Impact of adjusted, per key, actuation force on efficiency and satisfaction while using mechanical keyboards

  • Keyboards are omnipresent in modern society. Hospitals, retail stores, offices or at home, the keyboard is still, the main input device for almost anyone that interacts with a computer. However, at some point, many people experience discomfort or even pain while using a keyboard because of the many small and repetitive movements the fingers have to do to operate it. Therefore, in this thesis we try to evaluate an alternative, non-uniform keyboard design where each individual mechanical keyswitch is equipped with a spring that features a resistance appropriate for the specific finger usually operating it. The idea behind this adjusted design is to particularly reduce the load on weaker fingers and still pertain or even enhance typing performance. Additionally, we try to answer the question, whether or not a keyboard with, per finger, adjusted actuation force has a positive impact on efficiency and overall satisfaction. Thus, we evaluated the current availability of resistances for mechanical keyswitches and conducted a preliminaryKeyboards are omnipresent in modern society. Hospitals, retail stores, offices or at home, the keyboard is still, the main input device for almost anyone that interacts with a computer. However, at some point, many people experience discomfort or even pain while using a keyboard because of the many small and repetitive movements the fingers have to do to operate it. Therefore, in this thesis we try to evaluate an alternative, non-uniform keyboard design where each individual mechanical keyswitch is equipped with a spring that features a resistance appropriate for the specific finger usually operating it. The idea behind this adjusted design is to particularly reduce the load on weaker fingers and still pertain or even enhance typing performance. Additionally, we try to answer the question, whether or not a keyboard with, per finger, adjusted actuation force has a positive impact on efficiency and overall satisfaction. Thus, we evaluated the current availability of resistances for mechanical keyswitches and conducted a preliminary telephone interview (n = 17) to assess preferences, use-cases and previous experiences with keyboards. Further, we ran another preliminary experiment, where we measured the maximum applicable force for each finger in different positions related to keyboarding as a basis for our adjusted keyboard design. Lastly, during a three week laboratory user study with twenty-four participants, the adjusted keyboard design and three traditional keyboards with 35 g, 50 g and 80 g actuation force were compared to each other in terms of performance and user satisfaction. The statistical analysis revealed, that especially error rates are positively influenced by higher actuation forces and that keyboards with neither too heavy nor to light resistance generally perform the best in terms of typing speed. Further, the adjusted keyboard and the 50 g keyboard performed almost identically in all tests and therefore we could not derive any significant improvements in performance or satisfaction over traditional designs that utilize keyswitches with moderate resistance. However, we concluded, that with the equally good results, the adjusted design is still a viable alternative and with further improvements, e.g., complete personalization of spring resistance for each key, could possibly enhance the user experience and performance for sophisticated typists.show moreshow less

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Metadaten
Author:Philip Gaber
Language:English
Document Type:Bachelor Thesis
Reviewer(s) at THI:Andreas RienerORCiD, Franz Regensburger
Publishing Institution:Technische Hochschule Ingolstadt
Granting Institution:Technische Hochschule Ingolstadt
Date of first Publication:2021/08/04
Year of first Publication:2021
Place of publication:Ingolstadt
Pages:VI, 52, XV
URN:urn:nbn:de:bvb:573-11639
Faculties / Institutes / Organizations:Fakultät Informatik
Degree Programmes:Informatik (B. Sc.)
Licence (German):License LogoUrheberrechtsschutz
Release Date:2022/02/09
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