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Silicone rubber keypad with distinct shaped buttons for outdoor, rugged environments. Using rubber keypad material opens up endless possibilities for key design.

Key benefits of a silicone keypad

Environmental resistance: Silicone rubber is known for its chemical stability, abrasion resistance, and thermal resistance. Therefore, silicone rubber keypads are widely used in demanding industrial devices and harsh environmental conditions.

 

Tactile feedback: The design of silicone rubber keypads provides a responsive tactile feel, enhancing user experience and reducing input errors.

 

Durability: Silicone keypads are known for their resilience, capable of withstanding extreme temperatures and harsh environments without compromising functionality.

 

Sealing for harsh environments: Silicone rubber keypads can function as a gasket in the final product design. This enhances the overall tightness of the user interface and protects it against moisture, dust, UV exposure and other external factors. This makes the technology well-suited for use in outdoor equipment, maritime electronics, medical devices and other demanding environments.

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  • HMI solutions from concept to production
  • Cross-industry HMI expertise
  • Keypad technologies and materials
  • Case studies 
Silicone rubber keypad with soundless click for sound measurement devices

The feeling and the sound of pressing a key define a keypad's tactility. Yet, with this keypad, tactility achieves a remarkable feat: complete silence. This engineering breakthrough was essential, given the device's purpose—to measure sound in a room with high precision. Watch HMI webinar on-demand for more design tips

Silicone rubber keys combined with decorative and protective polyester front foil for industrial coffee machines | by Mekoprint

You can combine silicone rubber keys with front foils and plates. This combinations gives the graphics advantages of the polyester materials and the good tactile feedback of silicone keys. For more design tips - watch our on-demand HMI webinar

Silicone rubber keypad for controlling welding equipment. Add colour to your rubber keypad by co-moulding different coloured silicone rubbers, by spray-painting or silkscreen printing.

You can colour a silicone rubber keypad by co-molding several tints of silicone rubber, painting or screen-printing, as demonstrated in this example. To reveal the translucent, light-diffusing layer of the silicone, a laser-engraving technique is employed to remove the colour layer. Order a free keypad sample to get a better idea of the possibilities

Silicone rubber keypad with distinct shaped buttons for outdoor, rugged environments. Using rubber keypad material opens up endless possibilities for key design.

Using silicone rubber for your keypad material opens up endless possibilities for key design. Shapes significantly enhance the tactility and usability of a keypad, especially when the device is used with gloves or in challenging conditions. Here is an example of concave keys which make it easy for the user to locate them. More on keypad materials in our HMI webinar on-demand

Silicone rubber keypad for lab and measurement devices | by Mekoprint

One of the key advantages of silicone rubber keypads is their exclusive look. Another one is the moldability of the material which makes it possible to create bespoke, elegant shapes. Order a free sample

Silicone rubber keypad for agricultural machines with backlit keys

Backlight is essential for safe operation of a keypad during nighttime. In this case, the translucent silicone rubber ensures great light diffusion on and around the keys. Learn more about this case here. 

Silicone rubber keypad for forlift trucks with LED status light. Backlight is essential for safe operation of a rubber keypad in dark environments.

Silicone rubber is a translucent material from its origin, making it ideal for creating evenly diffused backlit keys. To achieve this effect, layers that have been lacquered and colored are laser-engraved to reveal the translucent layer beneath, ensuring a smooth light diffusion. Request a free keypad sample

Complete HMI integration

Modular HMI with integrated silicone keypad

The silicone rubber keypad can be supplied as part of a complete user interface, including front foils, display, PCB or FPC. This enables a compact, ready-to-install solution optimised for both function and aesthetics.

 

Co-moulding of enclosure and keypad

By combining the silicone keypad and housing in one moulded part, the solution becomes even more robust and efficient. Co-moulding allows for integrated backlighting, optimal tightness and a soft-touch outer surface—while housing the electronics inside. This reduces assembly complexity and enhances product durability. 

HMI Inspiration

HMI insights

Domenic B. Nielsen
Business Development Manager, HMI & Industrial Graphics
+45 2559 0811
dbn@mekoprint.com

Get in touch with us

Design and customisation options

Our silicone rubber keypads are manufactured using advanced compression-molding techniques, allowing for intricate 3D designs.

 

This process enables the creation of concave buttons, distinct recesses around keys, split lines between different areas, and multi-level designs - designs that membrane switch keypads can't offer.

 

The keypad can also be designed with varying button heights or shaped contours to further enhance tactility and navigation. These three-dimensional elements give the interface a more intuitive feel and help users quickly locate key functions without looking.

 

If you want to explore how 3D geometry influences tactility and usability, you can download our design guides or watch the webinar.

 

At Mekoprint, we offer multiple colouring techniques to ensure your silicone rubber keypads align with both functional and branding requirements. Keypads can be colour-matched using co-moulding, painting, or screen-printing, allowing for precise visual differentiation between buttons or functional areas.

 

For finer details, laser engraving is used to remove the top colour layer, revealing a contrasting or translucent layer beneath. This technique enhances both aesthetics and functionality, whether for creating high-contrast legends or enabling precise backlighting effects.

 

For deeper insights into colour design, contrasts and material behaviour, you can access our design guides or view the webinar.

 

To improve visibility in low-light conditions, our keypads can be equipped with backlighting options, including LED illumination. A key element in achieving a uniform glow is the use of translucent silicone rubber, which allows light to diffuse evenly across the keypad surface, preventing harsh hotspots and ensuring a soft, consistent backlight. Thanks to the material’s properties, silicone rubber enables this uniform distribution of light—ensuring a reliable and visually balanced backlighting experience across all key areas.

 

For precise legend illumination, we employ laser etching, a technique that removes the top colour layer of a painted keypad to reveal the lighter, translucent layer beneath. This method ensures that only the engraved areas illuminate, resulting in a sharp, high-contrast display that enhances both aesthetics and functionality.

 

To learn more about controlled light distribution and keypad illumination, you can download our design guides or watch the webinar.

We understand the importance of tactile feedback in user interfaces. Our design process allows for precise adjustment of webbing geometry and silicone hardness, ensuring the optimal key travel and response for each application.

 

By fine-tuning these elements, we create silicone rubber keypads that deliver a satisfying, reliable press while complementing the overall design and functionality of your product.

 

If you are working with tactile response and key feel, our design guides and webinar offer clear, practical guidance. 

Order a free keypad sample

Applications across industries

Silicone rubber keypads are widely used switch technology in the electronic industry. Silicone keypads are integrated in devices in industrial and professional environments where durability, precision, and environmental resistance are critical. These keypads offer rugged reliability in sectors that demand high-performance human-machine interfaces.

 

User-friendly in gloves and challenging conditions: The silicone keypad’s firm tactility and customisable surface structure ensure reliable operation—even when used with gloves. Raised key profiles, tactile feedback and clear separation between buttons make it easy to operate equipment where precision and speed are critical, such as in emergency care, industrial machinery or remote field work. 

 

Industrial automation and heavy machinery: In factories, processing plants, and heavy equipment, silicone rubber keypads serve as control panel interfaces, machine operation consoles, and safety system inputs. Their abrasion resistance and chemical resistance make them ideal for harsh industrial environments where exposure to oil, grease, and solvents is common. With backlighting, these keypads remain visible in dimly lit control rooms or outdoor sites. ​

Agriculture & construction equipment: Modern tractors, harvesting machines, and earthmoving equipment rely on rugged keypads for operator controls. These keypads withstand dust, moisture, and temperature extremes, ensuring seamless functionality even in outdoor or high-vibration environments.

 

Medical & laboratory equipment: In hospitals, diagnostic labs, and surgical environments, silicone rubber keypads are used in patient monitoring devices, imaging systems, and sterilization equipment. Their chemical resistance ensures they can be regularly cleaned and disinfected without degradation. With customizable tactile feel and actuation force, they provide reliable input for precision-sensitive devices.

 

Communication & safety equipment: From two-way radios to emergency response systems, personal communication devices rely on membrane keypads for critical input functions. Silicone keypads are designed to withstand shock, water exposure, and constant use, making them ideal for military, security, and emergency service applications.