EXCLUSIVE: Industrial wireless keyboard is NEMA-4X rated

DW-5K keyboard/pointing device from Ikey is said to be the first wireless unit that is industrially hardened and NEMA-4X-rated.

DW-5K keyboard/pointing device from Ikey claims to be the first wireless unit with full-sized 116-key functionality that is industrially hardened and NEMA-rated. Use of radio-frequency signals means the device is not susceptible to line-of-sight issues often encountered with IR keyboards. With a 30-ft RF range, integrated HulaPoint pointing device, 24 function keys, and standard number pad, the new device is water, dust, and corrosive liquid-resistant, featuring a sealed, silicone rubber pad to meet NEMA 4X specifications. Keyboard is housed in an ABS polycarbonate case and operates in continuous power conservation mode; average battery life is 6 months.

Keyboard offers plug-and-play convenience with a USB dongle that allows automatic keyboard detection by a computer. Manual binding feature locks in the keyboard’s signal for keystroke security and the ability to operate multiple wireless keyboards in the same environment.

“Our general challenge was to retrofit our most popular model—the DU-5K—into a wireless version,” explained Tony Zavaleta, marketing director for Ikey, discussing the development of the product. “It incorporates many of our most popular keyboard features into a single device. Making sure the new unit was as user-friendly as possible was certainly a major consideration.”

Zavaleta noted that wireless is what the world is moving toward, so a wireless keyboard was the company’s next logical step. “There is certainly a demand for this type of device, across all industries,” he observed. “This is not a specialized unit; it is applicable in all industries.”

—Jeanine Katzel, senior editor, Control Engineering, jkatzel@reedbusiness.com

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