The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped how we perceive the safety of contact with everyday devices. ATMs, intercoms, access keypads — all these elements of urban and building infrastructure, though essential, pose a potential risk of spreading microorganisms. Against this backdrop emerged the project "Elimination of Hazard Sources. Safety of Touch Panels and Keyboards", aimed at developing a solution that eliminates the need for manual disinfection.

Revolutionary Cold Plasma Technology

At the heart of the project lies a novel technology: self-disinfecting surfaces activated by cold plasma. This innovation integrates two seemingly conflicting functions — capacitive touch keyboard functionality and a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma generator. The user interacts with the panel as they would with any standard touch interface; however, once the interaction ends, an automatic disinfection cycle is initiated.

Technical Implementation and Design

The design employs a multilayer metal-ceramic composite (LTCC), enabling the generation of an electric field of several tens of kV/cm, without the risk of electrical breakdown or shock. A key challenge was to develop an electrode and dielectric system capable of operating in both touch and plasma modes.

For this purpose, a programmable high-voltage power supply with leakage and breakdown detection was designed, which cuts off voltage within fractions of a second in case of anomalies — ensuring full user safety.

Rigorous Testing and Validation

The project team conducted extensive laboratory tests, including:

These rigorous tests were crucial in verifying whether the design could withstand mechanical damage, variable weather conditions, and acts of vandalism typical in public environments.

Universal Design and Accessibility

Simultaneously, work was carried out to ensure universal design principles aligned with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The developed panel accommodates users who are blind or hard of hearing, featuring:

Advanced Electronics and Control Systems

From an electronics perspective, the challenge lay in integrating traditional transistor driver functionality of the HV converter with low-level operational monitoring — including leakage current measurement, breakdown detection, and dynamic power shutoff.

Patent Protection and Innovation

This solution has been submitted for patent protection. Its innovation stems not only from using plasma for disinfection but especially from integrating this function with a conventional touch interface within a single electrode structure.

Previous disinfection methods, such as UV-C systems, are expensive, difficult to miniaturize, and come with significant safety and material degradation limitations. In contrast, cold plasma is safe for users, energy-efficient, and fully integrable with existing systems.

Commercial Implementation and Applications

It is worth noting that the project was implemented under the "Fast Track" program of the National Centre for Research and Development and was designed from the outset for practical implementation — both as an OEM solution for manufacturers of public-use equipment and as an upgrade component for existing infrastructure.