Bare computer keyboard

[mlawson]

Does anyone know where I can find a bare computer keyboard? I'm looking
for just the bare plastic keyboard that has the tactile mechanical
switches and the keycaps. I want to make a specialized keyboard using an
old keyboard encoder chip to product a 7 bit parallel output. Mike

 

[petrus bitbyter]

"mlawson" <blue734@embarqmail.com> schreef in bericht
news:Hq6dnVc0i_CWBVPUnZ2dnUVZ_qvinZ2d@giganews.com...

Does anyone know where I can find a bare computer keyboard? I'm looking
for just the bare plastic keyboard that has the tactile mechanical
switches and the keycaps. I want to make a specialized keyboard using an
old keyboard encoder chip to product a 7 bit parallel output. Mike

A keyboard like that may be difficult to find but easy to make.

The next not too new second hand keyboard consists of a foil key matrix with
tactile dome switches and a little pcb with a processor to interface to the
PC. Problem may be the matrix not matching with your old keyboard encoder
chip.

Even older keyboards may contain one PCB with the matrix and the
electronics. So you can cut traces, remove or at least disconnect the
existing electronics and wire your own matrix. I ever used an existing
matrix and translated the generated codes using an EPROM (2716).

Finding a matching keyboard at once is possible. Like it is possible to be
hit by a falling plane. Sometimes it happens to someone.

BTW
1. What's the type of your encoder chip?
2. Why do you want to use that encoder chip anyway? Converting using some
micro looks a lot easier to me. The code for interfacing a keyboard to a PIC
is available on the web. Implementing the parallel interface is not that
difficult. Same may be available for other micros as well. Use some Google?

petrus bitbyter