David mentions capacitive touch buttons in EEVblog #130 – The uCalc Credit Card Scientific Calculator / Computer and indeed I have read about capacitive touch buttons before like in the documentation of de kompasklok which unfortunately is only available in Dutch.
But how do they work and can I easily make my own with a little microcontroller programming (and a PCB)?
Best Answer
You can very easily make your own capacitive touch buttons. Texas instruments MSP430 has a good code base and PCB layout considerations for you to start right away.
The way they work, as better explained by the PDF linked above is as follows,
I recommend starting with the MSP430 LaunchPad and then getting the capacitive sense booster pack. You could be playing with capacitive touch for $15.