[NFBWATLK] Google tribute to the bumpy sidewalk tile guy

[David Bouchard]

Maybe it's not revolutionary, but I'd like to see them deployed in more cases. I see it as just another way to communicate information. After all, sighted people benefit from signage.  
David 
Sent from my iPhone

> On Mar 21, 2019, at 3:29 PM, Mary ellen via NFBWATLK <nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Odd what others believe is revolutionary for us.  Until I read this article,
> I had no idea that different tactile bump patterns had different meanings.
> How is it that my means of getting around has been "revolutionized" without
> my even knowing?
> 
> Under foot tactile designs are a very limited communications method,
> especially if the people who are supposed to benefit don't even know the
> meaning of the symbology.  Like all blind people, I notice what's under my
> feet and use that data to figure out what's around me.  Information has
> value, especially when it's consistent information.  I find artificially
> introduced symbols less valuable than naturally occurring info, because the
> artificially introduced stuff is inconsistent in design and not always
> there.
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NFBWATLK [mailto:nfbwatlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
> Nightingale, Noel via NFBWATLK
> Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2019 8:36 AM
> To: nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Nightingale, Noel
> Subject: [NFBWATLK] Google tribute to the bumpy sidewalk tile guy
> 
> 
> Here is one of many instances of coverage about the google "anniversary"
> doodle on the man that invented the bumpy sidewalk tiles:
> https://www.cnet.com/news/google-doodle-pays-tribute-to-japanese-inventor-se
> iichi-miyake/
> Google Doodle pays tribute to Japanese inventor Seiichi Miyake:
> His invention, the tenji block, changed the way the visually impaired
> interact with the world.
> CNET
> March 17 2019
> By Jackson Ryan
> 
> When Seiichi Miyake found out a close friend was losing the ability to see
> clearly, he wanted to help. That desire led to an entirely new way for the
> visually impaired to navigate big cities, railways and parks.
> 
> In 1965, Miyake invented the tactile paving slab (or "tenji block" in Japan)
> with his own money. Monday's Google Doodle celebrates the introduction of
> the block 52 years ago.
> 
> The doodle from March 18, 2019. [image]
> 
> The tenji blocks were first installed in the Japanese city of Okayama on
> March 18, 1967, next to a school for the blind, and they would go on to
> revolutionize the way the visually impaired interact with the world, making
> it safer and easier to get around public spaces independently.
> 
> Miyake's original design, which was installed in all Japan Railway platforms
> in the 1970s and rapidly found its way to cities across the globe, featured
> two tactile patterns that people with visual impairments can detect with a
> cane or through their feet -- providing cues on which way they should head.
> 
> One pattern features a series of raised lines that indicate "forward". The
> second design is commonly referred to as the "truncated domes" pattern, a
> series of small bumps that act as a "stop" sign -- typically at the edge of
> a train platform or before a motorway.
> 
> A number of different patterns have been designed since, with smaller raised
> dots or more pill-shaped bumps signifying different directional cues. For
> instance, when the raised lines are horizontal in the direction of travel,
> that might mean "look out for steps ahead".
> 
> All of those cues, which many may not even notice as they wander through a
> city, are incredibly important for those with limited vision.
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