The Mountbatten Brailler was the world's first portable battery-powered braille writer for people with impaired vision. Before its invention, an older version called the Perkins Brailler existed. However because it was considered too clunky and hence impractical, the English Mountbatten Trust launched a worldwide competition to design a more lightweight version. The winners were a Sydney based company called Quantum, and the product was first made available in 1991.