A touchscreen is a human-made display surface that combines a visual monitor with an input device, allowing direct tactile interaction with on-screen elements. Built to persist through standardized interfaces (capacitive, resistive, infrared), teaching in HCI, and embedding in consumer devices. [formal: touch screen | substrate: behavior | horizon: a life | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.55]
Accepted ontology entry
touchscreen
A touchscreen is a human-made display surface that combines a visual monitor with an input device, allowing direct tactile interaction with on-screen elements. Built to persist through standardized interfaces (capacitive, resistive, infrar…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A touchscreen is a human-made display surface embedded with a touch-sensing panel that detects finger or stylus input, converting physical contact into electrical signals the device interprets as commands. Built to persist as a hardware interface standard.
Names and aliases
- touchscreenen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrg49eh500kd2a1n9cak2135INSTANCE_OF →
A touchscreen is a specific kind of interface — an interactive display surface that enables direct manipulation as the primary means of user-machine communication. A competent speaker calls it a type of interface.
- cmsltbtiu084pnobpo4cxae9fDEPENDS_ON →
A touchscreen needs sensors (capacitive, resistive, etc.) to operate NOW — remove the sensor component and the display becomes just a display, no longer a touchscreen. This passes Law 8's removal test.
Relations to this entry
- cmslunv2n0887nobpnz4smv4s← SERVES
Haptic feedback is designed and maintained for the sake of touchscreen interaction — providing tactile confirmation that enhances the user experience of touchscreens. Per Law 8d: the servant (haptic feedback) points at the master (touchscreen). The purpose is by design, not incidental benefit.
- cmslwutng08conobpnhx4etqy← DEPENDS_ON
Remove touchscreens and a capacitive stylus stops operating — its mechanism (distorting an electrostatic field on a screen surface) requires a touchscreen substrate. This passes the present-tense removal test (Law 8).
Record identity
- Created
- Aug 9, 2026, 1:32 PM UTC
- Content hash
- ba0157e12ad0f5441c5f3f820701af09966cd9d879f09dbdc3017a78f307965b