[Jerale Hoard]

It seems from the patent file that BlackBerry has an augmented reality keyboard patent. It may be a future iteration for a tablet but it seems BlackBerry may provide glasses with this gimmick from what's seen in the patent file.

EDIT:

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following describes an apparatus and method pertaining to a physical keyboard having a plurality of physical keycaps and an augmented-reality component configured to associate augmented-reality keycaps with corresponding ones of the physical keycaps. The augmented-reality component can include, by one approach, augmented-reality glasses. By one approach the augmented-reality component associates the augmented-reality keycaps with the physical keycaps by visually overlaying, at least in part, the augmented-reality keycaps with corresponding ones of the physical keycaps.

By one approach the keycaps of the physical keyboard can themselves selectively display informational content but can also selectively display one or more of the physical keycaps as being informationally blank to thereby present a substantially uniform background or screen upon which the augmented-reality keycap content can be presented.

So configured, physical keyboard components (that provide a genuine feel and utterly intuitive and natural physical feedback to the user) can be combined with easily modified keycap content to provide a user with a limitless variety of keyboards to use when inputting information. Such a capability can be readily leveraged, for example, by providing the user with a selection comprising a plurality of different sets of augmented-reality keycaps to so associate with the physical keycaps to thereby permit allowing the user to select a particular keyboard as may be particularly appropriate to meet a given input requirement or preference while simultaneously preserving the genuine feel of a physical keyboard.

These teachings are highly scalable in practice and will accommodate a wide variety of physical keyboard layouts and/or a wide variety of keycap content. These teachings are also economically enabled and can be readily applied in a variety of existing useful application settings.

For simplicity and clarity of illustration, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. Numerous details are set forth to provide an understanding of the embodiments described herein. The embodiments may be practiced without these details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail to avoid obscuring the embodiments described. The description is not to be considered as limited to the scope of the embodiments described herein.

FIG. 1 presents an illustrative application setting that includes a physical keyboard 100. Referring momentarily to FIG. 2, this physical keyboard 100 can comprise a plurality of physical keycaps 201. As used herein the expression ?keycaps? will be understood to refer to the upper portion of a keyboard key and hence comprises the portion of a physical key that a user presses upon with their finger in order to assert a particular key. Also, the keycap is that portion of a key that bears informational content regarding, for example, the alphanumeric character or symbol that the user will input by asserting the corresponding key.

In this particular illustrative example the physical keycaps 201 of the physical keyboard 100 are organized in four rows using a standard offset pattern for the columns. It will also be noticed that the keycaps 201 present informational content typical for a QWERTY-styled keyboard layout. It will be understood, however, that these teachings will accommodate any plural number of keycaps and essentially any layout pattern that might be chosen to suit the needs of a given application setting.

These teachings will accommodate a variety of physical keyboard mechanisms. For example, the keys of the keyboard 100 can comprise mechanical switches that temporarily close an electrical switch when asserted. As another example, the physical keyboard 100 could utilize capacitive sensors or force-sensing resistors in conjunction with physically-sculpted keycaps that are built of a single piece of contiguous material and that provide feedback to the typist using a corresponding piezo/haptics system as is known in the art. These teachings will also accommodate a variety of sizes for the keyboard 100 and the individual keycaps 201.

Attachment 253391



Attachment 253392


http://images1.freshpatents.com/imag...9-p20140035819

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[SlcCorrado]

Nice .

[Tre Lawrence]

Interesting. Looks cool, but can someone break it down for the simple minded like me? What is going on?

[chopachain]

Hmmm. Looks like BB has something up their sleeve. Wonder what would use a keyboard.

Just had a brain fart. What about replacing the touch pad on a laptop with a trackpad. Would save space. Or a mouse with a trackpad. Or a usb or bluetooth keyboard with a trackpad. No need to plug in a mouse. Just a thought.

[Jerale Hoard]

Interesting. Looks cool, but can someone break it down for the simple minded like me? What is going on?

From what's patented it seems that the keyboard comes from some type of computer type glasses.

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[Jerale Hoard]

Interesting. Looks cool, but can someone break it down for the simple minded like me? What is going on?

I edited it with a full description.

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[Brutal Efficiency]

Wot?

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[bennelong]

So you have a blank (cut- down) keyboard which in the blink of an eye will change from QWERTY to Numeric ..and then into a Scientific Calculator and/or other layouts?


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