2015-07-26 (Su) Wrist Mounted Chording Keyboard

Wrist or hand mounted keyboard aren't popular yet but as wearable technology moves forward and becomes more ubiquitous I think people will be happy to have a keyboard they can use without needing both thumbs. While bluetooth keyboards can be stored easily they still require a table or at least a park bench and a lap. Head mounted displays like Google Glass rely on other input like voice and everyone can hear your messages. Some day someone will replace the keyboard with something revolutionary but until then we will keep relying on our hands to input a letter at a time.

Chording keyboards were discussed before with my hardware ASETNIOP keyboard. The short version is that there are more styles of keyboards than a standard QWERTY keyboard and some can even be used with a single hand. These keyboards are often called chording keyboards because the trick is pressing a combination of buttons at once like a chord on a guitar.

Enough background.
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Brainstorming for different configurations of a keyboard lead to an inspiration which relied on folding levers which would press an inexpensive button. A complicated system was drawn out, see below, which used a different sized lever for each finger and folded into a socket painstakingly channeled for that key. Instead the design was changed to use four identical levers and receivers. A modular design was easier to produce, reproduce and repair. Each piece could be aligned before affixing in place so keyboards could be made which had all buttons arranged in a line, like a desk keyboard, or splayed so they sat exactly where the fingers rested in a natural position.

Scribbles of brainstorming

This design was meant to be a highly portable and functional device but also lend a cyberpunk feel with its covert and custom feel. At the same time this could also benefit people with diseases like Carpal Tunnel Syndrome or maybe even arthritis since hands would rest in a comfortable position instead of on a keyboard. Chording keyboards require training because they do not act like a standard keyboard so there will not be overnight acceptance and only a percentage of people will want to learn a new typing style.

The rest of the posts for this project have been arranged by date.

First time here?

Completed projects from year 1.
Completed projects from year 2



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2015-07-21 (Tu)

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