deskthority

Is there anything I can do with this board, or is it forever destined to be looker? I have two, so I'm not afraid to mess up one (or sell it ), also interested in getting those numbers to light up. Pics:
http://imgur.com/a/8Ns14

Interesting keypad. I've no idea what it is, or the identity of those enormous switches. But should be pretty old and high quality.



I have a Honeywell hall effect keyboard that's a challenge to convert. You might be in a similar position. But having two is good, you have some leeway to experiment!

Well, the seller listed it under "Raymond PC keypad", but I couldn't find anything on that. I really love the feel of the switches

Smooth linear, right? How many pins do they each have underneath?

Yep, linear. It looks like PCB-mount mx's, except these seem to have four stabilizing pins in the corners, and one actual pin in the center

The nearest thing I've ever seen is a couple of magnetic reed types, both cube-shaped. Here's one:

[wiki]Unitra Polam magnetic reed[/wiki]

I saw something very similar in another keyboard, but I didn't fancy taking home the Borg cube–sized computer it came with just to get the switches. (I know those were magnetic reed of a very similar design as one of them was broken and I could see inside.) I forget what the keycap mount was, though.

How would I go about direct wiring this board? Could someone explain the process like they were talking to a five year old with a shitty soldering iron? Also, it looks like each switch only has one contact instead of two. The switches look like they are in housings in sets of four, and at the end there are two contacts.
http://imgur.com/vm6Hhe7
also illustrated how the columns were aligned

Haven't you said over at geekhack that these are Hall effect switches? In that case I don't think you can simply handwire them. I think you would need a different controller than the common ones for contact switches.

Maybe someone thought that a while ago, but more likely some kind of reed