Metal Keycap Legend Diffuser for Thin Illuminated Keyboard
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Designing an illuminated keyboard that is durable, thin, and light poses challenges as existing solutions often result in luminous quality deterioration over time and require thick plastic keycaps for durability.
Innovation Solution
The use of metal keycaps with laser-cut legend apertures and translucent diffuser materials, combined with a compressible scissor mechanism and light sources like LEDs, allows for even illumination and a thin profile while maintaining durability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If translucent plastic keycaps are used with painted legends, then manufacturing cost is reduced and legends can be illuminated, but luminous quality deteriorates over time with repeated use
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure combining opaque keycap material with translucent legend portions. The legend areas are made from translucent material that allows light transmission, while the rest of the keycap remains opaque. This composite approach maintains structural integrity while enabling selective illumination of legends without requiring the entire keycap to be translucent, thus improving luminous quality durability.
2Reliability
If plastic keycaps are made thicker, then durability is improved, but the keyboard profile becomes thicker
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs thin film techniques by creating very thin translucent legend portions within the keycap structure. These thin translucent films allow light transmission for illumination while maintaining overall keycap durability through the surrounding opaque structural material. This enables durable keycaps with thin profile, as the critical structural functions are handled by the opaque portions while illumination is achieved through the thin translucent legend areas.
3Illumination intensity
If the entire keycap is made translucent for illumination, then light transmission is improved, but structural durability is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making only the legend portions translucent while keeping the rest of the keycap opaque and structurally robust. This localized translucency allows light transmission exactly where needed for illumination and visibility of legends, while the surrounding opaque material provides the necessary structural durability and support. This resolves the contradiction by limiting translucency to functional areas rather than the entire keycap.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a durable, thin, and effectively illuminated keyboard with improved luminous quality that maintains performance over time, addressing the need for a lightweight and aesthetically pleasing input device.
Implementation Method 1
a light source such as a light emitting diode ('LED') having an on state and an off state, the light source oriented to transmit light through the legend aperture
Implementation Method 2
The legend aperture may be opened in the metal keycap by a laser cutting, a laser ablation process, or a combination thereof
Implementation Method 3
The legend aperture may be opened in the metal keycap by a laser cutting, a laser ablation process, or a combination thereof
Data Source
AI summary
An illuminated metal keycap having a legend diffuser material that may diffuse light through a legend opened in a background layer. The background layer may be opaque and the legend may be transparent. The metal keycap is adhered to a scissor mechanism positioned above electrical switch circuitry. Included within, below, or adjacent to the scissor mechanism may be one or more light sources positioned to emit light through the metal keycap, around the perimeter of the metal keycap, and/or through the background layer.