Knowledge - About Touch Screen Systems

A touchscreen is an input device that allows users to operate a PC by simply touching the display screen. Touch input is suitable for a wide variety of computing applications. A touchscreen can be used with most PC systems as easily as other input devices such as track balls or touch pads. Browse the links below to learn more about touch input technology and how it can work for you.

Did you want to know a few information about Touch Screen?

Here we are give you some information about touch screen ;

What PC systems will your touchscreen systems work with?
We have touchscreen solutions available to work with most common operating systems, including DOS, Windows 3.1/95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP, Macintosh OS, and Linux. Third party software is also available for some products to allow our touch screen systems to work with Unix and other specialized systems.

How does the touchscreen interface with my PC?
Our touch screen solutions generally interface to the PC via a serial port (RS-232) connection or a USB type connection. The serial port interface generally works with DOS, Windows, and Linux Systems. The USB port interface typically works with Windows 98/ME/2000/XP and Macintosh systems.


Does a touchscreen require special software to operate?
Our touchscreen solutions are supplied with software drivers that allow the touch screen to emulate a mouse in Windows or Macintosh systems. Because the touchscreen emulates a mouse, touching the screen is the same as clicking your mouse at the same point on the screen. This allows the touch screen to work with a vast amount of pre-existing mouse driven software. This also allows for simple development of new applications, because no additional code or knowledge is required to develop software for use with the touch screen. New touchscreen applications can be developed in the same way as mouse driven software.


What mouse functions does the touchscreen emulate?
The touchscreen is an input device like a mouse or trackpad, and it emulates basic mouse functions. The touchscreen can emulate left-clicks, double-clicking, and dragging. When the screen is touched, it is the same as if you used your mouse to move the pointer to that spot, and then clicked your mouse button. Right-clicking can be done with additional software.


Can I use my mouse and keyboard simultaneously along with a touchscreen?
Yes, our touchscreen products are designed to work along with a mouse, trackpad, and/or keyboard. The touch screen will work along with a PS/2, USB, or serial style mouse. If you are using a serial touch screen and also a serial mouse, you will need to have two available serial ports (Com 1 and 2).


Do I have to use my finger or can I use another pointing device with a touchscreen?
This depends on the type of touch screen. Resistive touchscreens are pressure sensitive and will work with any type of input- finger, gloved hand, stylus, pen, or any pointing device. Capacitive screens on the other hand will only work with finger input. PenTouch is a special type of Capacitive screen that comes with an attached pen stylus. SAW (surface acoustic wave) touchscreens will work with finger input or soft-tipped stylus input. With SAW technology, a hard tipped pen will not create a touch response, but a soft-tip stylus will work.


Can the touchscreen respond to two touches / two fingers at the same time?
No, the touchscreen can only respond to one input at a time. Some touchscreens will average together multiple touches, causing the mouse cursor move to a position between the points touched. Some touchscrees will accept the first touch and then ignore simultaneous touches.


Can I use a touch screen to browse my Web site?
Yes. Because the touch screen systems that we offer work with mouse driven software, they will work with standard Web browsers such as Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. There are also special touch screen Web browsers available that include touch screen friendly controls and system security, allowing web-based content to be easily displayed in public spaces.


Can I design custom programs and applications to work with the touchscreen?
Yes. Because the screen emulates standard mouse functions, you can use the same programming methods that you would use to program for a mouse. For example, if you place buttons or images on a form in Visual Basic, responding to a touchscreen click will be the same as responding to a mouse click, by using the mouse click or mouse down events.


Are there special concerns when designing a touch screen software application?
When designing a touchscreen application, remember your finger is larger than a mouse pointer. Design your buttons large enough and spaced apart enough for a finger to touch easily. It is also a good idea to include a graphical or audio response to each touch. This will indicate to the user his/her touch was accepted and will not leave the user confused. For simplicity, it is best to not use dragging, double-clicks, scroll bars, drop-down menus, or multiple windows. This will make it as easy as possible for the user. Limit choices to your customer and try to offer as much on-screen assistance as possible. Bright backgrounds will hide fingerprints more than a black background would.


What can I use to clean the touchscreen?
Any standard glass cleaner (non-ammonia based) can be used to clean the touchscreen. Always spray the glass cleaner on the cloth or towel and then clean the touchscreen.


Can notebook computers be upgraded with a touchscreen?
Yes. Although most notebooks do not have space for a touch screen to be built into it, we do offer several laptops that can be purchased with built-in touchscreen interface. We also offer an external touch screen add-on that is available that will add touch input capability to any laptop system with a 12" to 14.1" display.


Is there a software program that will turn my non-touch monitor into a touchscreen?
A normal computer monitor does not have the necessary hardware to be able to detect touches to the screen, so there is no way to make it a touch responsive display through software. The only way to convert a standard PC monitor into a touch screen monitor is to add the necessary touch screen hardware. We have low cost touch screen add-ons that can be mounted onto most monitors, and we also sell fully integrated monitors that have the touch screen hardware built-in.






What Are Touch Screen Used For?

The touch screen is one of the easiest PC interfaces to use, making it the interface of choice for a wide variety of applications. Here are a few examples of how touch input systems are being used today:

Public Information Displays
Information kiosks, tourism displays, trade show displays, and other electronic displays are used by many people that have little or no computing experience. The user-friendly touch screen interface can be less intimidating and easier to use than other input devices, especially for novice users. A touchscreen can help make your information more easily accessible by allowing users to navigate your presentation by simply touching the display screen.


Retail and Restaurant Systems
Time is money, especially in a fast paced retail or restaurant environment. Touchscreen systems are easy to use so employees can get work done faster, and training time can be reduced for new employees. And because input is done right on the screen, valuable counter space can be saved. Touchscreens can be used in cash registers, order entry stations, seating and reservation systems, and more.


Customer Self-Service
In today's fast pace world, waiting in line is one of the things that has yet to speed up. Self-service touch screen terminals can be used to improve customer service at busy stores, fast service restaurants, transportation hubs, and more. Customers can quickly place their own orders or check themselves in or out, saving them time, and decreasing wait times for other customers. Automated bank teller (ATM) and airline e-ticket terminals are examples of self-service stations that can benefit from touchscreen input.


Control and Automation Systems
The touch screen interface is useful in systems ranging from industrial process control to home automation. By integrating the input device with the display, valuable workspace can be saved. And with a graphical interface, operators can monitor and control complex operations in real-time by simply touching the screen.


Computer Based Training
Because the touch screen interface is more user-friendly than other input devices, overall training time for computer novices, and therefore training expense, can be reduced. It can also help to make learning more fun and interactive, which can lead to a more beneficial training experience for both students and educators.


Assistive Technology
The touch screen interface can be beneficial to those that have difficulty using other input devices such as a mouse or keyboard. When used in conjunction with software such as on-screen keyboards, or other assistive technology, they can help make computing resources more available to people that have difficulty using computers.


And many more uses...
The touch screen interface is being used in a wide variety of applications to improve human-computer interaction. Other applications include digital jukeboxes, computerized gaming, student registration systems, multimedia software, financial and scientific applications, and more.





How Does a Touch Screen Work?

A basic touchscreen has three main components: a touch sensor, a controller, and a software driver. The touchscreen is an input device, so it needs to be combined with a display and a PC or other device to make a complete touch input system.



1. Touch Sensor
A touch screen sensor is a clear glass panel with a touch responsive surface. The touch sensor/panel is placed over a display screen so that the responsive area of the panel covers the viewable area of the video screen. There are several different touch sensor technologies on the market today, each using a different method to detect touch input. The sensor generally has an electrical current or signal going through it and touching the screen causes a voltage or signal change. This voltage change is used to determine the location of the touch to the screen.


2. Controller
The controller is a small PC card that connects between the touch sensor and the PC. It takes information from the touch sensor and translates it into information that PC can understand. The controller is usually installed inside the monitor for integrated monitors or it is housed in a plastic case for external touch add-ons/overlays. The controller determines what type of interface/connection you will need on the PC. Integrated touch monitors will have an extra cable connection on the back for the touchscreen. Controllers are available that can connect to a Serial/COM port (PC) or to a USB port (PC or Macintosh). Specialized controllers are also available that work with DVD players and other devices.


3. Software Driver
The driver is a software update for the PC system that allows the touchscreen and computer to work together. It tells the computer's operating system how to interpret the touch event information that is sent from the controller. Most touch screen drivers today are a mouse-emulation type driver. This makes touching the screen the same as clicking your mouse at the same location on the screen. This allows the touchscreen to work with existing software and allows new applications to be developed without the need for touchscreen specific programming. Some equipment such as thin client terminals, DVD players, and specialized computer systems either do not use software drivers or they have their own built-in touch screen driver.



Touchscreens Add-ons and Integrated Touchscreen Monitors

We offer two main types of touchscreen products, touchscreen add-ons and integrated touchscreen monitors. Touchscreen add-ons are touchscreen panels that hang over an existing computer monitor. Integrated touchscreen monitors are computer displays that have the touchscreen built-in. Both product types work in the same way, basically as an input device like a mouse or trackpad.



Touchscreens As Input Device

All of the touchscreens that we offer basically work like a mouse. Once the software driver for the touchscreen is installed, the touchscreen emulates mouse functions. Touching the screen is basically the same as clicking your mouse at the same point at the screen. When you touch the touchscreen, the mouse cursor will move to that point and make a mouse click. You can tap the screen twice to perform a double-click, and you can also drag your finger across the touchscreen to perform drag-and-drops. The touchscreens will normally emulate left mouse clicks. Through software, you can also switch the touchscreen to perform right mouse clicks instead.