Improved typing on a flat keyboard via tactile key-identity feedback

The present study investigated whether the information about key identity could be effectively delivered via tactile stimulation and if such information could be used to facilitate typing on flat virtual or real keyboards. Two sets of experiments were conducted using a flat-surface, pressure-sensitive keyboard. Participants were tested in a single-letter-typing task, in which tactile sounds were used to convey the key identity information as part of stimulus or as response feedback. The results found that while the key identity information could be conveyed through tactile sounds, an association between key identity and tactile stimulation had to be learned through training, and typing performance was facilitated by the association. The findings point to a potential strategy for using tactile key-identity feedback to improve virtual keyboard typing.