baosp-braille

A Bluetooth HID Braille display driver for Android — routes screen content from the BAOSP screen reader to a connected Braille display. Part of the BAOSP ecosystem.

Download

Latest APK → github.com/tech-master33/baosp/releases/tag/nightly

A fresh build is posted there automatically every night alongside the screen reader, TTS engine, launcher, clock, calculator, and panel. You can also find standalone builds on the releases page of this repo.

Features

• Bluetooth HID support — connects to any Bluetooth HID-compatible Braille display
• BrailleBack-compatible — uses the same display protocol as the Android BrailleBack service
• Screen content routing — displays text from baosp-screenreader on the Braille device
• Navigation commands — Braille display buttons map to swipe and focus gestures
• Auto-detect display — identifies connected device and configures the correct key table
• Grade 1 and Grade 2 Braille — selectable translation modes

Connecting your Braille display

1. Download the APK from the nightly link above
2. Transfer it to your Android device and install it (allow unknown sources if prompted)
3. Pair your Braille display: Settings → Bluetooth → pair your device
4. Open BAOSP Braille from your app drawer
5. Enable it in Settings → Accessibility → Downloaded services → BAOSP Braille → On
6. The display should start showing screen content immediately

Building locally

git clone https://github.com/tech-master33/baosp-braille.git
cd baosp-braille
chmod +x gradlew
./gradlew assembleDebug
# APK at: app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk

Requires JDK 17 and Android SDK with API level 34.

Permissions

Permission	Why it is needed
BLUETOOTH	Connect to the Braille display
BLUETOOTH_CONNECT	Android 12+ Bluetooth permission
BLUETOOTH_SCAN	Discover Braille displays nearby
BIND_ACCESSIBILITY_SERVICE	Read screen content to send to the display

CI/CD

Every push to main automatically builds a new APK and posts it as a GitHub Release. The badge above shows whether the latest build passed or failed.

BAOSP Ecosystem

baosp-braille is part of BAOSP — an accessible Android platform for blind and visually impaired users:

Repo	What it does
baosp	Main project — nightly bundle, coordination
baosp-screenreader	Screen reader — accessibility service
baosp-tts	SVOX Pico TTS engine
aoler	Accessible home screen launcher
baosp-clock	Accessible clock, alarm, timer
baosp-calc	Accessible calculator
baosp-panel	Quick-access control panel
baosp-braille	Bluetooth Braille display driver (this repo)

All APKs are bundled together and published every night at
github.com/tech-master33/baosp/releases/tag/nightly

License

Apache License 2.0 — same as BAOSP and AOSP.