Overview
EN ISO 24503:2011 - Ergonomics: Accessible design - Tactile dots and bars on consumer products specifies requirements for using tactile dots and tactile bars on consumer products to improve accessibility for everyone, particularly older persons and people with visual disabilities. The standard applies to personal consumer products where touch - rather than vision - is used to locate and identify controls. It excludes other tactile methods (texture, vibration), other tactile symbols (triangles, squares), and non-tactile feedback (acoustic or visual).
Key topics and technical requirements
- Purpose
- Identification of control functions and location information for arrayed controls.
- Marking rules
- Tactile dot: used to mark controls that start a major function; also recommended for power controls when shape/size is not distinguishable by touch; used on the “increasing” side of increase/decrease controls.
- Tactile bar: used to mark controls that stop/cancel a function.
- Controls that both start and stop (e.g., push-button ON/OFF) are to be marked only with a tactile dot.
- For arrays, a dot or bar shall be placed on a specific control to facilitate navigation (examples: the f/j keys on keyboards, the 5 key on numeric keypads).
- Placement
- Preferably placed directly on the control; if inappropriate, placed on a stationary surface close to the control.
- When used with Braille or other tactile symbols, ensure they do not interfere with each other.
- Dimensions and shape
- Tactile dots: diameter (d) from 0.8 mm to 2.0 mm; height (h) from 0.4 mm to 0.8 mm.
- Tactile bars: width (w) from 0.8 mm to 2.0 mm; length (l) 5 to 10 times the width; height (h) from 0.4 mm to 0.8 mm.
- Dimensions should be scaled to the size of the associated control, not the overall product.
Applications and users
- Applicable to consumer electronics and household devices where tactile identification improves usability:
- Remote controls, keyboards, numerical keypads, cooking appliances, cameras, toys, bathroom devices, personal medical devices, and other personal-use products.
- Primary users of this standard:
- Product designers, industrial designers, ergonomists, accessibility specialists, human factors engineers, manufacturers of consumer products, and standards developers.
- Benefits include improved usability for people with visual impairments, enhanced universal design, and reduced user error when vision is unavailable or impractical.
Related standards
- The standard is based on accessible design principles set out in ISO/IEC Guide 71 (Guidelines for standards developers to address needs of older persons and persons with disabilities).
Keywords: EN ISO 24503:2011, tactile dots and bars, accessible design, ergonomics, consumer products, tactile symbols, visual disabilities, accessibility.