Tactile Models and Digital Fabrication to Support the Understanding of the Architectural Design of a Renovation in a School for the Visually Impaired

This study shows the results from an outreach activity developed in the school of Architecture at the Universidade Federal de Pelotas. A special education school for visually disabled people expressed difficulty in guiding and helping students and staff to understand the school's space. Furthermore, the school will be renovated expanding the second floor; materials for the blind members to understand the design were also needed. Thus, tactile models were developed and produced through digital fabrication. The process started with a bibliographic review about tactile models, focusing mainly on similar studies of tactile models for understanding architectural designs. Tests were carried out with members of the school, with the aim of identifying problems and gathering insights on possible ways to improve the models. The final tactile models remained at the school. We expect that the models will allow school members to understand the proposed renovations and contribute to orienting people in the existing school space, especially new students.