Controller supports up to 40 simultaneous touch points

Connecting with the p-cap touch sensor via several flex tails or FPCBs, the controller runs off a standard 12V supply and comes in a 219 x 92mm footprint. At the core of the controller is a 32-bit ARM Cortex microprocessor core containing Zytronic’s specially developed touch detection and processing firmware. The integarted complex touch detection algorithms double the number of touch detecting channels that can be supported to 256, compared with 128 for the standard ZXY200 multi-touch controller (mainly aimed at smaller screens). Therefore, the capacitive sensing matrix within the touch sensor is denser, which in turn makes it possible to determine the positions of individual simultaneous touch events to far greater precision, even on the largest MPCT-based touchscreens of 84-inches.

The controller has the capacity to support up to 40 simultaneous touch points being resolved with touch separation of <10mm between each point (i.e. less than the width of a fingertip). Furthermore, thanks to the firmware specifically developed for the ZXY300, the additional data that needs to be captured to achieve this level of performance can still be gathered, processed and output to the host PC in less than 10ms.

FCC and CE approved, the controller features an operational temperature range covering -40°C to +85°C which allows for touchscreen deployments in harsh environments. The device has ‘native’ plug-and-play support for the Windows 7 and Windows 8 operating systems, as well as the latest Linux variants (kernel version >= 3.5.1). In order to boost Linux touchscreen performance, Zytronic offers additional driver source code/tools that can be used to provide touch calibration. Also offered is a free ZyConfig software utility aimed at basic users. The software provides a simple set-up of the integrated multi-touch screen in a matter of minutes but also gives more advanced users direct access to the ZXY300 controller configuration for fine tuning.

When used in conjunction with MPCT multi-touch sensors, the ZXY300 is suited to a variety of applications where multi-touch precision is of prime importance, even on the largest displays. These include multi-player casino gaming tables, the latest interactive exhibits in museums, multi-user design/architectural workstations, cataloguing and EPOS tables in retail outlets, car showrooms and bank branches, as well as command/control systems in utility companies, petrochemical facilities and military headquarters.

“One of the key aims for Zytronic is to introduce sophisticated technology that is intuitive to use and will assist in the creation of outstanding touch-enabled systems and lead to enriched user experiences. Thanks to our strong engineering team, we plan to continuously innovate and improve the touch controllers supporting our range of PCT™ and MPCT™ products,” remarks Ian Crosby, Sales & Marketing Director at Zytronic. “Through these solutions operational effectiveness can be significantly improved and the scope of activities that can be undertaken expanded. The heightened resolution delivered by the ZXY300 will prove of major benefit to a broad selection of applications using large format, multi-touch screens. Anywhere that will need the annotating, sharing or presenting of information, or moving assets around, is likely to gain from this innovation.”