NLT'S NEWLY-DEVELOPED "WET & GLOVE" TECHNOLOGY KEEPS TOUCH PANELS FUNCTIONAL EVEN WHEN THE SCREEN IS WET AND THE OPERATOR IS WEARING GLOVES
EXTENDS THE SCOPE OF APPLICATIONS FOR PCAP TOUCH PANELS
For immediate use Oct 6, 2014
NLT Technologies, Ltd.
KAWASAKI, JAPAN, October 6, 2014 --- NTL Technologies, Ltd. (NLT, President: Susumi Ohi; Head office: Kawasaki, Kanagawa) has developed "Wet & Glove" technology enabling projected capacitive (PCAP) touch panels to be operated even when the screen is wet and the operator is wearing gloves simultaneously.
The main features of the new touch panel technology are as follows.
- Combination of two detection methods
Touch coordinates are detected using a combination of mutual-capacitance and self-capacitance sensors. This enables the touch position to be detected with high precision even when the screen is wet and the user is wearing gloves, and means the panel can also support multi-touch functionality and gesture operation. - Proprietary sensitivity adjustment tool enables operation while wearing thick gloves
Thanks to sensitivity adjustment using a proprietary touch panel controller developed by NLT, the panel can be used even by a user wearing thick gloves. Even when the screen is wet, and the user is wearing gloves 2 mm thick, accurate position detection is still possible. - Wide variety of design specifications accommodated
Wet & Glove touch technology also supports various design options such as bonding method or surface film, like all PCAP products NLT offers. Treatments to protect against fingerprints or reduce glare, for example, are accommodated, so end-product designers can set specifications to suit a broad range of usage scenarios.
PCAP touch panels are now being adopted in a rapidly expanding range of industrial equipment for their superior feature such as flush surface designs, multi-touch functionality and gesture operation. This trend is particularly marked in devices for use in special environments - such as outdoor equipment or medical equipment used on board ships, for example - where the touch panel could easily get wet or have medicines and other liquids spilled on it, and might need to be operated by someone wearing gloves. However, these conditions would pose a problem for the position detection method used in conventional PCAP touch panels, which cannot function properly when used by a gloved user while the screen is wet.
Although two position detection methods - self-capacitance and mutual-capacitance - are available for use in PCAP touch panels, the one typically used in conventional models is the mutual-capacitance method, which supports multi-touch functionality. However, with this method the detection capacitance changes when drops of water come in contact with the screen, so position detection becomes less precise when the screen is wet, and furthermore, when the operator is wearing thick gloves, detection sensitivity decreases. By contrast, the self-capacitance method is not affected by the change in capacitance caused by water drops, so high precision detection is still possible when the screen is wet; however, supporting multi-touch functionality presents a problem.
Through integrated factory production, NLT Technologies is a one-stop shop providing high quality LCD modules with PCAP for the industrial market. By meeting market demands under the rigorous conditions imposed by industrial and medical usage scenarios, NLT's new Wet & Glove technology will help to broaden the scope of applications for PCAP touch panels, as well as adding higher value to customer applications.
The prototype of the LCD module that applied new Wet & Glove technology will be showcased at CEATEC Japan 2014, October 7–11, and electronica 2014 in Germany, November 11–14.
The press release and other information in this file may be out of date on observation.