DESIGN OF KEYBOARD LAYOUT USING CADWORK

CADWORK has been employed for the design of a keyboard layout and compared with QWERTY keyboard layout evaluated by CADWORK heuristics. The time simulated by CADWORK to type a document supplied as data using the QWERTY layout was 647.79 TMU while that obtained when using the layout designed by CADWORK was 604.69 TMU. From the standpoint of ergonomic considerations, a keyboard layout which permits the operator to type more efficiently is to be preferred in order to reduce the medical problem of cumulative trauma disorders. A test set up to determine the acceptability of the CADWORK layout using participants drawn from experienced keyboard layout users indicated a bias towards the QWERTY layout. After a third trial, some participants were found to type faster with the CADWORK layout than others using the QWERTY layout.