Touchscreens these days take up a major portion of a car’s dashboard and often get covered in greasy fingerprints. General Motors has patented a touchscreen design that automatically erases fingerprints for a clean look.
The upgraded screens will add a violet pixel, similar to ultraviolet light, to the red, green, and blue pixels. Along with that, an invisible photocatalyst screen coating will absorb certain light to produce a chemical reaction on the touchscreen.
Initially, GM’s patent suggests using a metal-oxide-based photocatalyst to react to ultraviolet radiation in sunlight. However, since many cars use window tinting to keep the interiors dark and cool, the violet pixels would initiate the reaction.
At night, the violet pixels would turn on and activate the photocatalyst in the screen coating, which would start a chemical reaction that uses moisture in the air to break down fingerprints, oil residue, and grease. After the reaction stops and everything dries, the greasy smears and fingerprints will disappear like dust in the wind.
GM hasn’t announced whether it will use this technology in future vehicles. Although, with technology progressing at a feverish pace, it may debut soon.
