Touchscreen Monitors Explained - Kiosk Industry

Oct. 21, 2024

Touchscreen Monitors Explained - Kiosk Industry

Touchscreen Monitor Providers

The interactive screen or touchscreen monitor display serves as the primary interface for self-service kiosks. At one point, it was considered an optional feature; now, it is almost a necessity, although some keyboard applications still exist.

Many providers claim to be the largest in the market. In our view, the biggest glass providers are BOE in China, along with LG and Samsung (the latter two source glass from BOE). You can find very low-priced touchscreens from Chinese manufacturers, with 98% using the aforementioned glass.

The leading touch technologies include projected capacitive, analog resistive, surface capacitive, infrared (IR), and surface acoustic wave (SAW). Notably, SAW, projected capacitive, and analog resistive account for 90% of the total market. Recently, contactless touchscreens have emerged as a new option. Additionally, many suppliers offer touch overlays that can be applied separately to displays, a common solution for larger screens, such as those using IR technology. TSI Displays is one such supplier.

Here are some variations of touchscreen monitors:

Open frame - integrated into a kiosk
Desktop - featuring a bezel and often mounted at the rear
AIO configuration - contains either Android or Windows embedded computers (and can be Linux)
Size classes:
- 19-inch 4:3 used to be the standard (most economical)
- Current standards are 22 or 24 inches
- Larger models for wayfinding range from 32 to 55 inches
- In classrooms and specialized settings, sizes are between 75 and 85 inches
Choose between portrait or landscape orientation
New technologies like curved touchscreens haven't gained significant traction
Pyramid introduced the first transparent OLED touchscreen for fast-casual ordering

Touchscreen Monitor Providers

Elo - offers a popular selection of interactive touchscreen displays from 7 to 65 inches, all-in-one touchscreen computers, OEM touchscreens, and touchscreen controllers.
LG-MRI - specializes in large outdoor formats
Peerless-AV - large outdoor formats
Keyser - large outdoor formats
Insight Touch - products range from 10 to 98 inches, customized, and supported in the US.
- Touch Screen Monitor - Interactive Touch Tablet from 55 to 98 inches
TDS TOUCH - offers touchscreens of all technologies and designs
More touchscreen monitor providers include:
- TSI Displays - specializes in overlays for large format screens, similar to Zytronic.
- Others include AUO, Touch International, etc.
- Anti-glare and super vandal-resistant options available for corrections
- Various anti-microbial treatments, but ultimately soap and water is the best solution for cleaning
- Don't forget to clean your mobile device, as it likely harbors more germs than your toilet.
- Outdoor and indoor monitors come with different ratings (e.g., IP67)

Best Interactive Touch Screen Software

Interactive Touch Screen Kiosk Technology

5-Wire Resistive Touchscreen

This technology has been the most widely used and is known for its durability, operating under extreme conditions. A resistive touchscreen monitor consists of a glass panel and a film screen, each coated with a thin metallic layer separated by a narrow gap. When a user touches the screen, the metallic layers make contact, producing an electrical flow that detects the point of contact through a change in voltage.

SAW (Surface Acoustic Wave) Touchscreen

19-inch touch screens utilize a series of piezoelectric transducers and receivers located along the edges of the monitor's glass plate. This setup creates an invisible grid of ultrasonic waves on the surface. When touched, a portion of the wave is absorbed, allowing the receiving transducer to identify the touch point and transmit this information to the computer. SAW monitors can be activated by a finger, gloved hand, or a soft-tip stylus, offering ease of use and high visibility.

Projected Capacitive Touchscreen - Large Touchscreens

Similar to surface capacitive technology, projected capacitive touchscreens have two significant advantages: they can respond to a bare finger, surgical gloves, or thin cotton gloves; and they allow for multi-touch activation (simultaneous input from two fingers). This technology consists of a glass sheet with embedded transparent electrode films and an IC chip, forming a three-dimensional electrostatic field. When a finger touches the screen, the electrical currents' ratios shift, enabling the computer to detect touch points.

With competitive pricing and timely delivery, IRTOUCH sincerely hopes to be your supplier and partner.

Surface Capacitive Touchscreen Technology

Surface capacitive (s-cap) technology is decreasing in usage and is mainly found in legacy gaming and amusement machines. One advantage is that its optical qualities are comparable to those of projected capacitive technology, and the size of the sensors can be larger.

Infrared Touchscreen

Infrared monitors do not have an additional screen overlay. They utilize IR emitters and receivers to create an invisible grid of light beams across the screen. This ensures optimal image quality, and when an object interrupts the infrared beam, the sensors can identify the touch point.

Contactless Touchscreen

Contactless options are available. See our brief on Touchless Touchscreens.

More Info on Touchscreen Displays

Gary Barnett's write-up on touch screens
Touch Screen Tech Comparison by Elo
Planar comparison
Planar touch technology PDF - How they work
Touch Systems comparison - link
Elo comparison
TRu comparison of touchscreens
Handbook of Visual Display Technology by Robert Phares - [link]
Bill Buxton's principal research at Microsoft on multi-touch technology - [link] [PDF Buxton]
Wikipedia entry on Multitouch - [link]

Surface Mount, Rear Projection, Specialty, Tabletops, and More for Touchscreens

Perch Interactive
SpyeGlass (rear projection)
Brookview Technologies
VisualPlanet.biz based in the UK
Ideum - featured 3M tabletop at 46 inches at DSE

Touchscreen Monitors Explained - Kiosk Industry