Expandable and contractible keyboard device
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A keyboard device, comprising:
- a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the webs are superposable in the second direction at least when the webs are in the contracted position.
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Abstract
An expandable keyboard device includes a plurality of keytops arranged on a plurality of elastic webs. Each web corresponds to a single row of keytops.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the webs are superposable in the second direction at least when the webs are in the contracted position. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A keyboard device comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
a keyboard decoder device configured to receive output data from keyswitches corresponding to the keytops; and
a battery arranged to power the keyboard decoder device;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction.
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15. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein each web is formed from an iso-linear stretch material.
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16. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction and wherein each keytop includes at least one label woven into the web.
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17. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the plurality of webs includes at least five webs arranged to form five keyboard rows.
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18. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the keytops are arranged for single-finger data entry when the webs are in the contracted position.
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19. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the keytops are arranged for touch-typing data entry when the webs are in the expanded position.
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20. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the webs are formed from an expandable fabric.
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21. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein each web corresponds to a respective row of keys of the keyboard device.
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22. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein the plurality of webs includes at least three webs arranged to form five keyboard rows.
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23. A keyboard device, comprising:
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a plurality of webs stretchable in a single plane in a first direction between a contracted position and an expanded position; and
a plurality of keytops arranged on each web, a pitch between adjacent keytops expandable in the single plane in accordance with expansion of the webs;
wherein the webs are superposable in a second direction; and
wherein each web corresponds to at least one keyboard row.
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Specification