ELECTRONICS WORKSHOP

OPTICAL MOUSE CIRCUIT

WEEK 1

WHAT IS MOUSE :-
With all the addition of new technology and features, there are many
different types of mouse with different working principles.

From ball mice that use mechanical precision, optical mice that use
light sensing technology, to wireless mice that use radio frequency.
The computer mouse may look plain and unassuming, but it is not so
simple. There’s an interesting insight into how it actually works.

So, in this article, we explain the different types of mice and how each
of them works.
WORKING PRINCIPLE OF OPTICAL MOUSE :-

Optical mice use light to detect movement. They work by projecting a

red light and using sensors to detect movement. The sensors are
sensitive to changes in light levels and transmit data back to the
system by reflecting light onto an LED (light emitting diode) at an
angle of 45°.

WORKING OF MOUSE :-

An optical computer mouse converts its movement on a surface to the

movement of a cursor on the computer screen. It also incorporate
buttons to perform various functionalities. Regardless of whether it is
wired or wireless, uses LED or laser, almost all mice used today are
classified as optical mice, in contrast to the now obselete mechanical
mice.

To detect the movement, an optical mouse uses a light source (LED or

Laser), a photodetector (typically a CMOS sensor) and a digital signal
processor (DSP). First, the light source produces light that shines onto
the surface. The light is reflected back and picked up by the CMOS
sensor forming an image of the local surface. Thousands of images are
taken every second by the CMOS sensor and these images are sent to
the DSP for analysis. The DSP compares these images to determine
whether the mouse has moved, in what direction and at what speed.
This information is then sent to the computer (through wire or wireless
receiver), which updates the positon of cursor on the screen
accordingly.

COMPONENT USED :-

Three microswitches

One rotary potentiometer

One red LED

Two capacitor

One Resistor

Light Detector Chip

Inside the microswitches, there's a thin piece of metal, shaped in such
a way to spring back into place after being pressed. Activating the
switch pushes the metal down until it hits a contact, creating the 'on'
signal, by virtue of closing off a circuit.

Microswitches is one of the first significant areas where the quality of a

mouse can vary, so that a more expensive mouse will use switches that
are designed to operate in the same way over years of use .

However, over time, the metal can potentially become work fatigued,
affecting its ability to quickly return; hostile environments can also
result in the metal becoming corroded, which affects how well it
completes the circuit.

The biggest issue with switches is that they're mass-manufactured,

and the cheaper they are, the more likely they are to break. When this
happens, most of us would just recycle the mouse and get a new one,
but if you're handy with a soldering iron, microswitches are very easy
to replace.

Where the mouse buttons are just on/off devices, the wheel needs to
provide a discrete but limitless change of some kind – i.e. the ability to
scroll the wheel a 'notch' at a time, but also be able to scroll forever.

CIRCUIT DIAGRAM AND BLOCK DIAGRAM :-