Toucscreen specialist Getac claims to have perfected a capacitive-style multi-touch display which can be used without skin contact in the same way as an older resistive display - offering the best of both worlds.
As reported over on TechRadar, the displays - which will see their first outing in the company's V100 range of ruggedised tablet PCs - have full multi-touch capability including gesture support, but don't require contact with the user's bare skin.
The main reason for its development is for use in cold weather environments - one of the many places its customers are likely to take a ruggedised machine - so that the device can be fully operated without needing to remove gloves. Peter Molyneux, the company's business development director, described the screens as offering "touch screen technology and flick gestures [that] are faster, safer, and more convenient than using a keypad" in "some of the most extreme environments and weather conditions."
The technology offers up other possibilities beyond that of cold-weather computing: with the ability to operate a multi-touch display whilst wearing gloves, the company is likely to get interest from the medical community and sensitive manufacturing industry - both areas where protective clothing is a must but computing devices need to be operated.
The rugged version of the display included with the company's V100 tablet features a 2048x2048 resolution, 35ms touch response time, and a report rate of 100 points per second - which should translate into a responsive screen even in the harshest of conditions.
Does the idea of a multi-touch enabled display that works with gloves fill you with joy, or will the technology remain purely a novelty for specialist uses like rugged tablets? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
As reported over on TechRadar, the displays - which will see their first outing in the company's V100 range of ruggedised tablet PCs - have full multi-touch capability including gesture support, but don't require contact with the user's bare skin.
The main reason for its development is for use in cold weather environments - one of the many places its customers are likely to take a ruggedised machine - so that the device can be fully operated without needing to remove gloves. Peter Molyneux, the company's business development director, described the screens as offering "touch screen technology and flick gestures [that] are faster, safer, and more convenient than using a keypad" in "some of the most extreme environments and weather conditions."
The technology offers up other possibilities beyond that of cold-weather computing: with the ability to operate a multi-touch display whilst wearing gloves, the company is likely to get interest from the medical community and sensitive manufacturing industry - both areas where protective clothing is a must but computing devices need to be operated.
The rugged version of the display included with the company's V100 tablet features a 2048x2048 resolution, 35ms touch response time, and a report rate of 100 points per second - which should translate into a responsive screen even in the harshest of conditions.
Does the idea of a multi-touch enabled display that works with gloves fill you with joy, or will the technology remain purely a novelty for specialist uses like rugged tablets? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
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