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Pointing device
A pointing device is an input interface (specifically a human interface
device) that allows a user to input spatial (i.e., continuous and multi-
dimensional) data to a computer. CAD systems and graphical user
interfaces (GUI) allow the user to control and provide data to the computer
using physical gestures by moving a hand-held mouse or similar device
across the surface of the physical desktop and activating switches on the
mouse. Movements of the pointing device are echoed on the screen by
movements of the pointer (or cursor) and other visual changes. Common
gestures are point and click and drag and drop.
A computer mouse
While the most common pointing device by far is the mouse, many more
devices have been developed. However, the term "mouse" is commonly
used as a metaphor for devices that move the cursor.

For most pointing devices, Fitts's law can be used to predict the speed with
which users can point at an higher speed.

Contents
Classification Touchpad and a pointing stick on an
IBM notebook
Buxton's Taxonomy
Buxton's Three-State-Model
Fitts' Law
Mathematical Formulation
Applying Fitts' Law in User Interface Design
Control-Display Gain
Common pointing devices
Motion-tracking pointing devices
Mouse
Trackball
Joystick
Pointing stick Trackpoint
WiiMote
Finger tracking
Position-tracking pointing devices
Graphics tablet
Stylus
Touchpad
Touchscreen
Pressure-tracking pointing devices
Isometric Joystick

Other devices
An elder 3D mouse
References

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Classification
To classify several pointing devices, a certain number of features can be
considered. For example, the device's movement, controlling, positioning
or resistance. The following points should provide an overview of the
different classifications.[1]

direct vs. indirect input

In case of a direct-input pointing device, the on-screen pointer is at the
same physical position as the pointing device (e.g., finger on a touch screen, 3D pointing device
stylus on a tablet computer). An indirect-input pointing device is not at the
same physical position as the pointer but translates its movement onto the
screen (e.g., computer mouse, joystick, stylus on a graphics tablet).

absolute vs. relative movement

An absolute-movement input device (e.g., stylus, finger on touch screen) provides a consistent mapping between a
point in the input space (location/state of the input device) and a point in the output space (position of pointer on
screen). A relative-movement input device (e.g., mouse, joystick) maps displacement in the input space to
displacement in the output state. It therefore controls the relative position of the cursor compared to its initial
position.

isotonic vs. elastic vs. isometric

An isotonic pointing device is movable and measures its displacement (mouse, pen, human arm) whereas an isometric
device is fixed and measures the force which acts on it (trackpoint, force-sensing touch screen). An elastic device
increases its force resistance with displacement (joystick).

position control vs. rate control

A position-control input device (e.g., mouse, finger on touch screen) directly changes the absolute or relative position
of the on-screen pointer. A rate-control input device (e.g., trackpoint, joystick) changes the speed and direction of the
movement of the on-screen pointer.

translation vs. rotation

Another classification is the differentiation between whether the device is physically translated or rotated.

degrees of freedom
Different pointing devices have different degrees of freedom (DOF). A computer mouse has two degrees of freedom,
namely its movement on the x- and y-axis. However the Wiimote has 6 degrees of freedom: x-, y- and z-axis for
movement as well as for rotation.

possible states
As mentioned later in this article, pointing devices have different possible states. Examples for these states are out of
range, tracking or dragging.

Examples

a computer mouse is an indirect, relative, isotonic, position-control, translational input device with two degrees of
freedom and
three states.

a touch screen is a direct, absolute, isometric, position-control input device with two degrees of freedom and
two states.

a joystick is an indirect, relative, elastic, rate-control, translational input device with two degrees of freedom and
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two states.

a Wiimote is an indirect, relative, elastic, rate-control, translational input device with six degrees of freedom and
two states.

Buxton's Taxonomy
The following table shows a classification of pointing devices by their number of dimensions (columns) and which
property is sensed (rows) introduced by Bill Buxton. The sub-rows distinguish between mechanical intermediary (i.e.
stylus) (M) and touch-sensitive (T). It is rooted in the human motor/sensory system. Continuous manual input devices
are categorized. Sub-columns distinguish devices that use comparable motor control for their operation. The table is
based on the original graphic of Bill Buxton's work on "Taxonomies of Input".[2]

Number of Dimensions
1 2 3
Tablet
Sliding Tablet Light Floating 3D
Rotary Pot & M
Pot & Puck Pen Joystick Joystick
Position Stylus
Touch Touch
T
Tablet Screen
Property
Sensed Continuous 3D
Treadmill Mouse Trackball M
Motion Rotary Pot Trackball
Ferinstat X/Y Pad T
Torque Isometric
Pressure T
Sensor Joystick

Buxton's Three-State-Model
This model describes different states that a pointing device can assume. The three common states as described by
Buxton are out of range, tracking and dragging. Not every pointing device can switch to all states.[3]

Model Explanation

A mouse is moved without the button being pushed. This

state can be called tracking, meaning the user just moves the
mouse without further interacting with the system. If the
mouse is pointed at an icon and the button is pressed while
moving the mouse, a new state called dragging is entered.
These states are shown in the image "2 State Transaction".
2 State Transaction

If a touch tablet, which is able to sense touch or no-touch, is

used instead of a mouse, the state model looks different.
More precisely this means that any movement of the finger off
the display is out of range and has no effect on the system.
Only when the finger touches the display, the state switches
to tracking (Figure: "Out of Range & Tracking").

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Out of Range & Tracking

If a graphics tablet with a stylus is used, it is possible to

sense all three states. When the stylus is lifted, it is out of
range. When it is in range, the state switches to tracking and
the pointer follows the stylus' movement. Performing extra
pressure on the stylus initiates state 2 dragging (Figure: "Out
Out of Range, Tracking & Dragging
of Range, Tracking & Dragging").

By using a multiple-button mouse or multiple clicks, State 2

can be split into a set of states, i.e. pressing different buttons
leads to different states. For example, selecting an object with
Button 1 switches to the state Drag Original whereas Button 2
switches to Drag Copy. The same goes for multiple clicks
known from Windows: one click on an object selects an
State 2 Set object, double-clicks open it (Figure: "State 2 Set").

Fitts' Law
Fitts's law (often cited as Fitts' law) is a predictive model of human movement primarily used in human–computer
interaction and ergonomics. This scientific law predicts that the time required to rapidly move to a target area is a
function of the ratio between the distance to the target and the width of the target.[4] Fitts's law is used to model the act
of pointing, either by physically touching an object with a hand or finger, or virtually, by pointing to an object on a
computer monitor using a pointing device. In other words, this means for example, that the user needs more time to
click on a small button which is distant to the cursor, than he needs to click a large button near the cursor. Thereby it is
generally possible to predict the speed which is needed for a selective movement to a certain target.

Mathematical Formulation
The common metric to calculate the average time to complete the movement is the following:

where:

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MT is the average time to complete the movement.

a and b are constants that depend on the choice of input device and are usually determined empirically by
regression analysis.
ID is the index of difficulty.
D is the distance from the starting point to the center of the target.
W is the width of the target measured along the axis of motion. W can also be thought of as the allowed error
tolerance in the final position, since the final point of the motion must fall within ±W⁄2 of the target's center.
This results in the interpretation that, as mentioned before, large and close targets can be reached faster than little,
distant targets.

Applying Fitts' Law in User Interface Design

As mentioned above, the size and distance of an object influence its selection. Additionally this effects the user
experience. Therefore, it is important, that Fitts' Law is considered while designing user interfaces. Below some basic
principles are mentioned.[5]

Interactive elements

Command buttons for example should have different sizes than non-interactive elements.
Larger interactive objects are easier to select with any pointing device.

Edges and corners

Due to the fact, that the cursor gets pinned on the edges and corners of a graphical user
interface, those points can be accessed faster than other spots on the display.

Pop-up menus

They should support immediate selection of interactive elements in order to reduce the user's
"travel time".

Options for selecting

Within menus like dropdown menus or top-level navigation, the distance increases the further
the user goes down the list. However in pie menus, the distance to the different buttons is
always the same. In addition, the target areas in pie menus are larger.

Task bars

To operate a task bar, the user needs a higher level of precision, thus more time. Generally
they hinder the movement through the interface.

Control-Display Gain
The Control-Display Gain (or CD gain) describes the proportion between movements in the control space to the
movements in the display space. For example, a hardware mouse moves in another speed or distance than the cursor
on the screen. Even if these movements take place in two different spaces, the units for measurement have to be the
same in order to be meaningful (e.g. meters instead of pixels). The CD gain refers to the scale factor of these two
movements:

The CD gain settings can be adjusted in most cases. However, a compromise has to be found: with high gains it is
easier to approach a distant target, with low gains this takes longer. High gains hinder the selection of targets, whereas
low gains facilitate this process.[6] The operating systems Microsoft Windows, Apple OS X and Xorg have implemented

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mechanisms in order to adapt the CD gain to the user's needs, e.g. the CD gain increases when the user's movement
velocity increases.[7]

Common pointing devices

Motion-tracking pointing devices

Mouse
A mouse is a small handheld device pushed over a horizontal surface.

A mouse moves the graphical pointer by being slid across a smooth surface. The conventional roller-ball mouse uses a
ball to create this action: the ball is in contact with two small shafts that are set at right angles to each other. As the ball
moves these shafts rotate, and the rotation is measured by sensors within the mouse. The distance and direction
information from the sensors is then transmitted to the computer, and the computer moves the graphical pointer on
the screen by following the movements of the mouse. Another common mouse is the optical mouse. This device is very
similar to the conventional mouse but uses visible or infrared light instead of a roller-ball to detect the changes in
position.[8] Additionally there is the mini-mouse, which is a small egg-sized mouse for use with laptop computers;
usually small enough for use on a free area of the laptop body itself, it is typically optical, includes a retractable cord
and uses a USB port to save battery life.

Trackball
A trackball is a pointing device consisting of a ball housed in a socket containing sensors to detect rotation of the ball
about two axis, similar to an upside-down mouse: as the user rolls the ball with a thumb, fingers, or palm the pointer
on the screen will also move. Tracker balls are commonly used on CAD workstations for ease of use, where there may
be no desk space on which to use a mouse. Some are able to clip onto the side of the keyboard and have buttons with
the same functionality as mouse buttons.[9] There are also wireless trackballs which offer a wider range of ergonomic
positions to the user.

Joystick
Isotonic joysticks are handle sticks where the user can freely change the position of the stick, with more or less
constant force.

Isometric joysticks are where the user controls the stick by varying the amount of force they push with, and the
position of the stick remains more or less constant. Isometric joysticks are often cited as more difficult to use due to the
lack of tactile feedback provided by an actual moving joystick.

Pointing stick
A pointing stick is a pressure-sensitive small nub used like a joystick. It is usually found on laptops embedded between
the G, H, and B keys. It operates by sensing the force applied by the user. The corresponding "mouse" buttons are
commonly placed just below the space bar. It is also found on mice and some desktop keyboards.

WiiMote
The Wii Remote, also known colloquially as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main
feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items
on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and optical sensor technology.

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Finger tracking
A finger tracking device tracks fingers in the 3D space or close to the surface without contact with a screen. Fingers are
triangulated by technologies like stereo camera, time-of-flight and laser. Good examples of finger tracking pointing
devices are LM3LABS' Ubiq'window and AirStrike (http://2.lm3labs.com/technologies-2/airstrike/)

Position-tracking pointing devices

Graphics tablet
A graphics tablet or digitizing tablet is a special tablet similar to a touchpad,
but controlled with a pen or stylus that is held and used like a normal pen
or pencil. The thumb usually controls the clicking via a two-way button on
the top of the pen, or by tapping on the tablet's surface.

A cursor (also called a puck) is similar to a mouse, except that it has a

window with cross hairs for pinpoint placement, and it can have as many as
16 buttons. A pen (also called a stylus) looks like a simple ballpoint pen but
uses an electronic head instead of ink. The tablet contains electronics that
A graphics tablet with a pen
enable it to detect movement of the cursor or pen and translate the
movements into digital signals that it sends to the computer."[10] This is
different from a mouse because each point on the tablet represents a point on the screen.

Stylus
A stylus is a small pen-shaped instrument that is used to input commands
to a computer screen, mobile device or graphics tablet.

The stylus is the primary input device for personal digital assistants and
smartphones that require accurate input, although devices featuring multi-
touch finger-input with capacitive touchscreens are becoming more popular
than stylus-driven devices in the smartphone market.

A smartphone being operated with a

Touchpad stylus
A touchpad or trackpad is a flat surface that can detect finger contact. It is a
stationary pointing device, commonly used on laptop computers. At least
one physical button normally comes with the touchpad, but the user can
also generate a mouse click by tapping on the pad. Advanced features
include pressure sensitivity and special gestures such as scrolling by
moving one's finger along an edge.

It uses a two-layer grid of electrodes to measure finger movement: one

layer has vertical electrode strips that handle vertical movement, and the
other layer has horizontal electrode strips to handle horizontal
Trackpad on an Apple MacBook Pro
movements.[11]

Touchscreen
A touchscreen is a device embedded into the screen of the TV monitor, or system LCD monitor screens of laptop
computers. Users interact with the device by physically pressing items shown on the screen, either with their fingers or
some helping tool.

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Several technologies can be used to detect touch. Resistive and capacitive

touchscreens have conductive materials embedded in the glass and detect
the position of the touch by measuring changes in electric current. Infrared
controllers project a grid of infrared beams inserted into the frame
surrounding the monitor screen itself, and detect where an object
intercepts the beams.

Modern touchscreens could be used in conjunction with stylus pointing

devices, while those powered by infrared do not require physical touch, but A virtual keyboard on an iPad
just recognize the movement of hand and fingers in some minimum range
distance from the real screen.

Touchscreens are becoming popular with the introduction of palmtop computers like those sold by the Palm, Inc.
hardware manufacturer, some high range classes of laptop computers, mobile smartphone like HTC or the Apple Inc.
iPhone, and the availability of standard touchscreen device drivers into the Symbian, Palm OS, Mac OS X, and
Microsoft Windows operating systems.

Pressure-tracking pointing devices

Isometric Joystick
In contrast to a 3D Joystick, the stick itself doesn't move or just moves very little and is mounted in the device chassis.
To move the pointer, the user has to apply force to the stick. Typical representatives can be found on notebook's
keyboards between the "G" and "H" keys. By performing pressure on the TrackPoint, the cursor moves on the
display.[12]

Other devices
A light pen is a device similar to a touch screen, but uses a special light-sensitive pen instead of the finger, which
allows for more accurate screen input. As the tip of the light pen makes contact with the screen, it sends a signal
back to the computer containing the coordinates of the pixels at that point. It can be used to draw on the computer
screen or make menu selections, and does not require a special touch screen because it can work with any CRT
display.
Light gun
Palm mouse – held in the palm and operated with only two buttons; the movements across the screen correspond
to a feather touch, and pressure increases the speed of movement
Footmouse – sometimes called a mole – a mouse variant for those who do not wish to or cannot use the hands or
the head; instead, it provides footclicks
Similar to a mouse is a puck, which, rather than tracking the speed of the device, tracks the absolute position of a
point on the device (typically a set of crosshairs painted on a transparent plastic tab sticking out from the top of the
puck). Pucks are typically used for tracing in CAD/CAM/CAE work, and are often accessories for larger graphics
tablets.
Eye tracking devices – a mouse controlled by the user's retinal movements, allowing cursor-manipulation without
touch
Finger-mouse – An extremely small mouse controlled by two fingers only; the user can hold it in any position
Gyroscopic mouse – a gyroscope senses the movement of the mouse as it moves through the air. Users can
operate a gyroscopic mouse when they have no room for a regular mouse or must give commands while standing
up. This input device needs no cleaning and can have many extra buttons, in fact, some laptops doubling as TVs
come with gyroscopic mice that resemble, and double as, remotes with LCD screens built in.
Steering wheel – can be thought of as a 1D pointing device – see also steering wheel section of game controller
article
Paddle – another 1D pointing device
Jog dial – another 1D pointing device
Yoke (aircraft)
Some high-degree-of-freedom input devices

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3Dconnexion – six-degree controller

Discrete pointing devices
directional pad – a very simple keyboard
Dance pad – used to point at gross locations in space with feet
Soap mouse – a handheld, position-based pointing device based on existing wireless optical mouse technology
Laser pen – can be used in presentations as a pointing device
This article is based on material taken from the Free On-line Dictionary of Computing prior to 1 November 2008 and incorporated under
the "relicensing" terms of the GFDL, version 1.3 or later.

References
1. Zhai, S. (1998). User performance in relation to 3D input device design. ACM Siggraph Computer Graphics, 32(4),
50–54. doi:10.1145/307710.307728 (https://doi.org/10.1145%2F307710.307728)
2. http://www.billbuxton.com/input04.Taxonomies.pdf
3. Buxton, W. (1990). A Three-State Model of Graphical Input. In D. Diaper et al. (Eds), Human-Computer Interaction
– INTERACT '90. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. (North-Holland), 449–456.
4. Fitts, Paul M. (June 1954). "The information capacity of the human motor system in controlling the amplitude of
movement". Journal of Experimental Psychology. 47 (6): 381–391. doi:10.1037/h0055392. PMID 13174710 (http
s://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/13174710).
5. https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/fitts-s-law-the-importance-of-size-and-distance-in-ui-design
6. D. E. Meyer, R. A. Abrams, S. Kornblum, C. E. Wright, and J. E. K. Smith. Optimality in human motor
performance: Ideal control of rapid aimed movements. Psychological Review , 95(3):340–370, 1988.
7. Casiez, G., & Roussel, N. (2011). No more Bricolage! Methods and Tools to Characterize, Replicate and Compare
Pointing Transfer Functions. Proceedings of the 24th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and
Technology – UIST '11, 603–614. doi:10.1145/2047196.2047276 (https://doi.org/10.1145%2F2047196.2047276)
8. "mouse (http://foldoc.org/foldoc/foldoc.cgi?mouse)." FOLDOC. 19 September 2006.
9. "tracker ball (http://foldoc.org/foldoc/foldoc.cgi?tracker+ball)." FOLDOC. 19 September 2006.
10. "digitizing tablet (http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/digitizing_tablet.html)." Webopedia.com. 19 September
2006.
11. "touchpad (http://foldoc.org/foldoc/foldoc.cgi?trackpad)." FOLDOC. 19 September 2006.
12. Silfverberg, M., MacKenzie, I. S., & Kauppinen, T. (2001). An isometric joystick as a pointing device for handheld
information terminals. Proceedings of Graphics Interface 2001, pp. 119–126. Toronto, Canada: Canadian
Information Processing Society.

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