WHAT IS INPUT DEVICES

Input devices are used to input data . information and instructions into the
RAM these are classified into following categories:
1. Basic input devices
2. Special input devices
BASIC INPUT DEVICES
The input devices which have now-a-days become essential to operate a PC, may
bne called as basic input devices .these devices are always required for basic input
operation .these devices include keyboard and mouse.
KEYBOARD

It The first thing to consider when shopping for a Keyboard is

whether you want to go with a traditional QWERTY design, with keys
running straight across the board, or an ergonomic natural keyboard.
Natural keyboards spilt the keypad in hale, providing a better angle for
typing. They are a bit more expansive, but many user feel that natural
keyboard are more comfortable input device and can reduce the possibility
of repetitive stress injuries(RSI) over the long term.
After you have found a comfortable base design, it is time to
think about the extra you might like on your keyboard. If you listen a lot of
music on your PC , you might find built-in multimedia control useful . These allow
you to play and pause a songs , adjust the volume, and mute the sound directly
from the keyboard.

Multiple programmable hotkeys are very handy to have on a keyboard, as

they let you bring up often used accessories such as the window calculator or
the my document folder at the touch of a button.
Wireless keyboard often come into in input device bundles that also
include a mouse you will need to change batteries periodically, but it can be
useful to have a keyboard that words at a range of 6 feet or more,especially if
your PC is located in your living room and is integrated with your home theater
system.
MOUSE :

Will purchasing new mouse, never looking at traditional ball

models. The advantages of optical mice over the traditional ball design are huge,
and the cost Increase is minimal. Optical mice never need cleaning, they can be
used on almost any surface, and their resolution and accuracy are much higher.
You can find optical mice with resolutions as high as 2000 dpi
today, s high-end mouse feature extra buttons beyond the standard left and right
clickers. You can find mouse with thumb buttons, that let you zoom in on screen
content, and a scroll wheel that can be depressed for a middle-button action. In
addiction to using the scroll wheel as a button, many mew mouse also feature the
ability to tilt the scroll wheel, letting you scroll from side to side as well as up and
down, which is a up and down, which is handy feature for large web pages on
small screens.
Wireless mouse are also available. For a while, you could find rechargeable nonoptical wireless mice or optical wireless mice that use normal batteries. Today,
many wireless optical mice include rechargeable battery Places Wireless mouse is
available as stand-alone input devices or bundled with wireless keyboard.

A mouse is a pointing device. It is held in one hand and move across a

flat surface. A type of mouse or puck.
The mouse can also be used to draw sketches, diagram, etc. on the
monitor screen. It Is also moved on the graphic tablet for drawing work.
The mouse is also used to edit text. For editing a text on the screen, the
cursor can be quickly placed closed to the desired point of the screen by
moving the mouse.
One type of mouse uses a rolling ball; others use optical sensing
techniques. They are linked to the PC by using a cable or by using infrared
light. A typical mouse has two or three buttons.
What the mouse buttons do depend on the application program
running in your PC. In some systems it is also possible to specify
independent functions to the buttons.
SPECIAL INPUT DEVICES
The input devices which are not essential to operate a PC. are called as special
input devices . these devices are used for various special purposes and are
generally not required for basic input operation.

SCANNERS:-

A scanners is hardware device used to scan text or image into the

computer. Sometimes the information , picture or text that is available on paper
is needed on the computer . the basic function of a scanner is, to convert a
document into digital format. They take analog visual things, document, magazine

paper, photo business card , etc. and tern them into digitized bitmap thats a
specialize software package can understand and translate into PC readable file.
Types of scanner
Different types of scanner are used for different application.
The capability and cost of scanner differ from type to type. The scanner required
for industrial purpose are different from scanners meant for use at home or in
small offices . scanner are of three types. they are:
FLATBED SCANNER

A flatbed scanner is also known as desktop scanner and it work just

like a photocopier. This scanner allows the user to place a full piece of paper
,book ,magazine, photo or any other object onto the glass surface of the scanner.
It has the capability to scan that object and convert it into digital from.
SHEET FED SCANNER

Sheet fed scanner is also known as roller fed scanner. it works

like a fax machine. The image is passed over a roller where it is captured.
Sheet fed scanner is very versatile in scanning loose sheets of paper.
HANDHELD SCANNER
A handheld or portable scanner is an optical scanner which is designed to be
moved by hand across the object or document being scanned. Today, a hand
scanner is extensively used with a PC or a words processor as an image inputting
device. it is for optically reading image or data from a document. It is operated by
hand.

MAGNETIC INK CHARACTER RECOGNITION

MICR detects the special encoded characters on bank cheques and

deposits and slips. After detected the encode characters, the MICR converts
then into digital data for the computer. Figare1.22 shows a bank cheques
which will be processed using a MICR device

ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATION OF THE MICR SYSTEM

a) Even roughly handled, folded, smeared and over-stamped cheques
can be read with a high degree of accuracy.
b) MICR device speed up data input for the banking industry because
cheques can be directly fed into the input device.
c) The characters codes on the cheques using magnetic ink can also be
easily read by people.
d) The main limitation of MICR is that only the 10 digits and 4 special
characters needed of bank processing are used. NO alphabetic
character are available.
e) Special types of magnetic ink is required of encoding the character to
be read by the machine.

OPTICAL CHARACTER READER (OCR)

This device is capable of detecting alphabetic and numeric characters

on a computer print out containing completed pages of typed text or hand
written text. The characters are examined by passing them under a storing
light and a lens system. The inked areas are differentiated from those which
are not inked. Once the whose characters is it is compared with the
character that the machine has been programmed to recognize. If the
pattern of both character matches the scanned character is accepted form
further operations.
ADVANTAGES

a) It makes data entry simple and faster using scanners.

b) It also reduces workload for people who have to feed large amounts of
data into computer on a regular basis.

OPTICAL MARK READER (OMR)

Optical mark reader are special scanners used for recognizing a

pre-specified type of mark made by pencil or pen. For example, in the
objective test paper of DOEACC, you mark your answers on a special sheet
by darkening a small square, using a pen or pencil. These answer sheets are
fed into the computer using the optical mark reader. The computer can
then evaluate the answer sheets. The use of OMR is not limited to the
grading of objective type tests. In fact, any input data that is in the nature
of a choice or selection can be recorded for OMR input.
OMR focuses light on the page being examined and the light
pattern reflected from the dark marks is then detected. The OMR
characters.

JOYSTICK

A joystick is a pointing device. It is used to move the cursor position

on a monitor screen. Its function is similar to that of a mouse and is used
for playing games.
A joystick is a stick which has a spherical ball at its lower end as well as
at its upper end the lower spherical ball moves in a socket. The joystick
can be moved right or left, forward or backward. The electrical circuitry
inside the joystick detects and measures the displacement of the joystick
from its central position. The information is sent to the processor.

TRACKBALL

A trackball is also a pointing device and contain a ball which

can rotate in any direction. The user spins the ball in different direction to
move the cursor on the monitor. The associated electronic circuitry detects
the direction and speed of the spin. The information is sent to the
processor. This type of pointing device is normally used in a laptop
computer.

LIGHT PEN

A light pen is a pointing device. It is used to select a

displayed menu on the monitor. It is a photosensitive pen-like device. It is
capable of sensing a position on the screen when its tip touches the
screen. When its tip is moved over the screen surface , its photocell
sensing element detects the light coming from the screen and the
corresponding signals are sent to the processor. The menu is a set of
programmed choices offered to the user. The user indicates his choice by
touching light pen against a description of the menu.

WED CAMERAS

A Wed camera allow a computer to accept into just by focusing on

an object. The camera is focused on the input object to take a picture of
the object , picture so taken can be transferred over computer network to a
distant place.
the image of the object can be seen on the monitor of the distant
computer connected through a network or through Internet. Voice can also
be transmitted over the network. Thus, two or more persons can tall and
see one another in this way. This method is used in video conferencing.
BAR CODE READER

Bar code reader are special devices used to read bar

coded data. Bar code is a specialized code used for fast identification of
items. It consist of a series of small lines, known as bars. The actual coding
of the bars is the width of the bar, not the height. These are primarily
used for identification of goods such as books, postal packages, badges ,etc.

CARD READER

A card reader is a device that reads punched cards. A punched card is a

storage medium made of thick paper card that holds data in the from of
punched holes. The holes are punched into the card by a keypunch
machine or card punch peripheral device connected to a computer.
The punched card reader called magnetic card reader is used for
reading the magnetic strip on the back of credit cards and is used for
transferring data sent through the card.

VIDEO CAMERAS

A video cameras is a cameras that take continuous pictures

and generates a digital or analog signal for display on a monitor or for
permanent recording. Signal generated by video cameras are traditionally
analog, but nowadays digital video cameras are available. The latter
converts analog signals into digital form.
A video camera captures images by breaking down the image into a series
of lines. Each line is scanned one at a time and the continuously varying

intensities of red, green and blue light across the line are filtered out and
converted into a continuously variable signal. These are then used for
sending a picture over a network through computers.
VOICE INPUT

Voice input and recognition system is an input

device. Consisting a microphone or telephone that coverts human speech
into electrical signal. A signal pattern obtained in this sent to the computer
where it is matched against pre-stored patterns is known as the vocabulary
of the system. To build up this vocabulary, the system has to be trained to
recognize in a training mode. In this mode, the user speaks words and
phrases several times to train the system to recognize tis her particular
voice pattern. In the training mode, the patterns are thus created and
stored for future matching. Because the accent of different speakers varies,
most voice recognition system are speaker-dependent. However, a system
may be trained to recognize the voice of more than one person in which
case a different vocabulary is stored for each person operating the
computer.
TOUCH SCREEN

It is a computer monitor screen designed or modified to

recognize the location of a touch on its surface. By touching the screen the
user can make the. The selection or move a cursor. The simplest type of
touch screen is made up of grid of sensing lines, which determine touch by
matching vertical and horizontal contact. another, more accurate type use
an electrically charged surface and sensor around the outer edge of the
screen to detect the amount of electrical disruption and pinpoint exactly
where contact has been made. A third type made embed infrared light
emitting diodes and sensor around outer edges of the screen. These LEDs
and sensor create an invisible infrared grid, which the user the finger, in
front of the screen. Infrared touch screen are often used in dirty
environment where contaminants could interfere with the operation of
other type of touch screen. touch screen are very popular application such
as information kiosks and automatic teller machines because they offer
control without requirement any movable hardware and because touching
the screen is intuitive.

REFERENCE
Information technology concepts by Dr. Madhulika jain, Shashank & satish
jain, [BPB Publication, New Delhi.]