Pointing Devices & Group 1

Fitts’ Law
IE 403 Human Computer
Interaction

Professor : P. S. Kalyan
What Is a Pointing Device

o Input device that allows a user to interact with a

computer or other digital devices.

o The primary function of a pointing device is to

provide a means for the user to input spatial data
to the computer.

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 Examples of Pointing
Devices
• Mouse

• Joysticks (PS and XBOX controllers)

• Touchscreens

• Graphics Tablets

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Evolution Of Pointing Devices

TrackBalls TouchScreen

Late Early1
1950s 1970s
1950s 960s

LightPens Mouse

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Evolution Of Pointing Devices

Advanced
Optical Mouse Technology

Early
1980s 2000s
2000s 2010s

Graphics Tablet TouchPads

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LightPen
• Was created around 1951–1955 as part of the
Whirlwind I project at MIT.

• A light-sensitive wand used in conjunction with a

computer's cathode-ray tube (CRT) display.

• It consist of photocell and an optical system placed

in small tube.

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 TrackBall

• The trackball was invented to calculate the future

position of target aircraft based on several initial
input points provided by a user with a joystick.

• Gain-function like a mouse for speed

• No need for clutching

• Good for accessibility

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 Graphics Tablet

• Graphics tablets are computer input

devices for drawing images with a
stylus, mimicking pencil and paper.

• They can also capture data and

handwritten signatures.

• Some tablets replace the computer

mouse as the primary pointing
device.

• Some graphic tablets use advanced

technologies like optical or acoustic
methods for precise input detection.

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TouchPads

• A touchpad, also known as a trackpad, is a common

pointing device found on laptops and some desktop
keyboards.

• It allows users to move the cursor on the screen by

sliding their finger across the surface of the
touchpad.

• While touchpads are convenient for many users,

some people prefer the precision and ergonomics
of a mouse for certain tasks.

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 Mouse
• Early design of mouse by Doug Engelbart in the 1960s. Used rolling wheels
• Further developed by Xerox PARC.
• Commercialized by Apple CEO Steve Jobs with help of a startup Hovey-Kelly Design.
• The basic working principle of a mouse involves translating physical movement into digital signals
that a computer can interpret.

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 Mouse Cursor
• There is a pointer cursor which tells your current position on the screen.
• When you move your mouse it detects your movement and moves the cursor
accordingly.
• The movement of the cursor is relative.
• Text Cursor : Shows your position on the text.
• TouchScreens don’t have these cursors to tell your position on the screens.
• Below is an example of a bad Cursor.

Terminal cursor is always at wrong place

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Mouse Gain Functions

Constant Gain Pointer Acceleration

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Joystick

Joysticks are typically used to control the movement of objects or characters in video games, flight
simulation software, and other applications that require directional control.

In the early years,

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Comparison of accuracy b/w Mouse and
Joystick

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Issues With Different Pointing Devices
• A light pen can work with any CRT-based display, but its ability to be
used with LCDs was unclear.
• Light pen can cause a gorilla arm.
• In Mouse and Touchpads there is a problem of clutching which does not exist in
touchscreens and trackballs.
• There are many states which are not achievable in touchscreens and trackballs like
the hover state.
• The motion of a mouse, trackballs and touchpads are relative compared to that of a
touchscreen. It makes the touchscreen slower . But the relative motion makes the
mouse hard to use for new user.

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 Fitts' Law
Forecasts the time it takes to travel to
and pick a goal.

T = a + b log2(D/W + 1)
•T = time to complete a movement
Big and near •a = fixed cost to start/stop moving & click
objects are easy to •b = inherent speed of device
click •log2(D/W + 1) = “index of difficulty” or ID bits
Small and far objects are hard to
•Higher with distance (D) and lower with width (W)
click
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 Card, English, Burr studies
• The study aimed to investigate the relationship between movement time, target
width, and target distance in pointing tasks, which laid the foundation for Fitts'
Law.
• It was instrumental in advancing our understanding of human-computer
interaction and has had a lasting impact on the field of HCI.
• Their study provided empirical data that supported the application of Fitts' Law to
pointing tasks using devices such as mice and keyboards, helping to establish Fitts'
Law as a fundamental principle in human-computer interaction.

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Demonstration of Time v/s Distance of
different Positioning Devices

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Demonstration of Time v/s Distance of different
Positioning Devices

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Fitts law Application
• Space between user’s task or attention area and the task related button needs to
be maintained at minimum.
• Larger targets are easier to hit
• Keep important buttons bigger and position them where they can be easily
accessed
• Fitts' Law can guide the design of menus and navigation systems. Frequently used
menu items should be larger or positioned in a way that reduces the distance the
cursor or finger needs to travel to reach them.
• According to recent research, placing the “add to cart” button to left hand menu
of website can enhance sale conversion.

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Fitts’ law Demonstration

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Usage in Interface Design

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Future of Pointing devices

1.Bubble Pointer
• Make cursor into a circle big enough to
capture exactly 1 target

• Dynamically changes size based on

density of targets

• Reduces Fitts’ law size and distance to

target

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Future of Pointing devices

2.Drag and Pop

• Bring the objects in the direction of

movement closer to the cursor

• Reduces the Fitts’ law distance

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 Future of Pointing devices

3.Glove Mouse

• Glove mouse helps navigation using

hand movements and gestures.

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Future of Pointing devices

4.Eyeball tracking in Apple

vision pro

• It uses eyeball movements to navigate

on the screen and hand gestures to
perform actions like press and hold

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