With the hubbub and lawsuits over alleged failures in Apple’s butterfly keyboard on various Mac laptops, you’d think Apple might maker thicker keyboards for its laptops. However, the company has been granted a patent (number 10,424,446) for “keyboard assemblies having reduced thickness” and a method of making them.
In the patent info, Apple says that it’s becoming increasingly desirable to reduce the size and/or thickness of various electronic devices. As such, all components of an electronic device, including any keyboard assembly, may be reduced in size. As a result, the size and/or number of components of the keyboard likewise may be reduced.
With a reduction in size, quantity and/or material used to form the various components, the strength, and ultimately the operational life of the component may be reduced. This may cause the operational life of the keyboard assembly and/or electronic device to be reduced as well. Apple thinks it has a solution, so maybe future keyboards will be thinner yet more durable and longer-lasting.
Here’s the summary of the invention: “A keyboard assembly may include a printed circuit board (PCB) and a single membrane sheet adhered directly to the PCB. The single membrane sheet may substantially cover the PCB.
“The keyboard assembly may also include a group of dome switches coupled directly to the single membrane sheet. Another keyboard assembly may include a group of conductive pads and a group of membrane pads. Each of the group of membrane pads may be adhered directly to a corresponding one of the group of conductive pads. The keyboard assembly may also include a group of dome switches coupled directly to the membrane pads. Each of the group of dome switches may be coupled directly to a corresponding one of the group of membrane pads.”
Apple debuted its “butterfly” keyswitch design in the 12-inch MacBook before incorporating an improved second-generation version in 2016 and 2017 MacBook Pros.
