opinion
1970s. Big and boxy, these metallic
behemoths represented a revolutionary
development for their time. Designed to
give consumers easy access to cash while
also allowing bank employees to focus on
bigger picture financial tasks, the ATM was
all about personal empowerment.
As far as the screens themselves
are concerned, the first ATMs employed
what’s known as resistive touchscreen
technology. This was done by placing
a conductive covering over the screen
that would make contact with a second
conductive sheet containing tracer dots.
When someone used their hand to
apply pressure to the screen, the circuit
between the two conductive covers
would be closed and the trace dots would
register one singular touchpoint that
could be used to interact with the screen.
The fact that only pressure was
needed meant that the screens could be
used if they were dirty or smudged, or if
the user was wearing gloves. While the
rudimentary technology limited image
clarity and prevented any sort of swiping,
the low cost and versatility made the
design perfect for ATMS, early arcade
games, cash registers, manufacturing
floors, and other high-traffic settings.
The past defines today
By the 1980’s, the limits of resistive
technology had developers turning
to an older touch technology whose
moment had finally arrived: capacitive
technology. From smartphones to
our own self-service kiosks, most of
today’s touchscreens use a variation of
capacitive technology. Unlike the pressure
dependent designs of old, capacitive
screens depend on the touch of
conductive surfaces (like a bare finger) to
transfer some of the electric charge to the
user to manipulate the screen. Because
the screens are coated with a transparent
electrode layer and surrounded by
sensors, the interface registers every
place on the screen where the electric
charge is being transferred, allowing for
multiple touchpoints.
Although capacitive screens had
the same versatility of their resistive
ancestors, the new technology allowed
for better image resolution and a more
interactive experience for the user.
And the future…
So, what does all this mean for the
touchscreen kiosk of tomorrow? From
my point of view, the common trend over
the years has been in favour of giving
the user a more immersive service tool.
One in which they’re not simply seeing
the information, but experiencing it.
So, I wouldn’t say it’s out of this world
to imagine transparent projection
touchscreens or virtual reality/augmented
reality technology to be hallmarks of
touchscreen kiosks of the future.
And speaking of out of this world,
it’s hard to imagine kiosks not playing a
role in the future of space exploration.
Whether it’s a touchscreen interface being
to manipulate the controls of a ship on
a mission to Mars, or just a space-age
vending machine where the astronauts
can get their freeze-dried ice cream at
the swipe of a screen, touchscreen kiosks
are likely to continue to define the way
humans interact with information. n
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