The Touch Screen Problem Nobody Thinks About Until It’s -10°F
Why Cold Storage and Freezer Warehouses Need a Different Kind of Touch Screen
A touch screen works perfectly in the engineering lab. Then someone installs it in a freezer warehouse. The operator is wearing thick insulated gloves. Temperatures can remain below freezing for an entire shift. Workers and equipment move between temperature zones. Moisture and condensation can enter the equation. And the touch interface still needs to respond accurately when someone is checking inventory, controlling equipment, entering production information or interacting with a warehouse management system.
Suddenly, something as simple as tapping a screen is not so simple.
Cold storage and freezer warehouses are an interesting test for touch technology because several difficult operating conditions can occur at the same time. For OEMs designing equipment for these environments, the question should not simply be whether a touch screen works. It should be whether it works the way people actually need to use it inside a freezer.
The Freezer Glove Problem
Anyone who has tried using a smartphone while wearing winter gloves already understands part of the problem. Projected capacitive touch technology detects changes in an electrical field when a user interacts with the screen. Thick insulating material between the finger and touch surface can make that interaction more difficult for conventional PCAP systems. In a freezer warehouse, however, removing a glove every time someone needs to operate a touch screen is hardly an ideal solution.
Workers may wear insulated, cut-resistant or other protective gloves for extended periods. Touchscreen-compatible freezer gloves are even marketed specifically to workers who need to operate phones, tablets and other digital devices without exposing their hands to extreme cold.
But that raises another question.
Why should the worker have to adapt to the touch screen when the touch screen can be engineered to work with the worker's PPE?
UICO PCAP touch technology can support operation with gloves up to 5 mm thick. For equipment designers, that means the touch interface can be developed around the real working environment rather than assuming an operator will always interact with it using a bare finger.
Cold Temperatures Challenge More Than the Operator
Freezer warehouses create another obvious challenge: temperature.
Industrial electronics used in cold environments need components selected for the conditions in which the equipment will actually operate. A display or touch interface intended for a comfortable indoor environment may not be appropriate for equipment expected to spend its working life in a freezer. UICO standard PCAP touch screen solutions are designed for an extended operating temperature range from -40°C to +85°C, allowing them to be incorporated into equipment operating well beyond ordinary indoor temperatures.
That capability is useful beyond freezer warehouses. Refrigerated distribution centers, cold-chain logistics, outdoor loading areas and equipment that routinely travels between indoor and outdoor environments can all expose interfaces to substantial temperature changes.
Then There Is Condensation
Cold environments introduce a less obvious problem when equipment moves between temperature zones: moisture. A forklift terminal, mobile computer or other piece of equipment moving from a freezer into a warmer, humid area may encounter condensation. Fixed equipment can also operate in environments where moisture, cleaning and changing temperatures are part of daily operations. For a touch interface, moisture matters because conventional capacitive screens can interpret water on the surface as touch input. The result can be false touches, missed commands or a screen that becomes difficult to operate precisely when someone needs it.
UICO's water-resistant PCAP technology is designed to distinguish intentional touch from water and other liquids on the surface, helping maintain reliable operation in environments where moisture cannot simply be designed away. In cold storage, temperature performance and water performance are not necessarily separate problems. Sometimes they arrive together.
Cold Storage Is Becoming More Automated
The warehouse itself is changing too. Cold storage and refrigerated distribution facilities increasingly rely on digital inventory systems, scanners, automated material handling, machine vision, robotics and connected warehouse equipment. As more processes become digital, workers and machines need dependable interfaces to interact with those systems. Touch screens may be integrated into control panels, packaging and processing equipment, forklift terminals, inventory stations, loading systems, automated storage and retrieval equipment, and other warehouse technology.
That makes the touch interface a small but important link in a much larger digital operation. If workers repeatedly struggle to enter information or operate equipment because the screen does not respond through their gloves or behaves unpredictably around moisture, the problem extends beyond the screen itself. The interface should make the job easier, not become another obstacle in an already challenging environment.
What Should OEMs Consider for a Freezer Warehouse Touch Screen?
Selecting a touch screen for cold storage should begin with the actual operating environment rather than the display size. What temperatures will the equipment encounter? Will operators wear insulated gloves, and how thick are they? Could condensation or other moisture reach the touch surface? Is the equipment stationary or moving between temperature zones? Will the screen be incorporated into a fixed HMI, mobile terminal or another piece of warehouse equipment? The answers can affect touch controller tuning, component selection, cover glass, display selection and overall system integration. For OEMs, addressing those questions during the design process is considerably better than discovering after deployment that operators have to remove a glove every time they need to press a button on the screen.
Design the Interface for the Environment, Not the Other Way Around
Cold storage is a good example of why industrial touch screens cannot always be treated like consumer electronics with tougher enclosures. The people using them are dressed differently. The temperatures are different. Moisture conditions can be different. The equipment may operate continuously, and the interface may be an essential part of keeping products, materials and information moving through the facility. A touch screen designed for that environment should account for those realities from the beginning. Because at -10°F, "just take off your glove and try again" isn't much of a user interface strategy.
Frequently Asked Questions About Touch Screens for Cold Storage
Can industrial touch screens work in freezer temperatures?
Yes, when the touch screen and associated components are designed for the required operating conditions. UICO offers PCAP touch screen solutions with an extended operating temperature range from -40°C to +85°C for demanding industrial environments.
Can a PCAP touch screen work with insulated freezer gloves?
PCAP touch technology can be engineered for gloved operation. UICO touch controllers can support gloves up to 5 mm thick, allowing operators to interact with appropriately designed touch interfaces without repeatedly removing protective gloves.
Where are touch screens used in cold storage warehouses?
Touch screens can be incorporated into warehouse control systems, inventory stations, forklift and mobile terminals, packaging equipment, material-handling systems, automated storage equipment and other interfaces used throughout cold storage and refrigerated logistics operations.
Designing Equipment for Cold Storage or Refrigerated Logistics?
UICO develops rugged PCAP touch screen solutions for OEMs operating in challenging industrial environments, including applications involving extreme temperatures, thick gloves, water and condensation. From standard touch screens to custom cover glass, displays, optical bonding and touch-controller optimization, our U.S.-based engineering team can help develop an interface around the conditions your equipment will actually encounter.
Talk to a UICO engineer about your cold-storage touch screen application.
Comments