a line of textured paving on the
footpath do you know what it means this
is Ken he's making a round-the-world
trip and he's seen this kind of paving
in many countries especially on
sidewalks and train station platforms
Ken's country doesn't have it and he
started wondering what it means designed
to help visually impaired pedestrians
get around the paving is made of tactile
tiles there are two types one is a
directional guide the other ones of
possible danger nearby the tiles are
easily identified with a cane or by how
they feel under your feet such a simple
idea with such powerful benefits
ken is impressed who invented these tiny
it all started in Japan shichi Myakka a
hotel owner in Okayama City had a close
friend who was visually impaired he
developed these tiles to keep his
friends safe on the street in 1967
miacca installed the world's first
tactile tile along a busy road near the
Akiyama school for the blind and
visually impaired
Meah kept then donated his own fund to
help other communities around Japan
install the tiles the government
recognized the value of his invention
and from 1973 began installing the
blocks nationwide and in 2001 they
received Japanese industrial standard
certification ken is amazed at how one
man achieved so much good but our story
doesn't end there
miacca was inspired by Braille which is
called kenji in Japanese but Braille is
difficult to learn and each language has
its own version Miaka styles on the
other hand are a universal design that
anyone can quickly understand worldwide
there are around 300 million visually
impaired people no wonder
other countries quickly adopted this
highly effective Japanese invention can
remember seeing these tiles as he
travels through countries as varied as
China South Korea Australia and the USA
remember never to have struct the tiles
by standing on them or leaving obstacles
there and if you ever see a visually
impaired person headed toward danger be
sure to call out and warn them a system
of simple symbols and standardized rules
that improves accessibility for people
with visual disabilities worldwide ken
decides he will become an inventor like
me okay after he gets home from his trip
[Music]