TransTCNet: Transformer-Based Temporal-Contextual Network for Low-Latency Typing Interfaces on Edge Devices

A distinct typing interface using surface electromyography (sEMG) can facilitate silent, hands-free typing by interpreting muscle activity in relation to specific keystrokes. Character-level recognition poses greater challenges than coarse gesture recognition because it is sensitive to subtle temporal variations and overlapping muscle dynamics. Temporal features are essential for typing recognition because keypresses may differ in duration, force, and accompanying hand movements across users. This paper proposes TransTCNet, a two-stage deep neural network architecture with a causal convolutional layer for learning local features and a transformer-based component for learning long-range temporal interactions. We evaluated our network on a publicly available 26-class typing sEMG dataset acquired from 19 individuals. The model achieved a validation accuracy of 96.53%, exceeding the baseline models. Our study revealed generalization among participants, and the AUC values were also high (>0.994) across all classes. The model was highly reliable and exhibited high prediction confidence (>0.9), enabling us to achieve a high training accuracy (97.86%) for real-time filtering decisions. TransTCNet could be suitable for wearable and edge devices due to its efficient architecture and low inference cost. The model’s ability to consistently decode fine-grained neuromuscular signals across users makes it well-suited for real-time applications such as adaptive user interfaces, virtual and augmented reality, prosthetic control, and communication systems.