What is Computer Mouse?
Definition: Mouse is a pointing input device of computer. Mouse help to control cursor that is visible on the computer screen while moving the mouse on flat surface place. Its name originated by its shape that look as mouse, because it has elliptical shaped with mouse tail. Mouse reduces usability of a keyboard.
Traditional mouse connected with computer through cable or cord. But, now these days in the market have to various mouse are available such as wireless mouse, those mice do not need any physical wire to make connection with computer. In technology time, some mouse has some extra buttons for performing other special tasks.
Who Invented Computer Mouse?
Today, Everybody know about computer mouse, but only few people aware about that who invented of mouse and when. So now here we will discuss about computer mouse history, first of all, you should be know who is father of mouse?
Douglas Engelbart is computer mouse inventor. When computer mouse was created in 1960, then Douglas Engelbart was working in Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, California.
This miracle invented machine used in the Xerox Alto computer system in 1973. Douglas Engelbart was as a successful person, to moving cursor on the computer screen. This mouse made by wood in rectangle size, and one button embedded on the upper left corner side.
In 1972, new mouse developed, that mouse known as the “Ball Mouse”. In this mouse replace the ball to wheel, with the help of this invention improve the performance of mouse, as well as increased productivity of users.
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Optical mouse was designed by Lisa M. Williams and Robert S. Cherry in 1980, in this computer mouse removed the rubber ball and use new technique optical LED. After availing this new trending mouse to reducing component costs, and enhanced the microcontroller processing power.
The first wireless mouse introduced by David Liddle and Donald Massaro in 1984 with Metaphor computer; they were former Xerox PARC engineers. In this mouse used the infer-red (IR) signals for transmitting entire data to computer.
But in this technology, had been created one problem that must be clear path between the wireless mouse and computer. And, for overcome this problem had been altered the IR signals by radio frequency.
Types of Mouse That Using in Computer
Mouse is very important part of computer. Today, in the market have to various different types of computer mouse are available, and every mouse have own functionality so every user can use all types of computer mouse according their usage.
- Mechanical Mouse
- Optical Mouse
- Infrared Frequency Cordless Mouse
- Traceball Mouse
- Stylus Mouse
- 3-D Mouse
- Specialty Mouse – like Devices
- Laser Mouse
- Foot Mouse
- IntelliMouse
- J-Mouse
- Joystick
- Touchpad (Glidepoint)
- Trackball
- Track Point Mouse
- Inertial and Gyroscopic mice
- Tactile mice
- Pucks
Ergonomic mice - Gaming mice
1) Mechanical Mouse
Another name of mechanical mouse is ball mouse. Mechanical mouse is a computer input terminal that contains the metal or rubber ball in the back surface side. When we move the mouse then mouse’s ball roll and sensors that embedded inside identify the motion and move on screen’s surface portion at the same directions.
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Today, mechanical mouse has been replaced in the Optical mouse. These types of mouse have to need cable (wire) to making connection in computer.
2) Optical Mouse
In the optical mouse use advance technology such as LED (light-emitting diode), optical sensor, and other DSP (digital signal processing) instead of the rubber ball mechanical mouse. In the optical mouse, detect the movement by the sensors when reflected light. No need the cleaning to optical mouse because it has not contained any moving components.
3) Infrared Frequency Cordless Mouse
Cordless mouse has another name the wireless mouse. And, these types of mouse are connected with computers with the help of different unique technologies such as Bluetooth, RF, or infrared radio waves. In the computer, has to contain USB device that receives the spreading signals from the wireless mice.
4) Traceball Mouse
Trace ball mouse is an input pointing device. It contains ball upside of the socket, and detecting the movement of ball with the help of sensors while rolling the ball with fingers, palm or thumbs of human hand for moving cursor on the computer screen.
5) Stylus Mouse
Stylus mouse is another type of input device. This stylus mouse use for the high volume graphic and drawing purpose, and it looks like as pen. The graphic and drawing tasks performed on the special pad by artistic.
6) 3-D Mouse
A 3D mouse is special input pointing device for creating movement in virtual 3D and 2D environment. This 3D mouse is not use for normal task, mainly designed for the gaming controller to create the game console. Other application areas are where to use the 3D mouse like as CAD, architecture design, and 3D modeling is the 3DConnexion SpaceNavigator.
7) Specialty Mouse and Mice-like Devices
These types of mouse mostly use for showing the presentation on the screen, but if, you are not able to use proper smooth surface for rolling the mouse then that situation using accelerometer for converting the motion your hand with the using air into movements of on screen pointer.
8) Laser Mouse:
In laser mouse, implements the laser light for detecting mouse directions. Laser mouse do not contain any moving components inside mouse, its accuracy is good compare to other optical mouse because these types of mouse provide 20X greater sensitivity and precision, due to this feature those mouse use for gaming, graphic, and engineering designs, where to require pinpoint accuracy.
9) Foot Mouse
A foot mouse used by those people who are unable to use mouse with their hands or arms. For using foot mouse, install the software programs in the system then work it properly for selecting any spot of screen. In that mouse are needed two parts, one for controlling the cursor, and other for clicking the mouse.
10) Intelli Mouse
Intelli Mouse is also knows as wheel mouse or scroll mouse and this mouse was designed by Microsoft in 1996. Its wheel set in the center between left and right button. Users use wheel of mouse for scroll up and down any document page. If user wants to open any link on the new tab, then mouse cursor hover on the link and press down to mouse wheel.
11) J-Mouse
Today, J Mouse’s trend has been stop because this technology used in the traditional portable computer such as Laptop. ‘J’ key placed on the traditional keyboard for performing various tasks, and other two buttons (left, right) that embedded below the Space bar key.
12) Joystick Mouse
Mostly this typed of mouse uses for playing video game and graphic applications. Joystick is like as plastic stick for reporting its directions to component it’s controlling.
13) Touchpad Mouse
Touchpad is also known as Glide pad or track pad, use for giving the input to computer. These types of touch pad are place on the laptop or other special keyboards. Users can move the cursor on the screen with their fingers, and other two external buttons are embedded below track pad.
14) Trackball Mouse
Trackball is special type of mouse because one ball placed on the surface of socket, and that sockets contain the sensors. With using sensor to detect the rotation of ball about different two axes like as upside-downside.
15) Track Point Mouse
Trace Point mouse was designed by IBM in 1992. This component used in the traditional computer, and Trace Point is also known as Pointing stick, style pointer, or nub also. It has placed in between the G,H, and B keys on the keyboard. For moving the cursor of Track Point’s pointer, users push the stick in desire direction where want to move cursor of pointer.
16) Inertial and Gyroscopic Mice
Inertial and gyroscopic mouse is also called “air mouse“, because this mouse does not need the surface area for operating mouse. In Inertial and gyroscopic mouse, to be using accelerometer for detecting movement at every x-axis and y-axis. Benefits are less power consumption, enhance sensitivity, decrease weight, and more comfortable to other mouse.
17) Tactile Mice
Tactile mouse was designed by Logitech in 2000. It contains a small size actuator for making mouse vibrate. Main motive of designing tactile mouse is for providing education to blind persons in graphical nature. In tactile mouse, pins used and with the movement of them user can be able to distinguish various pictures such as triangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons, and circles.
18) Pucks Mouse
Puck mouse is also known as also “Hockey Puck”, and it has round shape as well as USB connection format. First, Puck mouse was introduced by Apple Inc with Bondi Blue iMac G3 in 1988. Its main application areas are graphic designing and Auto CAD.
19) Ergonomic Mice
Ergonomic mouse is vertical mice, and main objective of introducing this mouse to minimize the wrist and forearm pain. Because these types of problems associated with traditional mouse while using them.
20) Gaming Mice
These types of mice are developed specially for computer games. Gaming mouse allow providing the flexibility to users, for using real-time strategy game like as StarCraft or multiplayer battle arena. Other advantages, manage the weight by adding or subtracting weight for easier control, and more comfortable for user’s palm and thumb.
Computer Mouse Parts with Their Functions
There are various parts of a computer mouse. Here we will discuss about all parts of mouse and their functions.
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Buttons: Now these days, every mouse has two buttons, one is left and other right. With the help of these buttons, users can be manipulating any objects and text as well.
Ball/laser/LED: In mechanical mouse have rubber ball that roll on the surface things such as table. In the optical mouse have laser or LED, these parts allow to mouse for movement on x-axis and y-axis directions, and its parallel move the mouse cursor on the computer screen.
Mouse Wheel: Main objective of wheel in mouse for scroll your document page up and down direction.
Printed Circuit Board: This board installed inside of mouse chasses, in that board all electronics components embedded such as capacitor, diode, and register etc. This board takes input in the form of electronics signals when user given instructions by mouse such as clicking, scrolling, and more.
Cable/Wireless Receiver: Corded mouse have cable for plugging with computer. If your mouse is wireless then require the USB receiver for getting the broadcasted signals such as (Infrared, Bluetooth, Radio signals), and then give input to computer.
Battery: This component is using in the wireless mouse for running stages. if its battery get down then mouse will not working properly.
Microprocessor: This is a processor that embedded on the circuit board of mouse. Microprocessor is the brain of mouse, because without microprocessor every components of mouse are workless.
Other Internal Electronic components are:
- Register – Store data in temporary nature with the help of Microprocessor.
- Capacitor – Help to store electronic information in electric field.
- Diode – For flowing the current in one direction.
- Transistor – For amplify or switch electronic signals.
- IC – This is small wafer, and made of silicon
Uses of Computer Mouse
Now these days, almost everybody aware about Mouse, but anyone in the mind some questions can be arise such as what are the uses of a computer mouse? Then here we will explain about awesome five to ten uses of computer mouse.
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Movement Mouse Cursor: This is main function of mouse is moving form, when we roll mouse up or down then mouse cursor move on the computer screen.
Selection: With using mouse users can select any images, text, any file, and folder etc. And, then can perform other tasks such as copy, delete and paste.
Drag: Mouse allows to users for moving any objects with the help of drag – drop function. In this method, firstly select object then can be move object while pressing the mouse button, and drop object where to place it.
Hovering: When mouse cursor over on the clickable object then display the information without pressing any button of mouse, and change the color of links as well. Can be go destination page, after pressing that hyperlink.
Scroll Up & Down: If, you perform any activates on the enlarge document, then you need mouse’s scroll button for doing up and down your document page, otherwise user can up & down scroll bar while pressing mouse cursor.
Program Execution: With the help of mouse, users can execute many task such as open file, close folder, maximize-minimize any windows, double clicks for opening object and more.
Editing: Mouse allows to users to editing images in the image editor software such as Photoshop, CorelDraw, and Picasa etc.
Playing Game: With using mouse, users can play various games such as chase game, in that game need mouse for selecting any particular objects.
Combination Activities: Many task can perform by using some keyboard’ keys along with mouse such as CTRL+Mouse click for hyperlink in new windows and CTRL+Scrolling for zooming in – out screen etc.
Operate Audio/Video: Some special mouse have multimedia buttons for controlling the audio/video such as do enhance/ down volume level etc.
How Does Mouse Works in Computer?
Here, we will discuss about core working principle of mechanical and optical mouse. Such as
Mechanical Mouse Working
Here, we will spread light on some mechanical mouse working principles are:
- Mouse has to contain the rubber ball that is touch with desktop and rolls while moving the mouse.
- Two rollers are existed in the mouse, this touch with ball. One roller placed that detect the motion in X directions; other suited 90 degrees that identify the Y direction’s motion. When roller touch ball then that is able to detect both X and Y motion.
- Every roller linked with a shaft, and shaft allows spinning disk on its hole. Both shaft and disk spin while rolling the roller.
- Infrared LED and an infrared sensor installed on the mouse’s circuit board. LED spreads the beam of light, and disk breaks them. In entire process infrared sensors identify all pulses that are coming from disk after splitting. The pulse’ rate depend on the speed of mouse and it traveling distance.
- Processor access all pulses that are coming from infrared sensors and convert them into binary form such as 0 an 1 because computer only can understand binary language , and finally send to computer with the help of mouse ‘cord.
Optical Mouse Working
Optical Mouse Working Principle – Optical mouse is totally different to mechanical ball mouse. This is because; in optical mouse, all operations get perform by LED (light emitting diode) and photo detector. Both get place near each other.
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Work of photo detector is gather all beam of light and bounced off on the surface area. In photo detector, lens embedded those collect all beams and forward to CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) sensor. Photo detector is a high speed camera and able to transfer 1500+ images in per second towards to CMOS sensor with the help of their lens.
The CMOS sensor gets all pictures with the help of digital signal processor which also known as optical navigation engine. Optical navigation engine works as brain of mouse because it able to compute all pictures among of other different images. These images contain all information of motion, and send to computer. Finally computer can control all motion of pointer on the behalf of those coordinates.
Now, finally you have understood that optical mouse how to work smoothly.
Features and Advantages of Mouse
- Mostly use with desktop computer systems.
- When buy new brand computer then get mouse with computer..
- No need more training for using it.
- Solve many problems when use mouse while keyboard’s keys.
- Freedom for movement flexibility.
- Freedom for selection of mouse according user’s comfortable because mouse have huge varieties are available in the market.
- Portability- Easy to carry one place to other place.
- Most preferred device for graphic applications areas.
- Some multi function mouse provide to users more flexibility for cursor movement.
- Having faster to traditional mouse.
- No need more space for using it.
- Low cost.
- Easy to operate indoor and outdoor areas
Disadvantages of Mouse
- Need flat surface.
- Need services regular basis.
- More dust sensitive.
- Some time, dragging operations is difficult by user.
- Mouse can damag easily.
- May be, can be eye sight problems due to more use of mouse rotation.
- Need little space for using.
- Palm can be getting pain due to use mouse long time.
- Not easy task for giving text input to computer.
- Getting very low performance due to virus infection.
