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Mouse ABCs
Mouse Technologies
Interfaces
Types of mice
Technical Support
How a mouse works
Mouse Disassembly
Mouse definitions
MOUSE ABCs
A mouse is a hardware device which allows the user to control
a cursor to manipulate data without complicated commands. The mouse or mice was invented
by Douglas Englebart in 1963, who at the time was working at the Stanford Research
Institute, which was a think tank sponsored by Stanford University. The Mouse was
originally referred to as an X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System.
Xerox later
applied the mouse to its revolutionary Alto computer system in 1973. However, because of
Alto's unfortunate success, it was first widely used in the Apple Lisa computer. Today, the
mouse is now found on every Apple and PC computer and used with various different GUIs.
MOUSE TECHNOLOGIES
Mechanical Mice - Mechanical Mice requires that the mouse be set on a
flat surface. The distance and the speed of the rollers inside the mouse determines how
far the mouse cursor moves on the screen depending on the software configuration.
Optical Mice - Optical Mice require a special mouse pad which
has a grid pattern. A sensor inside the mouse determines the movement by reading the grid
as the mouse passes over it while emitting a light from an LED or sometimes a laser. This
type of mouse is much more accurate than the ordinary optical mechanical mouse which
relies on the traction between the mouse ball and the rollers. One drawback to an optical
mouse is they can have problems in bright lights.
New Optical Mice no longer have the disadvantages of earlier
mice and are capable of being utilized on any surface. In comparison
to the traditional Optical-Mechanical mouse, the Optical is a much
better solution for a computer mouse.
Optical-Mechanical - The optical-mechanical hybrid consists of a ball which rolls
a wheel inside the mouse. This wheel contains a circle of holes and or notches to read the
LED by a sensor as it spins around when the mouse is moved. This mouse is
much more accurate than the mechanical mouse. This mouse is now the most commonly used
mouse with PC and Macintosh computers. See How a mouse works for an illustration and a more
in-depth explanation of how this mouse works.
INTERFACES
TYPES OF MICE
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HOW
A MOUSE WORKS The optical
mechanical mouse's operation is fairly simple. As you can see in the below illustration,
the mouse movement is tracked by four parts. As the mouse is moved, the ball rolls in the
direction of the movement which, in turn, moves the roller (X or Y axis). As the roller
begins to rotate, so does the chopper / gear. The gear has small notches within it or
around the edges of it; as it rotates, light shines through the openings which is then
detected by the two light sensors which then sends the computer a signal of that movement.
The offset of the light received by the two light sensors determines
the direction of each axis.
Within the mouse you will find a total of two rollers and choppers / gears. Each roller
represents a X or Y axis which is the Horizontal or Vertical movement of the mouse cursor.
MOUSE DISASSEMBLY
The illustration below shows the disassembly of a standard
mouse. As shown you can see that the internal components of a mouse. We have illustrated
the general location of four main components within the mouse.
First, you will notice the two Choppers and or Gears; these two represent the axis of
where the cursor is located. The chopper furthest to the represents the X axis, which is
the vertical axis. The other chopper, which is only partially shown, represents the Y axis,
which is the horizontal axis.
Second, you notice the mouse ball. The mouse ball is the main part within the mouse
which allows the user to move the mouse which moves the appropriate axis which then moves
the mouse cursor on the screen. Without the mouse ball the mouse would be useless.
Third, you notice the four pin Interface Cable
Connection, which is where the
information is transferred from the mouse to the computer.
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CHADD
FORUM
CH000007