Input devices

Class Notes
Edited 2021
 Input Devices

• These are devices designed to enter/feed data

and instructions/commands into the computer.
• Each input device enters data in a unique way
depending on the type of data being input.
• The data may be graphics (images), sound,
video or text (alphanumeric).
• The most commonly used input devices are the
keyboard and the mouse.
 Categories of input devices

• Pointing devices
• Text input devices
• Imaging devices
• Audio input devices
• Gaming devices
• Biometric input devices
 1. Pointing devices:
• These are input devices which allow the user
to move a pointer and make selections on the
computer screen.

• The major pointing device is the mouse for the

desktop computer and the touchpad for the
laptop,
 1.1 Mouse
• Mouse is a device used to move the cursor to
different positions on the screen and select or
choose the necessary commands.
• Usually, the mouse has some buttons which
are pressed whenever the mouse is being used.
• This pressing of the mouse button is known as
clicking.
 Activities performed by the mouse

– Clicking

– Dragging

– Resizing

– Selecting or highlighting

– Deny or accept a command e.g. enter, ok

– Start or close a program

 1.2 Touch pad
• Designed to be controlled by a fingure, touch
pad is a small, flat, rectangular pointing device
that is sensitive to pressure and motion.
• When touched, it sends a signal to the
computer to move the mouse pointer to that
location on the screen.
• They are commonly found on laptops and
notebook computers.
 1.3 Trackball
• A trackball is a pointing device consisting of
a ball held by a socket containing sensors to
detect a rotation of the ball, like an upside-
down mouse with an exposed protruding ball.
 1.4 Track point (pointing stick)
• is a cursor control device commonly located
on a laptop keyboard between buttons G, H
and B, operated by pushing in the general
direction the user wants the cursor to move.
 1.5 Touch screen
• A touch screen is a touch sensitive display
device which allows the user to interact with a
computer by touching areas on the screen.
• The major advantage of a touch screen is that
it is both an input device as well as an output
device.
 1.6 Light pen:
• This is a light sensitive pointing device used in
conjunction with a cathode-ray tube (CRT)
display.
• It allows the user to point to displayed objects
or draw on the monitor screen in a similar way
to a touchscreen but with greater positional
accuracy.
• Light pens are used in design work and also
health care professionals such as the dentists.
Light pen images
1.7 Stylus pen and digitizing tablet
• Digitizing tablet – a device consisting of a rough
surface upon which the user may draw or trace an
image using the attached stylus, a pen-like drawing
apparatus. The image is shown on the computer
monitor.
• These tablets may also be used to capture data or
handwritten signatures.
• Stylus and Graphics tablet are mainly used for
computer aided designs (CAD) by Architects,
mapmakers, artists and designers.
Images for stylus & digitizer
 2. Text input devices

• Text refers to a combination of characters such

as letters, numbers and symbols.
• Devices that help the user to feed letters,
numbers or symbols are known as text input
devices.

• Examples include:
 2.1 Keyboard

• Keyboard contains keys that allow the user to

enter data/text and instructions/commands into
the computer.
• The keyboard may be wired or wireless,
physical (peripheral) or inbuilt (onscreen).
2.2 Optical character recognition (OCR)

• A technology that reads typewritten, computer-printed

or handwritten characters from ordinary documents and
translates their images into a form the computer
understands.
• Examples of such documents include; passport
documents, invoices, bank statements, computerized
receipts, business cards, mail, printouts of static-data, or
any suitable documentation
• It is a common method of digitizing printed texts so that
they can be electronically edited, stored, or displayed on-
line
Different mages of OCR
 2.3 Magnetic Ink character Recognition
(MICR)
• A technology used to verify the legitimacy or
originality of paper documents, especially
checks.
• Special ink, which is sensitive to magnetic
fields, is used in the printing of certain
characters on the original documents.
Some images of MICR
 2.4 Optical Mark Recognition (OMR)
• OMR is a method of entering pencil or pen
marks made in pre-defined positions on paper
forms as responses to questions or tick list
prompts, into a computer system.
• They are used to read questionnaires, multiple
choice examination paper in the form of lines
or shaded areas.
Some images of OMR
2.5 Magnetic stripe Card Readers
• A magnetic stripe reader is a device that
“reads” the information that has been encoded
on the magnetic stripe on the back of a plastic
card. e.g. identity cards, credit cards, bank
ATM cards, and other similar cards.
• The stripes may include information like
access privileges, account numbers, or other
cardholder details.
Some images of magnetic stripe card
readers
 2.6 Barcode readers
(Barcode scanner)
• These use light patterns that pass through
printed codes / serial numbers on items and
translate (decode) the data contained in them,
then send it to a computer for record keeping.
• They are commonly used in supermarkets,
departmental stores, libraries, sales outlets, etc.
Different images of barcode readers
 3. Audio Input devices
• Allow a user to enter (audio) sound such as
speech and music, into the computer for
processing, recording, or carrying out
commands.
• To enter sound, the computer must have a
sound card and microphone.
 3.1 Microphone
• A microphone is a device that captures audio
data by converting sound waves into an
electrical signal. This signal can be amplified
and processed by a computer or other digital
audio device.
3.2 Musical Instrument Digital Interface
(MIDI)
• A connectivity standard for transferring digital
instrument data for playing, recording and
editing music.
• MIDI is commonly used in digital drums,
guitars, and keyboards hence enter audio data
into a computer.
Images for MIDI
3.3 Voice Recognition Equipment (VRQ)

• They are specially programmed to give a

computer the ability to listen, understand and
distinguish between the spoken words and
respond to user’s requests

• VRQ is commonly used to operate a device,

perform commands, or write without having to
use a keyboard, mouse, or press any buttons.
Application areas of VRQ
• Typing textual data
into a computer (e.g.
in Microsoft Word)
• Google search on
internet
• In Biometric security
– using Voice as
“security code”
 Advantages of using VRQs

• When used correctly, entry of text and

instructions / commands is relatively faster
than when using a keyboard.
• The visually impaired and people with no arms
(disabled) can best benefit from VRQs.
 Disadvantages of using VRQs

• Error rate is high, depending on the user’s

accent
• Synonym words are hardly distinguished
• Speech recognition are affected by a noisy
environment.
• Requires the user to have training before use
• Requires the user to speak in a writing style,
i.e. even dictate symbols.
 4. Imaging devices
• These are devices that are designed to capture,
record and store still or visual images in a
computer for further processing.

• Examples include;
 4.1 Scanner
• A light sensing device used to change a hard copy
document into a softcopy document that can be
viewed, edited and stored in a computer.
• It converts handwritten, printed text and pictures
on paper into an digital file format. The image is
viewed on a monitor.
• Phones with scanning apps may also help to scan
a document, edit, store or transmit it on network.
Images of scanners
 4 types of scanners
• Flatbed - provides a flat glass surface to hold a sheet
of paper, book or other object for scanning.
• Sheet-fed - allows only paper to be scanned rather
than books or other thick objects. It moves the paper
across a stationary scan head.
• Handheld –small and less expensive scanners, moved
by hand over the material being captured.
• Drum scanners- the original document is wrapped
around a drum, detector head is moved longitudinally
as the drum is rotated hence high quality images.
 4.2 Digital camera
• These take still photographs and record video,
store them as data on a memory card in the
camera. The image is later transferred into the
computer for further editing and printing.
 4.3 Digital video (DV) Camera
• Captures live motion picture information from
live environments, converts it into digital
form, and then transfers it into a computer for
editing and storage.
 4.4 Webcam (PC camera)
• This is a kind of digital camera that allows the
computer user to record, edit, capture video and
still images and also to make video phone calls
on the internet.
• PC cameras can also be used in video
conferencing.
• They can also be set to take digital photographs
at preset time intervals or whenever it detects
motion (for security purposes).
 4.5 CCTV camera
• A closed-circuit television camera can produce
images or recordings for surveillance or other
private purposes.
• “Closed-circuit” means broadcasts are usually
transmitted to a limited (closed) number of
monitors, unlike “regular” TV, which is
broadcast to the public at large.
• CCTV networks are commonly used to monitor
criminal activities and record traffic infractions.
Images of CCTV
 5. Gaming devices
• Are specialized computer systems designed for
interactive video gameplay and display.
• For a computer to play games, it must have a
video card.

• Examples include;
 5.1 Joy stick
• A joystick is an input device consisting of a
stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle
or direction to the device it is controlling.
• They are commonly used to control video
games, and usually have one or more
push-buttons whose state can also
be read by the computer.
 5.2 Video Game console
• A video game console is an electronic or
device that outputs a video signal or visual
image to display a video game that one or
more people can play through some type of
game controller.
 5. Biometric input devices
• Are devices used to translate biological
characteristics into a digital code that is stored
or compared with a code earlier stored in the
computer.
• They are used to perform functions related to
user legitimacy and authentication.
• Among the features measured are face,
fingerprints, hand geometry, handwriting, iris,
retinal, vein, and voice.
 Common examples include;
• Fingerprint recognition systems
• Iris recognition systems
• Face recognition systems
• Signature verification systems
• Voice recognition systems
• Ear recognition systems
• DNA Matching systems (Digital Forensic)
Some Biometric devices
 Features that make biometric devices
dependable
• Permit controlled entry to only legitimate people
to have access to a computer resource or venue.
• Can hardly be forged by unauthorized people.
• Are able to take actual record of time signed in
or signed out.
• When connected on a network to a certain
database, the captured events are safely shared
and managed.
• They cannot be bribed like the security guards.