Touch screen monitors

A touch screen is a device that allows users to operate a PC by touching the display screen. Touch input is fitting for a wide variety of computing applications. A touch screen can be used with most PC systems as easily as other input devices such as touch pads. Touch screen monitors have grown to be not only highly accessible, but also very convenient.

How does it work?
A touch screen has three main parts: a touch sensor, a controller, and a software driver. The touch screen is an input device, so it needs to be joined with a display and a PC or other device to make a complete touch system. Here are the main functions of the touch sensor, a controller, and software driver:

A touch screen sensor is a clear glass panel with a touch response surface. The touch sensor or panel is placed over a display screen so that the responsive area of the panel covers the viewable area of the screen. There are several different touch sensor technologies on the market and each use a different method to detect touch input.

The controller is a small PC card that connects between the touch sensor and the PC. It takes the information from the touch sensor and translates it into information that the PC can understand.

The driver is a software update for the PC system and it allows the touch screen and computer to work together. It tells the computer's operating system how to interpret the touch information that is sent from the controller.

How do touch-screen monitors know where you're touching?
Touch-screen monitors seem to be very intelligent and have a mind of their own, but there are systems in place to know when they are being accessed. There are three systems that are used to recognize a person's touch: Resistive, Capacitive and Surface acoustic wave.

The resistive system is a glass panel that is covered with a conductive and a resistive metallic layer. These two layers are held apart by spacers, and a scratch resistant layer is placed on top of it. An electrical current runs through the two layers while the monitor is operating. When a user touches the screen, the two layers make contact in that exact spot. The point of contact is then read by the computer.

The capacitive system is a layer that stores electrical charge. It is placed on the glass panel of the monitor. When a user touches the monitor some of the charge is transferred to the user, so the charge on the capacitive layer decreases. This decrease in the charge is measured in circuits located at each corner of the monitor. The computer calculates the differences in charge at each corner, exactly where the touch event took place and then relays that information to the touch screen driver software

On the monitor of the surface acoustic wave system there are two transducers. One of the transducer receives and one sends. They are placed along the x and y axes of the monitor's glass plate. Reflectors are also placed on the glass and they reflect an electrical signal sent from one transducer to the other. The wave doesn't have any metallic layers so it allows for 100 percent light to shine through and puts out perfect image clarity.

What are touch screens used for?

• Customer self service


• Control and automation systems


• Public information


• Retail and restaurant systems


• Computer training


• Other resources

• A touch screen overlay or add-ons for PC monitors and notebooks


• Monitors with a built in touch screen


• Information kiosks


• Monitors with built in touch screens for Video and DVD systems


• Custom touch screen and display systems

Touch screens are becoming more and more popular. They can easily make any business run smoother. The convenience and easy use of these machines make them highly in demand. The best part about these machines is that anyone with or without any computer experience can use them. Whether you are shopping for a touch screen for your office or are just looking at how you can use a touch screen, take the time to research these products, you'll be surprised at how much you can benefit from them.