For Immediate Release – June 17, 2022, Corvallis, OR
ViewPlus® Technologies, a Corvallis, OR based manufacturer of assisted learning technologies for the blind and visually impaired (BVI), is excited to announce the newest release of its Tiger Software Suite (TSS 8.0).
TSS 8.0 expands the ability of ViewPlus® Braille printer embossers to produce both standard text-to-Braille letter patterns, and reproduce pictures, graphics, and images in Braille readable patterns. Such capability dramatically improves the ability of Teachers of the Visually Impaired (TVIs) and their students to achieve breakthroughs in learning and comprehension.
With the ability to quickly produce both letter and image-based Braille-readable materials, TVIs can better meet the demand for producing learning content for their BVI students in a timely manner – and coordinate their Individual Education Plans (IEP) with the classroom teacher’s learning objectives.
Such capabilities have enabled learning breakthroughs in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM), with both K thru 12 students and adults. Moreover, this software release enhances the teacher’s ability to produce both new and pre-existing learning materials – containing graphic, Braille text, or a combination of both – to enhance the delivery of lesson plans.
“When you witness first-hand, the learning breakthroughs, insights, epiphanies and excitement experienced by learners using tactile graphics to comprehend pictures, images, and graphics for the first time, you have trouble holding back tears of joy for them,” said Dan Gardner, ViewPlus®’s CEO. “It opens up a new world of achievement possibilities for both the student and the teacher,” he concluded.
ViewPlus® Technologies was founded in 1996 by John Gardner, a Professor of Physics at Oregon State University, after an eye operation left him totally blind. Though still able to teach, he could no longer evaluate the data from experiments. This limitation prompted him to establish a university team to research methods for better non-visual access to graphical information. His ideas were rejected by the Braille printer manufacturers he approached with the idea because, in their words, “there (is) no need for blind people to access graphics”. Undeterred, he and his wife founded ViewPlus® Technologies.
Since 2000, ViewPlus® has developed a wide range of personal and production braille, tactile graphic, and hybrid ink/braille printers, along with enhanced software solutions. This breadth of solutions has made ViewPlus® the industry-leading manufacturer of high-definition tactile graphics. The TSS 8.0 software release further enhances the company’s ability to achieve its mission.
TSS8 Webinar Available July 12th.
The ViewPlus® Mission:
Empower people worldwide by making information accessible through innovative, inclusive technology solutions.