Zytronic and NUITEQ cooperate on multi-touch PCT™-based touchscreen solution

NUITEQ’s clients include several Fortune 100 companies, as well as government organisations and academic establishments. Functioning as a layer on top of the Microsoft Windows® 7 operating system, the Snowflake Suite enables dual/multi-touch functionality to be brought to large format touchscreen/display assemblies for gaming systems, media viewers, presentation/educational equipment, architectural design tools, and information systems in retail outlets, public spaces or transport hubs. It is made up of over 20 different multi-touch application building blocks, along with an application programmable interface and software development kit. The blocks, which vary from 3D model viewers to slot machine mechanisms, from map readers to musical instruments, facilitate quick and easy implementation of advanced multi-touch functions. Thanks to the success of the Snowflake Suite, earlier this year NUITEQ featured in the prestigious Red Herring Europe 100 - a list of the continent’s most promising technology start ups.

“Multi-touch is destined to bring about a whole new era of human-computer interaction with more intuitive operation being enabled. Use of fingers to create several touch points on a screen will greatly enhance manipulation of digital content and result in improved user experiences,” states Harry van der Veen, CEO and founder of NUITEQ. “Collaborating with Zytronic opens up further business opportunities for us. The high level of durability and the strong performance of its touch hardware will allow a greater breadth of market verticals to be addressed.”

“This is a mutually beneficial endorsement for both parties, as our respective products complement each other very well - with Zytronic offering ruggedised and customisable touchscreen technology for a wide range of public use and self service applications and NUITEQ furnishing clients with a sophisticated, configurable software package, designed specifically for multi-touch interactivity” adds Ian Crosby, Zytronic’s Sales and Marketing Director. “Over the last six months our engineering teams have been working closely together ensure that our full range of touch sensors, including ZYBRID® and ZYPROFILM® when coupled with the newly released ZXY100 dual touch capable touch controllers, are able to dovetail together with the Snowflake software.”

The PCT-based touch sensors manufactured by Zytronic utilize patented technology to differentiate themselves from more traditional approaches using front-facing sensors, such as resistive or surface capacitive. The PCT sensor structure is made up of a matrix of micro-fine capacitor elements embedded into a laminated substrate and placed behind a thick protective overlay. It means the resultant touchscreen is not affected by scratches, shock, dirt build up, extremes of heat, harsh chemicals, liquid ingress, or other factors that could shorten its operational lifespan. As a consequence these sensors are well suited to highly demanding application areas, such as public information systems, point of sales units, industrial controls and digital signage equipment. Also touchscreens that employ PCT do not need inclusion of a bezel in which to house the sensors – something that is mandatory for infrared (IR) or surface acoustic wave (SAW) based touch sensing arrangements. Thus more attractive, smooth-fronted system designs can be created.