Typewriting machines – Key-board or key lever-actuating mechanism – Key-board including keys grouped to facilitate positioning...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-01-13
2001-02-06
Funk, Stephen R. (Department: 2854)
Typewriting machines
Key-board or key lever-actuating mechanism
Key-board including keys grouped to facilitate positioning...
C400S491000, C400S488000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06183149
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to keyboards and other devices which require manipulation via extension of the fingers, and in particular to a keyboard designed to minimize stress and injury related to carpal tunnel syndrome and other repetitive stress and strain injuries.
2. Description of Related Art
Incidents of Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI), also known as Cumulative Trauma Disorder (CTD), such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) are increasing at an astronomical rate, affecting nearly two million workers annually and costing an estimated $20 billion per year in workers' compensation, medical benefits, and lost wages. RSI to the upper extremities results, in part, from the repetitive reaching, stretching, bending, flexing, and twisting of fingers. Maintaining the wrist in an awkward position during these repetitive motions increases the likelihood of injury. Holding the body and upper extremities in a static position (either sitting or standing) associated with keyboard use and data input also increases the likelihood of injury. Over time, these awkward repetitive motions can inflame soft tissue, creating pressure on various nerves and causing pain, numbness, and tingling sensations in the upper extremities. RSI may result in pain, numbness, weakness, or loss of dexterity or use of the hands and fingers.
Computer keyboard operators such as secretaries, data entry personnel, computer programmers, and journalists are among the most frequent victims of RSI. From the standpoint of typing speed, keyboards have advantageously evolved to the point where pauses in typing required by typewriters for carriage returns, paper feeds, and manual error corrections are no longer required While disadvantageous from an efficiency standpoint, these typing pauses provided breaks in the repetitive motions associated with typing. Consequently, the occurrence of repetitive strain injuries was much lower than it is today.
Despite the increased efficiency of the keyboard, the evolution of the keyboard from a health standpoint has been largely overlooked. With a conventional keyboard, the palms “float” in the air or rest on the desk or a conventional wrist rest located in front of and below the keyboard. With a conventional wrist rest, the wrist is forced to bend upwards to place the fingers on and depress the keys. Consequently, the muscle and tendons in the hands, arms, neck, and shoulders must continually support the fingers at this upward angle. Maintaining this position while typing for an extended period of time can strain the muscles and tendons of the hands, arms, neck, and shoulders and significantly contributes to repetitive strain injuries.
Additionally, many keyboards today have a non-linear relationship between the force applied to a key relative to the downward distance a key travels during a key stroke. That is, many keyboards require a relatively large force to initiate a key stroke, but require a relatively small force on the keyboard key for the remainder of the stroke. The result is that often a greater force than necessary is applied to a key during the latter portion of the key stroke, and the abrupt beginning and end of the stroke results in an impact or shock and vibration on the fingers. While this effect is relatively insignificant in striking a single key, the cumulative effect of these forces, vibrations, and shocks from continuous typing can aggravate nerves and soft tissue in the upper extremities to the point that CTS and other repetitive strain injuries can occur.
Commercially available keyboards that attempt to address some of these issues do so by changing the layout of the keys. These keyboards are intimidating and inhospitable to typists who are used to the traditional layout and have failed to gain popularity.
Moreover, conventional wrist rests are available that support the fingers and hands of the user above the keys of the keyboard. Such conventional wrist rests also may be attached to the keyboard or sloped away therefrom. Known wrist rests may be formed of soft or hard material.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to provide a keyboard or an attachment thereto substantially alleviating many of the causes of CTS and other related repetitive strain injuries.
It is a further advantage of the present invention to provide a keyboard or an attachment thereto including pads for elevating the palms and preventing an awkward, strained angle between the fingers and lower arm.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide soft key surfaces to alleviate much of the impact and shock and vibration occurring on the fingers during a keyboard stroke in conventional keyboards.
It is still a further advantage of the present invention to provide a keyboard with key pillows that either adhere to or replace the keys of a keyboard. The key pillows are shaped so as to extend into a comfort zone of a user. The comfort zone is defined as the zone into which the fingers of a user extend as they travel comfortably between key pillows or conventional key tops. Travel through this comfort zone is defined as the natural movement of the fingers. Although some extension of the fingers will always be necessary to strike the key pillows, the fact that the key pillows extend into the user's comfort zone keeps such extension to a minimum. This minimum reaching of the fingers is also known as the natural movement of the fingers and hands. The shape of the key pillows is designed to minimize the reaching, stretching, and twisting that may result in strain.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a comfortable, anti-skid key surface to reduce the force required to actuate a key. That is, the surface of the key pillows may provide a surface with a larger coefficient of friction than is found on a normal keyboard.
It is a further advantage of the present invention to provide a solid, continuous layer over a keyboard to prevent dirt, dust, fluids and other particulates from entering between the keys of the keyboard.
It is also an advantage of the present invention to redistribute or increase the surface area of the keys in order to allow the typist to vary his or her hand position, but still effectively strike the keys.
These and other advantages are accomplished by the present invention, which in a preferred embodiment relates to an adaptation to a conventional keyboard, including a single keypad or a plurality of pads, or key pillows. The key pillows can replace or fit over the existing keys of a conventional or nonstandard keyboard to advantageously alter the consistency, texture and/or shape of the traditional keys. As noted above, the key pillows are formed of varying heights and shapes so as to extend into the comfort zone of a user. In alternative embodiments, the key pillows may be formed into a tablet to replace or fit over the keyboards.
The invention further includes raised pads at the front of the keyboard on which the palms may rest during typing to reduce the bend or sag in the wrists, and to support the weight of the hand and arm. Such palm rests may be formed integrally with a keyboard or be separate from the keyboard. They may accompany a keyboard employing any key shape including key pillows and conventional keys.
The key pillows elevate and reshape the keys including the space bar of a traditional keyboard into a sculpted form to better accommodate the varying lengths, strengths, and dexterities of the fingers. For example, the outer keys which are depressed by the shorter pinky and ring fingers are raised and shaped so as to extend toward the center of the keyboard, to thereby reduce twisting, and stretching of the fingers typically necessary to strike those keys. Further, the space bar may be elevated to reduce the motion required of the wrist and/or thumb in striking that bar. This puts the keys into the comfort zone of a user. That is, the user has to extend his or her fingers less than with conventional keys to reach the key pillows on the k
Funk Stephen R.
Grohusky Leslie J.
Prosper Street Technologies, L.L.C.
Skjerven Morrill & MacPherson LLP
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