Touchscreen Computers – Touching on a Future of Self-Service
Over the last couple decades, self service technologies have revolutionized how people conduct business, travel and even receive healthcare services.These technologies have vastly improved efficiency through increased control over service delivery, convenience, reduction in wait time, reduction in operating costs, and flexibility in use. At many restaurants, dozens of flavors of sodas can be mixed and dispensed at the touch of a screen, and ordering one’s own food on tablets is an increasingly popular trend. Shopping malls and corporate offices provide interactive directories to its visitors, and it is nearly impossible to encounter any ticketing area of an airport that is not brimming with touchscreen kiosks for checking in and getting flight information. Self-service touchscreen computers are appearing in hospitals in great numbers as well. Patients are checking into their appointments without the help of medical administrators which is streamlining administrative tasks like hospital registration and payments.
Touchscreen computer technology is widely available and the demand for it is extremely apparent, but how durable are these machines that are abused on a daily basis? After all, a solution is only effective if it is reliable. Luckily, industrial touchscreen computers like the ones offered by Tangent benefit from a durable and rigorously tested construction. Tangent’s S Series of 15″, 19″, and 22″ touchscreen computers are assembled with rugged, stainless steel housing that offers a corrosion resistant surface. The standard casing is IP66/NEMA 4x rated, which means the enclosure is constructed for either indoor or outdoor use and provides a degree of protection against dirt, rain, snow, windblown dust, splashing water, hose-directed water, and corrosion. The S series also has an optional IP69K rated enclosure which means that high pressure and high temperature washdown can be used to sanitize the equipment. Of course this is likely overkill for most applications, but it’s nice to know the equipment can handily be subjected to such a powerful scrub and high heat without experiencing any damage.
One of the better advancements in touchscreen technology is Projected Capacitive Touch, also known as PCAP. The first capacitive touchscreen required a bare finger to use and could not allow for multi-touch, but now PCAP touchscreens offer high precision multi-touch functionality and high response speed. They also work when operated by a hand covered in surgical gloves or other thin gloves, which is essential in a hospital or industrial settings. The S series offers this PCAP as an option on all sizes of their touchscreen PCs. And like with many of Tangent’s industrial products, the unit is rated for shock protection and has a fanless design for extreme reliability, and noise-free operation. For an added measure of autonomy and utility, the S series can be equipped with Intel Wireless AC-7260 & Bluetooth for a relatively wire-free system. The efficiencies that touchscreen computers provide are nearly boundless, and with such reliable systems available, companies are able to utilize them to their full potential.