Why you’ll never have dirty fingers on your touch screen again

We’re not always a fan of the many touchscreens in modern cars, for a number of reasons. One of those reasons is that they get dirty so easily, especially with a lot of grease from your fingers. However, General Motors has found a solution for this.

The American auto giant has registered a new device with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPT). A touchscreen that cleans itself to keep it simple.

GM touchscreen cleans itself

If we delve deeper into the patent, we read that displays are typically made up of red, green, and blue LEDs. GM’s screen works with additional LEDs that emit invisible ultraviolet light.

GM’s touchscreen is also coated with a photocatalytic layer in which the ultraviolet light reacts with moisture from the air, cleaning the glass. According to GM, it can be switched on and off manually or automatically.

For now, just use a cloth

Now, of course, the question arises as to whether the self-cleaning screen will go into series production. The fact that the American group patented their operation means nothing. Manufacturers are more likely to capture ideas, sometimes just to make sure others don’t.

For now, it remains sensible to keep a cloth in the car to wipe grease and dust off your touchscreens.

Why touchscreens aren’t always secure

In the introduction we said that we are not always a fan of touchscreens in cars. Why this? Because physical buttons for important functions are safer. You can find them almost blind, so you don’t have to take your attention off the road for too long.

Buttons on a touchscreen aren’t tactile, so you need to check if you’re putting your finger down properly. After that, in many cases you need to check if the screen picked up your input (when the touchscreen doesn’t have haptic feedback).

In addition, some functions are hidden too deep in the infotainment system. We’ve seen cars where you have to perform three or four actions to turn on the heated seats. All the time you don’t look at the street.