Here is a message about a Braille Calculator I thought I would pass on to the list. 73s Jody KB1DCS --------- Leo Braille Display Calculator The need for a miniature scientific calculator with a Braille display has been long-existing. While several models of talking calculators have been around for some time, most visually impaired people would have preferred a Braille-display calculator because of the privacy and reading accuracy such a product would provide. However, until recently, it has been impossible to achieve a sufficiently high degree of miniaturisation and cost reduction in order to make a Braille display calculator feasible. As a result, such a desirable tool, with a potential to significantly contribute to a visually impaired person's independence, has been sorely missing. The recent introduction of our new type of miniature Mechatronic Braille Cell provided the much needed basis for the development of the first such product, a truly ground-breaking and unique Braille-cell scientific calculator. A result of over five years of research and development in co-operation with the Mitsubishi Intelligent Machine Systems Development Center of Japan, this affordable calculator sets a standard of performance and simplicity of use, and provides a tangible example of the benefits of our new mechanotronic Braille cell. The Leo Calculator is named after the famous mathematician Leonard Euler (1707-1783) who gave us the basis of natural logarithms, the famous Euler's number. When losing sight of his right eye, this remarkable mathematician said "Now I will have less distraction...". Shortly after that, the sight in his other eye began to deteriorate. Euler had always had an outstanding memory and could do enormous calculations in his head, so he prepared for the coming blindness by learning to write formulas on a slate and to dictate mathematics to his secretary. He was blind for the last 17 years of his life, and during that time his mathematical productivity actually increased. He remains the most prolific mathematician of all time, having written 886 books and papers. The Leo Calculator is designed for the widest possible user base: students who will take advantages of the calculator's scientific functions, professional people who need financial functions and conversions, as well as people who need an affordable Braille calculator for everyday use. The Leo Calculator is elegant and small in size. It measures 9 by 12 by 2.4 centimeters (4.75 by 3.75 by 0.8 inches) and weighs approximately 250 grams (10 ounces), including batteries. The Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries are fully rechargeable and a suitable mains charger is supplied. In addition to the standard arithmetic functions, the Leo calculator also features numerous scientific functions including square root, sine, cosine, tangent, logarithm and their corresponding inverse functions; conversions, financial functions and others. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Technical Specifications Functions four basic arithmetic functions (plus, minus, times, divide), sin, cos, tan, arcsin, arccos, arctan, ln, log, exp, square root, power-to-n, nested parentheses, memory, financial and conversion functions Accuracy 10 significant digits plus one hidden for rounding Display tactile 8-dot, 8 cells, Robotron mechatronic type Dimensions 120 x 90 x 24 mm (4.75 x 3.75 x 0.8 in) Weight 250 grams (10 ounces) (Technical specifications are subject to change without notice.) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- For more information, please email us at [log in to unmask] [ Home | Products | Company | Jobs | Contacts ] Copyright © 2000 Robotron Sensory Tools 'PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN'