|  | The input protocol uses a map of types and codes to express input device values | 
|  | to userspace. This document describes the types and codes and how and when they | 
|  | may be used. | 
|  |  | 
|  | A single hardware event generates multiple input events. Each input event | 
|  | contains the new value of a single data item. A special event type, EV_SYN, is | 
|  | used to separate input events into packets of input data changes occurring at | 
|  | the same moment in time. In the following, the term "event" refers to a single | 
|  | input event encompassing a type, code, and value. | 
|  |  | 
|  | The input protocol is a stateful protocol. Events are emitted only when values | 
|  | of event codes have changed. However, the state is maintained within the Linux | 
|  | input subsystem; drivers do not need to maintain the state and may attempt to | 
|  | emit unchanged values without harm. Userspace may obtain the current state of | 
|  | event code values using the EVIOCG* ioctls defined in linux/input.h. The event | 
|  | reports supported by a device are also provided by sysfs in | 
|  | class/input/event*/device/capabilities/, and the properties of a device are | 
|  | provided in class/input/event*/device/properties. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Event types: | 
|  | =========== | 
|  | Event types are groupings of codes under a logical input construct. Each | 
|  | type has a set of applicable codes to be used in generating events. See the | 
|  | Codes section for details on valid codes for each type. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_SYN: | 
|  | - Used as markers to separate events. Events may be separated in time or in | 
|  | space, such as with the multitouch protocol. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_KEY: | 
|  | - Used to describe state changes of keyboards, buttons, or other key-like | 
|  | devices. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_REL: | 
|  | - Used to describe relative axis value changes, e.g. moving the mouse 5 units | 
|  | to the left. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_ABS: | 
|  | - Used to describe absolute axis value changes, e.g. describing the | 
|  | coordinates of a touch on a touchscreen. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_MSC: | 
|  | - Used to describe miscellaneous input data that do not fit into other types. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_SW: | 
|  | - Used to describe binary state input switches. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_LED: | 
|  | - Used to turn LEDs on devices on and off. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_SND: | 
|  | - Used to output sound to devices. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_REP: | 
|  | - Used for autorepeating devices. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_FF: | 
|  | - Used to send force feedback commands to an input device. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_PWR: | 
|  | - A special type for power button and switch input. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * EV_FF_STATUS: | 
|  | - Used to receive force feedback device status. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Event codes: | 
|  | =========== | 
|  | Event codes define the precise type of event. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_SYN: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_SYN event values are undefined. Their usage is defined only by when they are | 
|  | sent in the evdev event stream. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * SYN_REPORT: | 
|  | - Used to synchronize and separate events into packets of input data changes | 
|  | occurring at the same moment in time. For example, motion of a mouse may set | 
|  | the REL_X and REL_Y values for one motion, then emit a SYN_REPORT. The next | 
|  | motion will emit more REL_X and REL_Y values and send another SYN_REPORT. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * SYN_CONFIG: | 
|  | - TBD | 
|  |  | 
|  | * SYN_MT_REPORT: | 
|  | - Used to synchronize and separate touch events. See the | 
|  | multi-touch-protocol.txt document for more information. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * SYN_DROPPED: | 
|  | - Used to indicate buffer overrun in the evdev client's event queue. | 
|  | Client should ignore all events up to and including next SYN_REPORT | 
|  | event and query the device (using EVIOCG* ioctls) to obtain its | 
|  | current state. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_KEY: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_KEY events take the form KEY_<name> or BTN_<name>. For example, KEY_A is used | 
|  | to represent the 'A' key on a keyboard. When a key is depressed, an event with | 
|  | the key's code is emitted with value 1. When the key is released, an event is | 
|  | emitted with value 0. Some hardware send events when a key is repeated. These | 
|  | events have a value of 2. In general, KEY_<name> is used for keyboard keys, and | 
|  | BTN_<name> is used for other types of momentary switch events. | 
|  |  | 
|  | A few EV_KEY codes have special meanings: | 
|  |  | 
|  | * BTN_TOOL_<name>: | 
|  | - These codes are used in conjunction with input trackpads, tablets, and | 
|  | touchscreens. These devices may be used with fingers, pens, or other tools. | 
|  | When an event occurs and a tool is used, the corresponding BTN_TOOL_<name> | 
|  | code should be set to a value of 1. When the tool is no longer interacting | 
|  | with the input device, the BTN_TOOL_<name> code should be reset to 0. All | 
|  | trackpads, tablets, and touchscreens should use at least one BTN_TOOL_<name> | 
|  | code when events are generated. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * BTN_TOUCH: | 
|  | BTN_TOUCH is used for touch contact. While an input tool is determined to be | 
|  | within meaningful physical contact, the value of this property must be set | 
|  | to 1. Meaningful physical contact may mean any contact, or it may mean | 
|  | contact conditioned by an implementation defined property. For example, a | 
|  | touchpad may set the value to 1 only when the touch pressure rises above a | 
|  | certain value. BTN_TOUCH may be combined with BTN_TOOL_<name> codes. For | 
|  | example, a pen tablet may set BTN_TOOL_PEN to 1 and BTN_TOUCH to 0 while the | 
|  | pen is hovering over but not touching the tablet surface. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Note: For appropriate function of the legacy mousedev emulation driver, | 
|  | BTN_TOUCH must be the first evdev code emitted in a synchronization frame. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Note: Historically a touch device with BTN_TOOL_FINGER and BTN_TOUCH was | 
|  | interpreted as a touchpad by userspace, while a similar device without | 
|  | BTN_TOOL_FINGER was interpreted as a touchscreen. For backwards compatibility | 
|  | with current userspace it is recommended to follow this distinction. In the | 
|  | future, this distinction will be deprecated and the device properties ioctl | 
|  | EVIOCGPROP, defined in linux/input.h, will be used to convey the device type. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * BTN_TOOL_FINGER, BTN_TOOL_DOUBLETAP, BTN_TOOL_TRIPLETAP, BTN_TOOL_QUADTAP: | 
|  | - These codes denote one, two, three, and four finger interaction on a | 
|  | trackpad or touchscreen. For example, if the user uses two fingers and moves | 
|  | them on the touchpad in an effort to scroll content on screen, | 
|  | BTN_TOOL_DOUBLETAP should be set to value 1 for the duration of the motion. | 
|  | Note that all BTN_TOOL_<name> codes and the BTN_TOUCH code are orthogonal in | 
|  | purpose. A trackpad event generated by finger touches should generate events | 
|  | for one code from each group. At most only one of these BTN_TOOL_<name> | 
|  | codes should have a value of 1 during any synchronization frame. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Note: Historically some drivers emitted multiple of the finger count codes with | 
|  | a value of 1 in the same synchronization frame. This usage is deprecated. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Note: In multitouch drivers, the input_mt_report_finger_count() function should | 
|  | be used to emit these codes. Please see multi-touch-protocol.txt for details. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_REL: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_REL events describe relative changes in a property. For example, a mouse may | 
|  | move to the left by a certain number of units, but its absolute position in | 
|  | space is unknown. If the absolute position is known, EV_ABS codes should be used | 
|  | instead of EV_REL codes. | 
|  |  | 
|  | A few EV_REL codes have special meanings: | 
|  |  | 
|  | * REL_WHEEL, REL_HWHEEL: | 
|  | - These codes are used for vertical and horizontal scroll wheels, | 
|  | respectively. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_ABS: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_ABS events describe absolute changes in a property. For example, a touchpad | 
|  | may emit coordinates for a touch location. | 
|  |  | 
|  | A few EV_ABS codes have special meanings: | 
|  |  | 
|  | * ABS_DISTANCE: | 
|  | - Used to describe the distance of a tool from an interaction surface. This | 
|  | event should only be emitted while the tool is hovering, meaning in close | 
|  | proximity of the device and while the value of the BTN_TOUCH code is 0. If | 
|  | the input device may be used freely in three dimensions, consider ABS_Z | 
|  | instead. | 
|  | - BTN_TOOL_<name> should be set to 1 when the tool comes into detectable | 
|  | proximity and set to 0 when the tool leaves detectable proximity. | 
|  | BTN_TOOL_<name> signals the type of tool that is currently detected by the | 
|  | hardware and is otherwise independent of ABS_DISTANCE and/or BTN_TOUCH. | 
|  |  | 
|  | * ABS_MT_<name>: | 
|  | - Used to describe multitouch input events. Please see | 
|  | multi-touch-protocol.txt for details. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_SW: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_SW events describe stateful binary switches. For example, the SW_LID code is | 
|  | used to denote when a laptop lid is closed. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Upon binding to a device or resuming from suspend, a driver must report | 
|  | the current switch state. This ensures that the device, kernel, and userspace | 
|  | state is in sync. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Upon resume, if the switch state is the same as before suspend, then the input | 
|  | subsystem will filter out the duplicate switch state reports. The driver does | 
|  | not need to keep the state of the switch at any time. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_MSC: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_MSC events are used for input and output events that do not fall under other | 
|  | categories. | 
|  |  | 
|  | A few EV_MSC codes have special meaning: | 
|  |  | 
|  | * MSC_TIMESTAMP: | 
|  | - Used to report the number of microseconds since the last reset. This event | 
|  | should be coded as an uint32 value, which is allowed to wrap around with | 
|  | no special consequence. It is assumed that the time difference between two | 
|  | consecutive events is reliable on a reasonable time scale (hours). | 
|  | A reset to zero can happen, in which case the time since the last event is | 
|  | unknown.  If the device does not provide this information, the driver must | 
|  | not provide it to user space. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_LED: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_LED events are used for input and output to set and query the state of | 
|  | various LEDs on devices. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_REP: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_REP events are used for specifying autorepeating events. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_SND: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_SND events are used for sending sound commands to simple sound output | 
|  | devices. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_FF: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_FF events are used to initialize a force feedback capable device and to cause | 
|  | such device to feedback. | 
|  |  | 
|  | EV_PWR: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | EV_PWR events are a special type of event used specifically for power | 
|  | management. Its usage is not well defined. To be addressed later. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Device properties: | 
|  | ================= | 
|  | Normally, userspace sets up an input device based on the data it emits, | 
|  | i.e., the event types. In the case of two devices emitting the same event | 
|  | types, additional information can be provided in the form of device | 
|  | properties. | 
|  |  | 
|  | INPUT_PROP_DIRECT + INPUT_PROP_POINTER: | 
|  | -------------------------------------- | 
|  | The INPUT_PROP_DIRECT property indicates that device coordinates should be | 
|  | directly mapped to screen coordinates (not taking into account trivial | 
|  | transformations, such as scaling, flipping and rotating). Non-direct input | 
|  | devices require non-trivial transformation, such as absolute to relative | 
|  | transformation for touchpads. Typical direct input devices: touchscreens, | 
|  | drawing tablets; non-direct devices: touchpads, mice. | 
|  |  | 
|  | The INPUT_PROP_POINTER property indicates that the device is not transposed | 
|  | on the screen and thus requires use of an on-screen pointer to trace user's | 
|  | movements.  Typical pointer devices: touchpads, tablets, mice; non-pointer | 
|  | device: touchscreen. | 
|  |  | 
|  | If neither INPUT_PROP_DIRECT or INPUT_PROP_POINTER are set, the property is | 
|  | considered undefined and the device type should be deduced in the | 
|  | traditional way, using emitted event types. | 
|  |  | 
|  | INPUT_PROP_BUTTONPAD: | 
|  | -------------------- | 
|  | For touchpads where the button is placed beneath the surface, such that | 
|  | pressing down on the pad causes a button click, this property should be | 
|  | set. Common in clickpad notebooks and macbooks from 2009 and onwards. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Originally, the buttonpad property was coded into the bcm5974 driver | 
|  | version field under the name integrated button. For backwards | 
|  | compatibility, both methods need to be checked in userspace. | 
|  |  | 
|  | INPUT_PROP_SEMI_MT: | 
|  | ------------------ | 
|  | Some touchpads, most common between 2008 and 2011, can detect the presence | 
|  | of multiple contacts without resolving the individual positions; only the | 
|  | number of contacts and a rectangular shape is known. For such | 
|  | touchpads, the semi-mt property should be set. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Depending on the device, the rectangle may enclose all touches, like a | 
|  | bounding box, or just some of them, for instance the two most recent | 
|  | touches. The diversity makes the rectangle of limited use, but some | 
|  | gestures can normally be extracted from it. | 
|  |  | 
|  | If INPUT_PROP_SEMI_MT is not set, the device is assumed to be a true MT | 
|  | device. | 
|  |  | 
|  | INPUT_PROP_TOPBUTTONPAD: | 
|  | ----------------------- | 
|  | Some laptops, most notably the Lenovo *40 series provide a trackstick | 
|  | device but do not have physical buttons associated with the trackstick | 
|  | device. Instead, the top area of the touchpad is marked to show | 
|  | visual/haptic areas for left, middle, right buttons intended to be used | 
|  | with the trackstick. | 
|  |  | 
|  | If INPUT_PROP_TOPBUTTONPAD is set, userspace should emulate buttons | 
|  | accordingly. This property does not affect kernel behavior. | 
|  | The kernel does not provide button emulation for such devices but treats | 
|  | them as any other INPUT_PROP_BUTTONPAD device. | 
|  |  | 
|  | INPUT_PROP_ACCELEROMETER | 
|  | ------------------------- | 
|  | Directional axes on this device (absolute and/or relative x, y, z) represent | 
|  | accelerometer data. All other axes retain their meaning. A device must not mix | 
|  | regular directional axes and accelerometer axes on the same event node. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Guidelines: | 
|  | ========== | 
|  | The guidelines below ensure proper single-touch and multi-finger functionality. | 
|  | For multi-touch functionality, see the multi-touch-protocol.txt document for | 
|  | more information. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Mice: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | REL_{X,Y} must be reported when the mouse moves. BTN_LEFT must be used to report | 
|  | the primary button press. BTN_{MIDDLE,RIGHT,4,5,etc.} should be used to report | 
|  | further buttons of the device. REL_WHEEL and REL_HWHEEL should be used to report | 
|  | scroll wheel events where available. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Touchscreens: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | ABS_{X,Y} must be reported with the location of the touch. BTN_TOUCH must be | 
|  | used to report when a touch is active on the screen. | 
|  | BTN_{MOUSE,LEFT,MIDDLE,RIGHT} must not be reported as the result of touch | 
|  | contact. BTN_TOOL_<name> events should be reported where possible. | 
|  |  | 
|  | For new hardware, INPUT_PROP_DIRECT should be set. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Trackpads: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | Legacy trackpads that only provide relative position information must report | 
|  | events like mice described above. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Trackpads that provide absolute touch position must report ABS_{X,Y} for the | 
|  | location of the touch. BTN_TOUCH should be used to report when a touch is active | 
|  | on the trackpad. Where multi-finger support is available, BTN_TOOL_<name> should | 
|  | be used to report the number of touches active on the trackpad. | 
|  |  | 
|  | For new hardware, INPUT_PROP_POINTER should be set. | 
|  |  | 
|  | Tablets: | 
|  | ---------- | 
|  | BTN_TOOL_<name> events must be reported when a stylus or other tool is active on | 
|  | the tablet. ABS_{X,Y} must be reported with the location of the tool. BTN_TOUCH | 
|  | should be used to report when the tool is in contact with the tablet. | 
|  | BTN_{STYLUS,STYLUS2} should be used to report buttons on the tool itself. Any | 
|  | button may be used for buttons on the tablet except BTN_{MOUSE,LEFT}. | 
|  | BTN_{0,1,2,etc} are good generic codes for unlabeled buttons. Do not use | 
|  | meaningful buttons, like BTN_FORWARD, unless the button is labeled for that | 
|  | purpose on the device. | 
|  |  | 
|  | For new hardware, both INPUT_PROP_DIRECT and INPUT_PROP_POINTER should be set. |