ADA Signage
Quick Reference Guide.
The Americans with Disabilities
(ADA) has been in place for
more than 30 years, with major
revisions released in 2010. As of
March 2011, compliance is now
required and enforceable by
federal law. Since the ADA views
visual impairments as a disability
covered under the act, there are
specific guidelines pertaining to
signage products, specifically their
appearance and position. Below
is a brief summary of some of
the principal areas. You can rest
assured that signage produced by
Inpro is 100% compliant.
Character Properties & Braille Dots
Raised characters shall be raised a minimum of 1/32 inch from their background.
Raised characters shall be uppercase, sans serif and free of oblique, script or italic characters.
Raised character heights shall be between 5/8 inch and 2 inches.
Raised characters must be accompanied by Grade 2 Braille dots.
Braille shall be positioned directly below its corresponding text.
Braille shall be separated a minimum of 3/8 inch from raised text and other raised objects.
Braille dots are to be domed or rounded, not flat or squared.
Overhead and projection mounted signs do not require raised characters or braille dots.
Overhead signs should have a minimum of 2 inch character height.
Projection sign characters should be designed to meet their required viewing distance.
Upper and lower case characters are permissible on overhead and projected mounted signs.
3/8 inch minimum separation
from corresponding
characters or raised objects
Finish & Contrast
Characters and their background shall have a non-glare finish.
Characters shall contrast with their background with either light characters
on a dark background or dark characters on a light background.
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Pictograms & Placement
Pictograms shall be placed in a 6 inch high “field” area. This area should be free of any raised characters or braille dots.
When text and braille dots are used with a pictogram, they should be placed directly below the pictogram field.
Like the characters on a sign, pictograms shall have a non-glare finish and contrast with their background
with either light characters on a dark background or dark characters on a light background.
6” Pictogram
Field
Text description placed
below pictogram field.
Architectural Products
[Link] | 800.222.5556
Mounting Heights & Positioning
Signs with raised characters should be mounted on the latch side of the door.
The distance between the finished floor and the baseline of the raised characters must be between
60 inches (from highest tactile character) and 48 inches (from the lowest tactile character).
The sign should be located so that a clear floor space (18 x 18 inch minimum), is provided beyond
the arc of the door, with the sign centered in this area. See provided diagram below.
Overhead signs must have a minimum clearance of 80 inches from the bottom of the sign to the finished floor.
If a projection mounted sign extends more than 4 inches from the wall, it must also
have an 80 inch clearance from the bottom of the sign to the finished floor.
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80” Minimum
60” Maximum
48” Minimum
Single Door Inward Door Swing
Signs should be mounted on Signs may be mounted directly to the door
the latch side of the door. if the following three criteria are met:
1. The door closes automatically,
2. Mounted on the push side,
3. There is no “hold open” device.
Double Doors (With Outward Swing
Two Active Leafs)
Signs should be mounted with tactile
Signs should be located to the characters centered in 18” x 18”
right of the right hand door. clear floor space beyond arc of the
door swing. See diagram below.
Outward Swing (With
One Active Leafs)
Signs should be located
on the inactive leaf.
NOTE: If there is no room for the sign to be
placed directly next to the door, the sign may
Architectural Products
be placed on the nearest adjacent wall.
[Link] | 800.222.5556