CATEGORIES OF I/O DEVICES

ARASH NASR ESFAHANI

 WHAT ARE I/O DEVICES?

An input/output device, often known as an IO device, is any

hardware that allows a human operator or other systems to
interface with a computer.
 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES OF I/O DEVICES

 There are many ways to categorize I/O devices. Some of them include:

1. Human-readable, Machine-readable, Communication

2. Memory mapped I/O, Non-Memory mapped I/O
3. Synchronous I/O, Asynchronous I/O
4. Block devices, Character devices

 We will focus on the first two categorizations and their differences.

 I/O DEVICES CATEGORIES

IO devices are generally categorized in this way.

 Human-readable: These are suitable for communicating with the user.

• Examples include mouse, printer, and keyboard.

 Machine-readable: These are suitable for communicating with electronic equipment.

• Examples include disk and tape drives and sensors.

 Communication: Suitable for communicating with remote devices.

• Examples include digital line drivers and modems.

 I/O DEVICES CATEGORIES
IO devices can be categorized based on whether they have memory or not.

 Memory-Mapped IO Devices: These IO devices have memory or registers associated with them, and they
are accessible through memory addresses. Programs can read from or write to these addresses to interact
with the device. They allow devices to be accessed using standard memory read and write operations.
• Examples include graphics cards and network interface cards.

 Non-Memory-Mapped IO Devices: These IO devices do not have memory directly associated with them
through memory addresses. Instead, they are controlled through specific I/O instructions or ports distinct
from regular memory. They require specific instructions or ports for communication, which can be more
complex to program.
• Examples include keyboard and mouse controllers.
 COMPARISON BETWEEN MAPPED AND NON-MAPPED I/O
Aspect/Device Name Memory Mapped
Addressing Devices are addressed like
memory (Using regular r/w
instructions)
Interfacing Easier to interface with devices as
they appear as regular locations
Flexibility Provides flexibility using standard
memory access mechanisms
Speed Typically faster due to direct
memory access
Non-Memory Mapped
Special I/O instructions or
dedicated I/O addressing
Require separate I/O instructions
and often require dedicated
hardware addresses
Device access may require more
complex handling
May have slightly more overhead
due to separate I/O instructions
 SOME REAL WORLD EXAMPLES
Here we have some real world examples of the devices mentioned
before.

• Printers are typically non-memory mapped devices. This is “Epson

LX-350 Dot Matrix Printer”. An example of non-memory mapped
I/O devices.

• Graphic cards often use memory mapped I/O. This is “GeForce RTX
3080” and it is an example of high-end graphic cards that utilize
memory mapped I/O.