Block Diagram of Computer

Input Unit
All the data received by the computer goes
through the input unit. The input unit
comprises different devices. Like a mouse,
keyboard, scanner, etc. In other words,
each of these devices acts as a mediator
between the users and the computer.

The data that is to be processed is put

through the input unit. The computer
accepts the raw data in binary form. It
then processes the data, and produces the
desired output.
 The 3 major functions of the input unit
are-

Take the data to be processed by the user.

Convert the given data into machine-

readable form.

And then, transmit the converted data into

the main memory of the computer. The sole
purpose is to connect the user and the
computer. In addition, this creates easy
communication between them.
 CPU – Central Processing Unit
Central Processing Unit or the CPU, is the
brain of the computer. It works the same
way a human brain works. As the brain
controls all human activities, the CPU too
controls all tasks.

Moreover, the CPU conducts all the

arithmetical and logical operations in the
computer.

Now the CPU comprises of two units, namely

– ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit) and CU
(Control Unit). Both of these units work in
sync. The CPU processes the data as a
whole.
 ALU – Arithmetic Logic Unit
The Arithmetic Logic Unit is made of two terms,
arithmetic and logic. There are two major functions
that this unit performs.

1) Data inserted through the input unit into the

primary memory. Performs the basic arithmetical
operation on it. Like addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division. It performs all sorts
of calculations required on the data. Then sends
back data to the storage.

2) The unit is also responsible for performing logical

operations like, AND, OR, Equal to, Less than,
etc. In addition to this it conducts merging,
sorting, and selection of the given data.
CU – Control Unit
The control unit as the name suggests is the
controller of all the activities/tasks and
operations. All this is performed inside the
computer.

The memory unit sends a set of instructions

to the control unit. Then the control unit in
turn converts those instructions. After that
these instructions are converted to control
signals.

These control signals help in prioritizing and

scheduling the activities. Thus, the control
unit coordinates the tasks inside the
computer in sync with the input and output
units.
 Memory Unit
All the data that has to be processed or has
been processed is stored in the memory unit.
The memory unit acts as a hub of all the data.
It transmits it to the required part of the
computer whenever necessary.

The memory unit works in sync with the CPU.

This helps in faster accessing and processing
of the data. Thus, making tasks easier and
faster.
 Memory Unit……
There are two types of computer memory-

1) Primary memory – This type of memory cannot

store a vast amount of data. Therefore, it is
only used to store recent data. The data
stored in this is temporary. It can get erased
once the power is switched off. Therefore, is
also called temporary memory or the main
memory.

RAM stands for Random Access Memory. It is

an example of primary memory. This memory is
directly accessible by the CPU. It is used for
reading and writing purposes. For data to be
processed, it has to be first transferred to
the RAM and then to the CPU.
Memory Unit……
2) Secondary memory – As explained above, the
primary memory stores temporary data. Thus it
cannot be accessed in the future. For permanent
storage purposes, secondary memory is used. It is
also called the permanent memory or the auxiliary
memory. The hard disk is an example of secondary
memory. Even in a power failure data does not get
erased easily.
 Output
There is nothing to be amazed by what the output
unit is used for. All the information sent to the
computer once processed is received by the user
through the output unit. Devices like printers,
monitors, projector, etc. all come under the output
unit.

The output unit displays the data either in the form

of a soft copy or hard copy. The printer is for the
hard copy. The monitor is for the display. The
output unit accepts the data in binary form from
the computer. It then converts it into a readable
form for the user.
 INPUT UNIT
 Keyboard Most common and very popular input
device is keyboard. The keyboard helps in
inputting the data to the computer.

 The layout of the keyboard is like that of

traditional typewriter, although there are some
additional keys provided for performing some
additional functions.

 Keyboards are of two sizes 84 keys or 101/102

keys, but now 104 keys or 108 keys keyboard is
also available for Windows and Internet.

 Portable computers such as laptops quite often

have custom keyboards have slightly different key
arrangements than a standard keyboard.

 It is the easiest input device as it does not require

any special skill. The keys are following
Screen, but it cannot be used to enter text into the computer. The
mouse may be classified as a mechanical mouse or an optical
mouse.

A mechanical mouse uses a rubber ball at the bottom surface which

rotates as the mouse is moved along a flat surface to move the
cursor. It is the most common and least expensive pointing device.

An optical mouse uses a light beam instead of a rotating ball to

detect movement across a specially patterned mouse pad. As the
user rolls the mouse on a flat surface the cursor on a flat surface
the cursor on the screen also moves in the direction of the mouse’s
movement. Modern mouse does not required mouse pad.
THE OUTPUT UNIT
Printer :- A printer prints information and data
from the computer onto a paper. Printing is the
art of moving ink from one place to another. A
printer is used to produce printouts of the
documents stored on a computer’s disk drive.
There are two types of printer according to
printing technology.

Impact Printer:- An impact printer has

mechanisms resembling those of a typewriter.
It forms characters or images by striking a
mechanism such as a print hammer or wheel
against an inked ribbon, leaving an image on
paper. Impact printers are dying out; however,
you may still come in contact with a dot-matrix
printer. Such as Dot matrix printer, Daisy
wheel Printer, Drum printer.
Characteristics of Impact Printer

In impact printer there is physical

contact with the paper to produce
text and image.
They have relatively low consumable
costs.
Due to being robust and low cost they
are useful for bulk printing.
They can withstand dusty
environment, vibrations and extreme
temperature.
Due to its striking activity, impact
printers are very noisy.
Since they are mechanical in nature,
they tend to be slow.
Non- Impact Printer
 A non impact printer forms characters and
images without making direct physical
contact between printing mechanism and
paper.

 In this printer the print head does not make

contact with the paper and no inked ribbon is
required.

 Ink can be sprayed against the paper and

then heat and pressure are used to fuse a
fine black powder into the shape of a
character. Such as Ink-jet printer, Laser
Printer.
Characteristics of Non-impact printer

 Non impact printers are faster than impact printers

because they have fewer moving parts.

 They are quieter than impact printers because there

is no striking mechanism involved and only few moving
parts are used.

 They possess the ability to change typefaces

automatically.

 These printers produce high quality graphics.

 These printers usually support the transparencies.

 MONITOR
A computer display is also called a display screen or
video display terminal (VDT). A monitor is a screen
used to display the output. Images are represented on
monitors by individual dots called pixels. A pixel is the
smallest unit on the screen that can be turned on and
off or made different shades. The density of the dots
determines the clarity of the images, the resolution.

Screen resolution: This is the degree of sharpness of

a displayed character or image. The screen resolution
is usually expressed as the number of columns by the
number rows. A 1024x768 resolution means that it has
1024 dots in a line and 768 lines. A smaller screen
looks sharper on the same resolution. Another measure
of display resolution is a dot pitch.
Interlaced/Non-interlaced:
 An interlaced technique refreshes the lines of the
screen by exposing all odd lines first then all even
lines next.

 A non-interlaced technology that is developed later

refreshes all the lines on the screen form top to
bottom. The non- interlaced method gives more
stable video display than interlaced method. It also
requires twice as much signal information as
interlaced technology.

 There are two forms of display: cathode-ray

tubes (CRTs) and flat-panel display.
Cathode Ray Tubes (CRT)
A CRT is a vacuum tube used as a display
screen for a computer output device.
Although the CRT means only a tube, it
usually refers to all monitors. IBM and IBM
compatible microcomputers operate two
modes unlike Macintosh based entirely on
graphics mode. They are a text mode and a
graphics mode. Application programs switch
computers into appropriate display mode.
Monochrome Monitors

A monochrome monitor has two colors, one for

foreground and the other for background. The
colors can be white, amber or green on a dark
(black) background. The monochrome monitors
display both text and graphics modes.

Color Monitors A color monitor is a display

peripheral that displays more than two colors.
Color monitors have been developed through
the following paths.
Flat Panel Displays
Portable computers such as a laptop use flat
panel displays, because they are more compact
and consume less power than CRTs. Portable
computers use several kinds of flat panel
screens:

Liquid-Crystal Displays (LCDs) A display

technology that creates characters by means
of reflected light and is commonly used in
digital watches and laptop computers. LCDs
replaced LEDs (light emitting diodes) because
LCDs use less power. LCDs are difficult to
read in a strong light, because they do not
emit their own light. Portable computers
wanted to have brighter and easier to read
displays. Backlit LCDs are used for the
purpose now.
 Backlit LCDs: This is a type of LCD display
having its own light source provided from the
back of the screen. The backlit makes the
background brighter and clear, as a result the
texts and images appear sharper. However,
this still is much less clear than CRTs. Thus,
better technology is needed.

 Active Matrix LCDs: This is an LCD display

technique in which every dot on the screen has
a transistor to control it more accurately. This
uses a transistor for each monochrome or each
red, green and blue dot. It provides better
contrast, speeds up screen refresh and
reduces motion smearing
Plotters
A plotter is a special-purpose output device
that draws images with ink pens. That is, the
plotter is a graphics printer for making
sophisticated graphs, charts, maps, and 3D
graphics as well as high-quality colored
documents. It can also produce larger size of
documents. Plotters require data in a vector
graphics format that can produce images with a
series of lines.

There are two main types of plotters:

STORAGE UNIT
Storage Devices are the data storage
devices that are used in the computers to
store the data.

The computer has many types of data

storage devices. Some of them can be
classified as the removable data Storage
Devices and the others as the non
removable data Storage Devices.

The memory is of two types; one is the

primary memory and the other one is the
secondary memory.
Primary Memory
The primary memory is the volatile
memory and the secondary memory is
the non volatile memory.

The volatile memory is the kind of the

memory that is erasable and the non
volatile memory is the one where in the
contents cannot be erased.

Basically when we talk about the data

storage devices it is generally assumed
to be the secondary memory.
Secondary Memory
The secondary memory is used to store
the data permanently in the computer.

The secondary storage devices are

usually as follows: hard disk drives – this
is the most common type of storage
device that is used in almost all the
computer systems.

The other ones include the floppy disk

drives, the CD ROM, DVD ROM, flash
memory, the USB data card etc.
 RAM vs ROM

Read-only memory or ROM is a form of

data storage in computers and other
electronic devices that cannot be easily
altered or reprogrammed.

RAM is referred to as volatile memory

and is lost when the power is turned off
whereas ROM in non-volatile and the
contents are retained even after the
power is switched off.
Random Access Memory
 Random Access Memory or RAM is a
form of data storage that can be
accessed randomly at any time, in any
order and from any physical location in
contrast to other storage devices, such
as hard drives, where the physical
location of the data determines the
time taken to retrieve it.

 RAM is measured in megabytes and the

speed is measured in nanoseconds and
RAM chips can read data faster than
ROM.
 ROM Types : PROM
 PROM : Short for programmable read-only
memory, a memory chip on which data can be
written only once. Once a program has been
written onto a PROM, it remains there forever.
Unlike RAM, PROMs retain their contents when
the computer is turned off.

The difference between a PROM and a ROM

(read-only memory) is that a PROM is
manufactured as blank memory, whereas a ROM
is programmed during the manufacturing
process.

To write data onto a PROM chip, you need a

special device called a PROM programmer or
PROM burner. The process of programming a
PROM is sometimes called burning the PROM.
EPROM

EPROM : It stands for erasable

programmable read-only memory, and
pronounced ee-prom, EPROM is a special type
of memory that retains its contents until it
is exposed to ultraviolet light.

The ultraviolet light clears its contents,

making it possible to reprogram the memory.

To write to and erase an EPROM, you need a

special device called a PROM programmer or
PROM burner.
EEPROM :

EEPROM : It stands for electrically erasable

programmable read-only memory.

EEPROM is a special type of PROM that can

be erased by exposing it to an electrical
charge.

Like other types of PROM, EEPROM retains

its contents even when the power is turned
off. Also like other types of ROM, EEPROM
is not as fast as RAM