STMicroelectronics has introduced a multi-touch controller IC for resistive touchscreen applications.
It is wrong to assume that the world of touch control is moving entirely to capacitive touch technology.
The older resistive technology cheaper, with established high-volume products which have improved in performance over the past few years in terms of durability and display transparency.
Resistive technology is already widely used in PDAs and similar touch-enabled devices and the screens are readily available in standard LCD sizes.
The availability of multi-touch control which detects up to ten simultaneous touches with fingers, nails or stylus is an important new feature for resistive technology.
The STM32TS60 controller combines the ARM Cortex-M3 based STM32 microcontroller architecture with PMatrix Multi-Touch technology from ST's partner Stantum.
"It provides a very low power, highly reliable alternative to capacitive touchscreen solutions," said Jim Nicholas, General Manager of ST's Microcontrollers Division.
The STM32TS60's high EMI immunity makes it suitable for use in multi-function wireless products such as mobile phones, notebook PCs, netbooks and mobile Internet devices.