Apple Researching keyboards with adaptive displays on each key

Apple is researching keypad keyboards to dynamically change the label on each key, according to a new patent filing patent.

The deposit, spotted by Apple patent, is titled “Electronic Devices That Have Keys with Consistent Fiber Packages” and was awarded to Apple by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on the last day of this year’s patent.

The patent explains how each key on a keyboard could have an “associated key display” connected to the “keyboard control circuits” through a “coherent fiber packet”. Apple proposes that each key be “made of a fiber optic board” with “the first and second surfaces opposite.”

While the patent stipulates that each key should contain a small display to provide the label, from which any compatible pixel array would work, the most important technology presented by Apple is OLED. The key can be made of materials such as glass, ceramic, metal or polymer, or even crystalline materials such as sapphire.

This system would allow the entire keyboard to be “reconfigurable” with labels that can be modified as needed. The patent highlights that keyboards could be reconfigured “for different languages, to temporarily convert a standard keyboard into a game keyboard where the keys correspond to game-specific actions or to otherwise change the behavior associated with pressing the keys on the keyboard.”

There is also a suggestion that each key could provide “visual feedback” to indicate the current status of each key, such as whether it corresponds to an uppercase or lowercase letter or an active ability during games.

The images included in the patent suggest that the adaptive keyboard could be used in both a laptop case and a separate keyboard for desktop computers.

Crucially, this system does not interfere with the dome or scissor switches of physical keyboards. Unlike other Apple keyboard patents, such as one for a static glass keyboard or a large touch screen panel, this proposal explicitly outlines a system that can be used with mobile keys, so that Apple could theoretically keep the design of its magic keyboard.

Although patents do not necessarily demonstrate what Apple intends to bring to market, they can provide an interesting perspective on what the company is researching and developing. Given that Apple has shown interest in adaptive keyboard displays via the touchpad of the MacBook Pro, it seems unlikely that Apple will extend the technology similar to each individual key at some point in the future.