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Optical mouse is the commonly used mouse type used for interaction between
the computer and the user. It followed the mechanical mouse that was prevalent
during the nineteen nineties and came with many improvements over its
predecessor. Introduced by Agilent Technologies in 1999, it has a tiny camera
that detects the position and speed by taking thousands of snapshots per
second.
The optical mouse has a tiny LED (light emitting diode) which usually emits
red light. The light that is bounced off the surface like mouse pad or desk is
sensed by a Complimentary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) and is transmitted to
the digital signal processor (DSP) to determine the position of the cursor.
How do
mechanical mouse and optical mouse work?
Mechanical mouse
There is a ball under the body of mouse to come in contact with the mouse pad
or surface of the desk. When the mouse moves, the ball also rolls.
There
are two rollers that touch the ball. They are placed in such a way that at least
one of them rolls, when you move the mouse.
Each roller is attached to a shaft which has a disk at one end. When the
mouse moves, the ball, the roller and the disk rotate together.
The perforated disk has an infrared LED on one side and a sensor on another
side. They send and receive the red light between the mouse and the surface on
which the mouse moves.
Optical mouse
The backside of an optical mouse
LED light
First, the Light Emitting Diode emits the red light which strikes the surface
(desk or mouse pad).
The light that is bounced off the surface is received by the CMOS sensor in
the mouse. Then, the CMOS sensor transmits all the images that it receives to
the Digital Signal Processor (DSP) for processing.
By analyzing the images and sing the co-ordinates given by the computer, the
DSP studies the variation in their patterns and determines the position and the
speed of the mouse. Then, DSP sends the decoded information to the information
to the computer and the movement of cursor is tracked even at the slightest
movement of the mouse.
All this process takes place so fast that the movement cursor on the looks
very smooth to the end user.
Advantages
of optical mouse
The optical mouse has many advantages over mechanical mouse which uses the
track ball. As the optical mouse has no moving components, it has longer life
than its predecessor. Optical mice usually function trouble-free for years.
When you use mechanical mouse, you need to clean the dirt or debris that
comes inside the mouse so that the ball and rollers are able to move freely when
the mouse moves. However, there is no such problem with optical mice. So, they
are very reliable and trouble-free on all occasions.
Optical mouse uses a technology that is far more advanced than that is used
in a mechanical mouse. The tiny camera in the optical mouse sends thousands of
images to the CMOS sensor. The DSP is much faster in processing and tracking of
the movement of mouse, so the cursor movement looks much smoother to the end
user.
Finally, optical mice do not need mouse pad or any special surface. Unlike
the mechanical mouse, their performance and tracking ability does not depend on
the surface the mouse moves. You can use them on any kind of flat surface.
When compared with wireless mice or Bluetooth mice, optical mice are quite
inexpensive
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