GT3B Joystick Feeler

[losikid]

So i'm starting to layout my more customized gt3b, and after talking to a few people i got to thinking this may be something many are interested in, and really set the gt3b apart from others

Anyways, anyone interested in putting a joystick in their handle? As of right now all it can do is control like rear steer. But eventually it'll be able to control mix rates and possibly other stuff.

It'll have up down, left/right directions, center push.

Also thinking about a scroll wheel that barely extrudes on that little lip for your thumb, so you can "roll" your rates or rear steer.

And probably support more buttons in the handle...

Any thoughts, ideas, or if your interested post up, if i do this i'll be getting circuit boads made, which min for a decent price is 500 boards, so i need quite abit of interest.

[SMR 510RR]

I may be interested depending on price and how the joystick works.

[Goatsniper]

I like the scroll wheel idea! should make mixing easier to adjust on the fly.

[losikid]

Originally Posted by SMR 510RR

I may be interested depending on price and how the joystick works.

Well...price for the actual circuit board will be like 5ish, i'd guess....the joystick will be pricy, $10-20, and everything else (buttons/switches) should be sub 5.

I'll try and work ALOT of options into the one board, so you can run toggles, pots, joy sticks, buttons, etc.

The joy stick would be just like one on a stick radio, but short and on your handle, so your thumb controls it all....i'm going to look for a psp type joy stick, so its easier todo the forward/backwards

Unless i can find a certain component only as smd, everything will be thru hole and the end user solders on their own selection of switches.

[benoj]

i would likely be interested if the price stays low like under 25-30 and depending on how it looks on the radio

[GEN1PWR]

I like the idea!cant wait to see a finish product!

[erikblank]

I'm in. I was hoping for a joy stick option to control the rear esc. Like my stick radio did, when I wanted to over ride the front and rear mixing. However it sound like a scroll wheel might be the way to go. Either way I,d want the board if it lets me add more and better switches.

[sloppy]

Hell yeah I would like one..

[RickM]

I am not into the super thing yet so rear steer is something I cannot speak to.

What I can say is this. I think the scroll wheel at the thumb perch would make a huge difference. I think being able to rull up and down throttle percentages on the fly is one very cool feature. I know Rockhard is a massive advocate of the scroll wheel on the dx3r so you can roll between 75 and 120 percent while on course. If that is the concept then this would really set this radio apart.

[losikid]

well, the scroll wheel will be tough...i'm looking, though, for a contender to use...i'd like it to have a center detent

[Goatsniper]

Originally Posted by losikid

well, the scroll wheel will be tough...i'm looking, though, for a contender to use...i'd like it to have a center detent

So by using a center detent wheel when is at neutral the power would be front and rear equal. scroll up for front bias and scroll down for rear bias?

[losikid]

well yea...thats how any wheel would work...what the detent does, is provide a stiff spot, where it locks into a center position, for that 0%/even mix...I'm also going to look for a rotary encoder (i was thinking of a pot for the wheel), which will be like the enter wheel, it has no stops and small, light detents ever couple degrees....this will take up two pins on the ic, BUT would be better if it was to be paired with another switch on the same function.

I've been pondering this all day, and i think i'm going to wait till after the gt3c and gt4 are released before i develop any gt3b specific stuff....but i wil post up diy's for these mods...just installation will require self fabrication and such.

[RickM]

Fantastic. Just when I start to get my GT3B all dialed they come out with the 4. Keep up the good work though losikid.

[joywrex]

Would it be possible to use the st trim and th trim buttons solder points to rig up a joystick instead. then rebind the st trim and th trim to channel, say, 3 and 4?

I am thinking about a stick like this or the psp version.

joystick: http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9032
psp: http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9426
I'd like to try it myself but dont know if that could work.

[losikid]

Originally Posted by joywrex

Would it be possible to use the st trim and th trim buttons solder points to rig up a joystick instead. then rebind the st trim and th trim to channel, say, 3 and 4?

I am thinking about a stick like this or the psp version.

joystick: Thumb Joystick - SparkFun Electronics
psp: Thumb Slide Joystick - SparkFun Electronics
I'd like to try it myself but dont know if that could work.

No, only the ch3 button will accept a analog device

[squatch71]

um GT3C or GT4???


the scroll wheel on the thumb would be cool

[joywrex]

I could use the 3rd channel for the analog stick. cool!
I ordered the hack kit a few days back. Can't wait to pimp this thing out.

[joywrex]

So with the hack, the gt3b can have the 3rd channel be controlled like a 50/50 analog stick??

What I want is the psp thumbstick to control the x and y axis, the way that a 4channel controller with two analog stick would on one of its 2 thumbsticks.

This is probably too much to ask of it.

[losikid]

Originally Posted by joywrex

So with the hack, the gt3b can have the 3rd channel be controlled like a 50/50 analog stick??

What I want is the psp thumbstick to control the x and y axis, the way that a 4channel controller with two analog stick would on one of its 2 thumbsticks.

This is probably too much to ask of it.

As of right now it only has the option for 1 axis, not two.

Also realize, all compact joysticks i've tested have about a +/- 10% dead zone, where there is no spring action to center it...i'm not saying all are like this, but back when i was doing stick conversions, all the joysticks i tested (about 10 different ones) They ranged from a +/- 10% or abit worse.