If you have a computer and are familiar with a lot of the new technology today then you probably have heard of the drawing tablets available for use with computers. The actual idea of the tablet has been around for quite some time. Believe it or not the first electronic tablet made for writing purposes was in 1888 and was called the Telautograph. While the electronic tablet is still widely used by many businesses for the purpose of collecting signatures, it has certainly come a long way since the 1800s.
The Styalator appeared in 1957 and was the first of these kinds of tablets to be used in conjunction with a computer. This writing pad was the forerunner to the computer drawing tablet we know today. The next tablet to be developed was the RAND. This was the first writing tablet created that was able to recognize the differences between horizontal and vertical coordinates used in a magnetic signal. It was able to do this because of the way the grid design was created inside the pad itself. Now the stylus that was used with the pad for writing was able to receive a magnetic signal and then encode and send it back to the computer.
Some tablets used a type of stylus that created a click which generated a spark, similar to how a spark plug works. These are often referred to as spark or acoustic type tablets. However, in the long run these tablets proved to be extremely complex in design and the pens were prone to picking up interference signals from other external sources. These tablets were eventually replaced with the digital tablets we know today.
The computer drawing tablets incorporating use of digital technology began in the 70s and 80s. The first two commercial products released were the BitPad and the ID by the Summagraphics Corporation. These new digital pads were specifically used for CAD software and were even sometimes included in the bundle packages of PCs. The Apple computer also had its version of the same type of input device simply known as the Apple Graphics Tablet.
The tablets themselves come in several different models. Passive tablets have the stylus connected via a wire for the transmission of the signal. Active tablets have a stylus that is not connected to the pad, but is an independent battery operated stylus which communicates signals to the tablet. Optical tablets use an incredibly microscopic camera unit in the stylus to relay the images to the pad. A few others are the acoustic, the electromagnetic and the capacitive tablets.
If you are considering purchasing a drawing tablet for use with your computer you would benefit from doing a little research online. With so many different types and styles to choose from you will want to be sure the product you choose is the one best suited to your needs.
For more information visit computer drawing pad or portable laptop printers.
