Homemade Joystick
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- Опубликовано: 1 окт 2024
- Joystick controller based on 1920s-30s biplanes control stick.
This is not an exact replica but loosely based on aeroplanes of that era. It is work in progress and I plan to add more buttons/controls soon... Thanks for watching!
More info at timhighamfilms...
Leo Bodnar control board available at www.leobodnar.c...
Magnets from www.first4magn...|ps_1_3098
For anyone wanting to build this: Those bearings he is using are "pillow block" bearings and you can order them in sets online. He is using the 8mm (inside diameter) ones I believe, which I buy often in packs of 4. I own about a dozen of them. Even the cheap ones will get the job done and they even have small slug screws (hex/allen type) that you can tighten and make the axle sturdy.
I like the use of hall effect sensors.
simple, elegant, fonctional and didn't required a tons of equipement ( cnc and stuff) ! Awesome!
Thanks! Yes sometimes it's easier just to bang something out of a piece of metal rather than spend hours programming some CAD software for your CNC or 3D printer!!
Very interesting, and nicely captured! The square nuts (with no wahsers?) disturbed me a bit, but hey, you must have had your reasons ;-) Congrats on your welding skills.
Many thanks - Yes the square nuts and no washers are just temporary - it's just prototype no.1 - thanks a lot for your interest! I'll put an updated video up soon...
More info, mods & joystick photos at www.vintagejoystick.co.uk
This is the Highest quality setup I’ve seen thus far.
Thanks a lot - Has taken quite a bit of experimenting but does work pretty well
Hi, thank you for posting this video, i found it very well made/explained. I have a question that maybe you could answer for more clarity. Did you use axial or diametrically magnetized magnets? Thanks in advance!
Excellent info thank you. Sub’d To follow your progress! Later!
Hi - Here's the link to the magnets I bought from first4magnets.com - hope that helps... www.first4magnets.com/circular-ring-c37/20mm-o-d-x-10mm-i-d-x-5mm-thick-n42-neodymium-magnet-3-2kg-pull-p3842#ps_1-3098
@Video Creatives Can't wait!
With his system, do you have jerky movements when you go through the center as many cheap joysticks? Or it is smooth movement?
Hi - no, there are no jerky movements going through the centre. I haven't designed any specific centre notch in the middle of the travel, and both pots (X and Y axis) measure continuously from full throw one end to full throw at the other end with no change or bias either mechanically or electrically in between. Hope that helps - thanks for watching!
To all of you wondering,yes this works and its actually fairly easy to make,mine works perfectly
Excellent, glad to hear it!!
everything is much simpler. I have it on my channel
Oooooh.I made the mistake of following the VJS link and now will torture myself over the Spitfire throttle. Soon my pretty....
seeing it in 2021,its quiet impressive
How is those small Halifax sensor working with those round magnets? I know how they work. However, Halifaxes work with the mag field between N & S. It looks like you're only getting about 5-10% of travel between N to S on the mags. I would think that would not give much of a voltage change. Is there something else going on or does that brain box just to full sim travel with a very small input voltage. I'm guessing from + 0 - , you're getting less than .5 total swing + / - ? an honest question not an observation even though it comes across that way.
Yes you're right, it's not using much of the travel round the magnet, and I have experimented with using potentiometers too, but again the same problem with only using a small portion of the potentiometer track. Short track potentiometers requiring only 30-40 degrees of rotation seem to be rather expensive. However, in X Plane you can trim the sensitivity so only a small amount of travel produces a full range of joystick movement - not ideal, but it works!
The shipping for the Bodnar units can add up for certain parts of the world. An alternative can be had using a $5 arduino or similar control board while running custom firmware. Anyone interested should search for "MMJoy" and "FreeJoy".
Will check it out - thanks!
joystick is cool please tell me u have another pc
Thanks RUclips for recommending this
Elegant simplicity! 😊
This looks very interesting! Do you think it's possible to build something similar by repurposing a PlayStation Dualshock 4 controller?
That's a good point, most probably yes! To be honest I haven't tried yet, but it shouldn't be too much of a problem to take a PS controller apart and attach it to the joystick. This is a good idea as it would simplify the build of the joystick and you wouldn't have to use either potentiometers/hall effect sensors, or the Leo Bodnar unit that I used... If you or anyone else gives it a try let us know... Thanks for watching and for the comment
@@TimHighamFilms wow, 10 months later and you still reply to comments! I'll let you know if I try it out, I have a limited number of PS4 controllers and they're expensive so we shall see
Tim Higham I did something similar with an RC transmitter, however I lack the experience and materials to make a neat looking stick, I made mine by wrapping some insulation tape around a pencil. It worked with limited success, but it could definitely be better.
@@sparrowthenerd if You want to use it on pc and You thight on money just use chineese clone of arduino pro micro. Everything works almost the same, you just need to upload joystic sketch to board. It will be a LOT easier than trying to somehow connect halls to ps4 controller.
@@Rozbujnik_Rumcajs I've ended up doing one from scratch with a Teensy 3.2
i have free time, only that
Just got done building mine. I've been a machinist for 28 years and own a shop. How can i send you a pic of the it?
Hey Khafen, that's great - sure, I'm at: tim at higrig dot co dot uk - thanks
This was an excellent help. Thank you!
Thanks very much, very happy to help!! Good luck with you project
One of the best, mb even best, layout for axis!) Well done!
Thanks very much!!
Minimal, yet totally functional!
Reckon I could 3D print the base? I'm pretty bad at metalworking and I don't have all the tools for it
You could use a nice piece of MDF wood from Lowes/Home Depot since it looks nice and low profile and holds its sturdiness well. I suggest 1/2 inch (roughly 12mm) thick. Or you could also use cheap plywood to make a tray for forming a concrete square so that it will weigh down the base nicely. You could then use adhesive to put the MDF wood on top of the concrete so that you can drill holes easily. There are lots of tutorials on youtube on how to do that. But I suggest just using a thick slab of wood. You don't have to use MDF but I just personally like it for mechanical applications. You could even use a sheet of acrylic as long as it's large and thick enough to stay steady. They sell all kinds of sizes on Ebay at decent prices (better than retail prices).
@@johngober4088 Yes good point John - A nice thick slab of wood would be good (MDF, or even a nice piece of oak with some varnish to make it look more authentic!) - Doesn't have to be metal, although if you do use metal there are some places online that will cut pieces to order, which is a great help as I don't find cutting metal that fun...
Hi, Great design. But can you please explain the magnets for the hall effect sensors a bit more. What bit is the magnet, the outer ring or the inner circle? Where is the north and south pole of the magnet located? And how strong are the magnets?
I'm trying to build rudder pedals and a joystick with hall effect sensors, but there's so little information about them out there. So any help would be appreciated :)
Thanks - sure no problem. Have a look at the video from 1.56 to 2.06 - The circular magnets are the outer more silvery rings (they go around the 10mm steel shaft). The diametrically magnetised ring magnets I used have for example North pole at the top (where the black pen mark is) and South pole at the bottom (although in practice here I probably swivelled them around so the top was not necessarily North). Magnet details are here www.first4magnets.com/circular-ring-c37/20mm-o-d-x-10mm-i-d-x-5mm-thick-n42-neodymium-magnet-3-2kg-pull-p3842#ps_0_4030|ps_1_3098 (You can also get ring magnets with a different magnetic configuration but you don't want those for this application). I am also experimenting with potentiometers connected to the shaft instead of magnets and hall effect sensors; this works too as the Leo Bodnar unit will work with either. Hope that helps!
@@TimHighamFilms Thx for the quick reply. Yes that definitely helped!
@@TimHighamFilms I wonder if salvaged hard disk magnets would work - they're also diametrically polarised, i.e. each of the two faces has a N-pole at one end and a S-pole at the other. Must try that out.
Question...Do the Bodnar USB boards work with MSFS 2020? I hope they do.
Of course, if it can be detected by windows as a game controller it can be used in game
@@cc-hl9yo nice tks
Hey i ve actually made most of the stuff. I got the chip but I am having trouble. I installed a program but it doesnt look like yours and it doesnt work. Where could i chat with you directly as i ve made most of the work and now i am stuck
Hi Sven - Just emailed you...
@@TimHighamFilms so the neo. magnets arrived and i went to test it and the hall effect sensors no longer worked. The button works but the sensors dont,so i switched them and the port attachment and they still dont work. What now?
@@Iamasafetyviolation If all was working before and nothing else has changed, then you need to experiment with moving the magnets manually over the Hall Effect sensors - If they're the same ones I used you need to move them round their central axis (i.e. the hole) and that should work. If not then you probably have a problem with wiring the Hall Effect sensor to the Leo Bodnar... There's quite a lot of useful info on the L Bodnar site as to wiring them.
@@TimHighamFilms so my dumbass bought wrong hall effects lol. As i didnt buy them from the leo bodnar site as they were quite more expensive. now i know why. They have to be linear with an analog output so the a1302 and i bought the a3144 which has an digital output which isnt supported by the board. Its a bit ironic considering i have everything ready and now everything will be set-back by 2 weeks... but when it arrives if it works the home cockpit project will be a go and at full swing lol.
wich kind of sensors are you using?¡
I'm using hall effect sensors - these ones from Leo Bodnar (link above) although you can get them from loads of electronics suppliers. Have been experimenting with potentiometers which also work well. Thanks a lot for watching!
Very cool but I am not sure how to do the magnetic parts I guess could you help. and also how do I connect it to xp11
Thanks! - I have put a link to the magnets in the above description now. Basically they are circular magnets that turn around with each axis movement, so the change in magnetic field causes the hall effect sensor (the little black thing above the magnet at about 1.57 in the video, and below the circular magnet at about 2.04 in the video). You could alternatively use potentiometers instead of hall effect sensors and magnets.
The hall effect sensors (or potentiometers) then connect via 3 wires to the Leo Bodnar BU0836A control board (shown at 1.48 in the video). This handles all of the processing and is connected via USB to your computer. The Leo Bodnar unit will show up as a joystick in the X Plane settings and is quite easy to calibrate - hope that helps! (Hall effect sensors and potentiometers are also available on the Leo Bodnar site - link above)
And feel free to contact me through my www.vintagejoystick.co.uk website if you need any more help.
@@TimHighamFilms wow that was fast. Thanks a lot. I allready designed the a320 joystick to be 3d printed,I also found an official xp11 calibration tutorial which is easy!
amazing design. i wanna build myself a 737 style yoke
Thanks a lot - yes for the 737 you'd just have to put the roll axis sensor at the top of the column rather than the bottom...
what flight sim are you using?
X Plane 11 - thanks for watching!
Wunderbar, is there loads of code for this application?
No, none at all! The Leo Bodnar unit I use to sense the movement of the joystick, plus any buttons, plugs straight into your USB and works with your flight sim. Just need to calibrate it, but no code needed - thanks for the comment.
I bought one yesterday, quess it is passing Denmark about now. I can wait to start my build. I am aiming for a spitfire replica with one joint in the base and one half way up as the real thing.
Nice build. It does look smooth for sure.
Thanks a lot! Busy adding mods to make it smoother!
Hey what are the springs you are using for this ? :)
Hi - I got them from ebay - www.ebay.co.uk/str/FirstCompression?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 and ordered these springs - 15.9 OD Stainless/Crabon steel tension spring, Wire Diameter: 2mm Carbon steel R11.81N/mm/cm, Length: 70mm - hope that helps!
How did you set up the tension springs for the base plate so that it stays stable and moves smoothly?
Well, trial and error mostly - I ended up using quite strong springs and made sure they didn't get too near the end of their travel at each extreme of joystick movement. I've also added motorcycle steering dampers now which smooth things out further, and also ensure the stick returns nicely to the centre without swinging back and forth if you let go. Hope that helps...
Spring calculations are quite complicated. In fact, formulas for extension springs alone in my engineering tables take over 100 pages. I recommend CAD packages that allow you to design your mechanisms, springs and test them before you commit to anything. The built-in spring design tools allow you to create springs based on your input data like the size, diameter, required force or extension length. It's pretty straighforward.
Solid edge allows you to create compression and extension spring. Inventor, besides those, can also create torsion springs and has more comprehensive "spring tools" overall, but Solid edge has better general assembly tools. IronCAD with the mechanical addon supposedly has some design accelerator for springs, but I haven't had a chance to test it yet, but it may be worth checking out, because it is considered one of the best value for money CAD package on the market it.
Brill!
please do the throttle
I have done a version of a throttle if you check out my channel - one Spitfire one, and one (not very realistic!) one attached straight to the control column - thanks for watching
Really impressive. I'm thinking about a a similar thing with a modern stick, But using Pots as this is what I know. What hall effect sensors did you use? You've kinda piqued my interest.
Hi - thanks a lot. The hall effect sensors come from Leo Bodnar (same place as the controller) and work pretty well. I've also gone back to experimenting with pots too. The only problem with standard ones is that you're using only part of the track (about 40 degrees out of a possible 200 degree range). However I did find some Vishay pots that only have 45 degrees rotary travel from Digikey electronics. But they're not cheap!
@@TimHighamFilms Expensive pots. The leo bodnar device ( i have a couple) has 4096 steps on the full sweep of a pot (Maybe 300 degrees) But, if use are using 50% of the pots rotation (generous) you are down to 2k steps. Therefore reducing the 'sensitivity'. I got around some of this by using sliding pots and move them higher up the pedal (Car racing sim). This uses most of the travel, therefore getting closer to the max steps. That said I have a $20 joystick that give 128 steps (throw to throw) I don't notice and grainyness. But do intend to fix this. I'd favor Hall effect simpally for the non moving parts. The brake pedal has a load sensor and does give almost 4000 steps.. But it's pressure related, not position like a pot. Do the Hall effect sensors need a magnet? Moving them up the controller is a possibility? That will give a lot more accuracy. Just a few inches. Sorry for the wall of text, YT's comment's isn't really the place for long posts.
@@lanzecki Hi yes that's ok - Yes you'll need magnets for hall effect sensors. The same problem here with magnets again is the range of movement. The circular magnets I used worked well but of course I wasn't moving very much between the north pole and the south pole of them (or whichever way round it was!). You just need to get the magnet away from the centre of rotation a bit to effectively increase the circumference of it and thus the increase the range of travel over the hall effect sensor. I do agree that Hall Effect would be better in the long run as there is no wear and tear on them, unlike pots. Going back to pots, that's interesting that you 'only' got 128 steps with the cheap joystick. Does one really need 4096 steps? Great accuracy, but are you actually going to notice it?! Even just doubling your $20 unit to 256 steps should be sufficient...
@@TimHighamFilms No, 4096 steps isn't needed, as I don't feel any graininess with the 128 step joystick. My pedals give around 1500 steps and feel smooth as a smooth thing. I have circular magnets that, like your stick will fit in the end of the axle, but I cannot see it giving many steps. I've a few mechanical hard disks that have a curved and far larger magnet then the circular ones. This should allow me to move the hall effect further up the controller, which should allow more resolution. the hard drive magne's are curved and maybe 2 inchs long.
@@TimHighamFilms Another thought. The length of the control is an issue. You move the top, say 10cm, the bottom move 0.5 of a cm. Much like a ships mast can he flapping around in a calm sea... This obviously reduces the resolution.
that's awesome
Thanks!!
Nice One!
Thanks a lot - And just posted the latest project on my channel; Flightsim Spitfire throttle... thanks a lot for watching!
Nice build
Thanks a lot! More mods coming soon...