Microchip Technology Inc. has announced the new maXTouch Knob-on-Display (KoD) family of touchscreen controllers that supports the detection and reporting of capacitive rotary encoders and mechanical switches on top of a touch panel. This new technology enables the mounting of the knob directly onto the display without an opening in the panel or any customization of the touch pattern, increasing design flexibility and system cost savings.
The KoD technology eliminates the need for custom touch sensor patterns, providing designers the ability to easily implement a different knob count, shape and position to accommodate a variety of end-user products. The customized configurations are adjustable without changing the embedded firmware of the maXTouch KoD touch controller, leading to a faster and more flexible development cycle. The maXTouch KoD controller allows designers to keep the comfort of a rotary encoder input device but combine it with a modern and innovative interior design using smart surfaces and multi-touch displays.
With the release of the maXTouch KoD family, Microchip offers two variants to allow customers the design freedom and flexibility to choose how they will implement the capacitive rotary encoder. The KD variant enables customers to choose their knob design partner and create their own solution using a reference design jointly developed with BNL Bearings offering the option to fully customize the design for specific applications.
