Input devices

Amir Dotan - www.amirdotan.com

Input Devices


Input evolution

• As computers become smaller and ubiquitous(everywhere and in everything), they can not graball of our attention (sitting in front of a screen)and their size doesn’t allow us to use are fingersto communicate with them

• Alternative input methods (speech, movement,gazing) are considered as ways to makecomputing less attention demanding and moreintuitive (Accessibility benefits)


Input evolution

• Punch cards

• Keyboard

• Mouse

• Face recognition

• Facial expression

• Gaze / eye movement

• Touch / Multi-Touch

• Speech recognition

• Body movement (gestures)



Punch Cards


Text Entry Input - Keyboards

and Keypads

• The primary mode of textual data entry

• Keyboard size and packaging influences userssatisfaction and usability

• Large keyboards with many keys give animpression of professionalism and complexitybut may deter novice users

• Small keyboards seem lacking in power to someusers, but their compact size is an attraction formobile devices


The QWERTY layout

• The most commonly used keyboard layout is theQWERTY layout

• Also known as the Sholes keyboard, it wasinvented by Christopher Sholes who invented thetypewriter in 1868

• His layout slowed down users enough that keyjamming was infrequent


Dvorak Layout (Schneiderman, 2005)

• Developed in the 1920’s, supposedly reducesfinger travel, thereby increasing the typing rate ofexpert typists from about 150 words per minuteto more than 200 words per minute

• Acceptance of the Dvorak layout has been verylimited, despite the work of devotees

• People who have tried it report that it takes abouta week of regular typing to make the switch, butmost users have been unwilling to invest mucheffort


Keyboard Layouts


The Keyboard


Alternative Ergonomic and

Adjustable Keyboards


Alternative Adjustable

Keyboard

Optimus Maximus keyboard - http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/


Keyboards and Keypads for

Mobile Devices

http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/98/The_Evolution_of_Mobile_Phones_1985_-_Today


Keyboards and Keypads for

Mobile Devices

• Mobile-phone functionalities are increasingconsiderably while their size is still shrinking

• Most devices combine normal static keys withdynamically labelled softkeys whose functionsare dependent on status and context


Alternative Mobile Phone

Keypads

http://www.digitwireless.com Nokia 7600


Pointing Devices

• A device such as a mouse, trackball, or graphicstablet that allows users to move a pointer abouton the workspace and point to graphical objects

• A direct-manipulation approach - No need tolearn commands or type, attention is focused onthe display

• Important for small devices and large walldisplays that make keyboards impractical asinput devices


Pointing Devices• Direct control devices

– Lightpen

– Touchscreen (Single input point)

– Multitouch (Multiple and simultaneous input points)

– Stylus

• Indirect control devices– Mouse

– Trackball

– Joystick

– Touchpad

– Trackpoint (for laptops)

– Graphics tablet

• Novel devices and strategies– Foot controls

– Eye tracking

– DataGloves

– Tangible user interfaces

– Digital paper

– Haptic feedback


Criteria for Success (Schneiderman, 2005)

• Speed and accuracy

• Learning time

• Cost and reliability

• Size and weight


Direct-Control Pointing Device

- The Lightpen (MIT’s Sketchpad 1963)



- The Lightpen

• Had several disadvantages:

– Users’ arm got tired

– Users’ hand obscured part of the screen

– Users had to remove their hands from thekeyboard to pick up the lightpen

– The lightpen was too fragile for public-accessenvironments



- Touch Screen



- The Stylus


An Alternative to the Stylus -

Shift (Microsoft Research)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=kkoFlDArYks

http://research.microsoft.com/users/baudisch/projects/shift/index.html


Indirect-Control Pointing

Devices (Schneiderman, 2005)

• Eliminate the hand-fatigue and hand-obscuring-the-screen problem

• They do however require the hand to locate thedevice and demand more cognitive processingand hand/eye coordination to bring the onscreencursor to the desired target

• Among the indirect pointing devices the mousehas been the most popular


Pointing Device - The Mouse

On December 9, 1968 in San Francisco, Douglas Engelbart

presented for the first time the computer mouse

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=1MPJZ6M52dI



Multi-Touch Input



- Multi-Touch Input

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=9zGDNFpOMcA

http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/56/iBar_-_Interactive_Bar_largest_multitouch_touchscreen



- Multi-Touch Input

http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/47/Microsoft_Surface_Business_2.0_Demo


Touch Input Gestures


Touch Input - Considerations(Windows Vista User Experience "Touch" guidelines)

• Small controls are difficult to use

– The size of the controls greatly affects your ability

to interact effectively. Controls that are at least

23x23 pixels are usable with a finger, but larger

controls of at least 40x40 pixels are even more

comfortable to use



• Task locality helps

– While you can move the pointer across a 14-inchscreen with a 3-inch mouse movement, usingtouch requires you to move your hand the full 14inches

– Repeatedly moving between targets that are farapart can be tedious, so it's much better to keeptask interactions within the range of a resting handwhenever possible

– Context menus are convenient because theyrequire no hand movement



• Hover must not be required

– Most touchscreen technologies don't detect a

hovering finger, even if they can detect a hovering

pen. If a program has tasks that depend on hover,

you won't be able to perform them efficiently using

touch



• Text input and selection are difficult

– Lengthy text input is especially difficult using

touch, so auto-completion and acceptable default

text values can really simplify tasks. Text selection

can also be quite difficult



• Small targets near the edge of the display can

be very difficult to touch

– Some touchscreen technologies are less sensitive

at the edges, making controls near the edge

harder to use. For example, the Minimize,

Maximize/Restore, and Close buttons on the title

bar can be harder to use when a window is

maximized


Basic Touch Design Principles(Windows Vista User Experience "Touch" guidelines)

• Don't assume that if a UI works well for a mouse, it also workswell for touch

– While good mouse support is a start, a good touch experience has afew additional requirements

• You can assume that if a UI works well for a finger, it alsoworks well for a pen

– Making your program touchable goes a long way to providing good pensupport. The primary difference is that fingers have a blunter tip, sothey need larger targets. And again, hover must be optional

• Don't depend on touch pointer to fix touch UI problems

– Because the touch pointer isn't as easy to use as direct input, view thetouch pointer as a last resort for programs that haven't been designedfor touch


Comparison of Pointing

Devices

• Each input device has its strengths andweaknesses

• The keyboard is best for text input and givingcommands with minimal hand movement

• The mouse is best for efficient, precise pointing

• Touch is best for object manipulation and givingsimple commands

• A pen is best for freeform expression, as withhandwriting and drawing




• Early studies found that direct pointing devicessuch as a lightpen or touchscreen were often thefastest but the least accurate

• Studies have shown that the mouse is the moreaccurate and efficient than alternative devices

• Users’ tasks matter when comparing devices

• Joysticks and trackball are often preferred overmice by users with motor disabilities




• Pointing devices, especially indirect-controldevices such as the mouse, are particularlychallenging for users who have visionimpairments - Well designed cursors andadjustable size and shape can help

• Alternative keyboard or keypad navigationoptions should be provided whenever possible


Novel Devices (Schneiderman, 2005)

• The popularity of pointing devices and the questfor new ways to engage diverse users for diversetasks has led to provocative innovations

• Since users’ hands might be busy on thekeyboard, designers have explored othermethods for selection and pointing

• In some cases, the device is too small or too bigto be used with a keyboard or a conventionalpointing device


Gestural Interface

• Head gestures

• Hand gestures

• Body gestures


Gestural Interface


Gestural Interface - Example

G-Speak http://vimeo.com/2229299



http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/148/HITACHI_Gesture_operation_TV



http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/83/Second_Life_gestural_interface_-_Navigation_Demo



http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/80/ShadowReaching_New_Perspective_on_Wall_Display_Interaction


Imaging and Video Input

Device - Webcam Tracking

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=GDINqY9kekU



http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=7uixUmxH-Z0


Gestural Interfaces - Wii and

Wii Fit

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=5oNVIcMnZh4http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=mCufArSg-SQ


Wii Fit


Input - Using physical objects

http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/101/reactable_basic_demo_


Eye tracking systems

• Our eyes are an essential output device with isused to point to objects. We use it tocommunicate to the world our intents (Eyecontact)

• Combined with head gesture, this method ofpointing can be a powerful communicationchannel


Eye tracking - Example

• Squidoo EyeTracking

– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilq9qeyVjT0


The future?

Gamers will soon be able to interact

with the virtual world using their

thoughts and emotions alone.

BBC NEWS 20.02.08

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technolo

gy/7254078.stm


Thought Control

http://amirdotan.multiply.com/video/item/81/Brainloop_-_Thought_Control


Speech and Auditory Input(Schneiderman, 2005)

• Hardware designers have made dramaticprogress with speech recognition, generation,and processing but current success are far fromachieving the results we see in Sci-Fi movies

• They also recognize that voice commanding ismore demanding of user’s working memory thanis hand/eye coordination and thus may be moredisruptive to users while they are carrying outtasks


Speech and Auditory Input(Schneiderman, 2005)

• Planning and problem solving can proceed inparallel with hand/eye coordination, but they aremore difficult to accomplish while speaking

• Background noise and variations in users speechperformance make the challenge of speechrecognition still greater

• The benefits to people with certain disabilitiescan be immense, but general users are notrushing to implement speech input


Speech Systems -

Opportunities (Schneiderman, 2005)

• When users have vision impairments

• When the speaker’s hands are busy

• When mobility is required

• When the speaker’s eyes are occupied

• When harsh or cramped conditions preclude useof a keyboard


Speech Systems -

Technologies (Schneiderman, 2005)

• Discrete-word recognition -

– Recognize individual words spoken by a specificperson

– 90%-98% reliable

– 100-10000-word or larger vocabularies

• Continuous-speech recognition


Speech recognition -

Examples

Flight Simulator Voice Recognition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZf9Ni6Qocc

Speech recognition in Windows Vista

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9o72XJcFQI


Speech recognition -

Examples

Google Mobile App for iPhone, now with Voice Search

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=y3z7Tw1K17A

Input devices

Technology

control pointing

touch input

amir dotan

text input

pointing devices

touchamir

keyboardamir

auditory input