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Concept
Ergonomic keyboard
Summary
An ergonomic keyboard is a computer keyboard designed with ergonomic considerations to minimize muscle strain, fatigue, and other problems.
The common QWERTY keyboard layout is credited to the mechanical typewriter designed by C. Latham Sholes and patented in 1878; research indicates the layout may have been influenced by telegraph operators. The offset in the columns between rows was designed to accommodate the physical links between each key and the internal mechanisms of the typewriter; as typing duties transitioned to electric (motorized) typewriters and then computers, the layout was retained to ease the transition for users that had already been trained to type. However, the legacy mechanical layout has numerous idiosyncrasies, including the staggered column layout, which can force the user into uncomfortable, repetitive movements and postures. Several potential solutions have been proposed since at least 1926.
In general, ergonomic keyboards are designed to minimize awkward user wrist positions and finger motions by rearranging and/or repositioning the keys. For instance, typing on a conventional keyboard layout can force the user into shoulder elevation, wrist ulnar deviation, and head rotation. Consideration of physical ergonomics suggests the most relaxed typing position is one in which the keyboard user's forearms are parallel to the ground, with wrists held straight. To facilitate this posture, Klockenberg published a study in 1926 that suggested the primary key clusters for two-handed typists should be split into left and right halves which are set at an angle to each other, allowing the wrists to remain straight. A more detailed study was published in 1972 by Kroemer, suggesting that an adjustable split keyboard may reduce user pain. During the 1970s, several studies were published suggesting that data entry operators were at risk of developing musculoskeletal injuries.
File:Apple Adjustable Keyboard.jpg|The [[Apple Adjustable Keyboard]] (1992) splits the alphanumeric keys into two halves with an adjustable opening angle
File:ErgoLogicFlexProKB2652.
Official source
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