Appearance
Define the character, form, materials, colors, surface details and brand elements.
Talking cards
Touch To Read Pen
An interactive learning reference for cards, reading and drawing activities.
Reference images show a starting point. Shape, materials, color, functions and packaging can be developed around your brief.
Product views
See the product from every angle.
Manufacturing reference
What this reference shows, and what you would decide.
A reading pen with an optical tip, which moves the reader into the child's hand.
A pen has to be gripped by a small hand for a long session, so the diameter, the weight balance and the textured lower grip are functional rather than cosmetic. The optical tip is a precision assembly at the end of a part that will be dropped, which makes tip protection a real design requirement. Controls run down the barrel where a thumb reaches, and the character ears at the top are the only decorative parts.
Choose this reference when the content is printed matter rather than a card set. Decide the printed code format and who applies it, since that reaches your book printer as well as your toy factory, and confirm the drop performance expected of the tip.
Decisions this product type puts in front of you
- The card library Card count, trim size, board weight and coating decide both the tooling and the cost per set. Settle the vocabulary list and the artwork before the slot or the reader is drawn around a card that may change size.
- How a card is read A slot, an optical pen and a printed code are three different mechanisms with three different failure modes. Choose one and design the card stock for it, not the other way round.
- Screen or writing surface If the product also writes or draws, decide the panel size, the erase method and whether the stylus is tethered. That choice sets the case, the thickness and the battery.
- Audio and language Every card is a track. Agree the language list, the voice and the file naming scheme early, because adding a language after tooling means new cards as well as new audio.
- Safety and packaging Cards are small parts to a safety reviewer, and they are also the thing that gets lost. Set the age grade and the market first, then design the tray and the refill pack.
Send this and we can quote something close to it
- How many cards ship in the box, and their size and board weight.
- The reading method you want: slot, pen or printed code.
- Audio languages, and whether the vocabulary list is yours.
- Destination markets and the age grade you intend to print.
- Quantity, and whether extra card sets are sold separately.
Related reading
Custom development
Make the reference yours.
Functions
Select the interactions, audio, light, movement, controls and power system your product needs.
Presentation
Plan labels, instructions, packaging, carton configuration and market requirements together.
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