Product Technical Support
Touch Screen Options
What's your touch screen needs?
The answers to a few questions will help you understand
more:
- Activation—What type of touch activation do you need: finger only, gloved finger, or stylus?
- Image clarity—Is optical clarity the most important requirement?
- Environmental and Durability —Will your touch screen be exposed harsh environments? Will the touch screen have to stand up to dust, liquid, grease, or shock vibrations?
- Cost—What are your cost requirements?
Touch Screen Technologies Comparison (typical of touch screens integrated with the PPC series panel computers)
| Resistive | Capacitive | SAW | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Activation | Finger, gloved hand, or any stylus | Bare finger, capacitive stylus | Finger or sound absorbing stylus |
| Resolution | Controller touchpoint resolution is 4096 x 4096 | Controller touchpoint resolution is 4096 x 4096 | Controller touchpoint resolution is 4096 x 4096 |
| Light Transmission | 60% to 80% at 550nm wavelength | better (85%) | Up to 90% |
| Expected Life | Operationally tested for 35 million touches in one location without failure. | Tested to withstand over 160 million (mechanically simulated) touches without noticeable degradation. | No known wear-out mechanism. Operationally tested for 50 million touches in one location without failure. |
| Cost | least expensive | more expensive | most expensive |
| Surface Durability | 3H per ASTM D3363 | Anti-glare hardcoat cannot be scratched using any stylus with Mohs rating equal to or less than 6. | Surface durability is that of glass. |
| Chemical Resistance | Industrial chemicals: acetone, methylene chloride, methyl ethyl ketone,
isopropyl alcohol, hexane, turpentine, mineral spirits, unleaded gasoline,
diesel fuel, motor oil, transmission fluid, antifreeze. Food-service chemicals: vinegar, coffee, tea, grease, cooking oil, salt, plus most commercial cleaners including ammonia-based glass cleaner and laundry detergent. |
Water, ammonia, isopropyl alcohol, and similar non-abrasive cleaners. | The touch active area of the touchscreen is resistant to chemicals that do not affect glass, such as: acetone, toluene, methyl ethyl ketone, isopropyl alcohol, methyl alcohol, ethyl acetate, ammonia-based glass cleaners, gasoline, kerosene, vinegar. |
| Advantages | Stable, drift-free operation Broad input flexibility Contamination resistance Accuracy in high-use applications Long product life Meets NEMA 4/4x/12 and IP 65 standards |
Fast, sensitive touch
response with excellent
dragging performance Compatible with industry standard protocols |
Pure glass construction
delivers the ultimate in
image quality Stable, drift-free operation Continues to work even if scratched |
| Disavantages | Reduced optical clarity, Polyester surface can be damaged. |
Requires bare finger or capacitive stylus, Severe scratch can affect operation within the damaged area. |
Requires finger or sound absorbing stylus, Difficult to industrialize, Signal affected by surface liquids or other contaminants. |
| Sample Application | Point-of-sale (POS)
terminals Voting machines Industrial automation Medical equipment Office automation Retail automation Pharmacy automation |
Point-of-Sale terminals
(POS) Gaming/Amusement Kiosks |
Kiosks Ticketing machines Gaming machines Light industrial Office automation |
