Virtual keyboards: Sci-fi dream no more

In the sci-fi film Minority Report, director Steven Spielberg shows us a glimpse of the future in the form of a holographic computer screen which Tom Cruise’s character, John Anderton, navigates using only his hands on a projected screen.

The technology and the hardware for such a computer screen are still years away. However, some ambitious and inventive companies have taken the first steps in creating holographic keyboards, which would allow users to type on nearly any surface.

Show of light

The approach taken by such companies as VKB from Israel and Canesta from California is to generate a field of light that is projected on a surface. Touching certain areas of this "light field" would trigger the inputting or typing of letters into a computer.

These companies plan to make standalone holographic keyboards that can be attached to PCs, PDAs, cellular phones and possibly other business and educational tools requiring textual input while putting a premium on space.

VKB and Canesta are also looking into the possibility of selling their technology to hardware makers so that the virtual or holographic keyboards can be "built in" to these devices. The benefit of this is that users don’t have to lug around a physical keyboard but simply generate one only when they need to input information.

Bright idea

Canesta’s keyboards can be integrated into existing devices without compromising much space or consuming more power, providing a viable alternative for portable devices, especially TabletPCs and PDAs that are already "keyboard-optional" and can be used simply with a stylus. For prolonged and accurate text input, however, a keyboard that is both full-sized and complete is the best option.

Canesta’s technology can generate a full-sized keyboard seemingly out of thin air and project it onto a surface. The company says that input speeds of 50-words-per-minute are easily attainable and the keyboard actually reduces ergonomic risks associated with other input alternatives because it effectively reduces strain on the wrists – which makes their product ideal for journalists, students and anyone who works extensively with text input.

Canesta also developed a mouse system not too different from the way input mice are currently used. Essentially, users can use the same surface for keyboard and mouse functionality.

Forging a standard

VKB has adopted a product almost similar to Canesta’s with an added feature of allowing users to use a virtual pen to input information. As with Canesta’s Electronic Perception technology, VKB has developed an almost identical system that can be merged with nearly all types of devices, even diminutive cellphones and PDAs.

These two companies may be spearheading the next standard for holographic input devices and many others are sure to follow. Until recently, computer keyboards have remained generally unchanged in form and function since the early days of personal computing. The only factors users really considered were the keyboard’s responsiveness, feel and rigidity.

With virtual keyboards a possibility, a new standard is definitely on the horizon. The biggest effect this can have on computers is that coupled with more powerful portable processors such as Intel’s Centrino and Transmeta’s Crusoe and the emerging TabletPC sector, virtual keyboards can drive component costs down and will also benefit the environment by substituting light technology for plastic and metal parts.