What is touch screen?

The touch screen is also called touch-controlled screen, touch panel, or TP for short. In simple terms, it is an inductive display device that can access input signals such as contacts. As a newest computer input device, touch screen is currently the simplest, most convenient and natural way of human-machine interaction. Touch screens can be used in all electronic devices, which give modern scientific and technological life a brand-new look, and are very attractive new multimedia interactive devices.

What are the common types of touch screens

The first type is the infrared touch screen(IR touch screen).

The infrared touch screen uses the infrared matrix densely distributed in the X and Y directions to detect and locate the user's touch. The infrared touch screen is equipped with a circuit board outer frame in front of the display, and the circuit board is arranged with infrared emitting tubes and infrared receiving tubes on the four sides of the screen, corresponding to one by one into a horizontal and vertical cross infrared matrix. When the user touches the screen, the finger will block the two infrared rays which pass through the position. Based on this, the position of the touch point on the screen can be determined.

The second type is the surface acoustic wave touch screen(SAW touch screen).

Surface acoustic waves(SAW) are mechanical waves that propagate along the surface of a medium. This kind of touch screen consists of a touch screen, a sound wave generator, a reflector and a sound wave receiver. The sound wave generator can send a high-frequency sound wave across the surface of the screen. When a finger touches the screen, the sound wave on the contact is blocked. In this way, the coordinate position can be located.

The third type is the resistive touch screen

It uses two layers of conductive ITO plastic film, the two pieces of ITO are provided with particle fulcrums, so that when the screen is not pressed, there is a gap between the two ITO layers, and it is in a non-conductive state.

When the operator presses the screen with a fingertip or pen tip, the pressure will make the film concave, and the two ITO layers will contact and be conductive due to deformation, and then the corresponding pressure point can be calculated by detecting the changes in the X-axis and Y-axis voltage to achieve touch processing mechanism of the screen.

At present, there are multiple types of resistive touch screens such as 4-wire, 5-wire, 6-wire, and 8-wire. The more the number of lines, the higher the precision of detection, but the higher the cost.

The fourth type is the capacitive touch screen

Capacitive touch screens are divided into two categories

1. Surface capacitive touch screen

It consist of a common ITO layer and a metal frame, when a finger touches the screen, charges are released from the panel. Sensing is done at the four corners of the touch screen, no complicated IT is required.

Surface capacitive touch screens are characterized by long service life and high light transmittance. At present, they are mainly used in large-size outdoor touch screens, such as public information platforms and public service platforms.

2. Projective capacitive touch screen

The projective capacitive touch screen uses the electrostatic field lines emitted by the electrodes of the touch screen for sensing. The projective capacitive sensing technology can be divided into two types: self-capacitance and interactive capacitance.

Self-capacitance is also called absolute capacitance. It takes the sensed object as the other plate of the capacitor. The object induces charge between the sensing electrode and the sensed electrode, and the position is determined by detecting the change of the coupling capacitance.

Mutual capacitance is also called spanning capacitance. It is the capacitance generated by the coupling of adjacent electrodes. When the sensed object approaches the electric field line from one electrode to another, the change of the mutual capacitance will be felt. When the horizontal electrodes sequentially emit excitation signals, all the vertical electrodes receive the signals at the same time, so that the capacitance value of the intersection of all the horizontal and vertical electrodes, that is, the capacitance of the two-dimensional plane of the entire touch screen can be obtained.

Where is the touch screen applied

The touch screen can be used everywhere,

For example, portable devices, including: mobile phone, Pocket PC, E-book, Web Pad, translator, Tablet PC, etc.

Such as information appliances, including: refrigerator, microwave oven, coffee machine, washing machine, LCD TV

Such as public information system equipment, including: ATM, public inquiry machine (Kiosk), automatic ticket vending machine, digital photo printing system, video telephone

Such as communication equipment, including: Smart phone, Internet TV, STB, GPS

Such as office automation equipment, including: copier, punch cards, word processors, electronic touch whiteboard

Such as information mobile phone equipment, including: POI, POS information inquiry machine

For example, game equipment, including: gambling, game center

Nowadays, more and more electronic devices are equipped with touch screens, because touch makes life better.

Which touch screen is the most commonly used?

Projective capacitive touch screen is now the most widely applied and most commonly used touch screen, and it is also one of the core of Top One Tech’ s main business. Top One Tech has more than ten years of touch screen manufacturing experience. The open frame touch screens, touch monitors, touch all-in-one computers are sold well in more than 30 countries and regions in Europe, America, South America, Southeast Asia, etc., and are well received by customers.

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