Also known as acoustic pule recognition, surface acoustic wave (SAW) has become an increasingly popular touchscreen technology. Like other touchscreen technologies, it’s able to detect touch commands. S
AW touchscreens are unique, however, because of their reliance on ultrasonic sound waves. They produce ultrasonic sound waves across the display interface that, when touched, are absorbed by the user’s finger or stylus. As a result, SAW touchscreens are able to detect the location of a user’s touch. When you tap or touch the display interface, you’ll disturb the device’s ultrasonic sound waves, thereby allowing it to pinpoint the location of your touch command. So, why have SAW touchscreens become such a popular alternative to traditional capacitive and resistive touchscreens?
#1) They Support Stylus Commands
You can use your finger or a stylus to perform commands on a SAW touchscreen. With capacitive touchscreens, you are typically restricted to using a bare finger. Styluses are made of electrically resistive materials, so they aren’t able to absorb some of the electrostatic charge produced by a capacitive touchscreen. SAW touchscreens, on the other hand, don’t require the use of a conductive material, such as a finger, to register touch commands.
#2) Fast Response Time
To say SAW touchscreens respond quickly to touch commands would be an understatement. While response time varies, it’s not uncommon for SAW touchscreens to respond to your touch commands in less than 10 milliseconds. As a result, using a SAW touchscreen may have a positive impact on your productivity.
#3) Supports Multi-Touch Commands
Another benefit of SAW touchscreens is multi-touch functionality. What is multi-touch functionality exactly? As the name suggests, it’s a feature in certain touchscreens that allows you to perform commands using two more simultaneous points of contact. A common example of multi-touch functionality is pinch to zoom. When you pinch the display interface, you are touching it with two fingers, thus allowing you to zoom in or out of the display interface.
#4) Durability
It’s also worth mentioning that SAW touchscreens are incredibly durable. They are able to withstand extreme temperatures, humidity and other environmental conditions better than many other types of touchscreens. As a result, many businesses choose SAW touchscreens for their respective applications.
#5) Excellent Clarity
Finally, SAW touchscreens offer excellent clarity. In other words, the display is crystal-clear and delivers high-quality images. Other touchscreens are also capable of producing high-quality images. The unique construction of SAW touchscreens, however, makes them particularly effective for this purpose.
