- Qt 6.9
- Qt Quick
- QML Types
- PointerDeviceHandler
- Qt 6.9.3 Reference Documentation

# PointerDeviceHandler QML Type

Abstract handler for pointer events with device-specific constraints. More...

Import Statement: | `import QtQuick`
Inherits: | PointerHandler
Inherited By: | MultiPointHandler and SinglePointHandler
Status: | Preliminary

This type is under development and is subject to change.

- List of all members, including inherited members

## Properties

- acceptedButtons : flags
- acceptedDevices : flags
- acceptedModifiers : flags
- acceptedPointerTypes : flags
- active : bool
- cursorShape : Qt::CursorShape
- dragThreshold : int
- enabled : bool
- grabPermissions : flags
- margin : real
- parent : Item
- target : Item

## Signals

- canceled(eventPoint point)
- grabChanged(PointerDevice::GrabTransition transition, eventPoint point)

## Detailed Description

An intermediate class (not registered as a QML type) for handlers which allow filtering based on device type, pointer type, or keyboard modifiers.

## Property Documentation

acceptedButtons : flags

The mouse buttons which can activate this Pointer Handler.

By default, this property is set to Qt.LeftButton. It can be set to an OR combination of mouse buttons, and will ignore events from other buttons.

For example, a control could be made to respond to left and right clicks in different ways, with two handlers:

     Item {
         TapHandler {
             onTapped: console.log("left clicked")
         }
         TapHandler {
             acceptedButtons: Qt.RightButton
             onTapped: console.log("right clicked")
         }
     }

Note: Tapping on a touchscreen or tapping the stylus on a graphics tablet emulates clicking the left mouse button. This behavior can be altered via acceptedDevices or acceptedPointerTypes.

acceptedDevices : flags

The types of pointing devices that can activate this Pointer Handler.

By default, this property is set to PointerDevice.AllDevices. If you set it to an OR combination of device types, it will ignore events from non-matching devices.

For example, a control could be made to respond to mouse and stylus clicks in one way, and touchscreen taps in another way, with two handlers:

     Item {
        TapHandler {
            acceptedDevices: PointerDevice.Mouse | PointerDevice.TouchPad | PointerDevice.Stylus
            onTapped: console.log("clicked")
        }
        TapHandler {
            acceptedDevices: PointerDevice.TouchScreen
            onTapped: console.log("tapped")
        }
     }

Note: Not all platforms are yet able to distinguish mouse and touchpad; and on those that do, you often want to make mouse and touchpad behavior the same.

acceptedModifiers : flags

If this property is set, it will require the given keyboard modifiers to be pressed in order to react to pointer events, and otherwise ignore them.

If this property is set to `Qt.KeyboardModifierMask` (the default value), then the PointerHandler ignores the modifier keys.

For example, an Item could have two handlers of the same type, one of which is enabled only if the required keyboard modifiers are pressed:

     Item {
        TapHandler {
            acceptedModifiers: Qt.ControlModifier
            onTapped: console.log("control-tapped")
        }
        TapHandler {
            acceptedModifiers: Qt.NoModifier
            onTapped: console.log("tapped")
        }
     }

If you set `acceptedModifiers` to an OR combination of modifier keys, it means all of those modifiers must be pressed to activate the handler:

     Item {
        TapHandler {
            acceptedModifiers: Qt.ControlModifier | Qt.AltModifier | Qt.ShiftModifier
            onTapped: console.log("control-alt-shift-tapped")
        }
     }

The available modifiers are as follows:

Constant | Description
--- | ---
`NoModifier` | No modifier key is allowed.
`ShiftModifier` | A Shift key on the keyboard must be pressed.
`ControlModifier` | A Ctrl key on the keyboard must be pressed.
`AltModifier` | An Alt key on the keyboard must be pressed.
`MetaModifier` | A Meta key on the keyboard must be pressed.
`KeypadModifier` | A keypad button must be pressed.
`GroupSwitchModifier` | X11 only (unless activated on Windows by a command line argument). A Mode_switch key on the keyboard must be pressed.
`KeyboardModifierMask` | The handler does not care which modifiers are pressed.

If you need even more complex behavior than can be achieved with combinations of multiple handlers with multiple modifier flags, you can check the modifiers in JavaScript code:

     Item {
         TapHandler {
             onTapped:
                 switch (point.modifiers) {
                 case Qt.ControlModifier | Qt.AltModifier:
                     console.log("CTRL+ALT");
                     break;
                 case Qt.ControlModifier | Qt.AltModifier | Qt.MetaModifier:
                     console.log("CTRL+META+ALT");
                     break;
                 default:
                     console.log("other modifiers", point.modifiers);
                     break;
                 }
         }
     }

See also Qt::KeyboardModifier.

acceptedPointerTypes : flags

The types of pointing instruments (finger, stylus, eraser, etc.) that can activate this Pointer Handler.

By default, this property is set to PointerDevice.AllPointerTypes. If you set it to an OR combination of device types, it will ignore events from non-matching devices.

For example, a control could be made to respond to mouse, touch, and stylus clicks in some way, but delete itself if tapped with an eraser tool on a graphics tablet, with two handlers:

     Rectangle {
        id: rect
        TapHandler {
            acceptedPointerTypes: PointerDevice.Generic | PointerDevice.Finger | PointerDevice.Pen
            onTapped: console.log("clicked")
        }
        TapHandler {
            acceptedPointerTypes: PointerDevice.Eraser
            onTapped: rect.destroy()
        }
     }

active : bool `[read-only]`

This holds `true` whenever this Input Handler has taken sole responsibility for handing one or more eventPoints, by successfully taking an exclusive grab of those points. This means that it is keeping its properties up-to-date according to the movements of those eventPoints and actively manipulating its target (if any).

cursorShape : Qt::CursorShape

This property holds the cursor shape that will appear whenever the mouse is hovering over the parent item while active is `true`.

The available cursor shapes are:

- Qt.ArrowCursor
- Qt.UpArrowCursor
- Qt.CrossCursor
- Qt.WaitCursor
- Qt.IBeamCursor
- Qt.SizeVerCursor
- Qt.SizeHorCursor
- Qt.SizeBDiagCursor
- Qt.SizeFDiagCursor
- Qt.SizeAllCursor
- Qt.BlankCursor
- Qt.SplitVCursor
- Qt.SplitHCursor
- Qt.PointingHandCursor
- Qt.ForbiddenCursor
- Qt.WhatsThisCursor
- Qt.BusyCursor
- Qt.OpenHandCursor
- Qt.ClosedHandCursor
- Qt.DragCopyCursor
- Qt.DragMoveCursor
- Qt.DragLinkCursor

The default value is not set, which allows the cursor of parent item to appear. This property can be reset to the same initial condition by setting it to undefined.

Note: When this property has not been set, or has been set to `undefined`, if you read the value it will return `Qt.ArrowCursor`.

See also Qt::CursorShape, QQuickItem::cursor(), and HoverHandler::cursorShape.

dragThreshold : int

The distance in pixels that the user must drag an eventPoint in order to have it treated as a drag gesture.

The default value depends on the platform and screen resolution. It can be reset back to the default value by setting it to undefined. The behavior when a drag gesture begins varies in different handlers.

enabled : bool

If a PointerHandler is disabled, it will reject all events and no signals will be emitted.

grabPermissions : flags

This property specifies the permissions when this handler's logic decides to take over the exclusive grab, or when it is asked to approve grab takeover or cancellation by another handler.

Constant | Description
--- | ---
`PointerHandler.TakeOverForbidden` | This handler neither takes from nor gives grab permission to any type of Item or Handler.
`PointerHandler.CanTakeOverFromHandlersOfSameType` | This handler can take the exclusive grab from another handler of the same class.
`PointerHandler.CanTakeOverFromHandlersOfDifferentType` | This handler can take the exclusive grab from any kind of handler.
`PointerHandler.CanTakeOverFromItems` | This handler can take the exclusive grab from any type of Item.
`PointerHandler.CanTakeOverFromAnything` | This handler can take the exclusive grab from any type of Item or Handler.
`PointerHandler.ApprovesTakeOverByHandlersOfSameType` | This handler gives permission for another handler of the same class to take the grab.
`PointerHandler.ApprovesTakeOverByHandlersOfDifferentType` | This handler gives permission for any kind of handler to take the grab.
`PointerHandler.ApprovesTakeOverByItems` | This handler gives permission for any kind of Item to take the grab.
`PointerHandler.ApprovesCancellation` | This handler will allow its grab to be set to null.
`PointerHandler.ApprovesTakeOverByAnything` | This handler gives permission for any type of Item or Handler to take the grab.

The default is `PointerHandler.CanTakeOverFromItems | PointerHandler.CanTakeOverFromHandlersOfDifferentType | PointerHandler.ApprovesTakeOverByAnything` which allows most takeover scenarios but avoids e.g. two PinchHandlers fighting over the same touchpoints.

margin : real

The margin beyond the bounds of the parent item within which an eventPoint can activate this handler. For example, on a PinchHandler where the target is also the `parent`, it's useful to set this to a distance at least half the width of a typical user's finger, so that if the `parent` has been scaled down to a very small size, the pinch gesture is still possible. Or, if a TapHandler-based button is placed near the screen edge, it can be used to comply with Fitts's Law: react to mouse clicks at the screen edge even though the button is visually spaced away from the edge by a few pixels.

The default value is 0.

parent : Item

The Item which is the scope of the handler; the Item in which it was declared. The handler will handle events on behalf of this Item, which means a pointer event is relevant if at least one of its eventPoints occurs within the Item's interior. Initially target() is the same, but it can be reassigned.

See also target and QObject::parent().

target : Item

The Item which this handler will manipulate.

By default, it is the same as the parent, the Item within which the handler is declared. However, it can sometimes be useful to set the target to a different Item, in order to handle events within one item but manipulate another; or to `null`, to disable the default behavior and do something else instead.

## Signal Documentation

canceled(eventPoint point)

If this handler has already grabbed the given point, this signal is emitted when the grab is stolen by a different Pointer Handler or Item.

Note: The corresponding handler is `onCanceled`.

grabChanged(PointerDevice::GrabTransition transition, eventPoint point)

This signal is emitted when the grab has changed in some way which is relevant to this handler.

The transition (verb) tells what happened. The point (object) is the point that was grabbed or ungrabbed.

Valid values for transition are:

Constant | Description
--- | ---
`PointerDevice.GrabExclusive` | This handler has taken primary responsibility for handling the point.
`PointerDevice.UngrabExclusive` | This handler has given up its previous exclusive grab.
`PointerDevice.CancelGrabExclusive` | This handler's exclusive grab has been taken over or cancelled.
`PointerDevice.GrabPassive` | This handler has acquired a passive grab, to monitor the point.
`PointerDevice.UngrabPassive` | This handler has given up its previous passive grab.
`PointerDevice.CancelGrabPassive` | This handler's previous passive grab has terminated abnormally.

Note: The corresponding handler is `onGrabChanged`.