A touch control keyboard includes a plurality of keycaps, a plurality of touch key parts, a plurality pairs of conductive distributions, a first circuit board, and a second circuit board. An upper part of each keycap includes a touch key part having a coupling capacitor. The touch key parts and the pair of conductive distributions and the first circuit board are electrically connected. The first circuit board detects the coupling capacitors of the touch key parts by using the pair of conductive distributions to generate a first key signal. The second circuit board detects keystrokes of the keycaps to generate a second key signal.

A method of manufacturing keycaps, each keycap having a top and a skirt, includes: providing a first jig having a plurality of positioning units; arranging correspondingly a plurality of keycaps onto the plurality of positioning units; attaching a first film including an ink layer and a first release layer to the plurality of keycaps by using an out-mold transfer technique, such that the first film covers respective upper surfaces of the tops and respective side surfaces of the skirts of keycaps; removing the first release film; laser-engraving the ink layer; and forming a protection layer on the laser-engraved ink layer. A keycap manufactured by the method of the present invention is also disclosed.

A key structure includes a base plate, an illumination module, a switch circuit board, a metallic elastic element, a supporting element, a metallic pressing plate and a covering member. The metallic elastic element is disposed on the switch circuit board. The supporting element is located beside the metallic elastic element. An edge of the metallic pressing plate is fixed on the supporting element. As the metallic pressing plate is swung relative to the base plate to push the metallic elastic element, the switch circuit board is triggered by the metallic elastic element. The covering member covers the base plate and the metallic pressing plate. The covering member has a light-transmissible region. A light beam from the illumination module passes through the light-transmissible region. Consequently, the key structure is illuminated.

A computing system may include a keyboard and at least one backlight. The keyboard may include at least one key. The at least one key may include a first filter shaped according to a first character in a first alphabet. The first filter may transmit light within a first spectral range. The at least one key may also include a second filter shaped according to a second character in a second alphabet. The second filter may transmit light within a second spectral range. The at least one backlight may be configured to shine light of a first wavelength within the first spectral range in response to an instruction to display the first alphabet, and shine light of a second wavelength within the second spectral range in response to an instruction to display the second alphabet.

Systems and methods are disclosed that may be implemented to provide keycap lighting to a spring loaded mechanical key switch assembly using a light conductive structure, such as a light pipe, and without requiring a chassis housing of the mechanical key switch assembly to include a dedicated power-consuming light source mounted to or otherwise positioned at the location of the individual key switch assembly chassis housing. Additionally, the disclosed systems and methods may be implemented to use one or more common power-consuming light source/s to simultaneously provide key cap lighting to multiple such spring loaded mechanical key switch assemblies, for example, by feeding light to each key cap though a common light spreader and through an individual non-power consuming light pipe provided for each key switch assembly.

Input device configurations are described. In implementations, an input device includes a sensor substrate having a capacitive sensor to detect proximity of an object that contacts the input device. The input device also includes a flexible contact layer spaced apart from the sensor substrate, where the flexible contact layer is implemented to flex and contact the sensor substrate responsive to pressure applied by the object to initiate an input to a computing device. The flexible contact layer can include a force concentrator pad that is designed to cause pressure to be channeled through the force concentrator pad to cause the flexible contact layer to contact the sensor substrate to initiate the input.

A composite laminate assembly for an electronic device provides integrated backlighting for one or more indicator shapes defined by the assembly. The assembly includes a substantially opaque cover member to obscure at least parts of the electronic device. Translucent indicator structures in the cover member define respective indicator shapes to allow backlighting to pass through the cover member. An optical matrix layer of an optically conductive material is attached to an inner face of the cover member, with a plurality of lighting devices embedded in the optical matrix layer and laterally offset from associated indicator structures. The plurality of lighting devices may be connected to an electric circuit carried on the inner face of the cover member.

This application relates to illuminated dome switches and a dome switch assembly having a first contact carried by a switch base and a dome shaped structure coupled to and supported by the switch base, the dome shaped structure comprising a material that is flexible and capable of internally transmitting visible light. The switch assembly can include a second contact coupled to the dome shaped structure and arranged opposite the first contact, and a light source configured to emit visible light, the light source in optical communication with the dome shaped structure such that at least some of the visible light emitted by the light source passes into the material and is subsequently emitted by the material in a generally uniform manner.

A thin keyboard device is described herein. In one or more implementations, a keyboard device includes a plurality of keys, and a housing that includes a structural printed circuit board (PCB). The structural PCB includes, for each of the plurality of keys, a first conductive trace and a second conductive trace. The keyboard device further includes a key-switch mechanism for each of the plurality of keys. The key-switch mechanism includes a conductive material oriented towards the first conductive trace and the second conductive trace, and is configured to cause the conductive material to move downwards, when the key is depressed, to electrically connect the first conductive trace and the second conductive trace of the depressed key.

A keyswitch structure includes a keycap layer having a keycap region and a peripheral region adjacent to the keycap region, a circuit layer disposed under the keycap layer, a haptic actuator electrically connected to the circuit layer, a supporting structure layer being disposed under the circuit layer and having an accommodation space for accommodating the haptic actuator, and an adhesive layer disposed between the keycap layer and the circuit layer corresponding to only the peripheral region.