To help strengthen automotive designers who continue to consolidate the vehicle’s cluster, centre stack and co-driver displays into very wide screens, Microchip Technology Inc. has introduced the maXTouch MXT2912TD-UW touchscreen controller.
The automotive-qualified, single-chip solution addresses display sizes up to 45 inches with a wide aspect ratio, supporting liquid-crystal display (LCD) and organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display technologies.
As per the company, the MXT2912TD-UW reduces the need for multiple touch controllers within a vehicle’s human-machine interface (HMI) display. This single-chip touch controller provides the highest report rate for wide displays and is independent of the display resolution, helping achieve the same user experience that has become accustomed to the smartphone. Supported by the exceptional maXTouch family’s intrinsic Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), the MXT2912TD-UW enables detection and tracking of multi-finger thick gloves through a wide variety of overlay materials and thicknesses, even in the presence of moisture.
Driven by the ISO 26262 specification for functional safety in road vehicles, the MXT2912TD-UW contains various safety-related features, simplifying the display module system’s path to functional safety certification. These include periodic self-test, touch sensor test, internal flash and RAM tests, full signal data path integrity checks and an additional microprocessor (MPU) core testing.
Fanie Duvenhage, Vice President, Microchip’s HMI Business Unit, said, “The automotive industry is driving innovations in interior design, including the integration of sleek human-machine interface concepts. Microchip enables these revolutionary designs with our new touch controller, supporting wide aspect ratio touch sensors with our unique and patented technology. Our single-chip solution offers display makers and automotive Tier-1 suppliers simple and known touch solutions for modern vehicle HMI systems, reducing cost, risk and time to market.”
To support its touchscreen controllers, Microchip also offers complementary devices such as low-dropout regulators (LDOs), 8-16-and-32-bit microcontrollers (MCUs), controller area network (CAN) and CAN physical layer (PHY) controllers.