Piantor Keyboard

The Piantor Keyboard is a 42-key or 36-key wired, diodeless, non-flippable, low profile choc v1 (hybrid hotswap and non-hotswap/soldered-in), aggressive column staggered, programmable ergonomic mechnical split keyboard powered by Rasyberry Pi Pico or other compatible RP2040 boards. It is based on the Cantor Keyboard. The name "Piantor" is the portmanteau of "Pico" and "Cantor".

The development of this project is sponsored by PCBWay (affiliate link).

Quick Links

Features

RP2040 MCU - A low-cost, easy-to-source, powerful microcontroller with dual Arm Cortex-M0+ @ 133MHz, 264kB on-chip SRAM and 2MB (up to 16MB, depending on the breakout board) off-chip external flash memory. You can enable a lot of features and layers. Never worry about the firmware size limit.
Cantor layout - Ergonomic strong column staggering for short pinkies.
Non-flippable PCBs - Fewer ways to make mistakes when you install the controller breakout boards. Great for first time keyboard builders.
Diodeless - A more robust build with fewer things to solder or break.
Hybrid hotswap and soldered-in low profile choc switches - Experiment with different key switches with the hotswap sockets, or solder the key switches for a more stable build.
Breakable pinky column - Easily convert the PCB from a 42-key to 36-key layout. You can snap off the pinky column without specialized tools.

Bill of Materials (BOM)

Quantity	Item	Notes
1	Piantor PCB (Left)
1	Piantor PCB (Right)
2	RP2040 breakout boards (such as Raspberry Pi Pico or WeAct RP2040)
42 (or 36)	Kailh choc v1 PG1350 switches
42 (or 36)	"choc spacing" choc v1 keycaps
2	TRRS jack (PJ-320A)
1	3.5mm TRRS cable	TRS cable cannot be used
42 (or 36)	CPG135001S30 hotswap sockets for choc v1 PG1350	Optional, you can solder the switches directly if you do not use hotswap sockets
4	Pin headers (20p) or sockets	Only required for boards without castellated holes
2	10kΩ 1206 (3216M) SMD resistor	Only required if you do not want to use SPLIT_USB DETECT, and for boards without a built in VBUS_SENSE circuit
2	5.6kΩ 1206 (3216M) SMD resistor	Only required if you do not want to use SPLIT_USB DETECT, and for boards without a built in VBUS_SENSE circuit

Note: Raspberry Pi Pico comes with castellated holes and a built in VBUS_SENSE circuit

Ordering Parts

DIY kits and prebuilt keyboards are available at https://beekeeb.shop

If you prefer getting the parts by yourself, you can order the Left Side PCB and the Right Side PCB.

A single side should cost around $31 for 5 pcs excluding shipping. For both sides, it should be around $62 in total for 5 sets.

Firmware Status

QMK - supported
Vial (based on QMK) - supported
KMK (Python/CircuitPython) - pull request at https://github.com/KMKfw/kmk_firmware/pull/723
An example of KMK with miryoku by hansamann
Remap - support planned (No ETA)
PRK (Ruby) - support planned (No ETA)
keyberon (Rust) - support planned (No ETA)
ZMK - waiting for wired split support

Precompiled firmware can be found at https://docs.beekeeb.com/piantor-keyboard.

Cases

Piantor Case with a Switch Plate (3D Printable)

Piantor Keyboard Case

The 3D printable case can be founded in the case folder. The switch plate is optional for the non-hotswap version.

GB823 M2 stainless steel screws with small pan heads are recommended.

Screw Length
- No switch plates: 4mm
- With Switch plates: 6mm
- With Switch plates and Donut0804/o-rings: 7mm

Do not over-tighten the screws.

Cantor Tray Case

The Cantor Tray Case by chewiedies can be used. There is not a switch plate so it is not recommended for the hotswap version.

Boards Preview

License

External symbols and footprints are not covered by the LICENSE in this repo.

Keebio-Parts.pretty is licensed under the MIT License.
keyswitches.pretty is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
KiCad-RP-Pico is licensed under the TPCWare KiCad Library License.
Sponsors

This open source hardware project is sponsored by

beekeeb / piantor

readme