Call for Participation

We invite HCI researchers and practitioners to participate in the upcoming workshop on ”Advances and Future of Keyboards: Industry trends and perspectives for HCI research”. This half-day workshop aims to bring together experts specialising in diverse areas of HCI, including haptics, AR/VR, shape-changing UIs, and tangible interactions, to discuss industry trends in keyboard technologies, and their opportunities and challenges for (future) HCI research.

To participate, please register your interest through this form, or submit a brief statement of interest outlining your expertise and how it aligns with the workshop themes. The statement of interest should be a 2-4 page paper (including references), non-anonymised, and follow the EWIC format . To submit, please send the pdf to laura.pruszko@gcu.ac.uk.

We look forward to your participation and valuable contributions to shaping the future of HCI and keyboard technologies!

Description

From membrane keyboards, scissor-switch keyboards, capacitive keyboards and mechanical keyboards to name a few, keyboard technology has developed since the invention of the typewriter. While keyboards remain a widespread input device for humans, especially valued for providing physical constraints and eye-free interaction (Clawson et al., 2005), the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) is continually exploring new avenues beyond traditional keyboard and mouse interactions. As the HCI community actively investigates novel interaction modalities to expand the possibilities of input devices, we raise questions about the role of physical keyboards in HCI research; both presently and in the future.

On the one hand, when looking at current industry trends, the emergence of new paradigms in keyboard design such as split keyboards, customisable options, and the renewed popularity of mechanical keyboards, seems to highlight a shift towards more tailored and user-centric input solutions. On the other hand, this shift doesn’t seem to be followed by a corresponding surge in interest from HCI researchers towards exploring these modalities.

The aim of this workshop is to explore current designs and usages of keyboards, their position within the latest developments in HCI research for physical input devices, and the overall future of keyboard technologies. The expected outcome of this workshop is to create a roadmap for HCI research involving keyboards, aiming to bridge the gap between industry trends and HCI research while identifying new research avenues for the future.

Workshop Goals

• - Address the gap between industry trends in keyboard technologies and HCI research.
• - Foster discussions on challenges and opportunities in current keyboard designs.
• - Explore how HCI can inform keyboard design for enhanced interaction.
• - Discuss leveraging industry advances to address emerging HCI areas.

Who should attend

• - HCI researchers focusing on input devices, haptics, AR/VR, tangible UIs, shape-changing UIs, and related areas.
• - Industry professionals interested in user interaction, keyboard design, and usability.