A new keyboard technology that Apple is apparently developing might completely change how we type on devices such as laptops. The Cupertino tech giant is creating a dynamic illuminated keyboard that would enable keys to have multiple functions, according to a new patent filing titled ‘One-way Visibility Keycaps’ numbered US 20220399172 A1 at the US Patent & Trademark Office.
The technology would involve the use of LEDs (OLED or micro LEDs) beneath the keys, which might also be able to display animation and video. The keycaps of the keyboard might be perforated and illuminated with an array of LED lights to display different symbols, numbers, and letters.
The keycaps could be made of aluminum and would support dynamic letters or glyphs that lit up in line with the relevant function, apart from blending in better with the laptop’s chassis and being more durable.
This new technology has the potential to make device typing more efficient and user-friendly. At this point, it is unknown when or if this technology will be integrated in Apple devices. However, the patent filing indicates that the company is actively pursuing the possibilities.
Time and again, Apple has been ‘reinventing’ the keyboard, and adding new features like the now discontinued Touch Bar, the company first introduced with the MacBook Pro in October 2016. Apple has also fiddled with different key types—including the infamous Butterfly switch mechanism.
Currently, Apple ships its keyboards with a more traditional scissor switch mechanism, which is far more reliable than the Butterfly type.
Here is the abstract from the patent:
Keyboards and other electronic input devices have a key or keys with glyphs that are invisible to an unaided human eye in a first condition, such as when an underlying display attached to the key is not emitting light. The glyphs are visible through the key or keys when the display emits light. A one-way visibility layer or structure obscures the visibility of the display when viewed from above, but when the display emits light, the light penetrates through the one-way visibility layer, such as by passing through an array of micro perforations in the key, and is visible to an onlooker.
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