COMPUTER INPUT DEVICES
E
ngineers have been especially creative
in designing new ways to get
information into computers. Some input
methods are highly specialized and
unusual, while common devices often
undergo redesign to improve their
capabilities or their ergonomics, the ways
in which they affect people physically.
Some common input devices include
keyboards, mice, trackballs, and
touchpads.
also have function keys, labeled F1, F2, F3,
and so on. These keys allow the user to
issue commands by pressing a single key.
Mouse
Graphical operating systems contain many
elements that a user can choose by pointing at them. Such elements include buttons, tools, pull-down menus, and icons
for file folders, programs, and document
files. Often pointing to and clicking on
one of these elements is more convenient
than using the cursor or arrow keys on the
keyboard. This pointing and clicking can
be done by using a mouse. The mouse is
the second most common input device,
after the keyboard. A mouse operates by
moving the cursor on the computer screen
to correspond to movements made with
the mouse.
Keyboard
A keyboard can be an external device that
is attached by means of a cable, or it can
be attached to the CPU case itself as it is
for laptop computers. Most keyboards
today are QWERTY keyboards, which take
their name from the first six keys at the
left of the first row of letters. An alternative, the DVORAK keyboard, places the
most commonly used keys close to the
user’s fingertips and speeds typing.
pad on which the user traces the location
of the cursor with a finger. People with
carpal tunnel syndrome find touchpads
and trackballs easier to use than mice.
Many portable computers have built-in
trackballs or touchpads as input devices.
A touchscreen allows the user to choose
options by pressing the appropriate part of
the screen. Touchscreens are widely used
in bank ATMs and in kiosks at retail outlets and in tourist areas.
Prepared by: Matthew Viña
SoftCell Technologies®
June 11, 2010
2
11:40 AM
Trackball
A trackball is like an upside-down mouse.
A mouse is moved over a pad. A trackball
remains stationary, and the user moves
the ball with his or her fingers or palm.
One or more buttons for choosing options
are incorporated into the design of the
trackball.
Many keyboards have a separate numeric
keypad, like that of a calculator, containing numbers and mathematical operators.
All keyboards have modifier keys that
enable the user to change the symbol or
character that is entered when a given key
is pressed. The Shift key, for example,
makes a letter uppercase. Keyboards also
have special cursor keys that enable the
user to change the position on the screen
of the cursor, a symbol that appears on the
monitor to show where in a document the
next change will appear. Most keyboards
Touchpad and Touchscreen
A touchpad feels less mechanical than a
mouse or trackball because the user
simply moves a finger on the pad. A
touchpad has two parts. One part acts as a
button, while the other emulates a mouse
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Project 1 Format a Document on Computer Input Devices
WL1-C5-P1-InputDevices.docx
ROBOTS AS ANDROIDS
Robotic factories are increasingly commonplace, especially in heavy manufacturing, where tolerance of repetitive
movements, great strength, and untiring precision are more important than flexibility. Robots are especially useful
in hazardous work, such as defusing bombs or handling radioactive materials. They also excel
in constructing tiny components like those found inside notebook computers, which are
often too small for humans to assemble.
SUPERVISORY TRAINING
Maximizing Employee Potential
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Training Center
9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Figure 1 Uluru (Ayers Rock, Australia)
Most people think of robots in science fiction terms, which generally depict them as
androids, or simulated humans. Real robots today do not look human at all, and judged by
human standards, they are not very intelligent. The task of creating a humanlike body has
proven incredibly difficult. Many technological advances in visual perception, audio
perception, touch, dexterity, locomotion, and navigation need to occur before robots that look and act like human
beings will live and work among us.
VISUAL PERCEPTION
Visual perception is an area of great complexity. A large percentage of the human brain is dedicated to processing
data coming from the eyes. As our most powerful sense, sight is the primary means through which we understand
the world around us. A single camera is not good
enough to simulate the eye. Two cameras are needed
to give stereoscopic vision, which allows depth and
“The task of creating a humanlike body has
movement perception. Even with two cameras, visual
proven incredibly difficult.”
perception is incomplete because the cameras
cannot understand or translate what they see.
Processing the image is the difficult part. In order for
a robot to move through a room full of furniture it must build a mental map of that room, complete with obstacles.
The robot must judge the distance and size of objects before it can figure out how to move around them.
AUDIO PERCEPTION
Audio perception is less complex than visual perception, but no less important. People respond to audible cues
about their surroundings and the people they are with without even thinking about it. Listeners can determine
someone’s emotional state just by hearing the person’s voice. A car starting up when someone crosses the street
prompts the walker to glance in that direction to check for danger. Identifying a single voice and interpreting what
is being said amid accompanying background noise is a task that is among the most important for human beings—
and the most difficult.
TACTILE PERCEPTION
Tactile perception, or touch, is another critical sense. Robots can be built with any level of strength, since they are
made of steel and motors. How does a robot capable of lifting a car pick up an egg in the dark without dropping or
crushing it? The answer is through a sense of touch. The robot must not only be able to feel an object, but also be
able to sense how much pressure it is applying to that object. With this feedback it can properly judge how hard it
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Project 2 Create an Announcement about Supervisory Training
WL1-C5-P2-Training.docx
154
Word Level 1
151-196_Word2010-ch05.indd 154
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Project 3 Customize a Report on Robots
WL1-C5-P3-Robots.docx
Unit 2
7/27/10 1:48:49 PM
should squeeze. This is a very difficult area, and it may prove that simulating the human hand is even more difficult
than simulating the human mind.
Related to touch is the skill of dexterity, or hand-eye coordination. The challenge is to create a robot that can
perform small actions, such as soldering tiny joints or placing a chip at a precise spot in a circuit board within half a
millimeter.
LOCOMOTION
Locomotion includes broad movements such as walking. Getting a robot to move around is not easy. This area of
robotics is challenging, as it requires balance within an endlessly changing set of variables. How does the program
adjust for walking up a hill, or down a set of stairs? What if the wind is blowing hard or a foot slips? Currently most
mobile robots work with wheels or treads, which limits their mobility in some circumstances but makes them
much easier to control.
Financial
NAVIGATION
Related to perception, navigation deals with the science of moving a mobile robot through an environment.
Navigation is not an isolated area of artificial intelligence, as it must work closely with a visual system or some
other kind of perception system. Sonar, radar, mechanical “feelers,” and other systems have been subjects of
experimentation. A robot can plot a course to a location using an internal “map” built up by a navigational
perception system. If the course is blocked or too difficult, the robot must be smart enough to backtrack so it can
try another plan.
Direction
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Project 4 Prepare a Company Flyer
WL1-C5-P4-FinConsult.docx
Northland Security Systems
3200 North 22nd Street – Springfield – IL – 62102
Print Tab Backstage View
Sample Cover Pages
Save & Send Tab Backstage View
1-888-555-2200 – www.emcp.com/nss
Project 5 Create and Format Screenshots
WL1-C5-P5-BackstageViews.docx
Chapter 5
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WL1-C5-P5-NSSCoverPages.docx
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Applying Formatting and Inserting Objects
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