Windscreen wiper on a tablet – no problem!

As the business uses for rugged mobile computing devices continue to rapidly expand, customers are increasingly looking for a device that can be tailored to meet the specific needs of the different roles within their workforce. This personalisation can be met in a variety of ways, for example, with peripheral complementary solutions or integrated functionality to help make the most of the devices. Panasonic already has a wide range of specialists solutions that can be used with its TOUGHBOOK devices, from thermal cameras to barcode scanners – but what if you wanted something a little bit different? Say windscreen wipers for your TOUGHBOOK tablet. It sounds crazy but it can be done.

The wacky wipers idea was just one of the more fun suggestions put forward by participants at the Concept in a Day session run by the Solutions Engineering team at the recent Panasonic TOUGHBOOK Innovation Forum. At the start of the day, participants were challenged to suggest a new addition to the Panasonic TOUGHBOOK line-up and the mechanical, electronic and software engineers at the TOUGHBOOK Design Lab in Cardiff put their minds to the test and developed a concept within just 6 hours.

Challenges accepted by the Solutions Engineering team included a TOUGHBOOK tablet with a windscreen wiper and a request for a rugged tablet with a multi-fingerprint identity scanner. They start by considering the customer’s business problem and then apply their technology knowledge and creative design to create a practical solution. And it’s not just a fun mental exercise. Using the same approach – albeit over more than just a day – the team has already designed, tested and rolled-out a range of solutions for customers. These include everything from turning TOUGHBOOK tablets into rugged drone controllers,  to creating fixed dashboard mounts for easy use by emergency services personnel in their specialist vehicles.