  Visual icons provide immediate recognition of features on print maps but do
not translate well for touch reading by people who are blind or have low vision
due to the low fidelity of tactile perception. We explored 3D printed icons as
an equivalent to visual icons for tactile maps addressing these problems. We
designed over 200 tactile icons (TactIcons) for street and park maps. These
were touch tested by blind and sighted people, resulting in a corpus of 33
icons that can be recognised instantly and a further 34 icons that are easily
learned. Importantly, this work has informed the creation of detailed
guidelines for the design of TactIcons and a practical methodology for touch
testing new TactIcons. It is hoped that this work will contribute to the
creation of more inclusive, user-friendly tactile maps for people who are blind
or have low vision.
