(12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2008/0181706 A1 Jackson (43) Pub
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US 2008O181706A1 (19) United States (12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2008/0181706 A1 JacksOn (43) Pub. Date: Jul. 31, 2008 (54) TACTILE FORCE SENSOR AND HYBRD Publication Classification STENOTYPE KEYBOARDS AND METHOD OF USE (51) Int. Cl. B4 5/00 (2006.01) (76) Inventor: Johnny J. Jackson, Charleston, (52) U.S. Cl. ........................................................ 400/482 WV (US) Correspondence Address: (57) ABSTRACT THOMPSON HINE L.L.P. A Stenotype keyboard utilizes pressure sensitive tactile sen Intellectual Property Group sors to register key presses and output interpreted keystrokes. P.O. BOX 8801 The pressure sensitive tactile sensors are illuminated inter DAYTON, OH 45401-8801 nally and create detectible changes to the electromagnetic radiation when compressed. The detectible changes are (21) Appl. No.: 12/020,340 picked up by sensors and analyzed to determine which keys are pressed and the appropriate keystrokes are generated. (22) Filed: Jan. 25, 2008 Keystrokes are then either output or stored in memory for later retrieval. The pressure sensitive tactile sensors facilitate Related U.S. Application Data creating keyboard configurations such as combination hybrid (60) Provisional application No. 60/886,572, filed on Jan. keyboards that have both computer style layouts and Steno 25, 2007. type keyboard layouts. U - 304 r - - - - 304 : ( C - & x. s & { & { i 3 - - 304 w & K p Q S / \ \- \- N- N- Y - N - \- \--- Y- \ se 3O2 302 Y 3O2 C --, - --f -- - - \ Patent Application Publication Jul. 31, 2008 Sheet 1 of 6 US 2008/O181706 A1 NYXXXYY-sixxxx six-swaxxxx xxxx xxxxxxx-xx-xx-xxx-xxxxx xxxx ws L six-staxas(BUAEEAL SaaSX S. R EAR) x is ws - --- Sa: Swxxxx Rsssssssss SX sea r S. S. s sax. -------as K wax-f V - - - - - - M. M. M. 33 ex Ssssssssss 3xsssssssssss & N. s x xN &xxx...S. SS. S.S &S S S S x: S.S 8S w S S Xs ... x Tw 8S. S- 8 s sax FIG. 1 PRIOR ART Patent Application Publication Jul. 31, 2008 Sheet 3 of 6 US 2008/O181706 A1 - 304 - 304 & C - & c. : & { & gr. - 304 y { S. y N - ^ - N- N- N- - N-" - N- Y - N - 3O2 / 302 Y 302 i g - - ^- - w N. \ 306 FIG. 3 Patent Application Publication Jul. 31, 2008 Sheet 4 of 6 US 2008/O181706 A1 Detector > < > 414 20" or\ --------...--O. xxxx XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX: Detector 414 408 Patent Application Publication Jul. 31, 2008 Sheet 5 of 6 US 2008/O181706 A1 N XOOOOOO-N ( ) ( ( ) { Naye,S---- Y ( ) '-'-'-'-'----- Detector >- >- >- >->- -<> z - <>- -- 408 -------'-'-'. OOOOOOOOSX. X X X X. .M. X. X. X 8XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX:(XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX: tO 8XXXXXXXXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX:& :XX Patent Application Publication Jul. 31, 2008 Sheet 6 of 6 US 2008/O181706 A1 Y 502 FIG. 5 US 2008/O181706 A1 Jul. 31, 2008 TACTILE FORCE SENSOR AND HYBRD just as they originally were on early purely mechanical type STENOTYPE KEYBOARDS AND METHOD writers that required staggering for mechanical reasons. A OF USE typical computer keyboard therefore has a much different layout and tactile response than a Stenotype keyboard. CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED 0005 Because a stenograph uses fewer keys, there are a APPLICATIONS Sufficient number of keys on a typical computer keyboard to remap a stenograph layout onto the computer keyboard's 0001. This application claims the benefit of U.S. provi keys. The patent application “Modal Computer Keyboard sional Application Ser. No. 60/886,572, entitled, “Tactile Stenography Emulation Apparatus and Method, publication Force Sensor and Hybrid Stenotype Keyboards and Methods no. US 2002.0150416 to VanDruff, describes such a remap of Use', filed on Jan. 25, 2007. ping of Stenograph keys to a traditional computer keyboard. However, simply remapping the Stenograph machine's key BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION board layout to a computer keyboard does not provide a 0002 Stenography is a well-established method for real Stenographer with the right layout and tactile response nec time translation of Verbal communications into written essary to properly use the computer keyboard as a stenogra words. Stenography is commonly used for court reporting as phy keypad. The patent “Quasi-Steno Keyboard for Text well as for any time close-captioning is required because it Entry into a Computer, patent no. Re. 34.304 to Goldwasser results in faster, more accurate, translation of words to type et al., is a combination Stenotype and computer keyboard that than other methods. Stenography utilizes a shortcut notation attempts to overcome this problem by reshaping and elongat system combined with a stenotype machine that has a char ing keys in combination with making some of the Stenotype acteristic keyboard layout, which is well known in the art, and keys coplanar with one another instead of using the traditional allows specially trained Stenographers to input whole words staggered vertical layout of a computer keyboard. at once with a simultaneous push of one or more keys. By 0006 While Goldwasser et al. compensates for the layout comparison, typing on a manual typewriter or computer key differences to a degree, it is a modified computer keyboard board requires each letter of a word to be individually typed, and therefore has a different tactile response than a steno resulting in multiple keystrokes for each word. Because graph. Goldwasser et al. requires a stenographer, when press trained Stenographers input whole words at a time, they often ing two keys simultaneously, to depress both keyboard keys reach speech-to-text speeds of 300 words per minute, which just as they would for a traditional computer keyboard in is more than adequate to record real-time speech and 3-4 order to register both keystrokes. A computer keyboard, how times the rate that people are generally capable of typing on ever, has somewhat different key travel than a stenotype key typewriters or computers. board and anatomically, a finger has a more rigid top portion 0003 Besides having a particularized layout, a stenogra due to the nail and bony structure, whereas the bottom has phy machine also functions differently than a normal key padding and therefore compresses more easily. Due to the board in that multiple keys are simultaneously depressed in design of computer keys and the fingers anatomy, the key normal operation to form syllable of a word, a complete word board in Goldwasser et al. is Susceptible to missing a bottom itself, or a shorthand representation of a word or phrase. key press when a user attempts to simultaneously press a top Certain key combinations are routinely depressed by the same and bottom key together. Therefore, there is a need for a finger at the same time, for example the Tand K; P and W. and keyboard that can be used as both a computer keyboard and a H and R keys. A stenographer does this by pressing a finger Stenotype keyboard that has the tactile response of a stenog approximately at the crack between the two keys which are raphy keyboard while being Suitable for use as a computer situated one above the other, and pressing both keys simulta keyboard. neously. Stenography machines are designed to allow and 0007 Modern stenographers often have computers assist facilitate two keys to be pressed together by a single finger by in the transcription of their Stenographic-encoded keystrokes purposefully placing the two keys in very close proximity to back into user-readable text. These computers perform both one another and coordinating the mechanical travel of both straight Substitutions as well as detailed post-processing of keys together Such that even a somewhat mis-positioned fin transcribed sentences to ensure accuracy. Computers also ger still successfully depresses both keys together. A Stenog allow stenographers to develop libraries of individualized raphy machine requires the Stenographer to depress far fewer shorthand expressions to further reduce the number of key keys than on a normal computer keyboard in order to tran strokes necessary for the Stenographer, especially for com scribe spoken words. monly repeated words or phrases. Because space is usually a 0004 Standard computer keyboards, however, are less concern, Stenographers typically use laptop computers But forgiving, and are purposefully designed such that each finger even with a laptop, the Stenographer still has to physically normally only depresses a single key at a time. Each key in a move from the Stenograph machine to the laptop keyboard. computer keyboard typically has a single stem with a return 0008. There are also times when it would be advantageous spring under each key. The stem makes each key optimally for Stenographers, such as court reporters, to use a standard depressed only in the vertical direction and impedes to some keyboard instead of a Stenography machine. Stenography degree any lateral travel of neighboring keys that might reg relies on using phonetic shortcuts instead of correctly spelling ister inadvertently as a keystroke, thus preventing accidental words which works well in transcribing repetitive everyday registering of two simultaneous keystrokes by a single push common words that are part of normal speech. But when of a finger. The keys themselves are offset slightly from one transcribing proper words, such as names and addresses, it another and shaped in Such away that there are gaps between could be beneficial for the stenographer to be able to spell adjacent keys, further inhibiting the accidental pushing of two these proper words correctly in the transcript, instead of rely keys simultaneously by a single finger. Additionally, the rows ing on memory or retranslation of a phonetic transcription. of keys on a computer keyboard are still staggered vertically Similarly, numbers are somewhat more difficult to enter on a US 2008/O181706 A1 Jul. 31, 2008 Stenotype machine because numbers are order specific, thus 0015 FIGS. 2a and 2b are diagrams of prior art Qwerty necessitating the use of one number per line on Stenography and Dvorak computer keyboard layouts, respectively.