Typographic variations: parameters for the development of digital type families

• Grant number: 08/02143-5
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Effective date (Start): March 01, 2009
• Effective date (End): November 30, 2010
• Field of knowledge: Applied Social Sciences - Industrial Design - Visual Programming
• Principal researcher: Priscila Lena Farias
• Grantee: Fabio Mariano Cruz Pereira
• Home Institution: Campus Santo Amaro. Centro Universitário Senac. Serviço Nacional de Aprendizagem Comercial São Paulo (SENAC-SP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This research proposal aims to the definition of parameters for the development of digital type families starting from the roman version of a digital font. Digital type family is defined here as a set of fonts with characters that are analogous in their formal structure, but that differ in style (for instance, roman and italic), weight (for instance, regular and bold), and width (for instance, normal and condensed), here identified as typographicvariations. This investigation will involve bibliographic survey, interviews with professional type designers and practical testings. Among the expected outcomes of this research is the proposition of a method for generating typographic variations, that will be applied in sans serif roman fonts. The validation of these parameters will happen through comparative analysis between the variations of existent type families and the results of applied testing in roman version of these families.