Flickboard: Enabling Trackpad Interaction With Automatic Mode Switching On A Capacitive-Sensing Keyboard

We present FlickBoard, which combines a touchpad and a keyboard into the same interaction area to reduce hand movement between a separate keyboard and touchpad. Our main contribution is automatic mode switching between typing and pointing, and the first system capable of combining a trackpad and a keyboard into a single interaction area without the need for external switches. We developed a prototype by embedding a 58x20 capacitive sensing grid into a soft keyboard cover, and used machine learning to distinguish between moving a cursor (touchpad mode) and entering text (keyboard mode). We conducted experimental studies that show automatic mode switching classification accuracies of 98% are achievable with our technology. Finally, our prototype has a thin profile and can be placed over existing keyboards.