Virtual Keyboards - Old idea coming of age?

Posted by nholland @ 06/03/2006

I just finished reading (SmartComputing) a quick blurb about a Virtual Keyboard that uses lasers and infrared to produce a fully functional 'virtual' keyboard. The picture was awesome and I thought it was revolutionary... but upon doing a little research, it appears that virtual keyboards like this date back to 2002 - possibly earlier.

Time Magazine listed a non-production virtual keyboard from Canesta as one of their best inventions of 2002. Interestingly enough, it appears that Canesta abandoned the idea and decided to focus on electronic image processing.

I did a little more digging and found out that the model displayed in SmartComputing is actually made by a firm in Isreal called VKB Inc. They have a domain, but no web page: http://www.vkb.co.il/. It appears they are selling their product through distributors like ThinkGeek and sites like http://www.virtual-laser-keyboard.com.

So, what are the cool uses of a Virtual Keyboard? Well, they are great for interfacing with:

  • Personal digital assistants
  • Cellular telephones
  • Space saving computers
  • Tablet PCs
  • Laptops
  • Industrial environments
  • Clean rooms
  • Sterile and medical environments
  • Test Equipment
  • Transport (Air, Rail, Automotive)

From various articles, it looks like you can type 70-80 words per minute without any degradation of performance. Most of the devices run off of batteries, connect via bluetooth, and work best indoors with normal or low light.

I found a great write-up from 2003 that describes 4 companies competing to get their virtual keyboards to market. The funny thing is that 3 of the 4 (the 4th being VKB Inc.) didn't find any luck with their virtual keyboards. And check out Senseboard - it was the winner of Comdex's Best new technology in 2001... yet, their website seems to be a ghost town. Virtual Devices appears to have the technology, but still no products.

I also found this article that describes some manufacturers in the UK & Hong Kong. Unfortunately, it didn't list their websites or product info :)

Long story short... one made it! Now we can all have our own Virtual Keyboard for $199

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