Recently DesignSpark profiled a new Digilent shield that allows users to take the power of multi-touch displays to Arduino. The Digilent Multi-Touch Display shield includes :
- 2.8” display with QVGA resolution (320×240)
- 2 finger capacitive touch panel
- PIC32MZ microcontroller
It also includes software to help you get started.
This 2.8 display interfaces via SPI, and is an ideal way to add some serious tactile input to your projects. The shield works in part by the Digilent Multi-Touch Display System, which is described below:
The shield makes use of Digilent’s Multi-Touch Display System, whereby a dedicated processor takes care of driving the screen, and its firmware together with host support makes it easy to:
- Design a UI with only a few lines of code using Arduino libraries
- Draw images with binary transparency from files stored on microSD
- Drop buttons and check their status at will using intuitive function calls
Additionally the shield includes a slew of examples designed to get you up and running with the board right off the bat.
The article goes in depth into the examples that the board comes equipped with, and delves into how best to use the two library options to interface with Arduino. If you want to learn more, please check out the full article at DesignSpark, or pop over to the shields main page at the Digilent Store!
As always, let us know in the comments below what you plan to do with these touchscreen capabilities!
