INPUT AND OUTPUT DEVICES

Information and Communication Technology

Inputs
Keyboards
 QWERTY- layout
 Ergonomic- reduces health related problems

Uses
 Keyboards are used to input data into application
software
 Also used to for typing commands to the computer
(Ctrl+P)

Advantages
 Enables fast entry of new text into a document
 Well tried technology and well known method of entry
 Most people find them easy to use
 Easy to do verification check as data is entered, as it appears on the screen simultaneously

Disadvantages
 Users with limited arm/wrist use can find keyboards hard to use
 Entering data is slow when compared to direct data entry (e.g. Optical mark recognition)
 They use up desk space as they are quite large

Concept keyboard
 Uses icons or phrases instead of standard letters
 A single key represents an item on the keyboard

Uses
 Used in: Fast food restaurants, offices and shops

Advantages
 Enables fast data entry (there is no need to type in whole commands)
 Waterproof, useful in a restaurant environment
 They are tamperproof, preventing people from keying in information (which could corrupt the
system)
 Numeric Keypads
 A numeric keypad is used to enter numbers only
 Although some have function key to allow input of alphabetical
characters

Uses
 Used in Automatic teller machines (ATMs), where customers can
key in their personal identification number (PIN), or an amount
of money
 Used to key in phone numbers into telephones
 Electronic point of sale (EPOS) terminals have numeric keypads in case the barcode reader fails
 Used in Chip and PIN devices to key in PIN, or amount of money
 Used to enable fast entry of numeric data into a spread sheet

Advantages
 Numeric keypads are faster than standard keyboards for entry of numeric data
 Since many are small devices (e.g. mobile phones), they are easy to carry around

Disadvantages
 Can be difficult to use due to the very small keys
 Difficult to use for entering text
 Sometimes the order of the numbers isn’t very intuitive

Mice
 An example of a pointing device
 The ball underneath the mouse is used to detect movement
 The left button is for selecting by double on it and the right is to bring
drop-down menus
 There is usually a scroll button which speeds up the process of moving
through a document

Uses
 Used for opening, closing and minimising software
 Used for grouping, moving and deleting files
 Useful when editing images (e.g. controlling the size and position of the image)
 Used for controlling the position of a pointer on the screen to allow:
o Selection from a menu
o Selecting an icon
o Scrolling up/down and right/left
Advantages
 Faster to select an option by a mouse than a keyboard
 Enables rapid navigation through applications and the internet
 Mice are small and don’t take much area

Disadvantages
 People with restricted hand/wrist movement can find it hard to operate a mouse
 Easily damaged and can easily be clogged up with dirt
 They are hard to use if there is no flat surface available

Touchpads
 Touchpads are used in many laptop computers as a pointing device
 The pointer is controlled by the user moving their
finger on the touchpad

Uses
 Used for opening, closing and minimising software
 Used for grouping, moving and deleting files
 Useful when editing images (e.g. controlling the
size and position of the image)
 Used for controlling the position of a pointer on the
screen to allow:
o Selection from a menu
o Selecting an icon

Advantages
 Faster to select an option by a touchpad than a keyboard
 Enables rapid navigation through applications and the internet
 Since the touchpad is integrated into the laptop computer, there is no separate mouse, aiding
portability
 They can be used when no flat surfaces are available

Disadvantage
 People with limited hand/wrist movement can find touchpads hard to use
 It can be more difficult to control the pointer when compared to a mouse
 They are more difficult when doing operations such as ‘drag and drop’
 Tracker balls
 Tracker balls are similar to a mouse except that it has a ball on the top of the device
 Users control the pointer on the screen by rotating the ball

Uses
 Have the same pointing/cursor control capability as a mouse
 Used in applications where the user has a disability (RSI)
 Used in a control room environment, where it is faster than a mouse to
navigate through process screens and more robust than a mouse

Advantages
 Tracker balls don’t need the same fine control as a mouse
 People with limited hand/wrist movement find easier to use than a mouse
 The pointer can be positioned more accurately on the screen than with a mouse
 They take less desk space than mice since they are stationary

Disadvantages
 Tracker balls are not supplied with the computer as standard, so they are more expensive
 User may need training since they are not standard equipment

Remote Controls
 A remote control is used to control the operation of other devices
remotely by using infra-red signals

Uses
 In home entertainment devices such as Televisions, DVD
player/recorder and satellite system
 Used to control multimedia systems
 Used in industrial applications to remotely control processes, stop and
start machinery

Advantages
 Enable devices to be operated from any distance, which is useful for people with disabilities
 Some chemical processes are hazardous, so it is safer to operate equipment from a distance

Disadvantages
 People with limited hand/wrist movement can find them hard to use
 The signal between the control and the device can be easily blocked
 Joysticks
 By gripping the stick, a pointer on the screen can be controlled
 Buttons are used to make selections

Uses
 Video/computer games are often controlled by joysticks
 They are used in simulators to mimic actual controls

Advantages
 Easier to navigate round a screen compared to a keyboard
 Control is in three dimension

Disadvantages
 More difficult to control the on-screen pointer with a joystick than with other devices such as mice

Touchscreens
 User can choose an option by simply touching a button/icon on the screen
 The selection is automatically made without the need for any
pointing device

Use
 Used for service tills e.g. petrol stations
 Used where selections are made on a screen e.g. ATMs, public
information systems, airports and railway stations
 Used in PDA’s
 Used in Interactive white boards
 Used in computer based training (CBT)

Advantages
 Enable faster entry of options than a keyboard or a mouse
 Very easy to choose options
 User friendly method for inputting data
 They are tamperproof, preventing people from keying in information (which could corrupt the
system)

Disadvantages
 There is a limited number of options available
 Using touchscreens often can lead to health problems e.g. (straining of arm muscles and RSI)
 The screen can get very dirty with constant touching
 Magnetic Stripe readers
 Used to read information on the magnetic stripe
 The stripe contain useful information such as start and
expiry date

Uses
 Credit and debit cards have magnetic stripes that are used
by ATMS or EFTPOS (electronic funds transfer point of
sale) terminal
 Security cards for entering building e.g. hotel rooms
 Travel systems e.g. train and underground tickets

Advantages
 Data entry is fast compared with keying in using a keyboard or keypad
 System is error free, no typing involved
 Information is secure since there is no typing and the information can’t be read directly by a person
 Can prevent access to restricted/secure areas
 Magnetic stripes are unaffected by oil water and moisture
 No moving parts therefore physically robust

Disadvantages
 If the magnetic stripe is damaged the data is lost
 Card needs to be in close contact with the reader
 Since the information is not human readable, they need to find a way to show the information to the
customer (e.g. hotel room number not printed on cards)

Smart Card readers

Uses
 Loyalty cards, ID cards and public transport passes
 Can be used to track customer/passenger movement
 Used with a satellite system to decode program signals
 Used for electronic passports and driving licences

Advantages
 Some smart cards are used instead of money
 The chip on the card does not need to be in contact with the reader
 Data is more secure since it’s easier to copy data of magnetic stripe than on a chip
Disadvantages
 If the card is lost information stored on the chip could be used for identity theft

Chip and PIN readers

Uses
 Chip and PIN readers are used where payments are made using cards
e.g. travel agents

Advantages
 Provide a more secure payment system than requiring a signature or using magnetic stripe, since the
PIN typed in must match up with the PIN stored on the chip
 Provide a more robust system than magnetic stripe since the chip does not need to be in contact
with the reader

Disadvantages
 Customer needs to be careful when typing in the PIN so nobody reads it giving an opportunity for
Fraud

Scanners
 Used to enter information on hardcopy e.g. text documents

Uses
 Used to scan in documents and convert them into a format for
use in various software packages
 Old and valuable documents and books can be scanned,
protecting the original copies from damage
 Non-digital photographs can be scanned for storing on a
computer

Advantages
 Images can be stored for editing at a later date
 Scanners are much faster and more accurate than typing in documents again
 It is possible to recover damaged documents and photographs by scanning them and then using
appropriate software to produce an acceptable copy

Disadvantages
 The quality can be limited depending on how good the scanner resolution is
 Barcode readers
 Used to read information in the form of a barcode
 Handheld scanners or wands are very common for reading barcodes

Uses
 Used in supermarkets and other shops where the goods are marked
with a barcode
 Used in libraries to scan users library card and barcodes on books
(in order to keep track of books on loan)
 Used as a safety function in many companies to ensure that
electrical equipment is checked on a regular basis

Advantages
 Faster than keying in information, and fewer mistakes are made
 Used as a way of recording data, can improve safety
 Barcodes enable automatic stock control
 Barcode scanning is a tried and trusted technology
 When an item price is changed, only the central database needs to be updated, there is no need to
change the prices individually on each item

Disadvantages
 Barcode scanning is an expensive system to administer since every item in the shops needs a
barcode and every barcode needs to be entered on the system. Also there is a need to invest in the
computer technology together with staff training, which can all be expensive
 The system is not fool proof- barcode can be swapped around on items

OMR Devices
 Optical mark recognition is a system which can read marks written in pen or pencil

Uses
 OMR devices are used to read questionnaires, multiple choice
examinations papers and other types of forms in the form of lines
or shaded areas

Advantages
 A very fast way of inputting results of a survey
 Since there is no typing, it is more accurate than keying in data
 OMR is more accurate than OCR
Disadvantages
 Forms need to be carefully designed to make sure that the marks/shadings are correctly positioned
to gather accurate information
 There can be problems if forms aren’t filled correctly, sometimes they have to be checked manually
before being read by an OMR, this is both time consuming and expensive

OCR readers
 Optical Character recognition is a software that takes scanned text and converts it into a computer
readable form

Uses
 Processing of passports and Identity cards
 OCR is used when scanning documents to modify them using a
suitable software

Advantages
 Much faster data entry system than manually keying in data
 Since there is no manual data entry, the number of errors is reduced

Disadvantages
 The system has difficulty reading handwriting
 It is still not a very accurate technique

MICR Device
 Magnetic ink character recognition is a system which can read
characters printed in a special ink

Uses
 Used to process cheques in banking operations – cheque is
read using a batch processing method

Advantages
 MICR offers great security than OCR since the oriented
characters cannot be altered
 There is no manual input, thus errors are reduced
 If somebody writes over the magnetic ink characters it can still be read

Disadvantages
 Only certain characters can be read and the number of different characters is very limited
 It is a more expensive method than other methods used for direct data entry
 Digital Cameras
 Photographs are stored in memory
 They can be easily transferred to a computer using a USB

Uses
 Digital cameras can produce photographs for direct transfer to
a computer or to print out
 Digital cameras allow short video clips to be produced
 Photographs can be uploaded directly into application
software such as word processor

Advantages
 Easier to produce better quality photographs than with a tradition camera
 Easier and faster to upload photographs to a computer
 There is no need to develop film and print out photographs (saves paper and no longer needs the
chemicals to produce photographs from films)
 Easy to delete an image from the memory if it’s not satisfactory
 The memory card can store several hundred photographs

Disadvantages
 The camera user needs to be computer literate to use the camera properly
 There is some artistry lost since clever software corrects errors in the photographs
 The resolution is not yet as good as traditional cameras
 Images often need to be compressed to reduce the amount of memory used
 It is possible to fill up computer memory very quickly with several photos of the same subject(in
order to find the perfect snap shot)

Webcams
 Connected directly to a computer via a USB port

Uses
 While chatting online webcams can be used to have
conversations
 Used to enable video conferencing to take place

Advantages
 Can be left on constantly and activated when required
 Allow people to keep in contact with each other without the need
to travel, particularly useful for disabled or elderly people

Disadvantages
 Webcams have limited features and the picture is often of poor quality
 They need to be connected to a computer
 Microphones
 Can be connected directly to a computer
 Sounds can be inputted and manipulated

Uses
 Microphones are used to input speech/sounds to be used in
various applications
 They are used in voice recognition software- for conversion
of speech into text, and recognition of commands

Advantages
 Faster to read in text than to type it using a keyboard
 Possible to manipulate sound in real time using special
software
 If used in a voice activation system, this has the advantage of improving safety

Disadvantage
 Sound files can use up a lot of computer memory
 Voice recognition software isn’t as accurate as typing in manually

Sensors
Type of sensor Applications
Temperature Automatic washing machines, central heating systems, automatic green
houses, ovens
Pressure Burglar alarm systems , robotics, environmental monitoring , Automatic
washing machines
Light Automatic doors, street lighting control , Burglar alarm systems, automatic
greenhouses
Sound Burglar alarm systems, monitoring liquid and powder flow in pipes
Humidity/moisture Automatic greenhouses, environmental monitoring, factories where moisture
levels are crucial
pH Automatic greenhouse, chemical processes, environmental monitoring

Advantages
 Readings by sensors are more accurate than taken by humans
 Readings are continuous, there is no break in monitoring
 Because it is a continuous process any necessary action or warning will be initiated immediately
 The system can be automatic, removing the need for human intervention, this is particularly
important if the process is hazardous

Disadvantages
 Faulty sensors can give spurious results
 Graphic tablets
 A graphic tablet is used with a stylus to produce freehand drawings

Uses
 Graphics tablets are used to produce drawings,
computer graphics
 In countries where characters are complex e.g. japan
they are used as a form of input
 They are used in computer aided design (CAD) work

Advantages
 It is possible to modify drawings before they are input
 They offer an accurate method of drawing

Disadvantages
 They are more expensive than other pointing devices

Light Pens
 Contain sensors that send signals to a computer
whenever light changes are detected

Uses
 Light pens are used for selecting objects on CRT
screens
 They are used for drawing on screens e.g. with a (CAD
package)

Advantages
 Light pens are more accurate than touchscreens
 They are small, so can be used where space is an issue
 They are easy to use

Disadvantages
 There are problems with lag when drawing on screens
 Only work with CRT monitors at the moment
 They are not very accurate when drawing

Output Devices
 Hardware devices that allow data to be output from a computer
 Some hold data temporarily e.g. a monitor
 Some produce permanent output in the form of a hardcopy e.g. a printer
 CRT Monitors
 Cathode Ray Tube monitors
 Least expensive type of monitor, becoming rarer as TFT monitors take over
 Come in various sizes
 Picture created is made up of tiny dots (red green or blue), the intensity of
the colour of the dot determines the colour perceived by the eye

Uses
 Primary output device for computers, user can immediately see what they are typing in
 Used with light pens to allow designs to be created on screen

Advantages
 Produce higher quality images than TFT monitors
 Angle of viewing is better than a TFT monitor
 They work with light pens in CAD and CAM applications (Computer Aided Design/Manufacturing)

Disadvantages
 Tend to be heavy, weight hazard if not supported properly
 Run very hot, can cause fires if left unattended – especially if they are old
 Consume more power than TFT monitors
 They can flicker, this leads to headaches and eyesight problems with prolonged use

TFT Monitors
 Thin Film Transistor monitors
 Taking over from CRT monitors as the main output device
 The progress in TFT technology is one of the reasons for the rapid
development of laptop computers
 The screen is made up of thousands of tiny pixels which are made up
of transistors controlled by a microprocessor.
o Each pixel has three transistors-red, green or blue; the
intensity of each determines the colour of the pixel seen.

Uses
 Primary output device for computers, user can immediately see what they are typing in
 Integral part of laptop computers

Advantages
 Lightweight, so no weight hazards like CRT monitors
 Less glare produced than in CRT monitors; also emit less radiation
 Consume much less power and generate less heat than CRT monitors
Disadvantages
 Angle of viewing is critical, image appears unclear if viewed slightly from the side
o This is an issue if several people are looking at the screen at the same time
 The definition is sometimes not as good as CRT monitors
 They cannot yet be used with light pens, so cannot be used in CAD

Laser Printers
 Produce very high-quality hard copy output
 Print rate per page is fast if a large number of pages are being
printed
 Rely on large buffer memories – the data for the whole document is
stored before pages can be printed out

Uses
 Used where noise levels need to be kept low e.g. in an office
 The best option for fast, high quality, high volume printing

Advantages
 Printing is fast for high volumes, slightly faster than inkjet if only a few pages are to be printed
 Can handle very large print jobs
 Quality is consistently high
 Toner cartridges last for a long time; laser printers can be a cost effective option if colour outputs are
not required

Disadvantages
 Expensive to buy
 Only really fast if several copies are being made
 Colour laser printers tend to be expensive to run since four cartridges are needed as well as diffuser
kits, etc.
 Produce ozone and volatile organic compounds because of their printing method and type of toner/ink
used
o These have been linked to health hazards in the office

Inkjet Printers
 Used to produce good quality hard copies – the quality is not as good as
in laser printers but much better than that of dot matrix printers
 Do not have large buffers like laser printers, so printing is done a bit at a
time
o This is why printing is sometimes paused – the whole page can’t
be stored in the buffer, it has to wait for the computer to send
more data
Uses
 Used where low volume outputs are needed
 Ideal for high quality printing for small print jobs or single pages e.g. for photo quality printouts

Advantages
 High quality output
 Cheaper to buy than laser printers
 Very lightweight and take up little space (small footprint)
 Do not produce ozone and volatile organic compounds, unlike laser printers

Disadvantages
 Output is slow if several copies needed – there is little buffer capacity to store the pages
 The ink cartridges run out too quickly to be used for large print jobs
 Printing can smudge if the user is not careful
 Can be expensive to run if they are used a lot – original ink cartridges are expensive

3D Inkjet Printers
 A new type of printer that produces solid 3D models using
modified inkjet technology called tomography
 Very thin layers of fine powder (plaster, resin, starch) are
bonded together as a 3D model is slowly built up
 Items produced are known as prototypes

Uses
 Used to produce prototypes which actually work from CAD packages, photograph images, stored
drawings etc.
 Scale models are produced in colour before the real thing is manufactured
 The ultimate objective is to produce organic objects using this layering technology (such as
replacement human organs)

Advantages
 Save a lot of money, other methods of making prototypes are very time consuming and expensive
 The powders used can often be ground up and reused
 Physical scale models are produced with working parts, which gives a better idea of how the end
product will look

Disadvantages
 Expensive to buy
 Slow at producing their output
 End product is sometimes a little rough, often further work needs to be done
 Dot Matrix Printers
 A type of impact printer
 A print head made up of a matrix of pins presses against an inked
ribbon

Uses
 Can be used in noisy environments e.g. garage workshops
 Can be used in applications were the print quality is not very
important

Advantages
 Can be used in environments which would be a problem for laser and inkjet printers – dusty, dirty or
moist atmospheres
 Carbon copies or multi-part outputs can be produced
 Very cheap to run and maintain
 Easy to use if continuous stationary is required e.g. long print jobs such as wage slips

Disadvantages
 Very noisy – not good in an office environment
 Cost more than an inkjet printer to buy
 Very slow
 Printing is of poor quality

Graph Plotters
 Devices that produce hard copies but operate in a different way to printers.
 Not limited to normal printer paper size and are capable of producing
highly accurate, very large drawings and posters
 The most common types are pen plotters, electrostatic(similar
method to laser printers) and inkjet plotters
o With pen plotters, coloured pens are controlled by a
computer and the paper can move backwards and forwards
to allow accurate shapes to be drawn

Uses
 Used to produce large drawings e.g. blueprints of buildings; are often used with CAD applications
 Used to produce large pictures for use on billboards or giant posters
o They can also print on plastic coated paper
 If the pens are replaced by cutting tools, it is possible to make large signs

Advantages
 Can produce huge printouts
 Print quality is extremely high
Disadvantages
 Slow in operation
 Expensive to buy and maintain

Speakers
 Can be connected directly to a computer or are built into the
monitor or casing (as in laptop computers)
 Uses a digital to analogue converter (DAC) to convert digital data
from the computer to analogue from so the speakers can process
it; the signal is then amplified through the speakers.

Uses
 Used to output sound from multimedia presentations
 Used in home entertainment centres
 They can help blind people through audio output of text on the
screen (together with speech generation software)
 Used to play downloaded sound files

Advantages
 Usually long lasting and durable (if operated within their intended power levels)
 Often provided with the computer/laptop although these may not be the best quality

Disadvantages
 Can take up a lot of desk space, compared to headphones
 Can distract people around you, everyone can hear what you are playing
 May not be able to hear the full sound spectrum, this requires multiple speakers

Multimedia Projectors
 Receive analogue and digital signals, although most
modern projectors only work with digital inputs
 The signal source is usually from a computer, television
or DVD player
 The image from the source is magnified and projected
onto a large screen
 The devices usually work with a remote control, but can
also use virtual mouse technology – cordless PC mouse
(has a laser pointer)
o It is then possible to direct the presentation without being tied to the computer
o Most multimedia projectors take input from various types of video format e.g. PAL, NTSC or
SECAM
Uses
 Used for training presentations ( allows the whole audience to see the images from a computer)
 Also used for advertising presentations (shown at exhibitions, shopping malls etc.)
 Home cinema systems (projecting the images from a DVD or television) use multimedia projectors

Advantages
 Enables many people to see a presentation rather than all of them crowded around a small computer
screen
 Avoids the need for several networked computers
o e.g. when looking at a video clip on the internet, everybody can see the video on the large
screen rather than logging on to a number of computers

Disadvantages
 Images can sometimes be fuzzy
 Expensive to buy
 Setting up projectors can be a little difficult

Control Devices
 Another type of output device
 Used to control processes when combined with sensor input devices

Actuators
 Transducers that are used to take signals from a computer and convert them into some form of motion
e.g. operating motors, pumps, switches and valves
 Digital signals are sent from the computer to an actuator to operate a device
 Conversion of the digital signal to analogue is required first (using a DAC)

Motors
 Turned on or off by the actuator

Uses
 Used in many domestic appliances
o Automatic washing machines (to make the drum
rotate)
o Cookers (to switch on fans)
o Water pumps in central heating systems
o Automatic greenhouses to open windows and
switch on fans
 Used to control robot arms in the industry
 Operate fans, disk drives and DVD drives in computers
 Buzzers
 Switched on or off by the actuator

Uses
 Used in cookers and microwave ovens to tell the operator when the cooking process is complete
 Used in burglar alarm systems to warn if intruders are present

Lights
 The actuator is connected to the switch that turns the lights on or off

Uses
 Security lights
 Used in greenhouses to control the lighting conditions

Heaters
 Actuators are connected to switches which turn the heater on or off

Uses
 Used in automatic washing machines, cookers and central heating systems
 Used in automatic greenhouses to control the temperature