Randy Culcay

Created: 10/16/20

Updated: 12/16/20

 

Introduction

The computer mouse is an everyday accessory of the computer. Doug Engelbart first invented it in the early 1960s(Bellis 2018). The mouse was not originally the main project and Engelbart was looking into the improvement of computer-aided problem solvers. This accidental discovery eventually went up against other devices such as joystick, light pen by moving a cursor from point a to point b. This was a test to see which of the three would be the best for interacting with a computer. The results were great for the mouse and won by a longshot in time it took to complete the tasks. It was the most efficient for moving the cursor around the computer screen. Later in 1964, the computer mouse’s first prototype was made to interact with a computer, known for the wooden exterior and the two rollers, to indicate its x and y position (Bellis 2018). This device got its name from Engelbart because the wire coming from the back of the device made it look like a mouse. The mouse we see today developed through the improvement of technology and resources.

This first mouse invented by Engelbart in 1964

The ball mouse later came along in 1972 by Bill English. He created this while working for Xerox PARC. The device had one single ball that rotated in any direction. The ball had two rollers on the ball in the x and y direction to spin a disk, those disks have holes that would let light out of the led into a receiver. This process would track the rpm (rotations per minute) and translate it to the cursor’s movement.

 

 

 

(Inside of the Ball mouse)      2 is the roller on the ball to move disk (3), then the LED (4) would

pass light through the holes into the receiver (5)

Body

The computer mouse has many features depending on which one you use. In this technical description we will be talking about the Logitech M510 Wireless Laser Mouse. This device is usually used on a flat surface and uses one of your hands to control its motion. This movement of the mouse translates to the connected computer and moves the pointer on display. This happens from the parts within the device. The batteries of the gadget are what power it and last for an extended amount of time. The batteries power the motherboard, which contains instructions for the input and output of information.

Input parts of the mouse

The mouse’s scroller contains fins in the inner radius and rests on a spring that all cupped into a plastic axel for the scroll wheel. Right under the spring is a button that inputs the press of the button. The scrolling function happens by the fins in the scroll’s inner radius. It plays a disturbance to the diode running across horizontally into a receptor. This process reads the amount of disturbance when scrolling the wheel and give it as an output.

 

 

The highlighted is the diode(sender) and receptor(receiver)

The mouse’s right and left click buttons are two buttons connected to the motherboard and are click from the panel covering the mouse. These inputs are sent to the motherboard directly as either on or off. When the button is clicked, the value of the button is on. When released, the button is off and stays off till pressed again.

The main component of the mouse is the movement and how it translates to the screen. This happens for a camera facing downward of the surface it’s placed on and takes several pictures to recognize its location. The LED located right next to the camera is to help it tell the differences of the surface. For the mouse to be smooth, reliable, and accurate, the number of pictures taken per second (Framerate per second) need to be perfect. If the framerate is too low, it would be hard to tell where the movement went when moving too quickly. Having a high amount of framerate is not necessary if a lesser frame rate does the same work. Also, it requires more energy and makes battery life shorter. The frame rate is from 2000 to 6000 per second. Another would property of the camera is the resolution of the camera. The quality of the pictures matter since it would give a better understanding. For example, two box pictures overlap each other, and the overlapped area’s detail is grayish (100 dpi). The camera input would round the amount of the covered (estimated guess), the output being a smaller amount of movement. The dpi(dots per square inch) of the camera is usually around  1000 to 4000 dpi. For this mouse, it is 1000 dpi and framerate 2200(Marshall 2000).

–Red arrow points to the camera used in the Logitech mouse

-Green arrow point to the LED of the mouse

 

Output parts of the mouse

The receiver of the information is to the USB plug into your laptop or computer. This translates the mouse’s movement, scrollers rpm, and the button to the computer’s instructions of what to do to output. The movement of this device goes to the chips on the motherboard, located inside of it. They do this by relating each picture taken and seeing similarities(overlap); that way we can see movement in the horizontal direction(y) and the vertical direction(x)( Marshall 2000). For example, the mouse moved 1 inch to the left and 2 inches down. Thus, the initial placement of x + 1 inch is the new placement of the mouse in the x-direction. The same goes for y-direction; y initial placement + 2 inch is the new placement in the y-direction. The computer translates the data into information used to move the cursor on the screen. This translation from the mouse’s info into computer information occurs in the kernel. The kernel is one of the lowest levels of operating systems on the computer. The kernel runs the basic needs of running your computers, like being able to operate the computer. This operating system is given high priority since you need to interact with the computer and since it does not require much work to run.

 

Conclusion:

Logitech M510 Wireless Laser Mouse is straightforward because of the amount of work done since 1964 by Doug Engelbart. The device used to be a block of wood with rollers in the x and y-direction. Throughout time, researchers and resources had improved and gave mouses like Logitech with a spin wheel, left/right-click button, spin wheel button, and the mouse’s movement controlled by a camera/LED. These are outputs of the device and inputted by the USB (universal serial bus) connected to your computer. Translating/ calculating the information into output info for the computer (movement of the cursor). This device is swift in sending info to the computer that it’s incredible of where we came from.

 

 

Reference Page

1)

Bellis, Mary. “Who Invented the Computer Mouse?” ThoughtCo , 6 August  2018, www.thoughtco.com/history-of-the-computer-mouse-1991664.

2)

Beschizza, Rob. “The Evolution of the Computer Mouse.” Wired, Conde Nast, 5 June 2017, www.wired.com/2007/03/the-evolution-of-the-computer-mouse/.

3)

Carmack, Marshall Brain & Carmen. “How Computer Mice Work.” HowStuffWorks, HowStuffWorks, 24 Apr. 2000, computer.howstuffworks.com/mouse2.htm.

4)

Contributors, HowStuffWorks.com. “How Do Optical Mice Work?” HowStuffWorks, HowStuffWorks, 8 May 2001, computer.howstuffworks.com/question631.htm.