A practical guide to tactile character baselines, door-side placement, and the clear floor space needed to read a sign by touch
Mounting a tactile sign involves more than choosing a height for the panel. The character positions, the door arrangement, and the space in front of the text all need attention. Start a layout by marking the text baselines and the door swing, rather than using the center of the sign as the only reference. The requirements below come from Section 703 of the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design.
At a single door, Section 703.4.2 places the tactile sign alongside the door on the latch side. That is the side where the door closes and latches, rather than the hinge side. Identify that side on the installation drawing before deciding where to place the text. A visually balanced position over a doorway is not the placement described by this rule.
The standard includes an exception permitting tactile signs on the push side of doors with closers and without hold-open devices. Keep those conditions together when checking the exception. The permission is conditional; it is not a general instruction to put tactile signs on door panels.
Section 703.4.1 sets the lowest tactile character baseline at least 48 inches above the finished floor or ground. The highest tactile character baseline may be no more than 60 inches above that surface. These measurements refer to the characters, not the panel's top edge, bottom edge, or center. For several lines of text, check the lowest and highest baselines separately.
The U.S. Access Board's guidance applies this height range to raised characters and braille. A mounting sketch should therefore show the text and braille positions within the panel. The panel outline alone does not provide the baseline measurements needed to check the layout.
The sign needs clear floor space at least 18 inches by 18 inches, centered on the tactile characters. Section 703.4.2 places this space beyond the arc of the door swing between its closed position and a 45-degree open position. Check the floor area and the door movement together; a correct text height does not answer the separate space requirement.
The Access Board explains that this area provides unobstructed standing space for reading by touch and must be free of protrusions to a height of 80 inches. Show the standing area on the plan as well as the sign location. This makes the relationship between the characters, the reader's position, and the door swing easier to review.
For double doors with one active leaf, the tactile sign goes on the inactive leaf. A leaf is an individual door panel. If both leaves are active, the sign goes to the right of the right-hand door. Determine which arrangement exists before copying a placement from another doorway.
When there is no wall space at the latch side of a single door, or at the right side of double doors, the standard directs placement on the nearest adjacent wall. Review that location with the height and clear floor space requirements. The absence of space beside a door changes the location instruction, rather than removing the other checks.
Section 703.5.6 places visual characters at least 40 inches above the finished floor or ground. This is a separate provision from the tactile baseline range. Section 703.5.7 also gives visual characters a stroke thickness of 10% to 30% of the uppercase letter I's height. Tactile characters instead have a maximum stroke thickness of 15%, and must rise at least 1/32 inch above their background. Keep the visual and tactile measurements clearly labeled on specifications.
The U.S. Access Board's signs guide accepts Unified English Braille as Grade 2 braille for the ADA Standards. The Braille Authority of North America made it the official U.S. braille in 2016. Braille selection and mounting position are separate checks: identify the braille system, then check the tactile baseline range and the floor space at the chosen doorway.
Mark the finished floor level, lowest and highest tactile baselines, door arrangement, and clear floor space on one drawing. Use the character positions as measurement references. For the lettering requirements that accompany placement, read the ADA signs guide.