Important Elements that Must Be Included in ADA Signage
Erie Custom Signs specializes in developing signage that complies with the various regulations put forth for signage in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But what exactly are those rules that we must follow for each ADA sign?
The rules go beyond the inclusion of braille (and braille has many of its own specific rules that must be followed!). There are numerous other regulations in place that determine what you can and cannot do when designing ADA signs.
Here are a few of the most important ADA sign regulations one must consider when designing ADA signage:
Easy to read: Any fonts used on ADA signs should be easy to read. There must be enough space between letters and words to make them distinguishable from a certain distance away. The font should be a sans serif font, making it as plain and clear as possible.
Contrast between words and background: If the sign has words on it, there must be a high light to dark (or dark to light) contrast between the characters and the sign’s background. Typically you will see either white characters on a black or navy background, or black characters on a white background. Either one has a high contrast that makes the sign easy to read.
Elimination of glare: Any materials used for ADA signage should be glare-free, unless the signs are created for traffic purposes. This is because most people who have vision impairments have problems with processing reflection or glare. The ADA looks out for people with such disabilities and wants to ensure signage is as easy to read for them as possible.
Proper sizes and cases: There may be specific rules for upper and lower case usage depending on the type of font or sign. In any circumstance, all letters used on a sign must be an appropriate size, based on how far away from the sign a reader is expected to be standing or sitting.
There are other rules businesses must follow with their ADA signage, including a whole host of rules regarding how to properly mount signs to be ADA compliant. But this gives you an idea of the design considerations.
For more information, contact us today at Erie Custom Signs.
