3D technologies new opportunities - improving access

Editor's Notes

• #3: This story like many in libraries starts with the collection The collection includes newspaper articles and information concerning R.F. Tunley and his association with Narbethong House and the education of the visually impaired. There are also photographs of R.F. Tunley and the maps, globes, doll houses and models which he constructed, as well as images of the children at the home using the equipment and toys. The collection also includes: a copy of R.F. Tunley's publication 'Braille maps and how to make them' and the booklet 'The Queensland Braille Map Makers' ; colour slides of the braille maps created by Richard Frank Tunley for pupils of the Narbethong School; and colour slides of science equipment for blind pupils of Narbethong School constructed by Mr. Travis The collection also includes the following objects: Tunley's braille globe of the world; replica of the world globe; braille map of Australia, 1963; braille map of Brisbane central business district, 1962; braille map of Brisbane suburbs, 1937; braille fraction chart; and a braille model of a sailing boat; n 1886 the Queensland Government vested a 10 acre site in Cornwall Street, Annerley, for the benefit and use of blind and deaf people. A workshop was opened in 1887 and in 1893 a home and school for blind and deaf students was established. Up until 1963 blind and deaf children were educated together at Annerley, however in 1963 Narbethong School, meaning “happy place” was established at Buranda for blind and low vision students. Richard Frank Tunley was involved with the students from the early 1920s until his death in 1968. He made hundreds of maps, globes, models, toys, doll houses and other educational aides for visually impaired children in Queensland, Australia and other parts of the world. His interest in helping blind and deaf children stemmed from his own partial deafness. His greatest achievements included helping to make education compulsory for deaf and blind children in 1924 and in the establishment of Braille House at Annerley in the 1950s. Through the Queensland Braille Map and Model Club, Mr Tunley organised educational material to be sent to schools throughout Australia and the rest of the world at no cost. He was awarded an MBE for these efforts in 1953. R.F Tunley’s Braille Globe is an intricate Braille globe invented in Queensland in the 1950s. The globe was originally created for vision-impaired children by Queenslander Richard Frank Tunley, known as the ‘Fairy Godfather of Blind Children’, who dedicated his life to improving outcomes for vision-impaired children and adults, producing Braille globes and maps. He died in 1968 at the age of ninety and was involved with the school up until this time.
• #4: Frank Tunley amazing man – worked tirelessly on improving access and education for visually impaired children in Brisbane, Australia and Asia
• #5: he was involved with developing tools and resources for students from the early 1920s until his death in 1968.
• #6: He made hundreds of maps, globes, models, toys, doll houses and other educational aides for visually impaired children
• #7: The collection was donated to the State Library of Queensland in 2013 and included this beautiful globe with braille labels for each continent
• #8: The globe is made of wood and aluminium with Braille letters punched into the aluminium, and includes several accompanying plates providing contextual information and instructions on how to use the globe. The different continents are raised a little bit so a person with vision impairment can feel the shape of the continents . The countries and continents are named in Braille. It was very much still in the Commonwealth, the Empire phase, [so] most of the trails around the globe come from the United Kingdom. A child who wanted to understand where Australia was in relationship with Britain would run their fingers over these raised dots read the Braille, and work their way around the globe to find their way through the Panama Canal, over the Pacific Ocean and then down eventually to Australia.
• #9: In 2018 an exhibition celebrating Queensland innovators opened and included equipment developed by Frank Tunley
• #10: Unfortunately – it was not possible to make the globe accessible to visitors – due to its fragile state – something designed to be touched .. could not be
• #11: At the State Library for the past three years the Queensland Library Foundation has hosted a Crowd Giving event. The public is invited to attend the event and pay $100 for the opportunity to hear three staff pitch an idea to the audience. They undergo some heavy duty questioning and then vote on the idea that will have $10,000 to deliver on their idea. The idea of making Frank Tunley globe more accessible by undertaking 3d digitisation and developing a 3d printed facsimile was pitched and was successful Our objective was to Improve access to the globe Protect the original Provide a 3d printed version Learn about 3d digitisation and printing for future opportunities We had one year to go from idea or if I’m going to be more accurate a ‘thought bubble’ to finished product.. with funding dedicated to some project management, digitisation and 3d printing Digital 3D model was created using photogrammetry. Photogrammetry is a technique that involves taking high-fidelity photographs an object from all angles, before software stitches the photos together to make an exact rendering in a digital form. Here is a quick overview of the process. This allowed for high level of detail to be digitised with no impact on the globe . Dittolabls used a handheld Artec Spider. Scanning happened onsite
• #14: Then came printing – SLS (Selective Lazer Singering/MJF (Multijet Fusion). High fidelity 3D printing.. it enabled a highly tactile globe close to the original. An important part of the process was user testing. We worked with Braille House in Brisbane to test the readabiity and accuracy of the scan and the print. The first test confirmed our fears that the Braille dots had worn down to such a degree that it was no longer readable. We had to decide to be faithful to the original or to augment the model. Given the objective of the project we decided to augment. Interesting part of this story is Braille House employee we asked to test the 3d printed globe smiled as she was testing it..she remembered using the globe as a child at school.
• #19: This is Crowd Giving event of 2018 – with the globe being passed around and touched by audience… The globe printed in Melbourne arrived at 4pm on the day of the event!