ISO/IEC 24757:2008
Information technology — Keyboard interaction model — Machine-readable keyboard description
Information technology — Keyboard interaction model — Machine-readable keyboard description
- Статус документа:
- Действующий
- Формат:
- Электронный (PDF)
- Количество страниц:
- 136
- Дата публикации:
- 30 октября 2008 г.
- Издание:
- ISO/IEC IS 24757 edition 1 version 1
- ICS:
- 35.180
The goal of ISO/IEC 24757:2008 is to harmonize industry practices in matters of machine-readable keyboard descriptions (PCs, PDAs, various operating systems, etc.). It further aims to facilitate the production of interoperable drivers for the user and to better assist the user by offering a more precise mapping between the physical keyboard layout and geometrical configuration, and the logical interface available to the operating system and its applications. ISO/IEC 24757:2008 provides a formal description format that can not only fully describe the international keyboards standards, but also the capabilities of keyboards on the current and future marketplace and their functioning with corresponding operating systems. It describes possible interactions between keys of a keyboard and standardizes the keyboard description so that it is machine-readable while staying relatively easy to interpret by human beings. The keyboard description format is meant to be capable of describing existing capabilities of today's keyboard hardware and its associated software, plus foreseeable extensions. It relies on international standard format ISO SGML, in the form known as ISO RELAX NG, with an easy conversion to industry standard XML. Some additional functionality is covered, such as keyboards with programmable keys and keyboards with multiple key assignments such as telephone keypads. The keyboard definition format is primarily intended to be used by the operating system, and during its boot process (e.g. in the BIOS), but can also be used for other purposes, such as reporting from the hardware of a keyboard to help the operating system configuring the keyboard driver, or to present the keyboard on screen with a user-friendly picture. The keyboard definition format is described in four sections: a keyboard identification and general features section, including make and model, serial number, country or region and language to which the keyboard applies, engraving language identification, and distinctive features, such as relief, or presence of lights on keys. the hardware geometry layout, which indicates a largely known geometry layout, such as a 102-key PC keyboard. This section also gives physical information such as size of keys, and amount of pressure needed to activate keys. the keyboard layout, which gives the actual assignment of characters to each key. key combinations which gives combinations of keys, such as those of characters affected by dead keys. A number of existing keyboard definition formats are described, together with a mapping between these description formats and the format defined in ISO/IEC 24757:2008.
Abstract
Overview
ISO/IEC 24757:2008 - Information technology - Keyboard interaction model - Machine‑readable keyboard description - defines a machine‑readable keyboard description format to harmonize how keyboards (PCs, PDAs, USB, embedded systems) are described to operating systems and applications. The standard provides a formal description language (specified in RELAX NG with easy conversion to XML) to represent keyboard identity, physical geometry, logical layout, key interactions (dead keys, modifiers, groups), and additional capabilities such as programmable keys and multi‑assignment keypads.
Keywords: ISO/IEC 24757:2008, machine‑readable keyboard description, keyboard description format, RELAX NG, XML, keyboard drivers, keyboard layout, keyboard geometry.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Machine‑readable format: A formal schema (RELAX NG) and example XML syntax for describing keyboards so software can parse and act on the data.
- Keyboard identification & metadata: Make/model, serial number, country/region, language codes, engraving language, and distinctive features (e.g., relief, indicator lights).
- Hardware geometry: Physical key positions, sizes (mm), shapes, activation pressure and mapping to ISO/IEC 9995 reference coordinates to reproduce on‑screen keyboards accurately.
- Logical layout: Assignment of characters to keys using ISO/IEC 10646 (Unicode) code points, character names (ISO 639 language codes), optional scan codes, and tags for glyph vs. internal representation discrepancies.
- Key interactions & states: Definitions for modifier behavior (Level 2/Shift, Level 3/AltGr, Control), group selection and locking semantics, dead keys, sticky/locking behavior, complex state changes for accessibility, and standardized interpretations of common modifier combinations.
- Supplementary features: Programmable keys, multi‑assignment keys (e.g., telephone keypads), keyboard feedback and reporting protocol between hardware and software (BIOS/OS).
- Format mapping: Guidance and mappings from existing formats (for example XKB) into the ISO/IEC 24757 format.
Applications and who uses it
- Operating system developers use the format during boot and driver configuration to load appropriate keyboard drivers and present correct logical mappings.
- Keyboard manufacturers & firmware engineers provide device metadata and on‑device descriptions for plug‑and‑play compatibility.
- Driver and input method developers build interoperable, locale‑aware drivers using precise geometry and mapping data.
- Localization & accessibility teams ensure correct character sets, dead‑key behavior, and accessibility features (sticky keys, complex states).
- UI/UX designers render accurate on‑screen keyboards for user help and configuration tools.
Related standards
- ISO/IEC 9995 series (keyboard layouts and reference coordinates)
- ISO/IEC 10646 (Universal Character Set / Unicode)
- ISO language codes ISO 639‑1 / ISO 639‑2
- RELAX NG (schema language) and XML (conversion target)
ISO/IEC 24757:2008 helps create consistent, interoperable keyboard handling across platforms by standardizing how physical and logical keyboard properties are expressed and exchanged.
Технические детали
- Технический комитет
- ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 35 - User interfaces
- SKU
- ISO/IEC 24757:2008
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