Braille generator for 3D printing: type text, get a printable sign
Type text in one of 9 alphabets and get a 3D model of a sign with raised braille dots. The tool also shows the dot pattern, so you can check it before you start the printer.
Part of Pro, 15 EUR a month.
- 9 alphabetsBulgarian, English, Russian, Greek and five more
- 13 shapesrectangle, key fob, heart, star and more
- STL, 3MF, SVGand a ZIP of many labels from a CSV
- Size warningswhen sizes leave the limits of the app
What a braille generator for 3D printing does with your text
A braille generator for 3D printing turns text into braille cells and puts them as raised dots on a printable plate. This EduFacturing tool, part of Pro, works online: you choose the alphabet, the shape and the size, and download an STL or 3MF.
Braille is read by touch: each sign is a cell of up to six dots in two columns of three. The tool adds a number sign before digits and a capital sign before capital letters.
What the braille generator makes
Turns text into braille in 9 alphabets
Bulgarian, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Greek and Turkish. Every letter has its own sign, with no contractions; the Greek table has no final “ς” and no accented letters, so those cells stay empty.
Makes a plate in the size you need
13 shapes, an automatic or manual size from 10 to 200 mm, hanging holes, a magnet pocket and a border. Four ready templates.
Puts braille on your own model
Upload an STL, move the text over its surface and choose whether the dots fuse into the model or come as a separate patch you glue on.
Gives files and checks them
STL and 3MF for printing, an SVG of the dots, and a CSV batch that returns a ZIP with one 3MF per row. It warns when the sizes and spacings leave the limits of the app.
When you need a braille sign, label or card
You make a braille sign where a blind person has to find information by touch.
School and office
A door sign with a room number or name, hung on two holes or held with a magnet.
Business card
A card of 85 by 55 mm with a name and phone number in braille: a ready template.
Label for a jar or medicine
A small label with a name and a dose, with a border around the text.
How text becomes braille cells and a plate size
From text to plate there are four steps, all in your browser.
Sign by sign
Each letter is looked up in the chosen alphabet, then in English, Bulgarian and the shared signs; if it is nowhere, the cell stays empty.
Number sign and capital sign
A number sign goes before digits. The capital sign follows the chosen alphabet: dot 6 for English, German, French, Spanish, Italian and Turkish, dots 4 and 6 for Bulgarian, Russian and Greek (following UNESCO, 3rd edition, 2013).
Laying out the cells
A cell is two columns of three dots. Dot, sign and line spacing are sliders, and the plate follows the longest line.
Dots and export
The dots are domes with the radius and height you set, fused with the plate into one body for STL or 3MF.
| Applies to | Formula | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Plate width | W = 2·P + (N − 1)·S + D | P is the padding from the edge, N is the number of cells in the longest line, S is the spacing between signs, D is between dots; a key fob adds 10 mm; it holds for an automatic size and a rectangular plate |
| Plate height | H = 2·P + (L − 1)·G + 2·D | L is the number of lines, G is the spacing between lines |
| Weight in PLA | m = V · 0.00124 g/mm³ | V is the volume in mm³; a dot is half a cylinder π·r²·h·0.5. An estimate: holes and the magnet pocket are not subtracted, and for a heart, star and similar shapes the area is 0.75 of the rectangle |
Checks and a preview before you print
Number and capital signs come by themselves
You type as in ordinary text and the app adds the signs that are needed.
You see the dot pattern
The real pattern sits below the text, so a mistake shows before you print.
Warns when sizes leave its limits
The sets in the “Braille standard” list are “Marburg Medium (EU)” and “Library of Congress (US)”. A warning appears if the dot diameter is not 1.44 to 1.60 mm, the height 0.46 to 0.90 mm, the dot spacing 2.3 to 2.6 mm or the line spacing 10.0 to 11.0 mm. For the spacing between signs the EDi rules give 6.0 to 7.6 mm, and the app warns earlier. These are the limits of the app, not those of one standard.
The braille has no contractions: no whole-word signs or short forms from grade 2 English braille. Ukrainian, Hebrew and Arabic exist in the code but are hidden, because their tables are not checked.
Some symbols share one cell: brackets use the cell of the full stop, and the equals sign uses the cell of the question mark. Check them against the pattern. The engraved text for sighted readers is drawn in a Latin font, so Cyrillic letters in it are not drawn correctly.
The warnings are a help, not a certificate: the app does not prove compliance with a rule for a sign in a public place. On the English screen the ready templates stay in Bulgarian.
Questions about braille signs and 3D printed braille
How to make braille on a 3D printer?
Type the text, pick an alphabet and a shape, download an STL or 3MF and print it. The app suggests a 0.4 mm nozzle, a 0.16 mm layer and 15 to 20% gyroid infill.
What is braille?
A system for reading by touch: each sign is a cell of up to six dots in two columns of three.
Which alphabets does the braille generator support?
Nine: Bulgarian, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Greek and Turkish.
What are the braille dot dimensions in mm?
The default is a dot 0.6 mm high and 1.5 mm across. The app warns outside 0.46 to 0.90 mm of height. The “Library of Congress (US)” set uses 0.64 mm: the code ties it to the US minimum of 0.635 mm.
How much does the braille generator cost?
It is part of Pro at 15 EUR a month, together with the other Pro tools.
The braille generator is part of Pro
Pro costs 15 EUR a month and opens all 45 Pro tools.
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Make your own braille sign
Part of Pro, 15 EUR a month.