However, the first one was not as you imagine, and its creation was somewhat complicated and very curious. We are going to discover what date it dates from, as well as its characteristics at that time.
First touch screen (1965)
It was the year 1965, when an Englishman named Eric Arthur Johnson It occurred to him to invent something that until now had not been imagined, a screen that works with your fingers, without the need for other accessories. Something that today seems very normal to us, but that of those times was fantasy.
It was in October of that year when his invention was finished and he was able to show it to the world. He detailed it as follows:
“A novel input/output device for wired computing systems, sensitive to the touch of a finger, coupled with a cathode ray tube into which the computer can write information. This device, the “touch screen”, provides a very efficient coupling between man and machine.”
And so it was the invention worked perfectlyalthough not with current technology, and in a much simpler way, but it fulfilled its mission, which was the important thing.
His experimental model was based on the basic idea that, depending on the circuit (formed by copper wires) that was manipulated, the computer took a certain action or decision.
2 years later, in 1967, he published a second article where he explained in much more detail how his prototype worked, as well as the ability to enter characters without the need for a keyboard.
His system was not like the current one, when touching with his finger, he generated a response in binary format that was translated to the computer. Regardless of the pressure exerted.
In 1969, it was granted a patent, although it was not until 20 years later that it began to be truly implemented and commercialized. Until then the utility and production of this invention was not interesting.
This discovery came from the need for air traffic controllers to accurately mark a point on a map quickly, since speed in that job is very important. It was then that Eric Arthur Johnson together with the Malvern Radar And Technology History Society, one of the most important centers in the country, pooled their knowledge, ideas and budget for the investigation of this project.
To this day, the story of this first touch screen has been told by an exhibition in that center, where the idea of implementing this new device to computers also originated, which led to the fact that today it is likely that you are reading this sliding your finger on a mobile.
In summary, this invention that we knew little about marked the history of technology, and a simple project created by a man who liked to investigate, turned out to be much more used than even he expected.
