Yet another quick update:
- Stanford University’s Shape Lab has demonstrated a prototype of a tactile display, but the parts alone cost $6000. So it has about the same order of magnitude cost as the currently available 80 character refreshable braille devices that cost $15000. They both use expensive materials and technology.
- In contrast, it seems possible to make a tactile display that costs a factor of 100 less by using really cheap materials and technology that are configured by good designs in geometry. (After all, a tactile display is just a bunch of small geometry problems.) For more about the development of good design in geometry, see this post.