Applications of Information and

Communication Technologies
Lecture 5
Presented by
Dr. Muhammad Umar Javed
Assistant Professor
Department of Computer Science 1
 Input and Output Devices
• Provide means of communication between a computer and outer
world; also known as peripheral devices
• The hardware components that allow the user to input data and
instructions into computer and to receive the processed data.
• The data and instructions are given to the computer through input
devices.
• The computer processes the data according to the given instructions
and output is received on the output devices or it is stored
permanently on the storage device.
 Input and Output Devices
• Various types of input/output devices are available.
• These devices are used for different types of applications.
• The I/O devices are slower as compared to the speed of CPU and
primary storage.
• It is because the speed of I/O devices depends upon the
mechanical movement of the components of the devices.
• It is impossible that the I/O devices and the CPU and primary
storage have the same speed.
Role of I/O Devices
 Input Devices
• The devices that are used to enter data and instructions into the
computer are called input devices.
• The input devices are hardware component. It takes input (data or
instructions) from user and converts it into a form that is
understandable by the computer.
 Input Devices
• Anything given to the computer is called input.
• The data and instructions are given to the computer as input
• The input into the computer can be entered
• Through keyboard
• By selecting icons on the screen using mouse
• By pressing finger on touch screen
• By speaking into a microphone
• By sending image through digital camera
• By scanning data printed on paper through scanner etc.
 Input Devices
• Keyboard
• Point & Draw devices
– Mouse, Trackball, Joystick, light
pen, touch screen
• Data Scanning Devices
– Image Scanner, Barcode reader
• Digitizer
– Convert pictures to digital form
• Speech Recognition system
 Keyboard
• Keyboards are the most common type of input device.
• Before keyboards, interaction with computers was generally carried out
using punch cards and paper tape.
• A user can feed data and instructions to the computer.
• Keyboard looks like a typewriter keypad. But a computer keyboard has
some special keys used to perform special functions.
• Keys for all alphabetic characters, numeric digits, and special characters.
• It also contains some special keys known as function keys.
 Keyboard
• A standard keyboard contains more than 100-keys.
• Referred to as QWERTY keyboard.
• The computer has separate keyboard. It is easily plugged into a
computer. A keyboard is connected to the serial or USB port on the
system unit.
• Some advanced keyboards do not require the cable to connect with
the computer. They enter data into the computer through wireless
technology such as radio waves or infra-red light waves (Wireless
keyboards).
Keyboard
 Pointing and Drawing Devices
• Pointing device means that is used to control a pointer on the screen.
• A pointer represents a small symbol on the screen.
• It usually appears on the screen in Graphical User Interface (GUI).
For example arrow appears on the screen.
• Usually, the pointing device is used: select items on the screen, select
commands from command menu, draw graphs, etc.
• Examples: Mouse, Joystick, Trackball, Trackpad, Light Pen.
 Mouse
• A mouse is a pointing input device.
• A mouse interacts with a computer through a
process known as "point and click."
• It controls a cursor in a GUI (graphical user
interface) and can move and select text, icons,
files and folders on your computer.
• Common types of mouse: mechanical, optical
and wireless
 Mechanical Mouse
• It has a rubber or metal ball at its bottom
and an electronic circuit containing
sensors. When the pointer roll over the
surface, the pointers moves in the same
direction on the screen.
• The sensor directs the direction of
movement of ball and electronic circuit
translates the movement of the mouse
into signals, fed into the computer.
 Optical Mouse
• It has advanced features and is more
expensive than mechanical mouse.
• It has no ball inside it.
• It uses the laser technology to detect
the mouse movement by optical
sensors.
• Now a days commonly used in
personal computers.
 Wireless Mouse
• Wireless mouse is not directly connected
with computer.
• It uses the wireless technology, such as
radio waves, or infrared light waves.
• It enters input signals into the computer in
similar way as cordless keyboard.
 Trackball
• It is also a pointing device
• Used to enter motion data into computers or
other electronic devices
• Moveable ball on the top
• Instead of moving the whole device, you
simply roll the moveable ball on top of the
trackball unit with your hand to generate
motion input.
 Joystick
• A joystick is an input device consisting of a
stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle
or direction to the device it is controlling.
• Joysticks are often used to control video
games, and usually have one or more push-
buttons
• Commonly used for video games, flight
simulators, training simulators
 Data Scanning Devices
• Input devices that enable direct data entry into a computer system
from source documents
• Due to reduced human effort in data entry, they improve data
accuracy and also increase the timeliness of the information
processed
• Demand high quality of input documents
• Also capable of recognizing marks or characters
 Data Scanning Devices Examples
• Image Scanner
• It uses optical technology to transfer images (or sometimes text) into a computer,
where the signal is converted into a digital image.
• The image can then be viewed on a monitor screen, saved, edited, emailed, etc.
• OCR (Optical Character Recognition)
• OCR is the electronic or mechanical conversion of images of typed, handwritten
or printed text into machine-encoded text (digital code) using a light source.
• The characters written on paper may be typewritten or handwritten.
 Barcode Reader
• A barcode reader (or barcode scanner) is an
optical scanner that can read
printed barcodes , decode the data contained
in the barcode and send the data to
a computer
• For example, it is used to represent the
product information, product name, price or
other description.
 Magnetic Ink Character Recognition
(MICR)
• It is a special character recognition system that uses
special ink and characters.
• It reads the characters printed with magnetic ink on
paper (or any product) and converts them into digital
signals. These signals are then sent to the computer as
input for further processing.
• When a document that contains this ink needs to be
read, it passes through a machine, which magnetizes the
ink and then translates the magnetic information into
characters.
• MICR technology is used by banks.
 Speech Recognition Systems
• Input device that allows a person to input data to a
computer system by speaking to it
• Today’s speech recognition systems are limited to accepting
few words within a relatively small domain and can be used
to enter only limited kinds and quantities of data
Speech Recognition Systems
 Types of Speech Recognition Systems
 Single word recognition systems can recognize only a single
spoken words, such as YES, NO, MOVE, STOP, at a time.
Speaker-independent (means a system trained to respond to a
word regardless of who speaks) systems are mostly of this type
 Continuous speech recognition systems can recognize
spoken sentences, such as MOVE TO THE NEXT BLOCK.
Such systems are normally speaker- dependent (trained by the
individual who use the system)
 Uses of Speech Recognition Systems
 For inputting data to a computer system by a person in situations
where his/her hands are busy, or his/her eyes must be fixed on a
measuring instrument or some other object
 For data input by dictation of long text or passage for later
editing and review
 For authentication of a user by a computer system based on voice
input
 For limited use of computers by individuals with physical disabilities
 Output Devices
• A hardware component which is used to receive the output from computer is
called an output device.
• It takes information from computer and converts it in a form that is
understandable by the users.
• A list of commonly used output devices are:
 Monitors
 Printers
 Plotters
 Screen Image Projector
 Types of Output
 Soft-copy output
 Not produced on a paper or some material that can be touched and
carried for being shown to others
 Temporary in nature and vanish after use
 Examples are output displayed on a terminal screen or spoken out by a
voice response system
 Types of Output
 Hard-copy output
 Produced on a paper or some material that can be touched and carried
for being shown to others
 Permanent in nature and can be kept in paper files or can be looked at a
later time when the person is not using the computer
 Examples are output produced by printers or plotters on paper
 Monitors
• Monitors are the most popular output devices used for producing soft-
copy output
• The output may be in the form of text, graphics and video.
• 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.
• A monitor is also known as a display screen or a visual display unit
(VDU).
 Types of Monitors

CRT (Cathode-Ray Tube) monitors Flat Panel monitors

 CRT Monitors
• CRT monitors are most common type of display screen
• CRT is the technology used in traditional computer monitors and televisions.
• The image on a CRT display is created by firing electrons from the back of the
tube to phosphors located towards the front of the display.
• Once the electrons hit the phosphors, they light up and are projected on the
screen.
• The color you see on the screen is produced by a blend of red, blue, and green
light, often referred to as RGB.
• The screen is organized into a grid of tiny dots of phosphor material (pixels).
 Flat Panel
• Flat-panel displays are used in portable computers.
• They are much thinner, weightless, and consume less power than CRT.
• They are also more expensive than CRT monitor.
• It is made up of two plates of glass. These plates contain a substance in
between them. This substance is activated in different ways.
• It is available in different sizes.
• Most commonly used in mobile devices such as laptops, tablet PCs,
PDA (Personal digital assistant) and mobile phones.
 Flat Panel
 Flat Panel monitors
• Two types of technologies are used in Flat Panel Display
Screens like;
 Liquid-crystal display (LCD)
 Gas-Plasma Display
 Printers
• These are most commonly used output devices used to get
prints of documents on the paper
• The output produced by a printer is often called a hard copy
• Different printers have different printing mechanisms.
• Therefore, printers are classified into two main categories
depending upon their printing mechanism.
• Impact printers
• Non-Impact printers
 Impact Printers
 It is a type of printer that works by striking the direct contact of an ink ribbon
with paper.
 These printers are typically loud but remain in use today because of their
unique ability to function with multipart forms.
 An impact printer has mechanisms resembling those of a typewriter.
 Types of Impact Printers are
 Dot-matrix printers
 Daisy-wheel printers
 Line printers.
 Non-Impact Printers
 It is a type of printer that works without striking the paper.
 These printers are faster and produce high quality output than impact
printers.
 They use electrostatic, inkjet and thermal technologies for printing
 Types of Non-Impact Printers are
 Laser Printers
 Ink-Jet Printers
 Thermal Printers
 Plotters
• A plotter is a computer hardware device much like a printer that is
used for printing vector graphics, printing architectural drawing,
graphs and charts etc.
• Instead of toner, plotters use a pen, pencil, marker, or another
writing tool to draw multiple, continuous lines onto paper rather
than a series of dots like a traditional printer.
• Generate high-precision, hard-copy graphic output of wide sizes
• There are two main types of plotters – drum and flatbed plotters.
 Drum Plotter
• Drum plotter, is also known as roller plotter.
• It consists of a drum or roller on which a paper is placed.
• The length of plot size may be very large.
• It also consists of mechanical device known as robotic drawing arm that holds
a set of pens or pencils.
• The drum rotates back and forth to draw the graph on the paper.
• The robotic drawing arm also moves side to side as the paper is rolled back
and forth through the roller.
• It is used to produce continuous output such as to record earthquake readings.
 Flatbed Plotter
• Flatbed plotter, is also known as table plotter
• It plots on paper that is lying flat on a table like surface.
• Typically, the plot size is equal to the area of a bed and varies according to
requirement.
• It uses two robotic drawing arms, each of which holds a set of pens.
• Most of the flatbed plotters have one to four pens of different colors that move
across the paper to draw charts or graphs on the paper.
• The movement of these pens is controlled by the computer system.
• Flatbed plotters are used in the design of cars, ships, aircrafts, buildings, highways.
• It is slower in printing as large drawings take several hours to print.
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