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Touch and Go: Train Tickets and Schedules by Touch
The kiosks provide information in a choice of languages and print the requested data. For example, if a tourist wants to go to Zermatt, he can touch that location on a kiosk map to receive information about which trains to take and their departure and arrival schedules. The system contains a directory and schedule of all trains in Switzerland, as well as bus routes for Geneva. Other Swiss cities also are considering installing the systems. Markus von Arx heads up Invertag, the Elo Round Rock partner that developed and installed the kiosks. Invertag uses CarrollTouch scanning infrared sensors for its kiosks because of the high quality and reliability offered by these systems. For installations outdoors, it is important that the application be weather- and vandal-proof. Invertag was the first European distributor/integrator of touchscreens and remains the largest. The touch sensors used in the European kiosks are built to order by Elo's manufacturing facility in Round Rock, Texas. Invertag produces integrated touch systems for a variety of applications throughout Europe, with a growing customer base in the Far East. Recently, von Arx said, Invertag delivered a prototype of a ticket-vending system its customer is developing for the Hong Kong transit system. The system is interactive and uses CarrollTouch infrared touch frames. When Hong Kong travelers touch a desired destination on a kiosk map, the fare is displayed and the ticket can be purchased directly from the machine. Hong Kong transit officials chose the system because it reduces the transaction time required by mechanical vending machines. Like the Geneva system, these kiosks are designed to withstand harsh outdoor conditions. The complete system, involving 450 units, is scheduled for installation this year. The European touch market is somewhat different from the market in the U.S., von Arx said. The biggest application today is for factory automation, but acceptance of touch technology is growing rapidly, especially in Germany and the German-speaking countries of Austria and Switzerland. According to von Arx, touch technology is expected to permeate other markets and countries as well. |
Tourists to the captivating city of Geneva can discover where to go and how to get there through an interactive touch kiosk on the banks of Lake Geneva. That kiosk and 15 others located throughout the city were developed using Elo CarrollTouch scanning infrared touch frames.