Archive notice: This article was originally published on October 30, 2008. Links and embedded videos are preserved as part of the historical record.
Wacom will shortly introduce a new line of surface-capacitive touchscreen components whose performance is significantly improved over currently available standard products. Called CapPLUS, the line is based on Wacom’s patent-pending Reversing Ramped Field Capacitive (RRFC) technology, which was first presented at the International Society for Information Display (SID) trade show in May 2008. CapPLUS sets new standards in performance and stability and is aimed at OEM manufacturers of desktop monitors and technical equipment for vertical markets. These include suppliers of gaming machines for casinos and bars and PoS terminals used in retail, lottery outlets, hotels and restaurants; manufacturers of all types of self-service kiosks; suppliers of solutions for digital signage, hospital patient monitoring and bedside multimedia stations; and manufacturers of solutions for industrial process automation and compact panel PCs.
CapPLUS provides a cost-effective, standalone solution for all devices based on touchscreen technology and can also be combined with Wacom’s market-leading EMR pen technology or other input solutions to give users entirely new input options.
“Standardized touchscreen elements will open up new growth opportunities for Wacom and clearly position Wacom in the high-end segment of the global touchscreen industry—a sector estimated to generate more than US$400 million annually,” says Masahiko Yamada, President and CEO of Wacom Company Ltd. “With CapPLUS, we reaffirm our ambition to become one of the leading global providers of natural and intuitive interface solutions.”
Capacitive Touch Technology with Improved Characteristics
The surface-capacitive touch technologies widely used today offer greater sensitivity and durability as well as better optical properties than resistive touch technologies. Compared with acoustic and infrared touch technologies, they have faster response times and greater resistance to liquids. Nevertheless, depending on the application, they suffer from a number of drawbacks. These include calibration drift, sensitivity to environmental influences such as electromagnetic interference, inadequate accuracy in corners and edge areas, unevenness when drawing lines, and problems near metal housings and bezels or when a user touches the metal housing and touchscreen simultaneously. Conventional surface-capacitive touch technology also does not work without a reliable grounded power supply or when the user is wearing gloves.
CapPLUS offers all the advantages of modern surface-capacitive touch technologies while solving all of these problems. Wacom’s RRFC technology was developed specifically for use in portable, battery-powered and ungrounded devices. CapPLUS packages RRFC technology in a standardized format that OEMs, monitor manufacturers and resellers can use. CapPLUS operates without drift and remains stable and linear even at the edges; it is rugged and durable and can be sealed optimally. CapPLUS enables users to draw straighter lines than any other touchscreen technology. It is also unaffected by fluctuations in temperature and humidity, is not impaired by water on the screen, and offers significantly greater resistance to electromagnetic interference, unstable grounding and nearby metal parts. The technology also works through surgical gloves and the polypropylene gloves used in food preparation.
“It is rare for the touchscreen industry to achieve decisive advances and improvements based on an established technology. Surface-capacitive touch technologies have been on the market for more than 20 years without any significant improvement in performance,” says Stephan Herron, Director Component Sales EMEA at Wacom Europe GmbH. “Wacom CapPLUS is aimed at manufacturers that already use surface-capacitive touch technology and want to improve its performance without accepting additional costs or giving up global support. CapPLUS will open up new markets for surface-capacitive touch technology—particularly in medicine, industry, food sales at POS terminals and digital signage. CapPLUS is also an excellent solution from an experienced PC-industry supplier for the growing demand for touchscreens in desktop monitors for home and office use and in compact all-in-one PCs.”
Wacom CapPLUS standard sensor glass is manufactured to proprietary specifications featuring special electrode patterns around the edges, an exceptionally rugged cable connection (“tail”) and a particularly thick, durable surface coating. Every CapPLUS sensor also includes rear ITO shielding and thereby achieves light transmission of more than 91%. The standard USB and serial controller and CapPLUS-line firmware support all monitor sizes up to 32 inches with different glass thicknesses.
Custom Touchscreen Components for Every Requirement
The Wacom RRFC Touch Development Center in Austin, Texas, is fully equipped for prototype development and employs experienced engineers specializing in touchscreens. Custom electronics and firmware configurations enable a range of formats limited only by the availability of high-quality ITO-coated substrate glass sheets. Even a 46-inch format has already been tested successfully. Further services from Wacom’s engineering team include developing especially durable surface finishes, particularly robust coatings, equipping sensors with additional layers such as borders and EMI filters, and producing smooth, completely edge-free surfaces. In this way, Wacom meets the needs of today’s industrial design that cannot be served satisfactorily by conventional acoustic, optical, infrared and surface-capacitive touchscreen technologies.
Wacom Components Sales Support is available worldwide, with dedicated teams in the USA, Asia and Europe and particularly large teams in Taiwan and China. The teams can draw on extensive experience, especially in OEM/ODM and supply chains.
