Fujitsu develops a new touch panel technology to avoid bacteria and virus growth (EMEA)

Note: This product is available only in Japan.

Hoofddorp, The Netherlands – September 20, 2022 – Fujitsu Components Europe, B.V. has launched the Feather Touch-Clean Life touch panel, a revolutionary new bacteria-evading product based on Fujitsu’s antiviral technology. Bacteria are among the fastest reproducing organisms in the world and can grow exponentially, multiplying rapidly. According to the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Bacteria can double every 4 to 20 minutes, depending on the conditions.

Known sources of bacteria are surfaces that are frequently operated or touched, making the touch panel of any household or commercial device a potential source of contamination.

Fujitsu’s Feather Touch-Clean Life touch panels endeavor to combat this problem thanks to the integration of a fresh antiviral technology.

Preventing bacteria, optimizing performance

The antiviral technology baked into the Feather Touch-Clean Life panels prevent bacteria and viruses from growing and multiplying on a panel. Through research, measurements and experiments undertaken in the labs, Fujitsu found that the growth rate of bacteria (viruses) after 24 hours is less than 1/100 on its new panels compared to the surface of products that have been built without using the technology.

The Feather Touch long life panels have all the benefits of Projected Capacitive (PCAP) touch, have an excellent immunity to Electromagnetic interference (EMI) with no tuning needed, and also work with or without gloves.

The panels support up to 10 million inputs and can be used alongside the application of a liquid spray, such as a cleaning solution, as this does not interfere with operation. Best of all, they have been designed with gesture support for actions such as flick, pinch, rotate and zoom, which makes them highly reactive to touch commands.

According to Definition and Effects of anti-bacterial (ISO 22196, ISO 21702). After 24 hours, the touch panels are able to provide a huge difference in bacteria and virus growth:

Types of bacteria and viruses	Antimicrobial/antiviral properties
Staphylococcus aureus	>3.0
E. coli	>3.0
Non-enveloped virus	>3.0
Enveloped virus	>3.0

The Feather Touch-Clean Life panels are a perfect alternative to capacitive touch panels, especially with the addition of the antiviral technology.

Improved functionality

Fujitsu originally developed its antiviral technology as a complementary film added on the top of the panel touch-detection film. However, adding a film above the touch panel affected the sensitivity of the panel, which meant the end user was required to press harder to achieve touch detection.

The antiviral technology used within Fujitsu’s new Feather Touch-Clean Life touch panels is part of the top ITO film layer instead of being applied as an additional layer.

Since the new antiviral system is embedded in the original ITO layer of the touch panel film, there is no longer a requirement for additional film. The result is that the panel can be both highly touch sensitive and antiviral at the same time, meaning almost no pressure is needed to detect the touch of fingers.

Having the antiviral technology embedded on the ITO layer not only brings advantages in operability but results in a reduction in costs, too.

Where hygiene is top priority

Fujitsu’s Feather Touch-Clean Life panels are an excellent solution for environments where hygiene is of the utmost importance and the potential contamination rate is high.

This means the solution can benefit environments such as kitchens in commercial spaces or any surfaces within hospitals. The panels’ high touch sensitivity means they can also be operated with fingers or by gloves. Even the application of liquid droplets does not interfere with the panels’ operation, all while preventing the growth of bacteria and viruses.

Other applications that could benefit from this new technology are other frequently used devices such as shared appliances like photocopiers, ATMs, Kiosks and more.

And since Fujitsu offers this new technology as an option on customized touch panel solutions, the panels are already SIAA-approved.

Contact our team for more information: iinfo.fceu@fcl-components.com. or visit our Touch Panels website.