People recorded that Chongqing college students invented Braille e-books： they wanted to help the blind explore the wider world.

The Journey to the Center of the Earth, which is read by ordinary people, has only 142 pages, and the price is only tens of yuan. However, the Journey to the Center of the Earth, which is made into a braille book, is three thick books, and the price needs several hundred yuan. Traditional blind documents are not only expensive, but also many books do not have Braille version … …

A senior student of Chongqing University learned about the difficulties of blind people in "reading" by chance, so he used what he had learned to form a team and innovatively invented "Braille e-books".

Now, through this invention, the technology company founded by Yan Tong has signed an angel round financing agreement of 2 million yuan, and the company is valued at 20 million yuan.

Bookshelf for the blind

A whole shelf holds a book.

Why do you think of doing "Braille e-books"? In August, 2021, during the science and technology training camp during the summer vacation, I met the blind friends of Chongqing Blind Choir.

During a visit to a blind couple’s home, he found a bookshelf full of Braille books in their home. Just as he praised "there are many books in your home", the blind couple told him with emotion: "This whole bookshelf of books is actually just a book, but after being translated into Braille, it has become so many books … …”

I was shocked. Through detailed understanding, he found that he originally bought a small book "Journey to the Center of the Earth" with only 142 pages on the Internet, but after it became a Braille book, there were three big books, which cost several hundred yuan to buy. The "cost" of blind reading is dozens of times that of ordinary people. And many books that blind people want to read can’t buy blind documents at all.

Although blind people can also read by listening to books, listening to books and reading books are completely different feelings. The process of "listening to a book" is fleeting, and only by "reading a book" can we enjoy the beauty of the text, and we can have a aftertaste through "repeated reading". When learning knowledge, there is no way to complete it by "listening to books".

After returning to school, I looked at the e-book "kindle" used by my friends, and I couldn’t help but think: "Can I make a ‘ Braille kindle’ ? Let the blind read whatever books they want. "

"One book" and all books

In December, 2022, together with three like-minded students, Tan Tan started the research plan of "Braille e-books". Of course, the first difficulty they encountered — — No money.

However, opportunities are always reserved for those who are prepared. After reporting their ideas and plans to the College, Tan Tan got the support of the College. After the approval of the College Project Committee, they got the first start-up capital of 50,000 yuan.

Since we want to make a Braille e-book, we must first understand the needs of the blind. At the beginning of the launch, Tan Tan and his team went to the special education school in Nan ‘an District for investigation, and attended classes with the children there for many days.

"The more you know, the more you feel, and understand that you are doing a very meaningful thing!" Tan Tan said that after seeing with his own eyes the difficulties and desires that blind children face in reading, they began to change their original ideas.

After the investigation, Li Zekun, a software engineer in the team, said to Tan Lian, "I started as a project, and now I really want to do something for them … …”

Design, manufacture and improvement … … With the joint efforts of the team, it took only three months to produce the first version of the Braille e-book in February 2023.

This e-book is shaped like a tablet computer without a screen, and it is full of rows of Braille characters. It can not only read existing Braille e-books, but also transcode a large number of books into Braille through software.

Tear everything down and start over.

After the first finished product was made, Tan Lian sent it to the blind couple he knew for trial, and the other party gave comments and suggestions after a period of trial.

"The good thing is convenience. There are many books to read in the e-book, but there are still many details to be done." For example, in Braille reading, the distance between the two "dots" that make up Braille should be less than 2.5mm, so as to achieve the best reading experience, but the distance between the "dots" in the first version of the e-book is 3 mm.

Although this product can also be used, it is not so perfect.

After receiving the feedback, Tan Tan and the team’s friends held a meeting to discuss, and there were two choices before us: because of technical reasons, the first edition of the e-book was difficult to improve, and although it could barely meet the requirements after improvement, if you want to give the blind the best reading experience, then everything needs to be reinvented.

So, after discussion, everyone agreed to start over and start the struggle again.

Starting a business while attending classes will bring great pressure to people. "At that time, we often gathered in the laboratory at 9 o’clock in the morning and left at one or two o’clock in the evening." Yan Yan said with emotion, especially in junior year, there are many courses and great academic pressure, so I can only "squeeze and squeeze" my time.

In this process, some graduate students left and some new teammates joined. Everyone encouraged and helped each other and worked together for the common goal. During this period, Chongqing Unbounded Qihang Innovation and Technology Co., Ltd., founded by Yan Tong, successfully obtained the incubation fund of 500,000 yuan from Mingyuehu International Intelligent Industry Science and Technology Innovation Base in Liangjiang New District of Chongqing, and also moved its office to Mingyuehu.

His goal is coming true!

As a student of the National School of Excellence Engineers of Chongqing University, Tan Tan studied in the experimental class of Mingyue Kechuang.

"The school has given us a lot of help, and our courses are mainly project-driven." According to the introduction, the school itself is also training everyone in the direction of industrial innovation practice. One of the courses that impressed him deeply is to let the students make a boat and meet the requirements of tilting 120 degrees without overturning.

The learning method of combining theory with practice has been improving his ability to use his hands and brains. During the start-up period, Tan Lian won 6 national awards, 6 provincial and municipal awards, 7 invention patents, 2 utility model patents and 1 software copyright as the first inventor.

"I first met you in the lab, and later I learned about his entrepreneurial project, which was very challenging, so I joined in with the recommendation of my tutor." Cao Xiuxiu, a mechanical engineering major at Chongqing University, said that after joining the team, especially after really understanding the reading difficulties of the blind, she quickly found the "goal" to fight for, and worked hard with everyone towards this goal. In the process, she was also full of gains.

After more than a year of fighting day and night, in February 2024, the second brand-new version of "Braille e-book" independently developed by the team finally took out the sample. This version of "Braille e-book" is smaller, lighter and more convenient to read. It is the best in all aspects, which makes the trial blind people fondle it. It is expected to be launched in the second half of 2024.

"In this small e-book, Dream of Red Mansions and Romance of the Three Kingdoms … … All kinds of literary works can be blind ‘ Look ’ See! " He said happily.

Help more blind people to read and see a wider world in books.

This dream, he is about to achieve!

Upstream journalist Song Jian Zhang Jinqi