Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has made a new patent application that could be a game-changer in the way the company designs its MacBook’s in the near future. The patent application describes a new way of creating transparent keycaps as the tech giant seeks to improve the MacBook product line’s keyboard durability.
Keyboard Patent Application
The patent describes the difficulties that the giant has had to endure in its bid to design a keyboard that is thin and durable. However, with the new patent, things are poised to change drastically.
One common problem with normal keyboards is that they tend to wear off over time. The patent describes a new way of having durable keyboards by relying on inverted keyboard glyphs beneath the surface. The light, in this case, will shine through the transparent surface.
The keycap for the keyboards will come with a key body comprising of external surface. In this case, the key body will come with a transparent body featuring a light-blocking material defining a glyph shape. The external surface, on the other hand, will come with at least two edges and a center with two edges being raised relative to the center.
The transparent body can come with a glass material with the carrier body comprising of a polymer material and light-blocking material consisting of an opaque layer between the glass material and the polymer material.
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Durable MacBook’s Keyboards
In the end, the keyboards should be thin, light, and durable with the use of transparent polymers on a surface of keycaps. The material should also be difficult to blemish or scratch when subjected to millions of use cycles. While the keyboards will be extremely thin, they would still have high rigidity and stiffness
This is not the first time that Apple has tried to redesign its keyboards. Initially, it introduced butterfly keyboards in an effort to make MacBook’s keyboard thinner. It has also tried to revise the material used to make them before abandoning the design altogether.
