History of Computers - Projection Keyboard

Page created by Lacey Rybarczyk

A projection keyboard is a virtual keyboard that projects the keyboards buttons onto a touchable surface, using a laser.

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Overview

In 2002 Canesta created the first projection keyboard. The virtual keyboard used "electronic perception technology," which made the projected keyboard to work like a normal keyboard. The keyboard is projected using a laser, and which has infrared sensors to tell which keys are the person is pressing by the reflection. A projection keyboard can be projected and used on any surface that can be touched, yet a sensor must be present in order to pick up the finger movements. The sensor is able to determine coordinates from the hands movement deciphering which keys have been touched. ^[2] Although all projection keyboards have the same function some use a second invisible infrared beam instead of only one infrared beam. The projection keyboard created by Canesta not only has a full functioning virtual keyboard, that makes the appropriate sound when a key is touched, but also a full functioning virtual mouse. ^[3] This cuts down on the size and weight of computer necessities significantly. Projection keyboards lack the tactile feeling of a normal keyboard.

Significance

The projection keyboard is significant because it reduced the size of computers or devices, for portability, and it increases comfort ability when typing on phones or palm pilots. It also sparked the ides for virtual mice and virtual pianos. The projection keyboard has showed us that the ability to make objects extremely portable is possible laser projectional ideas. Not only is it making great strides in the computer world, yet it is also helping people in the music industry (eq. virtual keyboard).