New Touch Screens Track 10 Fingers At Once

Multitouch screen devices to track 10 fingers simultaneously...

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company Synaptics has recently announced its new multitouch-sensor ClearPad 3000 Series, a new sensor that is able to recognize up to 10 fingers at one time.

The new transparent sensor can track up to 10 simultaneous finger touches, making it possible to perform complex multifinger gestures such as closing an application by “crumpling” it with several fingers, or playing polyphonic sounds on a virtual piano keyboard.

Apple made the multitouch display popular its iPhone. Debuting around four months after the release of Synaptics two-finger ClearPad 2000, many speculate that Apple is using Synaptics technology, although this has not been confirmed. One device which does use the sensor is the T-mobile G1 by HTC, mananufacturers such as Samsung and LG are also confirmed customers.

The new ClearPad 300o sensor features an accuracy of plus/minus 1 mm, is 0.3 mm thick, and is available in sizes up to 8 inches diagonally.

The supported screen size, and the speculated relationship between Synaptics and Apple, has bloggers wondering if this sensor is what Apple have been waiting for to launch its widely rumored tablet.

Along with the ClearPad 3000, Synaptics is also introducing a more basic model, the ClearPad 1000 Series, supporting single-finger gestures such as tapping, pinching, pressing, and flicking. These sensors are available in sizes up to 4.3 inches diagonally.

The company says manufacturers already have the sensors in hand, and consumers can expect to see products containing them by the end of the year.

The sensors use capacitive technology, usually considered to be more sensitive to fingers than resistive sensors, they are also more transparent. Capacitive sensors, however, cannot be used with a stylus or a glove.