Cherry MX switches are the world’s most famous mechanical keyboard switches, and countless other brands mimic the iconic cross-bar switch design for tactile typing. Now a Cherry MX style magnetic twist has resulted in a 3D printed mechanical switch with an adjustable actuation point.
Recently posted via Github by user famichu and spotted by Hackaday this week, the homemade MagLev MX switch is a 3D printed switch with a Cherry MX Red-like linear travel. Thanks to the familiar cross-bar design, the switches are compatible with any keycaps that fit Cherry MX switches.
But instead of using a spring in each switch to actuate like Cherry switches, the MagLev Switch MX uses a neodymium and moth magnet in the stem and another in the bottom of the housing with a Hall effect sensor in between.
Hall effect sensors locate a magnet by measuring the displaced electrons in the magnet’s electromagnetic force. When a key with a MagLev MX switch is pressed, the Allegro A1204 Hall sensor detects the change in magnetic force, which results in an input. As Hackaday points out, common PCB diagrams indicate that the output of the sensors is “used to drive the MOSFETs in each row”when the switch is pressed.
Fans of mechanical Hall effect switches point out that they should last longer than traditional mechanical switches as they don’t rely on metal contact that can cause degradation.
Like other Hall effect switches, such as those used in the Wooting Two He or the SteelSeries Apex Pro, the famichu switches have an adjustable actuation point, which means you can choose how far you have to press the switch before it registers input. The manufacturer shared an “example of a numeric keypad”with a knob that allows you to change the actuation point of the switches, although the aforementioned keyboards adjust the actuation with precise measurements via software.
But while you would have to go to a store to buy a pre-made keyboard with mechanical switches offering adjustable actuation points, famichu has provided what you need to make a MagLev Switch MX at home using 3D printing. The manufacturer recommended an SLA or DLP 3D printer to make the switch body.