Thanks to a visualization specialist at the University of South Florida in Tampa and his 3-D plastic-printing machine, a unique tactile map may soon be as available as any paper map or smartphone app is for the sighted. The three-dimensional map will allow users to trace the raised features with their fingertips and “see” every doorway and hallway.
Howard Kaplan, a doctoral candidate in the USF Advanced Visualization Center, began looking for a project three years ago for his doctorate degree in biomedical engineering. Kaplan talked to one friend about the possibility of using a 3-D printer to help navigate the (USF) campus.