Keyboard Deflection Control via Adjustable Tensioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable information handling systems (IHS) face challenges in maintaining typing accuracy and user perception due to keyboard deflection, which is exacerbated by the thinness and flexibility of backlit keyboards, and conventional solutions like adding metal layers increase thickness and weight, interfering with other components.
Innovation Solution
A keyboard support system featuring a chassis, a keyboard base mounted to the chassis, and an adjustable tensioning device connected to the chassis and keyboard base, which produces tension to reduce keyboard deflection without increasing system thickness or weight, and allows for adjustment to maintain typing accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If additional layers of metal are added adjacent to the backside of the keyboard to provide support, then keyboard deflection is reduced, but system thickness and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is divided into discrete support elements (ribs) distributed across the keyboard base plate, rather than using a continuous metal layer. This segmentation provides localized support where needed while minimizing overall material usage and thickness
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of adding support in the vertical dimension (thicker metal layers), the solution introduces support elements that extend in the lateral dimension across the keyboard base plate, providing structural reinforcement through horizontal distribution rather than vertical stacking
2Stability of the object's composition
If additional layers of metal are added adjacent to the backside of the keyboard to provide support, then keyboard deflection is reduced, but system weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is divided into discrete support elements (ribs) distributed across the keyboard base plate, rather than using a continuous metal layer. This segmentation provides localized support where needed while minimizing overall material usage and weight
Solution Approach 2:
Support is provided locally at specific high-stress areas through strategically positioned ribs rather than uniformly across the entire keyboard backside, optimizing weight efficiency by placing material only where structurally necessary
3Length of moving object
If the keyboard is made thinner to reduce system thickness, then portability is improved, but keyboard deflection increases
Solution Approach 1:
The keyboard base plate is divided into multiple sections by support ribs, creating smaller rigid zones that maintain stiffness even when the overall keyboard thickness is reduced
Solution Approach 2:
The keyboard assembly uses a composite structure combining the thin keyboard base plate with integrated support ribs, creating a composite component that achieves both thinness and structural rigidity through the combination of different structural elements
4Illumination intensity
If perforations are added to the keyboard to allow backlight passage, then illumination function is improved, but keyboard flexibility increases causing more deflection
Solution Approach 1:
The keyboard base plate has different properties in different locations: perforated areas for light transmission and solid rib areas for structural support, with the ribs strategically positioned to provide support without interfering with the backlight illumination function
Solution Approach 2:
The base plate is segmented into functional zones where perforations are concentrated in key areas for illumination while solid rib structures are positioned in support-critical areas, creating distinct functional regions that address both illumination and structural requirements
Data Source
AI summary
A keyboard support system includes a chassis. A keyboard base is mounted to the chassis. A keyboard is coupled to the keyboard base. A tensioning device is coupled to the chassis and the keyboard base, and the tensioning device is adjustable to produce a tension in the keyboard base in order to reduce the deflection of the keyboard that occurs when keys on the keyboard are depressed.