Touchscreen Technology | Overview of Touchscreen Technology

In the Tech Industry, time moves quickly. The interest in a touchscreen device is drifting today. The touch screen is an input device. The touch screen is used in many devices in the present day like mobile, voting machines, smart devices, and laptops. The touchscreen is a visually displayed unit that includes a touch-sensitive transparent panel covering the screen. It reduces the use of pointing devices like a mouse or light pen. you can use your finger to point the object on the screen instead of pointing to the device. One of the disadvantages of the touch screen is, it’s not possible to point to the exact position of a small area of the screen.

The touchscreen is generally found in the large display unit. Most of the touch screen is designed to work with a finger or a special type of stylus. Tapping on a specific point on the screen will activate the virtual button. Some phones support stylus pens, the stylus pen recognizes the handwriting. It is useful to take quick notes during the seminar, lectures, etc.
Basically, a touchscreen has three main components- a touch sensor, a controller, and driver software. The touch screen is an input device, so it has to be combined with a display and a computer or any other device to complete a touch input system.

1. Touch Sensor: – Touch sensor is also known as a touch detector. The touch sensor is a kind of gadget that catches and records physical touch. There are several touch sensor technologies available in today’s market, each has a different method to sense touch input. The sensor has an electrical current gaining through it and touching the screen causes the voltage change. This voltage change is used to detect the location of the touch. The touch board is put over a showcase screen.
2. Controller: – The controller is a small PC card, is used to connect the touch sensor and the PC. It takes the information from the touch sensor and converts it into machine language that the PC can understand. It determines what type of connection you will need to connect to a PC. A controller can connect to a serial/ COM/ USB port.
3. Driver Software: – A Driver is software that is used to drive the hardware via PC. Basically, it is a mediator between PC and hardware that we have to control by PC. It tells the computer’s operating system how to interpret the touch event information sent from the controller. Most touchscreen drivers today are mouse emulation-type drivers.

Below gives the various type of touchscreen:

1.    Resistive Touchscreen: – A resistive touchscreen has 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 wired mode’s which differentiate between the coordinates of touch. Resistive touchscreen consists of a flexible top layer of polythene and a solid bottom layer made of glass separated by insulating dots attached to a touchscreen controller. The inside portion is coated with a transparent material that makes electrical contact when pressure is applied and makes the circuit complete. These voltages are then converted into x and y coordinates which are sent to the controller. Resistive touchscreens are durable and easy to integrate. They offer 75% clarity.

2.    Capacitive Touchscreen: – Capacitive touchscreen panel is basically used for industrial purposes. 90% of the light from the monitor is transmitted by the capacitive system. The capacitive touchscreen had a glass overlay coated with a conductive material. Whenever a human figure touches a capacitive screen creates an electrostatic charge. Electrostatic charge sends information to the touch control to perform its function. It has very good clarity and durability, they can only respond to the touch of a figure or special gloves. The conductive layer is Indium Tin Oxide used in capacitive touchscreen. To increase the accuracy of the capacitive touchscreen, the projective screen has a sensor at every interaction of the row and column.

3.    SAW (Surface Acoustic Wave) Touchscreen: – SAW touchscreen technology has two transducers and reflectors placed on the glass surface. The waves are dispersed across the screen because of the reflector arrangement and received by the transducer. The touch is detected by the sensor when the waves are absorbed. As compared with other’s touchscreen, Surface Acoustic wave touchscreen provide superior clarity, resolution, and durability. SAW provides the ability to interact with styles or gloves.

4.    Infrared Touchscreen: – Infrared touchscreen contain an array of x and the y-axis is fitted with the pair of IR LED and Photodetectors. The photodetector converts light photons into the current. The photodetector detects an absence of light and relays a signal that determines the coordinates whenever we touch the screen at the time of interruption of the beams touch is identified and located. It is durable and can detect any input.

5.    Optical Imaging Touchscreen: – Optical Imaging touchscreen is popular for its versatility and scalability. It depends on infrared light. Two infrared Imaging sensors are placed at the top, which doubles up as emitter, and retro-reflective tapes at the third side. The emitter light is reflected back to the imaging sensors which become blocked at the point of touch.

6.    Acoustic Pulse Recognition Touchscreen: – Acoustic Pulse Recognition touchscreen contains a glass overlay and four transducers attached to the back exterior. When humans touch the screen, a fraction is created and a fraction creates an acoustic wave. The transducer detects the acoustic wave and converts it into a signal. Acoustic Pulse Recognition touchscreens are water-resistant, durable, and scalable.

 

Uses of Touchscreen: –

Below give a few examples of how touchscreen systems are used today: –

1.    Public Information Display: – A touchscreen is used to make your information easily accessible by allowing users to simply touch the display screen.

2.    Retail and Restaurant System: – In Retail and Restaurant Systems touchscreen are very useful. A touchscreen is used as a cash register, order entry stations, seating reservation system, and more.

3.    Customer Self-service: – The self-service touchscreen is useful to improve customer service at fast service restaurants, busy stores, and many more places. Customers can quickly place the order and check whether our order is in or out.

4.   Control and Automation systems: – A touchscreen is very useful in industrial process control to home automation. It is placed in many public places like railway stations for e-tickets supply.

Advantages: –

1.   Touchscreen made people use computers easily.

2.   This technology is simple to use and user-friendly.

3.   A touchscreen is popular because of its ease of use, proven reliability, and decreasing cost.

4.   A touchscreen provides fast access to any and all types of digital media.

Disadvantage: –

1.   Touchscreen can’t be used to enter a large amount of data.

2.   The touchscreen system is expensive than traditional input devices like a keyboard and mouse.

3.   The repair cost of a touchscreen is high.