20-year-old Andhra student makes top 20 list for James Dyson Award with voice-enabled Braille printer
Engineering student Lingampalli Himaja says she developed RUDHRA to help visually impaired people create Braille documents independently, eliminating the complexities involved in conventional Braille typing
Lingampalli Himaja, a 20-year-old engineering student from Vishnu Women's University in Bhimavaram, has developed RUDHRA, a voice-enabled Braille printer, which has been shortlisted among the top 20 global finalists of the James Dyson Award 2026.
The inspiration for RUDHRA came from a question posed by a visually impaired student in Bhimavaram: "Why should I type when I can speak?" Himaja, while visiting a school for visually impaired students, observed the challenges they faced when writing in Braille. This led her to develop a device that converts spoken words into Braille.
RUDHRA aims to make writing more accessible and intuitive for visually impaired individuals by enabling them to create Braille documents independently. The device seeks to eliminate the complexities associated with conventional Braille typing. Himaja's innovation was selected based on functionality, originality, design process, and commercial viability by a panel of 12 Dyson engineers.
If successful, the global winners of the James Dyson Award 2026 will each receive £30,000 to support further development and commercialisation of their projects. Himaja hopes that the recognition will help take RUDHRA to a wider audience and make the device more compact, technologically advanced, and affordable. Her long-term goal is to enable visually impaired students to use the device independently, significantly improving their access to education, healthcare, and employment.
Written by urgent.news from The Hindu's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
