Advice on ergonomic layout

[JDBear]

Hello all,

So I'm making my first custom board, and am looking for some advice on its layout before I do any 3d printing prototyping (to test layout). The keyboard will be likely made out of acrylic or wood plates bolted together (cost is a factor). I am still obsessing over the size of bolts so the design doesn't have any holes yet... so if you have any advice on that feel free to mention it 

My board (no name yet ) is meant to be ergonomic and is inspired/based on the Ergodox, Atreus, and Keyboardio Model 01.

Currently I have two basic designs I am going to be prototyping, one with a thumb closter, and another with a thumb arc. Note: The images below only show the left side (and it is cut down a little, sharp angles, etc.) since I don't want to waste time/materials prototyping by printing the entire board since one half will give me a good idea of how it will feel. The only real difference between theses examples is the thumb cluster.

On the final board, the teensy 2.0++ will be in the middle, with the cable coming out at the recessed/inwards area at the top middle of the board.

Thumb cluster:



Thumb arc:



Entire board (with cluster, Note: this shows more accurately how it will look with rounded corners etc.):



So, if any of you guys have advice  or questions (whether the questions or advice being about the thumb cluster, or anything) I would be very appreciative 

[suicidal_orange]

Thumb clusters are a personal thing but I don't think you'll be able to press the left key in the arc very easily as it's left of where I think your index finger will rest.  Then again I would say the same for the back-middle one on the cluster, unless you're planning on putting a much taller cap on it than the front-middle one?

Have you tried printing it on a piece of paper and seeing how well it fits your hand before you start with the 3D version?

Other than that it looks like a solid layout and I like the shape of your case

[JDBear]

Thumb clusters are a personal thing but I don't think you'll be able to press the left key in the arc very easily as it's left of where I think your index finger will rest.  Then again I would say the same for the back-middle one on the cluster, unless you're planning on putting a much taller cap on it than the front-middle one?

Have you tried printing it on a piece of paper and seeing how well it fits your hand before you start with the 3D version?

Other than that it looks like a solid layout and I like the shape of your case

Thanks for your advice! And yeah, I'm worried that the thumb clusters aren't perfect in that regard, but I don't know how else to implement them; it's that fourth key that is causing me issues. The idea to have a taller key in back is appealing, and would likely work well since I'm going to be using SA DSA keycaps.

And I've used some cardboard to do some basic prototyping, and that's definitely helped me decide how to shape it. My original design had the key columns very displaced, which wasn't comfortable

[kurplop]

Looks good to me. I admit however that I'm a sucker for thumb arcs and the general shape and size of your layout.

Having done both single and double row arcs I don't have a preference if you get them right. I will say that the single row with 4 will be easier to get right, mainly because you don't have to worry about the height of the cap which is critical with the 2 row thumb keys. This is important since the thumb will strike laterally and it can be hard to isolate a single key if the double row height isn't right.

Because you have the arc starting under the fourth row, you shouldn't have any trouble reaching the farthest arc key. Also the thumb tucks easily under the other fingers so hitting the inner key should feel natural as well.

 If you make an accurate mockup you should be able to predict the suitability of the arrangement. Best wishes on your project and keep us posted

[Zustiur]

Of the two I think the arc like the better option.
Good to see you've tried on cardboard first. I built the entire ZusDox v1 plate and case out of foam core, so prototypes can be very cheap if you are willing to put in the effort.

Did you increase the stagger of the columns at all? That looks like ErgoDox stagger. If nothing else, I suggest letting the point columns a tiny bit.

[JDBear]

The stagger is similar to the atreus and ergodox, but I sorta just went with what felt and seemed right, so it's a bit different. It's part of the reason I want to prototype to figure out whether I need to adjust it.