Iā€™ve been working on a design for a split keyboard that is a hybrid between a Corne and a Sofle.

So fair the electrical and software aspects work, I still need to sort out the chassis.

Some features:

  • Efficient backlight circuit (at 100% it uses 20mA)
  • Custom MBK Choc caps from fkcaps.com (the glow is awesome)
  • ~250mAh battery (still low profile as thereā€™s a hole in the PCB for the battery)
  • Dual EVQ encoders
  • Fully wireless using Nice Nanos
  • The layout has MacOS and Windows modes
  • Choc spacing

Once Iā€™ve got the chassis done and Iā€™ve cleaned everything up a bit Iā€™ll open source it.

Hereā€™s a preview of the chassis design so far:

    • youngalfred@lemm.ee
      6Ā·
      1 year ago

      Agreed - the minimal black frame makes the keycaps stand out, especially with that nice glow.

      Being able to see the pins on the displays really adds to the aesthetic.

      • MickiusMousius@lemmy.worldOP
        2Ā·
        1 year ago

        Itā€™d be pretty easy for someone to take the design and make a more typical ā€œnakedā€ base plate etc.

        I am having trouble getting the chassis to a point that Iā€™m happy with the appearance. I also made some mistakes in the PCB edge cuts that make it harder again. All part of the learning process I guess.

        Either way, once done Iā€™d like for this to be at least as robust as any commercial product so that I can put it in a backpack easily/safely

    • MickiusMousius@lemmy.worldOP
      2Ā·
      1 year ago

      Thanks.

      I took hand measurements using the following:

      https://pashutk.com/ergopad/

      As it turns out the Corne is very close to my best layout.

      I like the Corne, except it has no backlight, arrows are not very convenient (hence scrollers). I also move between Mac and windows, the extra modifiers on the Sofle make that easier.

      In the end Iā€™ve basically got a Sofle/Corne hybrid with scrollers and a backlight.

      • egeres@lemmy.world
        3Ā·
        1 year ago

        Not everything needs to be about practicality. Even tho I donā€™t really understand the world of ā€œergo mech keyboardsā€ I deeply admire the passion and creativity flourishing from this community. Cheers to you!

  • RustedSwitch@lemmy.world
    2Ā·
    1 year ago

    i canā€™t remember their name right now, but these are the custom MBK caps, yeah? Iā€™ve been designing a similar set, where the layer characters are on the caps. I actually printed up transparent stickers in 2020 with this goal in mind.

    Also, what do you have the scrollers mapped to?

    • MickiusMousius@lemmy.worldOP
      2Ā·
      1 year ago

      Nice, I highly recommend the fk caps guys, really happy with them.

      I have an updated set of caps that Iā€™ll order soon, Iā€™m currently tinkering with the backlight glyphs. Still not quite satisfied.

      I like your caps idea, I toyed with dye sublimation but then decided against that (clear stickers would have been way easier). Then I saw a link to FK caps somewhere and gave it a go.

      My encoders are mostly mapped to arrow keys. But, hereā€™s the current map (itā€™s derived from my Corneā€™s map):

      https://pastebin.com/9XRqkKYH

      • RustedSwitch@lemmy.world
        2Ā·
        1 year ago

        I have an updated set of caps that Iā€™ll order soon, Iā€™m currently tinkering with the backlight glyphs. Still not quite satisfied.

        Do you know if their system allows to share designs as a starting point? I know you can save for later.

        I like your caps idea, I toyed with dye sublimation but then decided against that (clear stickers would have been way easier).

        Thanks! I was happy-ish with the result. I created the font from a handwritten script I use when I send greeting cards. I didnā€™t find a way to keep the ink from rubbing off though, so they never lasted very long. I tried lacquering them, but likely didnā€™t do a very good job - I can be aggravatingly impatient.

        My encoders are mostly mapped to arrow keys.

        I think thatā€™s almost what Iā€™d do too - Iā€™d like an easier way to select text when composing email/whatever, so I dream of a single key whole-word select function. Iā€™d map it to a (variable) shift arrow, depending on whether Iā€™m on the MacBook or the windows box.

        Side note - I noticed your map has both windows and Mac specific commands - I didnā€™t know that was possible. Are these separate layers, or is the keyboard somehow aware of the OS it is attached to?

        • MickiusMousius@lemmy.worldOP
          2Ā·
          1 year ago

          If the GUI key is tapped twice it switches to the windows base layer, double tap again and it goes to the Mac OS (default) layer. This is done using a ā€œtap danceā€, look for ā€œtdā€ in the map to find it.

          If you look at the conditional layers youā€™ll see how I accomplished the stacking of key bindings.

          Since the board is naked Iā€™ve not really used it, but I was playing with the scrollers and doing text navigation, it was very very nice.

          I think you can share layouts from FK Caps:

          https://fkcaps.com/custom/HUA582

          The above is my current WIP. Hopefully it works, Iā€™d like to share it as a basis for people to customise the Rolio if they want.

          • RustedSwitch@lemmy.world
            1Ā·
            1 year ago

            If the GUI key is tapped twice it switches to the windows base layer, double tap again and it goes to the Mac OS (default) layer. This is done using a ā€œtap danceā€, look for ā€œtdā€ in the map to find it.

            This could easily a game changer for me! My brain warps whenever I require a multi key/layer function, while Iā€™m connected to a windows box from my mac.

            I think you can share layouts from FK Caps

            Nice, Iā€™m on mobile but will make a note to check this out later.

            Honestly, this project, caps, and key mapā€¦ I feel like you are me, lol

            • MickiusMousius@lemmy.worldOP
              1Ā·
              1 year ago

              Glad to be of service. Check out the ā€œlstartā€ and ā€œlendā€ macros as a starting point for your single key to select a whole word thing.

              I must admit I thought what I was doing here was pretty niche as I couldnā€™t find anything similar. Even the Bluetooth + Backlight seems a rarity. To be fair routing a 2 layer PCB with the added complexity was a PITA, soldering the resistors was super fiddly (either by hand or reflow).

              The fact that it scratches an itch for you is pleasing, it means the added effort of open sourcing may be worth it as a few other people will get some value.