Data Modul: Advanced Display and Touch Solutions for Embedded Systems
Messe.TV presenter Klas Bömecke visits the DATA MODUL stand at embedded world in Nuremberg. The company will be presenting innovations in the "Display Solutions" area. Industrial users place high demands here, as the products must be able to cope with the often harsh conditions of everyday life and the computing power behind the façade must also be enormous. We are excited to see what awaits us!
Display solutions made in Germany
Data Modul is a major German provider of display solutions. Not only are they showing really interesting innovations here at the trade fair in terms of the display itself, but the Data Modul people also take care of the computing power in the background and the whole thing is Made in Germany.
Klas Bömecke: This thing really overturns a lot of what I previously thought about screens. It's a high-resolution TFT display which is also transparent (Klas Bömecke knocks against the display) and it's also stable, a real highlight Mr. Hell at the Data Modul. Markus Hell: That's right. This transparent 55-inch Full HD panel is based on OLED technology. The special feature - as the name suggests - is that even black content is displayed transparently. Klas Bömecke: Yes, who needs something like that? Markus Hell: This TFT or OLED comes from consumer electronics and is becoming more and more popular in the industry. Klas Bömecke: You have a very special way of producing your displays, right? Do you marry any layers? Markus Hell: Exactly, in order to protect the TFT from external applications (Mr. Hell bangs his elbow against the display) You have already shown it before, we have the possibility to bond protective glass to the TFT over the entire surface, the so-called optical bonding. Klas Bömecke: So far there has been a layer of air in between, or what? Markus Hell: Exactly. As a rule, we also work with adhesive tapes where there is an air layer in between - with this optical bonding we eliminate this air layer and the optical brilliance is improved as a result. Klas Bömecke: So in the end I see more because I have less - namely no air layer. Markus Hell: Exactly right. Klas Bömecke: Okay. Now, of course, what the Bavarian calls "I like to touch it" always counts with displays, which is why we have a touch display (editor's note: Klas Bömecke is pleased with his own joke) I think we have one of those here? Markus Hell: Exactly. Klas Bömecke: What's so special about it? Many manufacturers have them.
Touch screen with SITO single sided ITO sensor
Markus Hell: That's right. Our solution - our in-house developed solution, I have to say - is based on Atmel controllers. We are an Atmel module partner and can support the customer down to the last detail with so-called 'projective capacity' solutions - in other words, an electric field spreads through the cover glass, through the protective glass. The special thing about these solutions is that - as the name suggests - you can operate them with several fingers. With us, it's software-controlled up to ten fingers. Klas Bömecke: Wow, okay. The edges seem relatively narrow now. Markus Hell: Exactly, that's a special feature of our touch sensors and is known under the technical term SITO Single Sided ITO Sensor. This SITO sensor is characterized by a photolithography process. This means that the conductor paths around the touch sensor are very, very narrow and the touch panel is no larger than the TFT. Klas Bömecke: When I hold my smartphone in my hand now, I have to touch it with my finger in freezing temperatures, unless I have a special glove. In industry, the problem is often that this is installed on machines where people wear gloves and safety clothing. You've found a solution for that, haven't you? Markus Hell: We have found a solution with our module partner ATMEL. It is even possible to operate this touch sensor with an industrial glove, a conventional industrial glove that you would also find in a DIY store. And with our touch solution, it is still possible to operate the system safely even when wearing thick gloves. Klas Bömecke: And yet it probably has to be particularly resistant if I want to use it in industry?
Display solutions for industrial applications
Markus Hell: That's right. So some of the big challenges with touch systems, especially with PCAP (projected capacitive touchscreen technology) systems, are with liquids. As you mentioned earlier, the system also has to work reliably outdoors in industrial environments, and water is still the biggest obstacle for PCAP systems. Klas Bömecke: Yes, please don't do that to my phone, it will be ruined Markus Hell: Exactly what you see here - the protective glass - protects the system from outdoor applications. What's more - what must not happen with water - is false triggering. You can see here that no touch event is ghost-touched, so no false triggering. But what is also important for industrial applications is that the system can still be operated safely despite the water film and that the system can continue to operate without any faults. Klas Bömecke: So this touch display recognizes the difference between a drop of water and a fingertip? Markus Hell: And your glove, right! Klas Bömecke now meets Mr. Markus Mahl / Head of Product Marketing Klas Bömecke: Mr. Mahl, you are a bit responsible for what happens in the background. So the computer units behind these TFT displays? What's that fancy stuff? Markus Mahl: This one in particular is our latest Braswell module, latest generation Atom, specially developed for low power and maximum graphics performance to drive the latest displays up to 4K resolution, even two at the same time. Our development team has now come so far that we have developed every last bit of it ourselves. With our own bios support and our own board controller to meet special customer requirements in any situation. Klas Bömecke: And these two things are also new, right?
Markus Mahl: Yes. Of course, that is the main thing that is always specified by Intel. The main point is also in the direction of IoT, all the networking, which means that there will also be modules in the lower performance range and customized adaptations, just like in the upper range. The upper range is moving more and more towards server technology, the lower range more and more towards low power, networked devices, networked wearables and so on and so forth, as well as the corresponding software. Klas Bömecke: That means your product range will become much broader in the coming years. Markus Mahl: That's right. Much broader. Klas Bömecke: Good. Great. Thank you and I wish you every success for the future.
