HP Forum Archive 15

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key labels change under software control Message #1 Posted by Garth Wilson on 5 May 2005, 3:27 a.m. I couldn't figure out any way to add this as a response to a post back on April 9th after I finally found it, so it'll have to look like a new thread. (It's not.) Someone had commented that it would be nice if the software could change the keys' labels on the fly. I said there were key switches with tiny LCDs built in, but could not find a website for the manufacturer I remembered making them many years ago (IEE). Well, Electronics Products, one of the industrial magazines I get, had a little article about them last month, written by someone at NKK Switches, touting their own of course. You can see them at www.nkksmartswitch.com You get a 36x24-pixel monochrome LCD with multi-colored back lighting, all software-controlled. You could even put motion pictures on there. The swiches are bigger than calculator keys, with the LCD viewing area of 10x15mm (.4x.6").

Planned by HP Message #2 Posted by Klaus on 5 May 2005, 9:12 a.m., in response to message #1 by Garth Wilson I once had a HP patent about "electronically alterable key labels" or something similar. It necesarry, I can find it again (Drop me a mail) It's not what you want, but it proves HP was way ahead of its time (back in the 80s, when the patent was issued) Klaus

Re: Planned by HP Message #3 Posted by Thomas Okken on 5 May 2005, 9:35 a.m., in response to message #2 by Klaus I once had a HP patent about "electronically alterable key labels" or something similar. It necesarry, I can find it again (Drop me a mail) It's not what you want, but it proves HP was way ahead of its time (back in the 80s, when the patent was issued) I guess that it also proves they were ahead of their time when it came to abusing the patent system by patenting the painfully obvious. Sheesh, I was designing a computer of my own back in 1977, and I wanted keys with built-in LCDs (those Commodore-era graphical characters, you know :-) ). - Thomas

Re: Planned by HP Message #4 Posted by Hugh Evans on 5 May 2005, 11:16 a.m., in response to message #3 by Thomas Okken If you really want a crazy patent from HP, I seem to recall one being granted to them for calculators having tactile response keyboards sometime in the late 70s or very early 80s.

Re: Planned by HP Message #5 Posted by Klaus on 6 May 2005, 5:58 a.m., in response to message #4 by Hugh Evans I know the patent you mention, and it says something like " Usually you take the overhead of registering the keystroke and then give some feedback to the user, but we have built keys that do this by themselves". I thought this was something new, that keys, besides making contact, provide feedback. But making a patent out of this may indeed be exagerrated...

Re: Planned by HP Message #6 Posted by Mike Sebastian on 5 May 2005, 10:41 p.m., in response to message #2 by Klaus Patent Number 4,078,257: Calculator apparatus with electronically alterable key symbols. Filed, August 23, 1976. Issued, March 7, 1978. A calculator system having a transparent keyboard includes an apparatus for electronically labeling the keyboard by displaying alphanumeric symbols through the keyboard. The apparatus comprises a keyboard selection device and a liquid crystal keyboard display device having a predetermined number of display planes each containing preselected symbols. The keyboard selection device operates both as a selection device and as an annunciator-feedback device, for selecting the symbols or legends of a given plane to label or configure the keyboard, and for feeding back to a user of the system the status of the selection device when it is activated. An alternative embodiment of the invention utilizes light-emitting diodes (LED's) for labeling the keyboard.

Re: key labels change under software control Message #7 Posted by John Limpert on 5 May 2005, 12:11 p.m., in response to message #1 by Garth Wilson They look great, although they are too large for a calculator. I'm afraid to ask how much they cost. I've seen similar switches in aircraft instrument panels.

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