Ergonomic keyboards are designed to alleviate stress and discomfort caused by repetitive typing, including carpal tunnel syndrome and other injuries. They often have contoured designs, adjustable tilt, and split-hands layouts for more natural positioning. They solve problems like reaching for the mouse and numeric keypad, extending the hands and wrists, and crowding the hands on the keyboard.
Now that virtually everyone in the workplace uses a keyboard to some extent, the stress that repetitive typing places on the hands, wrists and fingers has become a major problem in the workplace. The ergonomic keyboard was designed to relieve some of this stress and provide a more comfortable platform for typing.
Ergonomic designs for keyboards also help alleviate sometimes painful conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome and repetitive stress injuries that result from extended keyboard use. These specially designed contoured keyboards are created with comfort in mind and are often recommended by therapists and healthcare professionals.
Sometimes an ergonomic keyboard will be designed in the unconventional Dvorak keyboard layout as opposed to the standard Qwerty layout, in the belief that this keyboard design also helps relieve stress on the fingers and arms.
There is no precise definition or precise design for an ergonomic keyboard, but various models generally create a contoured design that is more comfortable than a standard flat keyboard. Some keyboards have an adjustable tilt in the center, with the two halves spaced several inches apart. Others may have a rounded base or a uniquely designed palm rest. The “split-hands” design is at the heart of the ergonomic keyboard design and provides a more natural positioning that allows the hands to be separated more widely when typing. Once a typist gets used to this split design, most will agree it feels more comfortable and natural.
The ergonomic keyboard solves several problems. It overcomes the stress that occurs when reaching out to use the numeric keypad and mouse, and the frequent extension of the hands and wrists that occurs on conventional keyboards. The little fingers, which are the weakest, are pressed on duty to press additional keys, which causes additional problems. The ergonomic keyboard also reduces the stress that results from crowding the hands on the keyboard, the asymmetrical posture one assumes when working on a conventional keyboard, and the stress caused by prolonged continuous moving.
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