INPUT OUTPUT DEVICES

Unit-2
Input Devices
With the help of input devices user feed data, information and instruction in
computer. These devices convert human language into machine language of
computer. They translate character, number and other symbol into the language of
computer that is 0 and 1 bits. After that the processing of data is possible. In this
way Input devices execute two objective.
o To carry data and informtion to computer.
o To convert instructions into machine language.

Following are some of the important input devices which are used in a computer −
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Joy Stick
 Light pen
 Track Ball
 Scanner
 Graphic Tablet
 Microphone
 Magnetic Ink Card Reader(MICR)
 Optical Character Reader(OCR)
 Bar Code Reader
 Optical Mark Reader(OMR)

Keyboard
Keyboard is the most common and very popular input device which helps to input
data to the computer. The layout of the keyboard is like that of traditional
typewriter, although there are some additional keys provided for performing
additional functions.
Keyboards are of two sizes 84 keys or 101/102 keys, but now keyboards with 104
keys or 108 keys are also available for Windows and Internet.

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The keys on the keyboard are as follows –

S.No Keys & Description

Typing Keys
1 These keys include the letter keys (A-Z) and digit keys (09) which
generally give the same layout as that of typewriters.

Numeric Keypad

2 It is used to enter the numeric data or cursor movement. Generally, it

consists of a set of 17 keys that are laid out in the same configuration used
by most adding machines and calculators.

Function Keys

3 The twelve function keys are present on the keyboard which are arranged in
a row at the top of the keyboard. Each function key has a unique meaning
and is used for some specific purpose.

Control keys

4 These keys provide cursor and screen control. It includes four directional
arrow keys. Control keys also include Home, End, Insert, Delete, Page Up,
Page Down, Control(Ctrl), Alternate(Alt), Escape(Esc).

Special Purpose Keys

5 Keyboard also contains some special purpose keys such as Enter, Shift,
Caps Lock, Num Lock, Space bar, Tab, and Print Screen.

Types of keyboards
Most computer users use the standard keyboard, which connects to the computer.
Although there are many types of a computer keyboard, such are as follows:

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1. Flexible keyboard: It is a type of keyboard that is made of soft silicone with

highly portable. It is water and dust-resistant and does not require constant
cleaning. It acts the same as a standard keyboard and connects to the computer via
a USB connection serial port. These types of keyboards can also be more durable
in terms of some ways, as compared to a traditional keyboard. These keyboards are
useful for traveling time because they can be rolled up into a bag and flexible in
outdoorsy situations.

2. Ergonomic Keyboard: This type of keyboard is beneficial for your body

posture. Instead of adjusting yourself to fit the keyboard, it is designed to fit you
easily, ease of use, and reduce strain. It is designed in that way; instead of bending
their hands, it allows users to straight their hands. Generally, the space-bar is
bigger as compared to a regular keyboard, which allows for fast typing.

3. Wireless Keyboard: It is a computer keyboard that is connected to

computers, laptops, or tablets without any cables. It uses radio frequency (RF),
infrared (IR), or Bluetooth technology to connect with devices. Users can move the
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wireless keyboard around without having to put it on a desk as it provides

portability and flexibility to the users. It is designed by stainless steel material that
increases its life for a long time. It can set up very easily by plugging the USB
receiver into the computer.

It utilizes light waves to transmit signals to other infrared-enabled devices as it is

based on infrared technology. Some wireless keyboards use radio frequency
technology, which communicates via signals with a range from 27 MHz to up to
2.4 GHz.

4. Mechanical Keyboard: It is made with high quality that commonly used in

both home and office. It is designed for long life with high durability and
responsiveness. It provides crisp click sound, medium resistance, and better
feedback for gaming performance and ultimate typing. It offers framing, switches,
type print methods, functionality, PCB board, key construction, LED lighting, or
more other better features as compared to traditional rubber dome keyboards.

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5. Virtual Keyboard: It is a software-based keyboard that enables users to type

without the need for physical keys. It is an alternative for a physical keyboard or a
digital representation of a QWERTY keyboard. These types of keyboards
commonly have many pages of characters, including numbers, letters, punctuation,
and symbols. Some virtual keyboards also include options to insert emojis,
stickers, or animated GIFs on the basis of the device's operating system. The
devices that contained virtual keyboard are tablets, smartphones, and other portable
devices, because these devices do not require the constant use of a physical
keyboard.

Examples of virtual keyboards

o Gboard: Google created a virtual keyboard for Android and iOS that
includes features like GIFs, customizable themes, and translation
capabilities.
o OSK: It stands for an on-screen keyboard. It is commonly found in
Microsoft Windows.

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6. Projection Keyboard: It is a form of computer input device that can be

connected via Bluetooth to the mini PC, tablet computer, or even smartphone. In
projection keyboard, the image of a virtual keyboard is projected onto a surface.
The device records the corresponding keystroke when a user touches any key from
the shown keyboard on the surface. Some devices are connected via Bluetooth
devices such as tablets, smartphones, mini-PC with Android, Windows operating
system or iOS, etc.

7. Gaming Keyboard: A keyboard that contains a few specific keys used for
gamers is known as a gaming keyboard. The W, S, D, A, and arrow keys are
widely used for games on the standard QWERTY keyboard. Gaming keyboards
(mostly mechanical keyboard), the key switches needless depression that provides
faster action for games.

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Mouse
Mouse is the most popular pointing device. It is a very famous cursor-control
device having a small palm size box with a round ball at its base, which senses the
movement of the mouse and sends corresponding signals to the CPU when the
mouse buttons are pressed.
Generally, it has two buttons called the left and the right button and a wheel is
present between the buttons. A mouse can be used to control the position of the
cursor on the screen, but it cannot be used to enter text into the computer.

A computer mouse is a handheld hardware input device that controls a cursor in

a GUI (graphical user interface) for pointing, moving and
selecting text, icons, files, and folders on your computer. In addition to these
functions, a mouse can also be used to drag-and-drop objects and give you access
to the right-click menu.

For desktop computers, the mouse is placed on a flat surface (e.g., mouse pad or
desk) in front of your computer.

Advantages
 Easy to use
 Not very expensive
 Moves the cursor faster than the arrow keys of the keyboard.

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Common types of the mouse:

i) Trackball Mouse:

It is a stationary input device that has ball mechanism to move the pointer or cursor
on the screen. The ball is half inserted in the device and can be easily rolled with
finger, thumb or the palm to move the pointer on the screen. The device has sensor
to detect the rotation of ball. It remains stationary; you don't need to move it on the
operating surface. So, it is an ideal device if you have limited desk space as you
don't need to move it like a mouse.

ii) Mechanical Mouse:

It has a system of a ball and several rollers to track its movement. It is a corded
type of mouse. A mechanical mouse can be used for high performance. The
drawback is that they tend to get dust into the mechanics and thus require regular
cleaning.

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iii) Optical Mouse:

An optical mouse uses optical electronics to track its movement. It is more reliable
than a mechanical mouse and also requires less maintenance. However, its
performance is affected by the surface on which it is operated. Plain non-glossy
mouse mat should be used for best results. The rough surface may cause problems
for the optical recognition system, and the glossy surface may reflect the light
wrongly and thus may cause tracking issues.

iv) Cordless or Wireless Mouse:

As the name suggests, this type of mouse lacks cable and uses wireless technology
such as IrDA (infrared) or radio (Bluetooth or Wi-Fi) to control the movement of
the cursor. It is used to improve the experience of using a mouse. It uses batteries
for its power supply.

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Joystick
Joystick is also a pointing device, which is used to move the cursor position on a monitor screen.
It is a stick having a spherical ball at its both lower and upper ends. The lower spherical ball
moves in a socket. The joystick can be moved in all four directions.

The function of the joystick is similar to that of a mouse. It is mainly used in Computer Aided
Designing (CAD) and playing computer games.

 It is a device which comprises a stick which is attached at an angle to the base so that it
can be moved and controlled
 Mostly used to control the movement in video games
 Apart from a computer system, a joystick is also used in the cockpit of an aeroplane,
wheelchairs, cranes, trucks, etc. to operate them well

Light Pen
Light pen is a pointing device similar to a pen. It is used to select a displayed menu item or draw
pictures on the monitor screen. It is connected to a computer with a cable.It is used for writing
directly on the screen. It is used mainly for graphical work i.e. Computer Aided
Designing(CAD). It consists of a photocell and an optical system placed in a small tube.

When the tip of a light pen is moved over the monitor screen and the pen button is pressed, its
photocell sensing element detects the screen location and sends the corresponding signal to the
CPU.

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Track Ball
Track ball is an input device that is mostly used in notebook or laptop computer, instead of a
mouse. This is a ball which is half inserted and by moving fingers on the ball, the pointer can be
moved.

Since the whole device is not moved, a track ball requires less space than a mouse. A track ball
comes in various shapes like a ball, a button, or a square.

Scanner
Scanner is an input device, which works more like a photocopy machine.We can
take data & figures with the help of scanner into the computer. It is used when
some information is available on paper and it is to be transferred to the hard disk of
the computer for further manipulation. It can save photo and data of book in the
form of image. We can change hard copy into soft copy with the help of scanner.

Scanner captures images from the source which are then converted into a digital
form that can be stored on the disk. These images can be edited before they are
printed.
o Face scanner
o Hand scanner
o Finger scanner
o Voice scanner

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Digitizer
Digitizing tablet is a drawing surface.One pen or mouse is attached with it.When
we write by pen the signal are transmitted to computer. Digitizer is an input device
which converts analog information into digital form. It is used to get the graphical
position of character.With the help of it we can draw the graph therefore it is called
graph table.
Digitizer can convert a signal from the television or camera into a series of
numbers that could be stored in a computer. They can be used by the computer to
create a picture of whatever the camera had been pointed at.

Digitizer is also known as Tablet or Graphics Tablet as it converts graphics and

pictorial data into binary inputs. A graphic tablet as digitizer is used for fine works
of drawing and image manipulation applications.

Microphone
Microphone is an input device to input sound that is then stored in a digital form.It
converts voice into digital form and transmit it to the computer. It is mainly used in
offices and call centres.

The microphone is used for various applications such as adding sound to a

multimedia presentation or for mixing music.

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Magnetic Ink Card Reader (MICR)

The abbreviation MICR stands for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition. This is
a type of data input often found in banks. The bank account number and other
details are printed onto bank cheques in a special font with magnetic ink.
MICR input device is generally used in banks as there are large number of cheques
to be processed every day. The bank's code number and cheque number are printed
on the cheques with a special type of ink that contains particles of magnetic
material that are machine readable.

This reading process is called Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR). The
main advantages of MICR is that it is fast and less error prone.

Optical Character Reader (OCR)

OCR is an input device used to read a printed text. OCR stands for “Optical
Character Recognition” in its full form. OCR is a computer reading technique
that reads numbers, characters, and symbols. OCR is a technique for recognizing
text in documents that have been scanned into digital form. Optical character
recognition (OCR) refers to a device that reads printed text. Character by
character, OCR scans the text, converts it to a machine-readable code, and saves
it into the memory of the system. OCR also functions as a scanner, scanning
documents, photos, images, and handwritten text and storing the information in
memory, which may then be compared to previously stored data.

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OCR scans the text optically, character by character, converts them into a machine
readable code, and stores the text on the system memory.

Bar Code Readers

Bar Code Reader is a device used for reading bar coded data (data in the form of
light and dark lines). Bar coded data is generally used in labelling goods,
numbering the books, etc. It may be a handheld scanner or may be embedded in a
stationary scanner.

Bar Code Reader scans a bar code image, converts it into an alphanumeric value,
which is then fed to the computer that the bar code reader is connected to.

Optical Mark Reader (OMR)

OMR is a special type of optical scanner used to recognize the type of mark made
by pen or pencil. It is used where one out of a few alternatives is to be selected and
marked.

It is specially used for checking the answer sheets of examinations having multiple
choice questions. Optical Mark reading (OMR) is a method of entering data into a
computer system. Optical Mark Readers reads pencil or pen marks made in pre-
defined positions on paper forms as responses to questions or tick list prompts. The
OMR data entry system contains the information to convert the presence or
absence of marks into a computer data file.

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Output Devices
The function of the output device is to display the result for the user after having
processed data, information and instructions. These devices translate the 0,1 bit
languages of computer into human language and display the result on the monitor.
Following are some of the important output devices used in a computer.
 Monitors
 Graphic Plotter
 Printer
 Speaker
 Sound Card

Monitors
Monitors, commonly called as Visual Display Unit (VDU), are the main output
device of a computer. It forms images from tiny dots, called pixels that are
arranged in a rectangular form. The sharpness of the image depends upon the
number of pixels.
Characteristics of a monitor.
a) Size:

The most important aspect of a monitor is its size. Screen sizes are measured in
diagonal inches, the distance from one corner to another opposite corner
diagonally.

b) Resolution: The resolution of a monitor indicates how density the pixels are
packed. Pixel is short for picture element. A pixel is a single point in a graphic
image. Graphic monitors display pictures by dividing the display screen into
millions of pixels arranged in rows and columns. On colour monitor each pixel is
actually composed of three dots namely a red, a green, and a blue. The quality of a
display monitor largely depends on its resolution.

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c) Band Width:

The amount of data that can be transmitted in a fixed amount of time. For
digital devices, the band width is usually expressed in bits or bytes per second
(bps). For analog devices it is expressed in cycle per second or Hertz (Hz).

d) Refresh Rate:

Display monitors must be refresh many times per second. The refresh rate
determines how many times per seconds the screen is to be red drawn. The refresh
rate of a monitor is measured in Hertz. The faster the refresheris, the less the
monitor flickers.

e) Interlacing:

It is a technique in which instead of scanning the image one line at a time, it

scans alternately i.e. alternate lines are scanned at each pass. It is used to keep band
width down. Since inter leaked displaced have been reported to be more flickery,
with better technology available, most monitors are non interlaced now.

f) Dot per Inch:

It is measured for the actual sharpness of the on screen image. This depends on
both the resolution & the size of the image. Practical experience shows that a
smaller screen has a sharper image at the same resolution than does a large screen.
This is because it will require more dots per inch to display the same number of
pixels.

g) Dot Pitch:

A measurement that indicates the vertical distance between each pixel on a

display screen. It is measured in millimeter. The dot pitch is one of the principle
characteristics that determine the quality of display monitors.

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There are some kinds of viewing screen used for monitors.

1. Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT)
2. Flat-Panel Display
a) LCD Monitor
b) LED Monitor
c) OLED Monitor
d) PLASMA Monitor
e) TOUCH SCREEN Monitor*

Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT) Monitor

The CRT display is made up of small picture elements called pixels. The smaller
the pixels, the better the image clarity or resolution. It takes more than one
illuminated pixel to form a whole character.

A finite number of characters can be displayed on a screen at once. The screen can
be divided into a series of character boxes - fixed location on the screen where a
standard character can be placed. Most screens are capable of displaying 80
characters of data horizontally and 25 lines vertically.
There are some disadvantages of CRT −
 Large in Size
 High power consumption

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Flat-Panel Display Monitor

The flat-panel display refers to a class of video devices that have reduced volume,
weight and power requirement in comparison to the CRT. You can hang them on
walls or wear them on your wrists. Current uses of flat-panel displays include
calculators, video games, monitors, laptop computer, and graphics display.

The flat-panel display is divided into two categories −

 Emissive Displays − Emissive displays are devices that convert electrical
energy into light. For example, plasma panel and LED (Light-Emitting
Diodes).
 Non-Emissive Displays − Non-emissive displays use optical effects to
convert sunlight or light from some other source into graphics patterns. For
example, LCD (Liquid-Crystal Device).

LCD Monitor

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LCD is known for ‘Liquid Crystal Display’ made of liquid crystals. It is the most
used monitor worldwide, as it requires less space, consumes less electricity, and
produces relatively less heat than an old CRT monitor.

LCD monitors are thinner and much lighter in size and weight than CRT monitors.
Due to this, it competes with LED and OLED in the market.

This display was first used in laptops, and later the manufacturers also being
produced for Desktop Computers range from 17 inches to 60 inches. Being these
monitors need less space and are light in weight, they do not create any trouble in
transporting and moving them from one place to another.

Both LCD and LED monitors have considerably more adaptability for positioning
the screen in the manner in which you need it. These monitors can turn, tilt up and
down, and even rotate from landscape to portrait mode.

LED Monitor
LED’s full form is ‘Light Emitting Diode’ is the latest innovation in the market
today’s market competing with LCDs and Plasma Monitors. These types of
monitors are slightly curved or flat panel displays that use light-emitting diodes
for backlighting on the screen instead of cold cathode fluorescent (CCFL) for
back-lighting.

LED displays are more bright with 4k resolution than other displays, due to which
the user can be read or seen easily in daylight time. LED monitors use less power
than LCDs as well as LEDs are widely used by gamers for playing high graphics
and HD games.

The advantage of LEDs is that they produce images with higher

contrast and vivid colors as well as don’t make a negative impact on the
environment at the time of disposing of. In addition, the LEDs are more durable as
compared to LCD and CRT Monitors.

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OLED Monitor

OLED stands for “Organic Light Emitting Diode“. As the name suggests, it is
made of organic material (such as carbon, plastic, wood, and polymers), that is
used to convert electric current into light.

This is also the latest display technology used in displays of television, computer
screen, game consoles, PDAs, or even in the latest smartphones. It can be thinner
or lighter with a higher contrast ratio than LCDs

Since these LEDs are capable enough to produce a lot of different colored light,
can be used directly to produce the correct color and there is no need for any
backlight, which saves power also requires less space. The OLED display is
considered great for watching movies.

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Plasma Monitor

The Plasma monitor panel (PDP) is made of Plasma technology is another latest
type of computer monitor technology. Display of plasma made with cells. These
cells are filled with ‘electrically charged Ionized Gas‘. Such cells are called
Plasma.

The basic idea behind its invention is that it illuminates the tiny colored fluorescent
lights that create image pixels. Each pixel is made of three fluorescent lights like a
tiny neon light- red, green, and blue lights. that produces a superior contrast ratio,
along with the intensity of these lights also vary accordingly.

The major disadvantages of plasma monitors are their limited production and
screen sizes. Plasma monitors are heavier in size a well as consume more
electricity, on average than LCD monitors.

*Touch Screen Monitors

These monitors are also known as an input device. It enables users to interact with
the computer by using a finger or stylus instead of using a mouse or keyboard.
When users touch the screen by their finger, it occurs an event and forward it to the
controller for processing. These types of screens include pictures or words that
help users to interact with the computer. It takes input from the users by touching
menus or icons presented on the screen.

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Printers
Printer is an output device, which is used to print information on paper.
There are two types of printers −
 Impact Printers
 Non-Impact Printers

PRINTER

NON-
IMPACT
IMPACT
PRINTRT
PRINTER

CHARACTER LINE LASER INKJET

PRINTER PRINTER PRINTER PRINTER

DAISY
DOT MATRIX DRUM CHAIN
WHEEL
PRINTER PRINTER PRINTER
PRINTER

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Impact Printers
Impact printers print the characters by striking them on the ribbon, which is then
pressed on the paper.
Characteristics of Impact Printers are the following −
 Very low consumable costs
 Very noisy
 Useful for bulk printing due to low cost
 There is physical contact with the paper to produce an image
These printers are of two types −
1) Character printers
2) Line printers

Character Printers
Character printers are the printers which print one character at a time.
These are further divided into two types:
 Dot Matrix Printer(DMP)
 Daisy Wheel

Dot Matrix Printer

In the market, one of the most popular printers is Dot Matrix Printer. These
printers are popular because of their ease of printing and economical price. Each
character printed is in the form of pattern of dots and head consists of a Matrix of
Pins of size (5*7, 7*9, 9*7 or 9*9) which come out to form a character which is
why it is called Dot Matrix Printer.

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Advantages
 Inexpensive
 Widely Used
 Other language characters can be printed
Disadvantages
 Slow Speed
 Poor Quality

Daisy Wheel
Head is lying on a wheel and pins corresponding to characters are like petals of
Daisy (flower) which is why it is called Daisy Wheel Printer. These printers are
generally used for word-processing in offices that require a few letters to be sent
here and there with very nice quality.

Advantages
 More reliable than DMP
 Better quality
 Fonts of character can be easily changed
Disadvantages
 Slower than DMP
 Noisy
 More expensive than DMP

Line Printers
Line printers are the printers which print one line at a time.

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These are of two types −

 Drum Printer
 Chain Printer
Drum Printer
This printer is like a drum in shape hence it is called drum printer. The surface of
the drum is divided into a number of tracks. Total tracks are equal to the size of the
paper, i.e. for a paper width of 132 characters, drum will have 132 tracks. A
character set is embossed on the track. Different character sets available in the
market are 48 character set, 64 and 96 characters set. One rotation of drum prints
one line. Drum printers are fast in speed and can print 300 to 2000 lines per
minute.
Advantages
 Very high speed
Disadvantages
 Very expensive
 Characters fonts cannot be changed

Chain Printer
In this printer, a chain of character sets is used, hence it is called Chain Printer. A
standard character set may have 48, 64, or 96 characters.
Advantages

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 Character fonts can easily be changed.

 Different languages can be used with the same printer.
Disadvantages
 Noisy

Non-impact Printers
Non-impact printers print the characters without using the ribbon. These printers
print a complete page at a time, thus they are also called as Page Printers.
These printers are of two types −
 Laser Printers
 Inkjet Printers
Characteristics of Non-impact Printers
 Faster than impact printers
 They are not noisy
 High quality
 Supports many fonts and different character size

Laser Printers
These are non-impact page printers. They use laser lights to produce the dots
needed to form the characters to be printed on a page.

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Advantages
 Very high speed
 Very high quality output
 Good graphics quality
 Supports many fonts and different character size
Disadvantages
 Expensive
 Cannot be used to produce multiple copies of a document in a single printing

Inkjet Printers
Inkjet printers are non-impact character printers based on a relatively new
technology. They print characters by spraying small drops of ink onto paper. Inkjet
printers produce high quality output with presentable features.

They make less noise because no hammering is done and these have many styles of
printing modes available. Color printing is also possible. Some models of Inkjet
printers can produce multiple copies of printing also.
Advantages
 High quality printing
 More reliable
Disadvantages
 Expensive as the cost per page is high
 Slow as compared to laser printer

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Speakers
Speakers are connected to computers to allow sound to be output. For the
working of speakers, sound cards are required. From simple two-speaker output
devices to surround-sound multi-channel sets, speakers come in a variety of
shapes and sizes. They take audio input from the computer’s sound card and
output sound waves as audio output.

 A device through which we can listen to a sound as an outcome of what we

command a computer to do is called a speaker
 Speakers are attached with a computer system and also are a hardware
device which can be attached separately
 With the advancement in technology, speakers are now available which are
wireless and can be connected using BlueTooth or other applications.

Characteristics of Speakers:
 Speakers are available in a wide range of qualities and prices.
 Small, plastic computer speakers with low sound quality are often included
with computer systems.

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Plotter

A plotter is a device that prints high-quality graphics in a variety of color formats.

It works in a similar way to a printer, although it has more advanced features. It is
used to print large maps, architectural drawings, large-format printing, and create
pictures, 3D postcards, advertising signs, charts, and various designs of the
internal structure of building machines, as well as create pictures, 3D postcards,
advertising signs, charts, and various designs of the internal structure of building
machines.
Characteristics of Plotter:
 Large size prints can be taken via plotters
 It is slow & expensive.

Sound Card

Sound cards are computer output devices that are inserted into the computer. A sound
card, either external or internal, is required to produce sound on any computer (built-
in). An external sound card enables for better overall sound generation and is required
for wide and clear sound recording, as well as sound without noise and interference.
Characteristics of Sound Card:

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 To listen speakers or headphones, to play games, watch movies, listen to music, or

use audio and video conferencing, we use an internal sound card.
 Frequency is a sound card parameter that represents the number of signals the card
processes per unit of time. The frequency is expressed in hertz. The frequency of
most sound cards is 96 or 192 kHz.
 Synthesizers and a variety of electronic musical instruments, such as drums and
keyboards, can be connected to your computer using a sound card with standard
Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) connections.

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