Oddities

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology in the USA are behind a project to develop a wireless keyboard powered by keystrokes, Le Monde Informatique reports. The force generated by the fingers can produce enough electrical current for a wireless connection. To convert mechanical energy into electricity, the researchers applied a coating which acts as an electrode on keystrokes. The small electrical charged produced is stored in a lithium-ion battery which powers the interface wirelessly.

However, during their work, the researchers have thought of another use which could have a much wider impact. Over 100 volunteer testers typed the word “touch” on the keyboard and a software package collected data on the pressure exerted on the keys and measured the time interval between each stroke. It proved to be that these measurements are particular to each individual. By using signals analysis techniques, they identified touch patterns unique to individuals with a low error rate to achieve a kind of biometric authentication.

A marketable product in 2 years

In a telephone call, Professkr Zhong Li Wang of the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Georgia Tech, stated that these patterns enable a “unique personal measurement” to be defined.

This keyboard, which uses standard materials, would be cheap to develop, Professor Wang stressed. The keys are not mechanical, but made up of transparent films stacked vertically to produce electricity. His team is still working on making the keyboard more reliable, but he believes this product could be marketed in just under two years. What happens if a person breaks a finger or changes his typing rhythm? Professor Wang states that a second authentication mechanism is a definite requirement.