Video: Making your glove work with a touch screen

video Video: Making your glove work with a touch screen

This video runs you through the quick and easy process of customizing any glove to work with a touch screen like the iPad, iPhone, Palm Pre, etc.

This is the video version of my previous Instructable which was recently featured in the New York Times.

finnrambo says: Dec 17, 2010. 6:24 PM

cant you just use thin copper wire like the fly fish tying stuff? and can you just sew it on the outside of the glove or does it have to touch your finger?
thanks, Finn

Grathio (author) in reply to finnramboDec 19, 2010. 4:05 PM

As I mention using metal can scratch your screen and conducts cold back to the inside of the glove, so it makes your fingers colder.

But yes it would work.

finnrambo in reply to GrathioDec 19, 2010. 9:25 PM

those are two very good points but does the thread have to touch your fingers?

Grathio (author) in reply to finnramboDec 20, 2010. 10:00 AM

I guess I didn't make it clear enough in the video, though you could test it easily enough by making a coil of wire. Put on a heavy glove and pres the wire to the screen and see if it works. Then take off the glove and hold it in your hand to see if it works.

But the answer is yes, it needs to be touching your finger so that it can extend the capacitive effect of your body to the outside of the glove. Alternately it needs to be connected to something that generates a large capacitive effect, which is why meat or a the flat end of a AA battery also works.

finnrambo in reply to GrathioDec 20, 2010. 11:25 AM

thanks, and I'll stop bothering you now