Touch screens, available from POSmarket.com.au are computer display units that are sensitive to human touch. The user can interact with the computer by touching pictures and words on the screen instead of inputting data using mouse or keyboards. Touch screens are connected to the PC using a serial port or USB type connection, making it possible to simultaneously use a mouse and keyboard with the touch screen. Depending on the type of touch screen, the user can use a mouse or other pointing device on the touch screen. Touch screens can be used to browse the internet and to design custom programs and applications.
Five types of touchscreens have been formulated based on technology. These are:
- Resistive touch screens- These touch screens are divided into resistive 4, 5 and 8 wire technology. The resistive 4 wire touch screen is the better option for low cost applications while the resistive 8 wire touch screen is the best choice for applications requiring accuracy.
- Capacitive touch screens- This particular touch screen is formulated in glass and has a double side transparent conductive coating that works with electrode patterns.
- Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW)-These touch screens can be used wearing gloves as they don’t offer any hindrance to its operation or get affected by stray touches. There are no overlays on this touch screen to diminish the image or it's bright quality.
- Infrared screens- These touch screens are similar to resistive screens. However here, there is a chance of dirt, flies or other objects blocking the light emitting and receiving apertures.
- Strain gauge touch screen.
All touch screen kits include a touch screen panel that is attached external to the monitor, software driver that translates touch events on the screen into mouse events and a controller that processes the signals while sending data to the processor. Software drivers of touch screens can be used on both Windows and Macintosh operating systems. There are also internal touch screen kits available; however they have to be professionally installed in the monitor.