Inventor : Gregory Hargraves, Paige
Demonstration : Video
Paige was founded by five engineers from Imperial College London, whose goals are to make braille affordable for everyone, and to enable communication and collaboration with sighted peers, parents and teachers.
In the UK, 64% of children who are blind or partially-sighted are educated in mainstream schools. However the difficulties of translating between braille and printed text mean that these children frequently fall behind.
Paige Connect is a small device that attaches underneath the braille writer and allows it to connect to a phone, tablet or laptop. Once connected, the braille writer can be used as a keyboard, allowing users to type Braille into a web app. This means that teachers, parents and peers can easily and immediately read the Braille and provide feedback and support.
Paige are making good progress with commercial discussions in the UK. Therefore the task for the i-Team is to investigate whether the product would be of interest in low and middle income countries, and if so, where.
Who currently uses braille writers, and where are the devices located? Are there sources of funding available to support a pilot project and later rollout of the Paige Connect? What are the most significant problems faced by blind and partially-sighted children and can Paige help?
By identifying and interviewing relevant experts and organisations, the i-Team will help the team at Paige decide how they can have the greatest impact across the world.