Why Touch Screens Are Being Adopted Across Industries
Numerous factors are driving increased adoption of touch screens and other digital displays in industrial settings, says Paul Miller, vice president and principal analyst for smart manufacturing at Forrester. He credits the increase to greater adoption of interoperable standards for moving data between solutions from different vendors, closer cooperation between IT and operational technology teams and the increasing availability of rugged, reliable, cost-effective displays.
“Digital screens can have a transformative effect in industrial settings because they can adapt to the context and the user,” Miller says. “Instead of needing physical buttons or dials for every function, the screen can be programmed to display only the information that is relevant to the task at hand. Touch adds an additional mode of interaction.”
READ MORE: Why touchscreens bring powerful capabilities to Industry 4.0.
In particular, Miller says, industrial organizations are using touch screens to track high-level metrics and key performance indicators, monitor machine-level performance and replace button- and switch-based control systems.