ksp controller

[antipro]

have you already seen this homemade controller?
http://www.instructables.com/id/Kerbal-Space-Program-Controller/

I like it, dont you?
There's instructions about how do DIY but I'm not able to build a thing so complex.
I read in a blog that the dude will sell it.

Edited May 7, 2017 by antipro

[Freshmeat]

There are several controllers floating around in fan works, but I am quite confident that noone who has build one is going to part with it for a imaginable sum of money.

[antipro]

ah yes probably, but I was talkin about that I was reading the guy want to produce them in series and sell them to all, not that he want to sell his own controller.

[Shpaget]

As someone who does quite a bit of electronics and other stuff needed for such a controller, I don't see how could I personally produce this for anything under $300 per unit (or significantly more depending on the buttons and switches used) in a 50+ production run. Sure, the rock bottom components themselves are not that expensive and something simple and functional could be whisked up for less, but if I had to include and charge my time that would be the ballpark.

However, the most important bit for KSP is still missing - the navball. That is an extremely tricky thing to do in hardware, especially if you want to include all the prograde, retrograde, etc markers. The navball itself could easily double the cost.

So, while there may be a handful of individuals willing to dish out that kind of cash, there are certainly not enough of them to justify setting up a small home based production line.

Also, there is the issue of using existing mods and the licenses. I'd be hardly surprised if the authors of the mods frowned upon somebody using their work in a product they sell.

[ZooNamedGames]

I'd prefer something simpler and less complex than multiple panels. 

An actual controller would be nice.

[Provisional Name 12]

If there was a good port over mod of the flight controls to xbox/ps controller format and I could use that +the keyboard for auxiliary functions I would be pretty happy. That said, if I was swimming in cash and free time I could easily see trying to make something like this.

[Gargamel]

There's always the Arduino mod for makingyour own controllers. 

[Hardware, Plugin] Arduino based physical display + serial port io+ tutorial (06-Jun)

Using an arduino is surprisingly easy, but I think the cost of learning is higher than the learning curve itself. 

[Shpaget]

9 hours ago, Gargamel said:

Using an arduino is surprisingly easy, but I think the cost of learning is higher than the learning curve itself. 

As in material cost or the cost of time?

Speaking financially, the hobby of electronics is exceptionally cheap, compared to other hobbies. Even starting from scratch, for a few hundred dollars you can set up a small electronics lab and stock it with a bunch of components you can use for various projects.

As for the time it takes to learn, well that's highly dependent on the individual's background. Basic programming for arduino can easily be learned in a few weeks if you dedicate a couple of hours per day to it.

[Gargamel]

On 7/8/2017 at 4:00 AM, Shpaget said:

As in material cost or the cost of time?

 

Both, I'd think.  The point I was making is that if you have any interest in coding and hardware at all, and arduino is very easy to figure out.   The time invested to get everything working together is a lot more than the time invested in learning how to make it work separately.   And yeah, it doesn't take much money to get a decent lab set up.

[T.A.P.O.R.]

I once started a boutique music electronics business. Billing the time invested in building the things was not practical as the end product would be ridiculous high. 

Net result? I work a terrible desk job to pay the bills.

Electronics remains a hobby.