The early days of Keykrush ORCA

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The early days of Keykrush ORCA

Veronica of Keykrush talks about the development journey of the ORCA – an exciting wireless ergo split keyboard in the fundraising phase.

Veronica Z
Published February 19, 2025

This post is part of the KBD.NEWS Advent Calendar 2024 series.

I'm Veronica, co-founder of Keykrush, a brand dedicated to creating ergonomic keyboards. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks for giving us this opportunity to share the development journey of the KEYKRUSH ORCA on kbd.news. I'm excited to share that the ORCA will be available (Kickstarter) on February 18th. For a sneak peek, please check out our video here:

In this article, I'll walk you through the project's inception and development phases. Once we successfully crowdfund and deliver the product, I'll follow up with details on mass production and delivery. As a designer and electronics enthusiast, I've been closely following keyboard innovations for years. However, long hours of design work at the computer keyboard innovations – I developed carpal tunnel syndrome, and the repetitive strain became unbearable, hindering both my focus and productivity. I knew something had to change. Here's my story:

Project inception

6 years ago, I started using a Logitech trackball mouse. While there are many similar mice on the market, I initially approached it with skepticism due to the learning curve. However, when wrist pain struck, I decided to give it a try. Surprisingly, I adapted to it within 1 day – the learning curve wasn't as steep as I thought! This mouse significantly alleviated my pain, allowing me to work comfortably for 8 hours a day. It kept my right hand stationary, eliminating the need for repetitive movements, which relieved most of my pain!

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This got me thinking – what about the keyboard? Could we design a keyboard that offers the same comfort as a trackball mouse? While using a drawing tablet for Photoshop and Illustrator, my left hand controlled shortcuts on the keyboard, while my right hand constantly switched between the stylus and mouse for functions like brush scaling and canvas rotation. After an hour or two, my right hand would start to ache, showing symptoms similar to tenosynovitis. I urgently needed a compact keyboard for my left hand, preferably with a scroll wheel, so I wouldn't have to rely on the mouse wheel. With a combination of keys and a scroll wheel, I could achieve brush scaling, canvas rotation, and more – no need for multiple wheels; one wheel and a few keys would suffice!

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I began exploring unconventional keyboards, especially split designs. I stumbled upon a popular open-source project on GitHub – the Dactyl Manuform, which focuses on the interaction between hands and input devices. Soon after, I discovered a variant called the Tractyl Manuform, which added a trackball to the Dactyl Manuform. This seemed close to what I envisioned! I even 3D printed it, manually soldered the connections, and experienced the split keyboard firsthand. However, as an open-source project, its design was still quite conceptual, with complex shapes and sharp edges that made it uncomfortable to use. I also tried other split keyboards, which alleviated some stiffness but didn't quite meet my expectations.

After extensive research, my partner Victor and I decided to design our own compact, split keyboard with streamline design that would naturally fit the hand's shape, support Bluetooth connectivity, and feature a scroll wheel on the left side – these were our initial design goals. The journey was challenging, involving new areas of knowledge. We repeatedly tested feasibility, measuring hand and finger data, optimizing hands placement on the keyboard, refining fingers movement arcs, and achieving wireless communication between the two halves.

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What started as a simple idea took nearly 2 years to materialize. While design and modeling were our strengths, PCB design and firmware development were entirely new disciplines. We started from scratch, investing countless hours: concept design → 3D modeling → 3D printing → PCB design → firmware development → assembly. Each iteration brought us closer to the final product. Looking back, those days were truly memorable.

However, due to limited time and budget, we couldn't fully implement the scroll wheel's custom functionality in the beta version. We received enthusiastic feedback from our Discord community and beta testers, many of whom expressed a strong desire for this feature. We deeply value this feedback and are committed to incorporating customizable scroll wheel functionality in the final product – allowing users to adjust volume, scale brushes, rotate canvases, and more. Stay tuned!

Development process

Industrial design: Like the Glove80 team, we initially sought hand measurement data but found limited resources. We then turned to studying hand anatomy and the causes of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Tenosynovitis. These conditions arise from repetitive motions, localized pressure, and inflammation. (If you experience severe discomfort, please consult a doctor.)

To address these through the followings:

Reduce wrist pressure by providing soft palm rest;
Minimize finger and palm movement by reducing the number of keys (using customizable multi-layers for normal typing);
Use a double-curved surface to fit fingers movement arcs;
Optimize hands placement for a natural, shoulder-width position parallel to the torso.

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We utilized parametric design and 3D printing to iterate through multiple variations, ultimately settling on the current design. Parametric design allowed us to quickly modify models by adjusting control points, saving significant time. To balance modern aesthetics with mechanical keyboard comfort, we chose Gateron's low-profile G switches, known for their excellent tactile feedback and sound. We hope users will love them too.

PCB design and component sourcing: To achieve hot-swappable switches while fitting the keyboard's double-curved surface, we conducted extensive research and testing. Ruled out flexible membrane keyboards, as no compatible mechanical switch sockets exist on the market. Developing our own sockets would have been time-consuming and costly. Fortunately, China's electronics manufacturing industry is highly advanced. We used JLC's free EDA software for PCB design and ordered manufacturing through the same platform, with PCBs typically ready for shipment within three days. This allowed us, as beginners, to quickly learn and execute the entire process: design, manufacturing, assembly, and testing. Of course, we also faced setbacks, such as selecting the wrong components.

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Firmware development: This involved two main tasks - selecting the MCU and writing/uploading the code. We started from scratch, learning about keyboard development, including chips like the ATmega32u4 and STM. We also realized that open-source firmware like QMK and ZMK has a steep learning curve. Due to the diversity of computer configurations and operating systems, not all users can easily use VIA and VIAL for keymapping. Therefore, we decided to develop our own keymapping software after crowdfunding, to meet all users' customization needs, including scroll wheel and combo key functions.

There’s no doubt that QMK/VIA are excellent tools for remapping keys. While QMK, VIA, and VIAL have well-established communities and ready-to-use solutions in the mechanical keyboard space, they primarily rely on AVR or Nordic platforms, which offer relatively weak support for wireless and Bluetooth master-slave configurations. Our design goal prioritizes wireless functionality and expandability. We don’t want a split keyboard that still requires a cable to connect the two halves—that wouldn’t truly be wireless. The built-in chip we’ve chosen (which will be announced during mass production) provides strong support for Bluetooth and wireless communication, allowing us to develop and customize features freely without being restricted by the existing QMK/VIA/VIAL ecosystem.

Soldering and assembly: We purchased tools and taught ourselves soldering and assembly. Initially, we struggled with soldering techniques, but through practice and tutorials, we gradually mastered some efficient methods.

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2 years later, we're proud to announce the completion of this revolutionary product's prototype! We named it the Keykrush ORCA, inspired by the orca – the ocean's apex predator. Orcas are elegant, agile, and highly intelligent, thriving even in the harshest environments like Antarctica's icy waters. This resonates with our vision: despite living within constraints – be it extreme conditions or rigid keyboard layouts – we can still challenge ourselves to achieve greater freedom. The orca's grace and adaptability perfectly embody our design philosophy, filling us with excitement. The Keykrush ORCA seamlessly blends streamlines with biomimetic design, offering an unparalleled typing experience. Here's what it looks like now:

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Some thoughts

Our prototype has received genuine admiration and valuable feedback, with many encouraging us to move forward with mass production. We hope this product can help others who, like me, spend long hours at the computer, alleviating hand strain. To achieve this, we decided to get closer to our users by launching on Kickstarter. This approach not only gives us time to engage with potential users but also allows us to refine the product based on their feedback. Recently, we have embarked on the pre-launch phase on Kickstarter – a thrilling milestone! If you share our vision, we'd be honored to have your support. Please visit our Kickstarter page for Keykrush ORCA.

Whether you're a productivity-focused engineer, a creative artist, or a competitive gamer, we believe the Keykrush ORCA can meet your needs. As technology advances, the variety of input and output devices continues to grow, and our interaction with machines – computers, phones, etc. – has never been more intimate. Simultaneously, professional fields are becoming increasingly specialized, with each individual wielding unique skills and expertise. In this era, we believe keyboards, as essential input tools, should offer more choices rather than remaining confined to decades-old designs.

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If you have any suggestions or ideas, we'd love to hear from you! Visit our website at keykrush.com or join our Discord community.

Thank you for your support, and we look forward to sharing more updates with you soon!

	Veronica Z
Location	Hong Kong
Occupation	Designer, researcher
Description	A designer who loves outdoor activities, focuses on personal growth, and also pays great attention to physical health and comfort in work and learning.
Links	keykrush.com, Discord

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Published on Wed 19th Feb 2025. Featured in KBD #187.

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