Keyboard having third button for multimode operation
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsEdwin Joseph Selker, Barton Allen Smith, Shumin Zhai
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An input device for a computer system includes a keyboard, a pointing device embedded in the keyboard, operational buttons, including a button for selecting an operating mode for the pointing device. The mode selection button is located adjacent left- and right-buttons. In one embodiment, an alternative pointing device operating mode is available when the mode button is held depressed. In another embodiment, a depress-release sequence permits the user to sequence through a menu of predetermined pointing device operating modes. The placement of the mode button with respect to the left- and right-buttons facilitates improved performance of certain eye-hand coordination tasks.
Claims10
An information processing system input device, comprising:
- a keyboard including a space bar;
- a pointing device disposed among keys of the keyboard;
- a keyboard edge region having a portion adjacent the keyboard space bar, said portion forming a surface that curves downward away from the plane of the keyboard;
- a plurality of manually operated switches disposed within the edge region portion, and having operating surfaces conforming essentially with said edge region portion surface;
- one of the manually operated switches providing a signal for selecting an operational mode of the pointing device;
- and
- means for electrically connecting the keyboard, the pointing device, the manually operated switches, and the operational mode selection signal to an information processing system.
A computer input device, comprising:
- a keyboard including a space bar;
- an isometric pointing device located among keys of the keyboard;
- a left-control button;
- a right-control button;
- a pointing device mode selection button;
- a keyboard edge region having a portion adjacent the keyboard space bar;
- said edge region forming a surface that curves downward away from the plane of the keyboard;
- the control buttons being located within said curved edge region portion, and having operating surfaces conforming essentially with said curved surface;
- the mode selection button being located adjacent the control buttons for ease of use by the thumbs while typing;
- a circuit for receiving electrical output signals of the pointing device, the control buttons and the mode selection buttons, for combining the electrical output signals and forming a coded P/S-2 output signal for connection to a computer or other information processing system;
- and the coded P/S-2 output signal including a control field defining a pointing device mode selection command.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.