Also Known as: Minolta, Microcapsule paper, hot spot.
Technologies: Zy-Tex™, Flexipaper, Piaf
Principles: A special type of paper with microcapsules of alcohol
embedded in the paper which burst when exposed to heat and make
the surface of the paper swell up.
How to make Swell Paper tactile graphics.
Swell paper can be used to create tactile graphics in a number
of ways:
1) Photocopying - an image can be transferred to swell paper
using a photocopier. Please do not photocopy standard graphics
to swell paper, as an exact tactile copy of a print original will
be unlikely to work in a tactile form.
2) Printing - an inkjet or fast laser printer can be used to
print directly onto the paper. Because of the heat process involved
in laser printers the finished product can have background swelling
which can cause tactile clutter and be unpleasant to use. Some
inkjet printers work better than others, Hewlett Packard printers
seem to work fine, where Epson printers can produce an image which
will not raise.
3) Marker pens - you can draw directly onto the paper with some
black markers. Some types of pens work better than others and
trial and error is the only way to find out which one works best
for you.
4) Heat pens - see making free-hand
tactile graphics.
Fusers - once an image has been transferred to the swell paper,
it can be passed through a fuser. The fuser is a device with a
heated element which causes the paper to react.
What is Swell Paper?
Paper with a special coating of heat reactive chemicals. Microcapsules
of alcohol embedded in the paper burst when exposed to heat and
make the surface of the paper swell up. Putting black ink on the
paper before a heat process enables control over the raised areas.
Where to buy materials and equipment
Swell Paper and fusers can be purchased from:
RNIB
TechnoVision
Zychem Ltd
Quantum Technologies
Inkjet Printers from:
Hewlett Packard
Heat Pens from:
TechnoVision
Vector Based Graphics Applications:
CorelDraw - Corel
FreeHand - Macromedia
Links to Suppliers Details
Techniques
Inkjet printers offer variability in the amount of ink which
is placed on a page. Most swell paper reacts better to small amounts
of ink, so a setting of "economy" or "fast"
often works well.
When photocopying onto swell paper, there are two factors which
influence the quality of the outcome. The speed at which the machine
can copy pages will affect any background swell which can occur.
Some photocopiers are designed in such a way that the paper twists
and turns through the copier. The more turns a page makes, the
more likely it is to get stuck. Typically the sheet feeder offers
a more direct path through a copier.
Different types of swell paper can react in different ways under
heat. Test different line thicknesses so that you know they raise
up before you start the design of your image.
Fusers can take a while to warm up to a stable temperature, so
it is often a good idea to pass a sheet of plain paper through
the machine first before a swell paper image.
If you start with a low heat setting on a fuser you can always
increase the temperature and pass the same page through again.
If the setting is too high the paper will start to raise all over,
or burst and make the paper feel fuzzy and unpleasant.
Tricks of the trade...
Spray varnish or hairspray on the finished an raised graphic
for a surface which is less prone to smudging.
Colour ink does not raise up so can be used for labelling graphics
in print.
Swell (microcapsule) - strong points
- If have a computer & design software, only need extra
fuser and paper
- Nice with originals in electronic form (tracing)
- Easy to update or edit and reproduce in bulk
- Draw, photocopy, or print with inkjet
- Easy to add non-raised print labels (don't use black ink)
- With an A3 printer can easily make A4 & A3
- Easily visible when raised
- Easy to create lines, shapes and fills
Swell - weak points
- Black areas may smudge easily
- Little height variation
- Limited number of useful fills / textures
- Difficult to add braille without transcription software or
good braille font
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