Touch screen Kiosk systems Posted by Harish Sukhwal on 9:40 PM Digg it Bookmark it Stumble it Email to friend

Touch screen Kiosk systems  are seen more and more these days in many and various locations. They are used for a range of applications such as ticketing, information delivery, photo printing and many others. Most uses tend to fit to a fairly common design brief - being used indoors.

Taking a multipart electronic item outdoors requires a more more detailed and well-thought design process to ensure that the machine will continue to work both in the deep and coldest times of the years. Not only this, but it will also have to compact with the British weather - rain!

Having survived all that the weather can throw at it, a touch screen kiosk for outdoor use must be tough enough to cope with some fairly harsh use.

Touchscreen kiosk are often used with a number of input devices and other peripherals such as telephone handset and it is vital that all components of the system are designed for the atmosphere it will be used in. Telephone handsets are available with ruggedized plastic casings and armored cables. Keyboards are available in stainless steel, defiant to all including the worst rain, snow and ice.

Touch screen kiosk all have LCD screens and a touch screen covering and the designer must give some thought on how to protect the screen from damage whilst still providing a lovely usage experience. In direct sunlight it may be difficult for the user to see the LCD so think about how the metalwork design may help to provide some shade to the screen. Instead take a look at high-brightness LCD screens or sunlight visible LCDs using transflective technology.

The main motherboard will have a temperature specification detailing the lowest and upper operating temperature which the motherboard has been designed for use. Operation of the motherboard below the lower temperature or above the higher operating temperature may stop the system from execution correctly. Proper heating and cooling of the system is therefore required to make sure reliable operation year round. The system can be kept warm during the coldest winters by using a small heating element inside the kiosk. Cooling can be done using fans to create airflow out of the area. However - ideally cooling holes would allow heat to escape from the system but this is a compromise to stop ingress of water.

A watch timer, if present, will help in many situations if the hardware locks-up for any reason. A watch timer is a device usually on the motherboard of industrial motherboards which is a simple timer which needs to be reset every so often. If it does not get reset then the watch time will cause the motherboard itself to reset thus rebooting the system.

In short, design systems for use outdoors are a complex task with many pitfalls. If you’re looking into using kiosks outdoors and need some help then please talk to us first.