HP GIFT SUPPORTS VIRTUAL KEYBOARD STUDY
In the near future, the keyboard as our fingers know it may feel very different. The popularity of touchscreen phones with virtual keyboards is one indication that new designs may replace traditional desktop keyboards. What will these different keyboards mean ergonomically? With a gift from the Ergonomics Research & Development Program at Hewlett-Packard (HP), a research team led by Associate Professor Peter Johnson is piloting one of the first ergonomics studies to evaluate ways people use touchscreen devices and how the device’s design may influence an individual user’s comfort and efficiency.
Johnson has a longstanding relationship with HP, as well as Microsoft and Logitech. He says the gift from HP is a result of previous work he and his research team have done for the company to assist with the design and evaluation of various new keyboards and computer mice.
Touchscreen devices can mimic typing by having the user lightly tap on the virtual keyboard keys, and they also allow a wider variety of hand gestures, such as a swipe to roll the text down or close an application. The researchers engineered tools to accurately measure the ergonomic impact of operating a touchscreen virtual keyboard. Based on these measurements, they are studying how to optimize the design of a touchscreen keyboard to match the user. They are also investigating the physical and performance trade-offs between using keyboards with keys and using virtual keyboards.
An advantage of the touchscreen keyboard is the size scalability of the virtual keys, Johnson explains. The current one-size-fits-all computer keyboard may not be the best fit for everyone. Their studies have shown that smaller sized devices put less strain on women and children’s wrists, arms, and shoulders.
The research team also includes Exposure Sciences master’s student Margaret Hughes, bioengineering undergraduate Lavi Aulck, researcher Erin Stamper (MPH, Environmental and Occupational Health, 2009) and Senior Fellow Charlotte Lewis.
Photo by Adrian Purser, www.wikipedia.org
