QInputDevice Class

The QInputDevice class describes a device from which a QInputEvent originates. More...

Header: #include <QInputDevice>
CMake: find_package(Qt6 REQUIRED COMPONENTS Gui)
target_link_libraries(mytarget PRIVATE Qt6::Gui)
qmake: QT += gui
Since: Qt 6.0
Inherits: QObject
Inherited By:

QPointingDevice

Public Types

flags Capabilities
enum class Capability { None, Position, Area, Pressure, Velocity, …, All }
enum class DeviceType { Unknown, Mouse, TouchScreen, TouchPad, Stylus, …, AllDevices }
flags DeviceTypes

Public Functions

QInputDevice(QObject *parent = nullptr)
QInputDevice(const QString &name, qint64 id, QInputDevice::DeviceType type, const QString &seatName = QString(), QObject *parent = nullptr)
QRect availableVirtualGeometry() const
QInputDevice::Capabilities capabilities() const
bool hasCapability(QInputDevice::Capability capability) const
QString name() const
QString seatName() const
qint64 systemId() const
QInputDevice::DeviceType type() const

Signals

Static Public Members

QList<const QInputDevice *> devices()
const QInputDevice *primaryKeyboard(const QString &seatName = QString())
(since 6.3) QStringList seatNames()

Detailed Description

Each QInputEvent contains a QInputDevice pointer to allow accessing device-specific properties like type, capabilities and seat. It is the responsibility of the platform or generic plug-ins to discover, create and register an instance of this class corresponding to each available input device, via QWindowSystemInterface::registerInputDevice(), before generating any input event referring to that device.

Applications do not need to instantiate this class, but can read the instances pointed to by QInputEvent::device() and QInputDevice::devices().

Member Type Documentation

enum class QInputDevice::Capability
flags QInputDevice::Capabilities

Indicates what kind of information the input device or its driver can provide.

ConstantValueDescription
QInputDevice::Capability::None0No information about input device capabilities available.
QInputDevice::Capability::Position0x0001Indicates that position information is available, meaning that the position() family of functions in the touch points return valid points.
QInputDevice::Capability::Area0x0002Indicates that touch area information is available, meaning that QEventPoint::ellipseDiameters() in the touch points return valid values.
QInputDevice::Capability::Pressure0x0004Indicates that pressure information is available, meaning that QEventPoint::pressure() returns a valid value.
QInputDevice::Capability::Velocity0x0008Indicates that velocity information is available, meaning that QEventPoint::velocity() returns a valid vector.
QInputDevice::Capability::NormalizedPosition0x0020Indicates that the normalized position is available, meaning that QEventPoint::globalPosition() returns a valid value.
QInputDevice::Capability::MouseEmulation0x0040Indicates that the device synthesizes mouse events.
QInputDevice::Capability::Scroll0x0100Indicates that the device has a scroll capability.
QInputDevice::Capability::PixelScroll (since Qt 6.2)0x0080Indicates that the device (usually a touchpad) scrolls with pixel precision.
QInputDevice::Capability::Hover0x0200Indicates that the device has a hover capability.
QInputDevice::Capability::Rotation0x0400Indicates that rotation information is available.
QInputDevice::Capability::XTilt0x0800Indicates that tilt information is available for the X-axis.
QInputDevice::Capability::YTilt0x1000Indicates that tilt information is available for the Y-axis.
QInputDevice::Capability::TangentialPressure0x2000Indicates that tangential pressure information is available.
QInputDevice::Capability::ZPosition0x4000Indicates that position information for the Z-axis is available.
QInputDevice::Capability::All0x7FFFFFFF 

The Capabilities type is a typedef for QFlags<Capability>. It stores an OR combination of Capability values.

enum class QInputDevice::DeviceType
flags QInputDevice::DeviceTypes

This enum represents the type of device that generated a QPointerEvent.

ConstantValueDescription
QInputDevice::DeviceType::Unknown0x0000The device cannot be identified.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::Mouse0x0001A mouse.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::TouchScreen0x0002In this type of device, the touch surface and display are integrated. This means the surface and display typically have the same size, such that there is a direct relationship between the touch points' physical positions and the coordinate reported by QEventPoint. As a result, Qt allows the user to interact directly with multiple QWidgets, QGraphicsItems, or Qt Quick Items at the same time.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::TouchPad0x0004In this type of device, the touch surface is separate from the display. There is not a direct relationship between the physical touch location and the on-screen coordinates. Instead, they are calculated relative to the current mouse position, and the user must use the touch-pad to move this reference point. Unlike touch-screens, Qt allows users to only interact with a single QWidget or QGraphicsItem at a time.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::Stylus0x0010A pen-like device used on a graphics tablet such as a Wacom tablet, or on a touchscreen that provides a separate stylus sensing capability.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::Airbrush0x0020A stylus with a thumbwheel to adjust tangentialPressure.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::Puck0x0008A device that is similar to a flat mouse with a transparent circle with cross-hairs.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::Keyboard0x1000A keyboard.
QInputDevice::DeviceType::AllDevices0x7FFFFFFFAny of the above (used as a default filter value).

The DeviceTypes type is a typedef for QFlags<DeviceType>. It stores an OR combination of DeviceType values.

Member Function Documentation

QInputDevice::QInputDevice(QObject *parent = nullptr)

Creates a new invalid input device instance as a child of parent.

QInputDevice::QInputDevice(const QString &name, qint64 id, QInputDevice::DeviceType type, const QString &seatName = QString(), QObject *parent = nullptr)

Creates a new input device instance. The given name is normally a manufacturer-assigned model name if available, or something else identifiable; id is a platform-specific number that will be unique per device (for example the xinput ID on X11); type identifies what kind of device. On window systems that are capable of handling input from multiple users or sets of input devices at the same time (such as Wayland or X11), seatName identifies the name of the set of devices that will be used together. If the device is a child or slave device (for example one of several mice that can take turns moving the "core pointer"), the master device should be given as the parent.

The platform plugin creates, registers and continues to own each device instance; usually parent should be given for memory management purposes even if there is no master for a particular device.

By default, capabilities() are None.

QRect QInputDevice::availableVirtualGeometry() const

Returns the region within the virtual desktop that this device can access.

For example a TouchScreen input device is fixed in place upon a single physical screen, and usually calibrated so that this area is the same as QScreen::geometry(); whereas a Mouse can probably access all screens on the virtual desktop. A Wacom graphics tablet may be configured in a way that it's mapped to all screens, or only to the screen where the user prefers to create drawings, or to the window in which drawing occurs. A Stylus device that is integrated with a touchscreen may be physically limited to that screen.

If the returned rectangle is null, it means this device can access the entire virtual desktop.

Note: Getter function for property availableVirtualGeometry.

QInputDevice::Capabilities QInputDevice::capabilities() const

Returns the device capabilities.

Note: Getter function for property capabilities.

[static] QList<const QInputDevice *> QInputDevice::devices()

Returns a list of all registered input devices (keyboards and pointing devices).

Note: The list of devices is not always complete on all platforms. So far, the most-complete information is available on the X11 platform, at startup and in response to hot-plugging. Most other platforms are only able to provide generic devices of various types, only after receiving events from them; and most platforms do not tell Qt when a device is plugged in, or when it is unplugged at runtime.

Note: The returned list cannot be used to add new devices. To add a simulated touch screen for an autotest, QTest::createTouchDevice() can be used. Platform plugins should call QWindowSystemInterface::registerInputDevice() to add devices as they are discovered.

bool QInputDevice::hasCapability(QInputDevice::Capability capability) const

Returns whether the device capabilities include the given capability.

QString QInputDevice::name() const

Returns the device name.

This string may be empty. It is however useful on systems that have multiple input devices: it can be used to differentiate from which device a QPointerEvent originates.

Note: Getter function for property name.

[static] const QInputDevice *QInputDevice::primaryKeyboard(const QString &seatName = QString())

Returns the core or master keyboard on the given seat seatName.

QString QInputDevice::seatName() const

Returns the seat with which the device is associated, if known; otherwise empty.

Devices that are intended to be used together by one user may be configured to have the same seat name. That is only possible on Wayland and X11 platforms so far.

Note: Getter function for property seatName.

[static, since 6.3] QStringList QInputDevice::seatNames()

Returns a list of seat names for all registered input devices (keyboards and pointing devices).

This function was introduced in Qt 6.3.

qint64 QInputDevice::systemId() const

Returns the platform specific system ID (for example xinput ID on the X11 platform).

All platforms are expected to provide a unique system ID for each device.

Note: Getter function for property systemId.

QInputDevice::DeviceType QInputDevice::type() const

Returns the device type.

Note: Getter function for property type.

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