Scanning for Ideas: A Touchscreen That Can Take a Hit

Edited by Stephan J. Mraz

But they are rugged enough to endure two touches per second with a 350-gm load in testing. Screens are available in a variety of sizes and offer a clear version for flat-panel and liquid-crystal displays.

The touchscreens combine two sheets coated with conductive indium-tin oxide, one with etched conductive parallel bands along the X axis, the other with similar lines along the Y axis. These let the screen give quick responses for over a million cycles. Optical adhesives hold the screens and their assembly in precise alignment also eliminate second surface reflections. They operate on 2.5 to 5 Vdc and in temperatures from 0 to 50°C. They also withstand exposure to gasoline, acetone, MEK, turpentine, and mineral spirits, as well as other industrial and foods-service chemicals.