Patent ID: 7226291

Claim:
A method for providing refreshable tactile output of information from a computer, the method comprising the steps of: using one movement actuator to move in unison in a vertical direction a plurality of tactile elements that can be touched by a user of the tactile output, wherein each of the tactile elements includes a base, a head spaced from the base in the vertical direction, and a sidewall between the base and the head; and locking a particular tactile element of the plurality of tactile elements with a corresponding lock actuator of a corresponding plurality of lock actuators different from the movement actuator based on data received from a computer processor, wherein said locking step includes displacing a displaceable portion of the lock actuator from (i) an unlocked position wherein the displaceable portion is spaced apart from the sidewall of the corresponding tactile element, thereby permitting that tactile element to move freely in the vertical direction, to (ii) a locked position wherein the displaceable portion is displaced relative to the locked position so as to press against the sidewall of the corresponding tactile element, thereby locking that tactile element in position.