Braille Information Reader Device

The Braille Information Reader Device (BIRD) will be a braille-outputting e-book reader device. The device itself will be a small module that plugs into a commercially available braille display (the initial and probably only target will be the PACmate20 Braille Display because that's what I use, and they're way too expensive to justify me getting more to port it), and accepts MicroSD cards with TXT or BRF files to read.

Project Status

Prototype stack assembled, code writing in progress. Currently braille display driver PoC is working, and reading files from MicroSD cards works (separately). Schematic, board layout, and BOM complete for actual PCB (using a PIC32).

Prototype Stack

The stack of boards for the prototype BIRD will be:

• Adafruit Proto Shield with MicroSD socket breakout and resistor voltage divider
• Circuits@Home USB Host Shield (which has been modified with stack-through headers)
• Arduino Duemilanove

Images

• 

  BIRD Rev. 1 schematic
• 

  BIRD Rev. 1 PCB