# US 2021/0342015 A1 · Keyboard with navigational control functions > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2021/0342015 A1 - Document ID: US20210342015A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 17/301,366 - Filed: 2021-03-31 - Published: 2021-11-04 - Earliest claimed: 2020-05-04 - Assignees: Pfu America, Inc. - Applicants: Pfu America, Inc. - Inventors: Yuki KASAHARA - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210342015A1 ## CPC - G06F 3/0213: {Arrangements providing an integrated pointing device in a keyboard, e.g. trackball, mini-joystick (for pointing devices integrated in a laptop computer G06F1/169; joysticks G05G9/047; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033)} - G06F 3/0219: {Special purpose keyboards} - G06F 3/0227: {Cooperation and interconnection of the input arrangement with other functional units of a computer (G06F3/023 - G06F3/037 take precedence)} - G06F 3/03547: {Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface} - G06F 3/0383: {Signal control means within the pointing device} - G06F 3/044: by capacitive means - G06F 3/04883: for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text - G06F 3/04886: by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus - H03K 17/9622: {using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard} - G06F 2203/0339: Touch strips, e.g. orthogonal touch strips to control cursor movement or scrolling; single touch strip to adjust parameter or to implement a row of soft keys - G06F 2203/0381: Multimodal input, i.e. interface arrangements enabling the user to issue commands by simultaneous use of input devices of different nature, e.g. voice plus gesture on digitizer - G06F 2203/04104: Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger - G06F 2203/04808: Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - H03K: PULSE TECHNIQUE (measuring pulse characteristics G01R; modulating sinusoidal oscillations with pulses H03C; transmission of digital information H04L; discriminator circuits detecting phase difference between two signals by counting or integrating cycles of oscillation H03D3/04; automatic control, starting, synchronisation or stabilisation of generators of electronic oscillations or pulses where the type of generator is irrelevant or unspecified H03L; coding, decoding or code conversion, in general H03M) ## Abstract A system for navigating a host device, including a host device, a display serving as a graphical user interface (GUI), and a keyboard with navigational control functions is disclosed. The keyboard comprises at least a frame, a plurality of keys, one or more key-top touch sensors, one or more edge touch sensors, and a keyboard communication interface. The keyboard is an all-in-one input device capable of operatively receiving text inputs, mouse cursor inputs, and gesture inputs from a user, sending them to the host device, and controlling a GUI of the host device. Advantageously, the keyboard may replace a conventional keyboard and mouse without sacrificing the individual functionality of either apparatus. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A keyboard comprising: a frame; a plurality of keys supported by the frame; one or more key-top touch sensors, each sensor located on a surface of one of the plurality of keys; one or more edge touch sensors, each sensor located on an edge of the frame; and a communication interface to output one or more navigational control signals received from the one or more key-top touch sensors or the one or more edge touch sensors. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The keyboard according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of keys include capacitive keys and are configured to receive a text input. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The keyboard according to claim 1, wherein the one or more key-top touch sensors include a capacitive pad and are configured to receive a mouse cursor input and a gesture input. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The keyboard according to claim 3, wherein the one or more key-top touch sensors are located on the surface of: one or more home keys included in the plurality of keys, the home keys including an F-key and a J-key; and one or more trigger keys included in the plurality of keys, the trigger keys including a spacebar. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The keyboard according to claim 1, wherein the one or more edge touch sensors include a capacitive pad and are configured to receive a gesture input. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The keyboard according to claim 1, further comprising an embedded computer to receive and process instructions based on input from the keyboard. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The keyboard according to claim 1, further comprising: a printed circuit board (PCB); at least one electronic circuit installed on the PCB; and an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) implemented on the at least one electronic circuit, wherein the ADC implements at least one of: converting an analog keypress signal from one of the plurality of keys into a digital keypress signal; converting an analog key-top touch signal from the one or more the key-top touch sensors into a digital key-top touch signal; and converting an analog edge touch signal from the one or more edge touch sensors into a digital edge touch signal. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The keyboard according to claim 7, wherein the at least one electronic circuit further implements a touch slider encoder which converts the digital edge touch signal from the ADC into a gesture input. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The keyboard according to claim 7, wherein the at least one electronic circuit further implements a signal converter which operatively receives the digital keypress signal and the digital key-top touch signal from the ADC and determines whether a text input, mouse cursor input, or gesture input is intended. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The keyboard according to claim 9, wherein the at least one electronic circuit further implements a keystroke detector which determines whether a digital keypress signal from the ADC registers as a keystroke. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The keyboard according to claim 9, wherein the at least one electronic circuit further implements a touchpad XY encoder which converts the digital key-top touch signal from the ADC into navigational information. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The keyboard according to claim 11, wherein the at least one electronic circuit further includes a mouse coordinate converter which operatively converts the navigational information from the touchpad XY encoder into a mouse cursor input. ### Claim 13 A system for navigating a host device, comprising: a host device, including: a display serving as a graphical user interface (GUI); and a host communication interface to receive one or more navigational control signals received from one or more key-top touch sensors and one or more edge touch sensors; and a keyboard with navigational control functions, including: a frame; a plurality of keys supported by the frame; the one or more key-top touch sensors, each sensor located on a surface of one of the plurality of keys; the one or more edge touch sensors, each sensor located on an edge of the frame; and a keyboard communication interface to output the one or more navigational control signals received from the one or more key-top touch sensors or the one or more edge touch sensors. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The system according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of keys are configured to receive a text input; the one or more key-top touch sensors include a capacitive pad and are configured to receive a mouse cursor input and a gesture input; and the one or more edge touch sensors include a capacitive pad and are configured to receive a gesture input. ### Claim 15 A method of operating a keyboard, comprising: detecting a trigger activation from a key-top touch sensor located on a trigger key; and entering an operating mode of the keyboard based on the trigger activation, such that: if the trigger activation is not detected, the operating mode is a text input mode; and if the trigger activation is detected, the operating mode is one of a mouse cursor input mode, a gesture input mode, and a cursor-gesture input mode. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The method according to claim 15, further comprising the following steps if the trigger activation is detected: within a predetermined duration, detecting one or more home touches from the one or more key-top touch sensors located on the one or more home keys; and entering an operating mode of the keyboard based on the number of home touches, such that: if one home touch is detected, the operating mode is the mouse cursor input mode; if two home touches are detected, the operating mode is the gesture mode; and if no home touch is detected, the operating mode is the cursor-gesture input mode. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The method according to claim 16, further comprising the following if the operating mode is the mouse cursor input mode: receiving an analog key-top touch signal from the key-top touch sensor located on the home key; and operatively converting the analog key-top touch signal into a mouse cursor input through exponential conversion or continuous output conversion. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The method according to claim 16, further comprising the following if the operating mode is the gesture input mode: receiving analog key-top touch signals from the key-top touch sensors located on the two home keys; and operatively converting the analog key-top touch signals into a gesture input; wherein the gesture input is a horizontal scroll, a vertical scroll, a scale up, a scale down, a pan, or a task switch. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) The method according to claim 16, further comprising the following if the operating mode is the cursor-gesture input mode: receiving analog key-top touch signals from the key-top touch sensors located on the trigger key; and operatively converting the analog key-top touch signals into a cursor-gesture input; wherein the cursor-gesture input is a lateral cursor movement. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The method according to claim 15, further comprising the following during any operating mode: receiving an analog edge touch signal from an edge touch sensor; and operatively converting the analog edge touch signal into a gesture input; wherein the gesture input is a horizontal scroll, a vertical scroll, a scale up, a scale down, a pan, or a task switch.