A

PRESENTATION
ON
VIRTUAL KEYBOARD
P resent ed by :

R abindra nat h Hansda

Com put er S cience & Technol ogy
R oll No.: 1823038
U nivers it y Reg. No. : D181902508
3rd Year ; 6th S em
D r. B. C . R oy P ol ytechnic
 Presentation Overview

What is Virtual Keyboard?

What you can do with a Virtual Keyboard?
Virtual Keyboard Technical Terms.
How does the Virtual Keyboard work?
Reasons to use the Virtual Keyboard.
Types of Virtual Keyboard
Applications of Virtual Keyboard.
Virtual Keyboard advantages.
Virtual Keyboard drawbacks.
Conclusion.
Some Virtual Keyboards.
 What is a Virtual Keyboard ?

 A Virtual (projection) keyboard is a full-size

keyboard projected and touched on any surface.

 Virtual Keyboard is just another example of

today’s computer trend of ‘smaller and faster’.

 The virtual keyboard technology uses sensor

technology and artificial intelligence to let users
work on any flat surface as if it were a keyboard.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur

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 What you can do with a Virtual Keyboard ?

The Virtual Keyboard uses the infrared & laser

technology to project a full-size keyboard onto any
flat surface. So you can use it almost anywhere.

The Virtual Keyboard is not restricted to the

‘QWERTY’ touch-typing paradigm ; adjustments can
be done to the software to fit other touch-typing
paradigms as well, such as the ‘DVORAK’ keyboard.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur

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 Virtual Keyboard Technical Terms..

1. Sensor Module

The Sensor Module serves as the eyes of the Electronic Perception

technology.
The Sensor Module operates by locating the user's fingers in 3-D
space and tracking the intended keystrokes.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 3

2. Infra Red Light Source

 The Infrared Light Source emits a beam of infrared light .

 This light beam is designed to overlap the area on which the keyboard
pattern projector or printed image resides.

 This helps in recognizing the hand movements and the pressing of keys .

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 4

3. Pattern Projector

The Pattern Projector or optional printed image presents the image of the
keyboard of the system. This image can be projected on any flat surface.

The projected image is that of a standard ‘QWERTY’ key-board, with all the
keys and control functions as in the keyboard.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 5

How does the Virtual Keyboard work ?

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 5

 How does the Virtual Keyboard work ? (Contd..)

Step 1: Projection Module (Pattern Projector)

A template of the desired interface is projected onto the
adjacent interface surface.

The template is produced by illuminating a specially

designed, highly efficient holographic optical element with a
red diode laser.
Step 2: Micro Illumination (IR Light Source)
An infra-red plane of light is generated just above, and
parallel to, the interface surface.

This light is invisible to the user and hovers a few millimeters

above the surface.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 6

Step 3: Sensor Module

Reflected light from user interactions with the interface surface

is passed through an infra-red filter and imaged on to a CMOS
image sensor in the sensor module.

The sensor watches finger movements and translates them into

keystrokes in the device.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 7

 Types of Virtual Keyboard

 There are different types of virtual keyboards,

manufactured by various companies which
provide different levels of functionalities .

 The different types of virtual keyboards are:

 Developer VKB
 Canesta
 Sense board Technologies
 KITTY
 InFocus

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 8

 Reasons to use the Virtual
Keyboard
It takes up less desk space than a conventional keyboard.

The typing does not require a lot of force. So easing the strain on
wrists and hands.

When connected to your handheld computer it is more convenient

to carry around than your laptop.

You can use it with your desktop, laptop, PDAs, Smart phones or
handheld computer .

No driver software necessary, it can be used as a plug and play

device.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 9

 Applications of Virtual Keyboard

 High-tech and Industrial sectors.

 Used with Smart phones, PDAs, email, word

processing and spreadsheet tasks.

 As computer/PDA input.

 Gaming control.

 TV remote control

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 10

 Virtual Keyboard Advantages

It can be projected on any surface or you can type in the

plain air .
It can be useful in places like operation theatres where
low noise is essential.
High battery life. The standard coin-sized lithium battery
lasts about eight months before needing to be replaced.
The Virtual Keyboard is not restricted to the ‘QWERTY’
touch-typing paradigm, adjustments can be done to the
software to fit other touch-typing paradigms as well.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 11

 Virtual Keyboard Drawbacks
Virtual keyboard is hard to get used to. Since it involves typing in thin
air, it requires a little practice. Only people who are good at typing can
use a virtual keyboard efficiently.

It is very costly ranging from 150 to 200 dollars. So not everyone can
buy this product.

The room in which the projected keyboard is used should not be very
bright so that the keyboard is properly visible.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 12

 Conclusion

Virtual Keyboard uses sensor technology and artificial

intelligence to let users work on any surface as if it were a
keyboard.

Projection key boards or virtual key boards claim to

provide the convenience of compactness with the
advantages of a full-blown QWERTY keyboard.

Virtual Keyboard is designed for anyone who become

frustrated with trying to put information into a handheld
but doesn't want to carry a notebook computer around.
Thus virtual keyboards will make typing easier,
faster, and almost a pleasure.

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 13

 References

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh
www.canesta.com
www.procams.org
www.billbuxton.com/3state.html
www.smarttech.com
http://www.virtual-laserkeyboard.com/demo.asp
www.laser-keyboard.com
www.wikipedia.org

Department of Computer Science and Technology, Dr. B. C. Roy Polytechnic, Durgapur 14

THANK
YOU