Touch Imager

The World’s First Contact-Based Imaging System

Revolutionizing Imaging Technology

Developed over 8 years, the Touch Imager introduces groundbreaking contact imaging technology—setting a new benchmark in Western blot detection. Designed for precision and simplicity, it redefines how researchers capture protein data.

Precision Sensitivity for Unmatched Clarity

With an imaging chip enlarged by 130 times and sensitivity enhanced by up to 100-fold, the Touch Imager delivers exceptionally sharp and detailed images—helping scientists visualize even the faintest signals without repeated exposures.

Award-Winning Industrial Design

Recipient of the Red Dot Design Award (2018), the Touch Imager was recognized for its ability to turn advanced imaging technology into an intuitive, user-friendly design—proving that powerful performance and aesthetic simplicity can go hand in hand.

Having Trouble Achieving Accurate, Reliable, and Reproducible Western Blot Results?

Western blotting plays a critical role in identifying and quantifying proteins across various cell lines. But traditional systems often require extensive calibration to differentiate between strong and faint bands—leading to repeated exposures, lost time, and inconsistent outcomes. On top of that, signal interference from nearby bands can obscure your target, making precise data capture a tedious and time-consuming process.

X-ray Film Western Blot

X-ray film blotting works much like traditional darkroom photography, capturing protein samples using a high-powered x-ray machine. While this method delivers high sensitivity and no optical signal loss, it comes with a number of limitations and inefficiencies. Despite its continued use in some countries like the U.S., x-ray film blotting presents several drawbacks:

Requires high maintenance and operational costs due to darkroom setup, chemical reagents, and film development materials.

Utilizes toxic processing chemicals that pose health risks and environmental concerns.

Time-consuming workflow involving extensive preparation, exposure, and manual film processing.

Suffers from narrow dynamic range and weak signal acquisition, often requiring repeated exposures due to signal saturation and low accuracy.

Cooled CCD Western Blot

The cooled CCD method uses industrial-grade SLR cameras to digitally capture protein images, offering a modern alternative to x-ray film. Known for its quantitative imaging accuracy and digital documentation capabilities, this approach offers distinct advantages. However, several limitations persist:

Low sensitivity with over 99% optical signal loss, making it difficult to detect faint bands.

A limited dynamic range, restricting the ability to capture both high- and low-intensity signals in one image.

Images are prone to signal saturation, producing poor-quality results that often require multiple re-runs to obtain usable data.

A Smarter Way to Perform Western Blot Imaging

Touch Imaging: A Groundbreaking Leap Beyond Traditional Technologies

Touch Imaging redefines chemiluminescence imaging by eliminating the need for a lens. Instead, samples make direct contact with an advanced photosensitive chip, allowing high-resolution images to be captured in just 1 second. With a sensor chip area 130 times larger than standard CCD systems and pixel sizes 400 times greater, the Touch Imager delivers unmatched speed, sensitivity, and precision.

Why Touch Imaging Outperforms Cold CCD Systems

Lens-Free Direct Contact
The membrane is placed directly onto the imaging chip, capturing signals without optical loss—significantly enhancing sensitivity and imaging speed.

Ultra-Large Sensor Chip
The massive chip size with ultra-sensitive signal detection dramatically increases imaging performance, especially for low-abundance proteins.

Expanded Quantification Range
Large pixel architecture extends the dynamic range by two orders of magnitude, allowing accurate detection from weak to strong signals in a single exposure.

No Lens, No Distortion
By removing all optical components, Touch Imaging eliminates distortion and light scatter, ensuring crystal-clear, reproducible results.

Ultra-High Sensitivity

The lens-free direct touch imaging system captures even the faintest protein bands with zero signal loss. Equipped with an oversized CMOS sensor, it delivers enhanced sensitivity and accurate detection, especially for low-abundance targets—perfect for experiments requiring high fidelity.

Expanded Dynamic Range

Thanks to chip-contact sample loading, our system boosts signal detection by 2–3 logarithmic scales, ensuring clear visualization of both strong and weak signals in a single exposure. This drastically reduces the risk of signal saturation or data loss, streamlining your workflow.

Fast Imaging in Just 1 Second

Streamline your protocol with one-touch imaging. Simply place the sample on the chip and press a button—high-resolution results are ready in just 1 second. No calibration, no manual adjustments—just fast, reproducible results every time.

Space-Saving Design – Up to 90% Less Space Required

The compact, all-in-one Touch Imager is optimized for both small and large lab spaces. By removing the need for bulky optics and separate imaging rooms, it reduces spatial footprint by up to 90%, making it an ideal fit for modern, space-conscious labs.

The Imaging Technology That Performs Better In All Scenarios

Touch Imager vs. X-ray Film: Superior Clarity with Minimal Exposure Time

α-Tubulin Testing (Left Panel)

The top image shows α-Tubulin bands captured using the TOUCH IMAGER with just a 1-second exposure. The bands appear crisp, dark, and evenly distributed—even faint signals are clearly visible.

In contrast, the lower image captured via optical film with a 30-second exposure shows weaker contrast and signal dropout, especially for low-abundance bands, demonstrating the reduced sensitivity and dynamic range of traditional film-based detection.

Protein Sample Testing (Right Panel)

The TOUCH IMAGER (top) again delivers sharp, well-resolved protein bands in only 1 second of exposure, showcasing its ability to detect both high- and low-intensity signals simultaneously.

Meanwhile, the optical film (bottom), even after 60 seconds of exposure, produces overexposed and blurred bands, particularly in high-signal areas, indicating limited dynamic range and poor resolution.

Touch Imager vs. Cooled CCD: Faster Imaging with Enhanced Clarity

α-Tubulin Testing (Left Panel)

The TOUCH IMAGER (top) captures strong, uniform bands with high clarity and contrast in just 1 second of exposure. Band definition is sharp and signal-to-noise ratio is excellent, even for the fainter bands.

The cooled CCD camera (bottom), despite a 60-second exposure, produces dimmer bands with noticeable background noise and uneven coloration, particularly at the edges, indicating reduced sensitivity and potential interference.

Protein Sample Testing (Right Panel)

In the TOUCH IMAGER result (top), multiple protein bands are clearly defined, with strong contrast and minimal background noise—all achieved with a 1-second exposure time.

Conversely, the CCD camera image (bottom), captured with a 60-second exposure, shows faded signals and increased background, making it harder to distinguish between bands. This suggests limitations in dynamic range and longer acquisition time for similar clarity.

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