Originally Posted by ShortBus

Say what? I have a cheap stylus got like a 6 pack for a dollar off eBay... I can drop the tip onto my iPad and it works fine. I wrapped the body in a towel after I read this and tried again.. Still works great. And only the tip on the stylus works....

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD and nonconductive stylus shaft

You sir.....all win.....I am laughing my butt off!!!!!

Originally Posted by ShortBus

Say what? I have a cheap stylus got like a 6 pack for a dollar off eBay... I can drop the tip onto my iPad and it works fine. I wrapped the body in a towel after I read this and tried again.. Still works great. And only the tip on the stylus works....

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD and nonconductive stylus shaft

Not sure what you mean by drop the tip on your iPad. Do you somehow hit an icon and open an app merely by strategically dropping it from above? I'm thinking maybe the tip material is a factor in all this.

From the limited reading and empirical evidence whilst using stylus' I've come to my conclusion. I may experiment a little more, or maybe send it on through to Mythbusters for a thorough thrashing.

Yes... That's exactly what I do lol... Lol I'm lazy sometimes dropping is easier.. And yes capacitive stylus work via the tip.. Has nothing to do with you.. You can use them with gloves..


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Just bought a fresh Simplism Grip Touch Pen for my iPad. It is the same model I had previously. Interestingly, there is some tips/instructions listed including: "Make sure to hold silicone grip. The grip transmits small electric current in your body to the display and holding plastic part does not work."

This lines up with my experience so far. I guess there must be styli made with other material that generates its own "current"? Any stylus manufacturers out there that can comment?

As long as the tip is conductive it shouldn't matter.. Ure def buying the wrong stylus.. I get like 7million ohms of resistance on my stylus tip.. Therefore it works on a capacitive screen.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Originally Posted by ShortBus

As long as the tip is conductive it shouldn't matter.. Ure def buying the wrong stylus.. I get like 7million ohms of resistance on my stylus tip.. Therefore it works on a capacitive screen.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Just the. General discussion has piqued my interest, so I'm doing a bit of googling. The first article outlines the difference between resistive and capacitive touchscreens.

The section on the capacitive says, "Capacitive touchscreens work by sensing the conductive properties of an object, usually the skin on your fingertip. A capacitive screen on a mobile phone or smartphone usually has a glass face and doesn't rely on pressure. This makes it more responsive than a resistive screen when it comes to gestures such as swiping and pinching. Capacitive touchscreens can only be touched with a finger, and will not respond to touches with a regular stylus, gloves or most other objects."

Obviously, the "regular stylus" mentioned here are the old school type used with resistive touchscreens.

Also came across a Physics forum where a thread goes into answering this issue in great detail (and physic speak). So as you say, the object touching the screen has to essentially be conductive enough to draw a current away from the screen to register as a tap or touch. Interestingly, most common stylus' seem to do this by having conductive material (the tip and adjoining grip or shaft) that allow the current to be drawn away and through your body to ground.

I am therefore interested in the tip you have and what the exact material it is to be able to draw off that sufficiently to register?

Duplicate

Originally Posted by dhewson777

Just bought a fresh Simplism Grip Touch Pen for my iPad. It is the same model I had previously. Interestingly, there is some tips/instructions listed including: "Make sure to hold silicone grip. The grip transmits small electric current in your body to the display and holding plastic part does not work."

This lines up with my experience so far. I guess there must be styli made with other material that generates its own "current"? Any stylus manufacturers out there that can comment?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touchscreen

Please research before posting misinformation.

Stop this idea of current transmission. You are distorting an electrostatic field that is measured in capacitance. Not zapping the screen with your body battery or magical current generating materials. If you we're using a normal human style stylus you would observe that your body is not required. Perhaps your stylus which uses silicone(an insulator) engineered to be conductive instead of conductive foam like 90% of all the styli in the world.

Your body is conductive, that is why your finger changes the capacitance of the displays field.
I will concede your stylus may need your body's conductivity, mine does not.

Originally Posted by wpgmini

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touchscreen

Please research before posting misinformation.

Stop this idea of current transmission. You are distorting an electrostatic field that is measured in capacitance. Not zapping the screen with your body battery or magical current generating materials. If you we're using a normal human style stylus you would observe that your body is not required. Perhaps your stylus which uses silicone(an insulator) engineered to be conductive instead of conductive foam like 90% of all the styli in the world.

Your body is conductive, that is why your finger changes the capacitance of the displays field.
I will concede your stylus may need your body's conductivity, mine does not.

Hey, I am trying to learn and understand. My point is to generate discussion, not bestow any knowledge of my own. The terminology may not be quite right, so cut me some slack.

I understand the disruption of the electrostatic field. I now want to know what materials are being used on different styli to enable that to happen without human intervention. And why, in every home made stylus how to, do they have a piece of wire or metal run from the conductive foam tip to an area of the stylus where you hold it. It obviously needs human intervention.

I challenge you to: a) name your stylus; b) pull it apart and have a look on the inside. I simply want to understand how it works without any human touch/intervention? I'm not convinced you know yourself.

Originally Posted by dhewson777

Hey, I am trying to learn and understand. My point is to generate discussion, not bestow any knowledge of my own. The terminology may not be quite right, so cut me some slack.

I understand the disruption of the electrostatic field. I now want to know what materials are being used on different styli to enable that to happen without human intervention. And why, in every home made stylus how to, do they have a piece of wire or metal run from the conductive foam tip to an area of the stylus where you hold it. It obviously needs human intervention.

I challenge you to: a) name your stylus; b) pull it apart and have a look on the inside. I simply want to understand how it works without any human touch/intervention? I'm not convinced you know yourself.

I am glad you are learning but keep it out of the forums.

http://www.ifaraday.com/

The Internet has a wealth of knowledge. Use google.

Here is something for you, use a sausage as a stylus. with plastic tongs.
Then you can try to figure out why it works and perhaps learn about conductivity, dielectric and the interaction of conductive materials with an electrostatic field. The human body is not the only conductive thing out there. All you need is enough conductivity to register changes in the capacitance of the the touch screen field. Cheap stylus' use the body but are horribly inaccurate, thus needing a very large surface contact area.