Wacom Co., Ltd. (Kabushiki-gaisha Wakomu, Wacom Co., Ltd.?) (pronounced in English as /'wɑːkɒm/ or /'wækɒm/) (TYO: 6727) is a world-wide company that produces graphics tablets and related products, headquartered in Otone, Saitama, Japan. The US headquarters is located in Vancouver, WA. Wacom is a loose translation of Japanese; Wa for Harmony or circle, and Com for Computer. It is one of the largest graphics tablet producers and is very popular with artists, graphic designers, architects, and cartoonists, who commonly cite it as an industry standard. Wacom tablets are notable for their use with a patented cordless, battery-free, and pressure-sensitive stylus (an on-screen writing pen). In addition to manufacturing and selling tablets as separate products, Wacom also supplies the graphical input technology used in most tablet PCs, which it calls "Penabled Technology". As of 2005, Wacom (according to itself) held a market share of 95.8% in Japan and estimated 70% in the rest of the world.[1]
Product lines
Wacom produces several lines of tablets. Most tablets are sold with a bundle of software such as Corel Painter Essentials and Photoshop Elements, which take advantage of the features of the tablet. Each is sold with a compatible pen ("digitizer"); some of these allow the artist to use the other end as an eraser. Some models include a mouse based on the same technology. A driver CD is also included. All current models of external tablet connect to computers via USB or Bluetooth. All the tablets work with both Apple computers and IBM PC -compatibles.
Bamboo and Bamboo Fun
The Bamboo line is Wacom's first tablet aimed at general input tasks rather than specifically targeting graphics users, and priced to appeal to home users. It is similar in specifications to the most recent Graphire4 tablets (most of which have been discontinued), with 512 levels of pressure sensitivity. It is sold as "Bamboo" with a roughly 3.7×5.8-inch (94×147 mm) active area, and "Bamboo Fun" with software and either 3.7×5.8- ("small") or 5.3×8.5-inch ("medium") active area (94×147 and 135×216 mm, or roughly A6 and roughly A5, respectively). The Bamboo is available worldwide.
PenPartner
The PenPartner tablet is designed for notebooks. The second generation is tailored more towards laptops, while the original was the predecessor to the original Graphire. This second version is not available in the Americas.
Volito
The Volito is designed as a "first tablet" system. The Volito is designed, technically, to be an alternative to a computer mouse. This unit is not available in the Americas. There are no Mac OS X drivers available for the Volito.
Graphire
The Graphire (now in its 4th revision) is a popular high-end tablet marketed to hobbyists, known in Japan as FAVO. Although most of the Graphire line has been discontinued in favor of the Bamboo tablets, the wireless 6x8 Bluetooth Graphire is still in production and is notably the only Bluetooth tablet currently produced by Wacom.
As noted above, the lower-priced Bamboo tablets have replaced the high-end Graphire line. Graphire pens and Bamboo pens are interchangeable.
Intuos
Wacom Intuos3 graphics tablet
Intuos is marketed to professional graphic artists, and features the highest specifications of any Wacom device. It is available in multiple sizes and proportions, and includes tilt sensitivity and 1024 levels of pressure. The Intuos is currently in its third generation, and comes in the following sizes (active area):
- 4 inches by 5 inches (10 cm × 13 cm)
- 4 inches by 6.2 inches (10 cm × 16 cm)
- 6 inches by 8 inches (15 cm × 20 cm)
- 6 inches by 11 inches (15 cm × 28 cm)
- 9 inches by 12 inches (23 cm × 30 cm)
- 12 inches by 12 inches (30 cm × 30 cm)
- 12 inches by 19 inches (30 cm × 48 cm)
Cintiq
The Cintiq 12wx On-screen drawing Tablet
The Cintiq is a tablet/screen hybrid, a graphics tablet that incorporates an LCD into the tablet itself, allowing the user to draw directly "on" the display surface. The tablets are available in several sizes; a 21" 1600×1200 resolution tablet, the 21UX, has been available for several years at various price points. As of November 2007, two new 12" and 20" widescreen were released, the 12WX and the 20WSX, respectively. The tablet is suitable for everyday tasks, has programmable function keys, and is compatible with Windows and Mac OS X.
Cintiq tablets can usually be compared to a Tablet PC by many consumers with high prospects. Most consumers are unaware of a drawing tablet's many features which differ from those of a Tablet PC. Tablet PCs are not built for drawing; instead they can be used more for businesses. Most tablet PCs are used for PDA purposes. The Cintiqs use a different source of technology. Aside from the touch screen, Cintiq and many other drawing tablets have pressure sensitive pens. The Cintiq tablet can simulate a range from different pressure rates depending on much pressure the user applies. All three Wacom Cintiqs have 1024 pressure levels on the pen tip and the eraser.
Cintiqs can be used as an extended monitor for other personal reasons.
Special purpose devices
Besides graphical applications pen tablets are also used for signature capturing. While the above listed devices of Wacom capture signatures "as well" Wacom launched a special signature tablet with LC display in December 2007, together with its preferred software partner Softpro, a company specializing in capturing and verifying handwritten signatures. The "STU-500" is better known as as SignPad eSignio. The signature tablet not only captures the static image characteristic of your signature, but also the dynamic (biometric) signals, which are produced throughout the signing process (such as pressure, acceleration of pen, and other unique characteristics associated with your signature).
Discontinued
Previous products from Wacom included the ArtZ, ArtZ II, ArtPad, ArtPad II, Graphire through Graphire4, Intuos and Intuos2, and 15-, 17- and 18-inch Cintiqs. Earlier models used RS-232 and Apple serial connectors, with a conversion to USB in later models.
Drivers
Wacom supplies drivers for contemporary versions of Microsoft Windows and Mac OS. The driver package includes a control panel which allows extensive customization of how the tablet and pen work with the host OS.
The Linux Wacom Project produces drivers for Linux/X11, and is maintained by a Wacom employeecitation needed.
Technology
Wacom tablets use a patented electromagnetic resonance technology. Since the tablet provides power to the pen through resonant coupling, no batteries or cord is required for the pointing device. As a result, there are no batteries inside the pen (or the accompanying mouse). This allows for more slender pens, and gives the pen-and-tablet combination a long and essentially maintenance free lifespan.
Under the tablet's surface (or LCD in the case of the Cintiq) is a grid of wires that transmits a send and receive signal. In send mode, the tablet's electromagnetic signal stimulates oscillation in the pen's coil-and-capacitor circuit. In receive mode, the energy of the resonant circuit’s oscillations in the pen is detected by the tablet's grid. This information is analyzed by the computer to determine the pen's position. In addition, the pen communicates other vital information, such as pressure-sensitivity, side-switch status, tip or eraser orientation and Tool ID. For example, applying more or less pressure to the tip of the pen changes the value of the pen's timing circuit capacitor. This signal change is communicated to a modulator which distributes the information digitally to the tablet. The tablet forwards this and other relevant information (pen position, angle, side-switch status, Tool ID, et cetera.) in packets, up to 200 times per second, to the computer.
References
External links
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