Serviceplan partners LVPEI, Ravensburger to create 'Fittle' 3D

City-based L V Prasad Eye Institute today said it has collaborated with Serviceplan Group,a owner managed and partner-managed agency group in Europe and an educational toy company Ravensburger to develop 'Fittle', a 3D Printed Braille Puzzle.
"The existing Braille learning educational tools are either too expensive to make them accessible, or not engaging enough to encourage interaction."
"To address this problem, Serviceplan Health & Life has teamed up with LVPEI and Ravensburger to create 'Fittle', 3D printed Braille puzzles that make education for visually impaired children more accessible and engaging," a release from LVPEI said.
It said Fittle is an innovative and affordable new way for blind and visually impaired people to learn and discover.

"To further complete the Braille literacy puzzle, the Fittle Project is raising funds to provide 3D printers to communities in developing countries who couldnt afford expensive learning devices in the past," it said adding the puzzles have been created by experienced puzzle designers.
Dr Beula Christy,Head,Institute for Vision rehabilitation, LVPEI said the learning opportunities of Fittle are huge, beginning with fine motor activity to enhanced higher level cognitive functioning such as attention, focusing, problem solving, object permanence, concept learning and much more.
To bring these innovative learning tools to the visually impaired, Ravensburger together with their customer base of puzzle enthusiasts around the world, is raising funds for the 3D printers which are set up in the regional LVPEI centers to distribute Fittle puzzles for free across the LVPEI network of over 190 local eye care centers across India,the release said.

The idea behind Fittle was first conceived by Tania Jain, a designer from National Institute of Design in Gandhinagar, under the mentorship of Dr Anthony Vipin Das, Associate Director at LVPEI, it added.