with the round plastic handles.) In my years of slicing
>> potatoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic, sausage, or what have you, I can,
>> again, count the number of times I've injured myself on one hand. And
>> nothing very awful at that.
>>
>> 5.     Storage Containers: Canisters would be marked with different
>> amounts of grooves to allow the user to associate contents with how the
>> canister feels (for example, flour is in the container with two grooves
>> and sugar is stored in the container with one groove, etc.) thus
>> eliminating the need for the user to open and test the contents of each
>> canister before finding the ingredient he or she needs.
>>
>> This has some merit, but of course requires a lot of memorization anyway.
>> Besides braille labels, there are lots of marking solutions, both
>> specialized and not. For instance, several places sell adhesive dogs in
>> different shapes that one can use if one does not read braille or is just
>> in a hurry, or whatever. One might, for instance, use rubber bands, glue,
>> puff paint, or any number of things to differentiate containers.
>>
>> 6.     Cutting board: Board has evenly spaced ridges at the top that serve
>>
>> as a guide for cutting ¼ inch slices of tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, etc.
>> It also has a small section recessed on the right to separate the scraps
>> from portions you wish to consume and there is a ribbed surface that helps
>>
>> stabilize round items from rolling when you are slicing them into
>> sections.
>>
>> I kind of like this idea, even though I've gotten on great with standard,
>> garden variety cutting boards. Separating scraps from edible portions
>> isn't a huge problem, I usually sweep them off to the side, or put them
>> into a plastic bag pretty quickly after excising them. I do find that I'm
>> slower at slicing, but that's probably mostly due to being far too anal
>> about getting the pieces even. My concern with such a design would be ease
>>
>> of cleaning. more ridges and peaks and valleys sound like more trouble
>> getting all of that cleaned out.
>>
>> Here's a problem i'd love to see a solution for. Newer electric ranges
>> have smooth surfaces. Older ones, of course, had raised burners, and the
>> burners were easily discernible. Same with gas stove tops. But the new
>> electric stoves have smooth tops, with little or no discernible difference
>>
>> between where the active burner elements are and what is just plain stove
>> top in between. If you came up with a good solution to that one (short of
>> avoiding such stove tops), I think you'd find some relief from us.
>>
>> Oh, one other thing. Good for you for thinking low tech. Not everything
>> has to be solved by electronics, much as I love those. :-)
>> --
>> Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
>> Phone: (814) 860-3194 or 888-75-BUDDY
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> nfb-talk mailing list
>> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> nfb-talk mailing list
>> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> nfb-talk mailing list
> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> nfb-talk mailing list
> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org
>

-- 
Darian Smith
Skype: The_Blind_Truth
Windows Live: Lightningrod2010 at live.com
Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/goldengateace

"The purpose of life is a life of purpose.

— Robert Byrne