FIC a440 Service Manual

Page of 15
 
Hardware Functional Overview 
 
FIC A440 Series Service Manual 
4-13
 
module on the system top cover assembly and a pre-programmed Mitsubishi 38867M8 micro-
controller that interfaces the mouse device to the Motherboard. The touchpad module is 
connected to audio board through a 6-pin FPC cable. An external PS/2 port also supports the 
use of an external PS/2 compatible mouse where the system automatically detects on system 
power up and runs both internal and external mouse simultaneously. 
 
The ALPS Touchpad, a pointing device for personal computers, detects the position of a 
finger over a touch-sensitive area. To move the cursor, the user lightly slides a finger over the 
smooth sensor area. To ‘click’, the user gently taps on the surface.  
 
The ultra-thin module is the thinnest PCB based touchpad available today. It is a capacitive 
sensor - the finger is detected by measuring its effect on an array of capacitive lines integrated 
into the PC board. The pad senses both the finger’s position and its contact area (X, Y, and 
Z). The area of contact is a measure of applied pressure. One side of the module PC board is 
the sensor surface; electronic components are mounted on the other side. The sensitive area is 
protected by a layer of smooth and durable mylar.  
 
The ALPS touchpad communicates with the host via a standard PS/2 mouse or trackball 
interface. It is fully compatible with the standard Microsoft mouse driver. The module 
connector includes the PS/2 signal pins, power supply pins and two connections for external 
button switches.  
 
The ALPS Touchpad includes a special “edge-motion” feature that allows the user to extend a 
drag operation when the finger reaches the edge of the sensor pad. The cursor continues to 
coast in the indicated direction when the finger is held against the edge.  
 
4.15
4.15
4.15
4.15     Disk Drives Subsystem
Disk Drives Subsystem
Disk Drives Subsystem
Disk Drives Subsystem    
The disk drives subsystem, implemented on the Motherboard and on the associated internal 
hard disk drive assembly and device bay, provides disk storage for all system software and 
user files.  
 
The notebook is equipped with high capacity hard disk drive ranging from 6.0GB to 18GB 
using Enhanced IDE controller with LBA (Logical Block Addressing) and Ultra DMA mode 
support.  
 
The VT82C686A controller chip provides the Primary IDE controller for the internal hard 
disk, and the Secondary Master for the CD-ROM.  
 
The floppy disk drive supports standard 3.5-inch 720KB and 1.44MB mini-diskettes while 
adding support for 1.2MB (Mode 3) mini-diskettes for Japanese market. 
 
The notebook uses the TEAC 24X-speed IDE CD-ROM Drive that reads digital data stored 
on CD-ROM at 24 times faster rotational speed. The CD-ROM drive supports CD-DA 
transfer over ATAPI function that the host system can read CD audio data. The drive also 
supports Photo-CD Multi-session disc compatibility and Multimedia PC-3 specification 
compatibility.