PRODUCTS & SERVICES
ENOVATION CONTROLS
RECENT ADVANCES IN GLASS, TOUCH SENSORS AND ENGINEERING HAVE ALL
CONTRIBUTED TO TOUCHSCREENS THAT ARE STRONG, EASY-TO-USE AND RELIABLE
FREE READER ENQUIRY SERVICE
To learn more about this advertiser, visit
www.magupdate.co.uk/pivt
Advanced Lift-truck Technology International 2019 61
Glass-panel touchscreen displays are one of the
hottest trends in human-machine interface (HMI)
displays, but are glass screens ready for rugged
applications? The simple answer is yes.
Glass is an obvious choice of material for an HMI
display cover, due to its transparency, smooth surface
and excellent heat resistance. Contrary to popular
belief, glass screens are quite strong and can thrive
when used in rugged outdoor conditions better than
most alternatives when continually exposed to humidity,
heat, snow, ice and other severe climate conditions.
Other display surfaces don’t always hold up in rugged
conditions and degrade over time. The excellent
conductive nature of glass also offers better touch
sensor performance and scratch resistance than most
plastic screens. Meanwhile, modern glass
manufacturers are shattering the myth that glass is
fragile. Chemical strengthening can reduce impact- and
scratch-related damage, as well as increasing bending
strength. Synthetically produced glass options, such as
sapphire glass, while expensive, are also extremely
rugged while still being highly transparent.
Touch is smart
These new glass screens are arriving at the same
time most OEMs are reaching a crossroads. For
decades, most equipment interfaces consisted of
buttons, knobs and resistive touch solutions. All
three options worked well for gloved hands, but also
imposed strict limitations for how the interface could
be used. Resistive touchscreens, for example, rely
on pressure and can only handle one touch point at
a time. Now, with strong influence from smartphones
and tablets, many equipment manufacturers are
switching their touchscreens to projected capacitance
(PCAP) technology.
PCAP touch sensors are not pressure-based, which
means that glass can be used as the top layer of the
screen. Instead of pressure, the touch location’s
coordinates are triangulated by sensing the
electromagnetic field of an object (like a finger) with
layers of invisible conducting material between the
display’s cover glass and LCD. PCAP sensors can
process multiple touchpoints simultaneously and can
also handle multitouch gestures, such as two-finger
zoom and swiping motions commonly used with
smartphones and tablets. Another benefit of PCAP is its
capability of building larger and uniquely-shaped
screens, including round or flexible displays.
Engineering to improve
Historically, capacitive touchscreens have been prone to
false touches or lock-ups when water or other types of
liquid are on the screen or on the user’s fingers. So why
are HMI display manufacturers still switching to PCAP?
Improved engineering of the PCAP hardware and
software now make it possible to detect touch events
even when an operator’s hand is gloved, wet or both.
Glove-touch and water immunity can be achieved
because PCAP panels must be precisely tuned to each
touch sensor design and they are optimized for a
specific display panel and product application.
With these latest technologies, modern industrialgrade
glass-front displays offer vast improvements over
previous generation interfaces. To help OEMs implement
these technologies, HMI display manufacturers like
Enovation Controls have created solutions that reduce
the engineering burden and de-risk development.
Murphy PowerView glass-front displays, developed
by Enovation Controls, were designed to give OEMs a
simple and effective option to bring these advancements
to their applications. In addition to using strong,
scratch-resistant glass, Enovation Controls uses glass
that is acid etched and has anti-glare and low-gloss
properties. Glare on a glossy display can cause undue
eyestrain and fatigue, but the anti-glare glass used in
PowerView glass-front displays diffuses reflections so
operators can focus on the screen without difficulty.
Anti-glare glass, combined with the display’s highbrightness
LCD, make it possible to view and use
PowerView glass-front displays in full sunlight.
Murphy PowerView glass-front displays come in a
variety of display sizes and orientations and offer glovefriendly
or non-touchscreen options to suit the needs of
any OEM application. The PowerView family of displays
also come equipped with a high-performance processor
to deliver seamless full-color graphics, animations and
video playback for a rich user experience.
Finding the right glass-front HMI display partner is
not just important for solving hardware needs, but also
the user experience needs in the HMI’s software.
Partners like Enovation Controls clear a path for their
customers by immersing themselves in their customer’s
world to deliver integrated solutions. With deep
software and application engineering expertise,
Enovation Controls routinely delivers turnkey software
and hardware packages for its OEM partners.
With the barriers in glass, touch technology
and engineering removed, industrial OEMs now
have more options than ever to implement the user
interface experience operators demand from their
consumer counterparts. ALT
Author: Cody Bromley, manager of digital marketing,
Enovation Controls
Super screens
The PowerView 500 (BELOW LEFT) and
PowerView 700 (RIGHT) displays are
available with rugged touchscreens and
work with gloved hands
/pivt