[Nfbf-l] GE Works with Kentucky School for the Blind to Design Braille Kit for Electric Range

[Alan Dicey]

Dear Friends,
I thought some would find this useful.
It is refreshing to see a large corporation working with the Blind to design 
accessible household appliances.

GE Works with Kentucky School for the Blind to Design Braille Kit for 
Electric Range
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - March 19, 2015 - The simplicity of GE's ArtistryT Series 
of appliances-an affordable suite of appliances targeted to first-time 
homebuyers and Millennials-lends itself to a unique market segment: the 
visually impaired.
Working with students from the Kentucky School for the Blind, GE engineers 
and designers in Louisville, Kentucky developed an accessory kit of braille 
overlays for the new Artistry electric range controls that helps the 
visually impaired use its cooktop and oven functions.
According to an American Foundation for the Blind article, stoves are the 
least accessible class of appliances.
Many ranges today have smooth, push buttons on a back control panel. The 
ADA-compliant Artistry range offers front-control knobs that are within 
reach, and a straightforward design that lends itself to a braille accessory 
kit for the blind or visually impaired.
"Both my parents taught special education," says Lee Lagomarcino, a GE 
product manager who initially championed the project and observed Kentucky 
School for the Blind students interacting with ranges. "As we developed the 
Artistry electric range, we knew its simplicity made it more universally 
appealing and ideal for a braille application."
High, low and off heat settings were added to the braille overlay on GE's 
ArtistryT range controls to help the visually impaired use the cooktop 
functions.
Student input leads to product concept
Students from the Kentucky School for the Blind helped the GE team determine 
what was needed - a high, medium and low heat setting for the cooktop, and a 
low, 350 degree and broil option for the oven.
With those readily accessible features to serve as a baseline, the oven can 
be adjusted to a recipe as needed.
A focus group of students at the school came up with ways to make ranges 
more user friendly - using puffy paint and brightly contrasting colors to 
showcase their ideas. GE took those ideas and turned them into the 
custom-designed Braille kit.
Students also tested the initial designs for ease of use.
Kentucky School for the Blind Program Coordinator Paula Penrod said, "Many 
times, manufacturers will introduce a new product, then seek comments from 
consumers with disabilities. Consumers who are blind and visually impaired 
have unique needs when using appliances. By working with GE during the 
production stage, our students were able to demonstrate the type of Braille 
modifications that would be most helpful.
We appreciate GE for seeking our students' input on the front end of GE's 
Artistry range project."
As a thank you to the Kentucky School for the Blind and its students for 
their help, GE donated a full suite of Artistry kitchen appliances to the 
school's campus on Frankfurt Avenue in Louisville, Kentucky.
Pricing and availability
The GE Artistry electric ranges and Braille kits are available in black and 
white and can be purchased nationwide where GE appliances are sold. For help 
locating a dealer, go to
www.GEAppliances.com and use the Dealer Locator tool
or call the GE Answer Center at 1-800-626-2000. The estimated retail price 
of the Artistry electric range is $599, and the braille kit is
$15.75.* (Retailers - Pub number 4-A034 fits the black Artistry range model 
ABS45DFBS , and pub number 4-A024 fits the white Artistry range model
ABS45DFWS.)
In addition to the braille kits for ranges, GE offers a standard braille kit 
for common buttons on its microwave ovens. The kit (pub number 4-A212) can 
be ordered where GE appliances are sold.
As a group, stoves are the least accessible class of appliances we 
evaluated. The vast majority have flat, inaccessible oven controls. -
American Foundation for the Blind
 http://www.afb.org/section.aspx?FolderID=2&SectionID=4&TopicID=380&DocumentID=4218* Retailers set their own prices.