Google Doodle: what are Tenji blocks?
Search engine honours Seiichi Miyake, the inventor of tactile paving
Today’s Google Doodle pays tribute to Seiichi Miyake, whose invention of the Tenji block transformed the way visually impaired people navigate urban spaces.
Millions of us walk over Tenji blocks every day without giving a thought to their purpose or just how much they mean to those who are unable to see their surroundings.
Miyake, a businessman and part-time inventor from Japan’s Okayama prefecture, became interested in accessibility in 1963, after witnessing a blind man with a cane struggle to cross a road, says HuffPost Japan.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
With the help of his friend Hideyuki Iwahashi, the chairman of an association for people with disabilities, Miyake developed a system of tactile paving in which raised lines and bumps would help visually impaired walkers navigate road crossings and other common urban obstacles.
He called the invention Tenji blocks, after the name for the Japanese version of Braille.
Tiles with raised lines tell the user that they can proceed forwards safely, while raised bumps signal “stop”, and are commonly used to mark a curb or platform edge. The blocks are often painted in bright colours so they can be seen by people who are partially sighted.
The first Tenji blocks were installed outside a school for the blind in Okayama in 1967, and became mandatory in all Japanese railway stations in the 1970s.
In the 21st century, Tenji blocks can be seen in towns and cities in 150 countries around the world, according to Japanese newspaper Mainichi. They are often referred to as tactile paving or truncated domes.
Over the years, Miyake’s original system has been developed and expanded to include more symbols, offering blind travellers even more information about their surroundings.
“For instance, when the raised lines are horizontal in the direction of travel, that might mean ‘look out for steps ahead’,” says CNet.
In 2017, YouTuber Tom Scott made a video in conjunction with the Royal National Institute for the Blind in which he explored how Tenji blocks are used in the UK. Watch below:
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - November 19, 2024
Cartoons Tuesday's cartoons - junk food, health drinks, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Band Aid 40: time to change the tune?
In the Spotlight Band Aid's massively popular 1984 hit raised around £8m for famine relief in Ethiopia and the charity has generated over £140m in total
By Rebekah Evans, The Week UK Published
-
Starmer vs the farmers: who will win?
Today's Big Question As farmers and rural groups descend on Westminster to protest at tax changes, parallels have been drawn with the miners' strike 40 years ago
By The Week UK Published
-
Has the Taliban banned women from speaking?
Today's Big Question 'Rambling' message about 'bizarre' restriction joins series of recent decrees that amount to silencing of Afghanistan's women
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Cuba's energy crisis
The Explainer Already beset by a host of issues, the island nation is struggling with nationwide blackouts
By Rebekah Evans, The Week UK Published
-
Putin's fixation with shamans
Under the Radar Secretive Russian leader, said to be fascinated with occult and pagan rituals, allegedly asked for blessing over nuclear weapons
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Chimpanzees are dying of human diseases
Under the radar Great apes are vulnerable to human pathogens thanks to genetic similarity, increased contact and no immunity
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies hang over Sydney's Mardi Gras
The Explainer Police officer, the former partner of TV presenter victim, charged with two counts of murder after turning himself in
By Austin Chen, The Week UK Published
-
Quiz of The Week: 24 February - 1 March
Puzzles and Quizzes Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will mounting discontent affect Iran election?
Today's Big Question Low turnout is expected in poll seen as crucial test for Tehran's leadership
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Sweden clears final NATO hurdle with Hungary vote
Speed Read Hungary's parliament overwhelmingly approved Sweden's accession to NATO
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published