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Kerbal Cockpit Simulator


Kotagi

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It's a simple, but effective solution. Nvidia's software is... less than stellar for anything besides a symmetrical monitor setup. I can't use it on my setup, cause I have a pair of 2048x1152 displays, and a single 3D 1080p display. The one different display breaks the Nvidia solution... Doesn't really matter to me now... My motherboard is dead... RIP... ;.; So dead, it trips the fault protection on the power supply. Shop tried four different known good supplies. Since it's a board for an i7 3770K, it's the older LGA1155 socket... There have been TWO sockets since then, meaning I have to either find a way to get the board repaired, or replace it with an old board (to continue using my 3770K), or replace EVERYTHING... CPU, RAM, and Motherboard with all new, but matching, hardware! :0.0:

In the meantime, i'm borrowing a tablet with an i5 mobile processor... It's a far cry from my old rig, but I can still play Kerbal on it, if I keep the parts counts low! :D

So yeah... In the meantime, I'll be jealously eyeing the greatest Kerbal build in history! :cool:

Edited by richfiles
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On 1/13/2017 at 2:48 PM, richfiles said:

It's a simple, but effective solution. Nvidia's software is... less than stellar for anything besides a symmetrical monitor setup. I can't use it on my setup, cause I have a pair of 2048x1152 displays, and a single 3D 1080p display. The one different display breaks the Nvidia solution... Doesn't really matter to me now... My motherboard is dead... RIP... ;.; So dead, it trips the fault protection on the power supply. Shop tried four different known good supplies. Since it's a board for an i7 3770K, it's the older LGA1155 socket... There have been TWO sockets since then, meaning I have to either find a way to get the board repaired, or replace it with an old board (to continue using my 3770K), or replace EVERYTHING... CPU, RAM, and Motherboard with all new, but matching, hardware! :0.0:

In the meantime, i'm borrowing a tablet with an i5 mobile processor... It's a far cry from my old rig, but I can still play Kerbal on it, if I keep the parts counts low! :D

So yeah... In the meantime, I'll be jealously eyeing the greatest Kerbal build in history! :cool:

That really sucks man. I hope you get that figured out

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44 minutes ago, Kotagi said:

Im in the process of ordering all the parts for this. Im going to try to use this to make the rest of the panels

I have a manual mini mill... The things you can do with the ability to precisely cut metal and plastic is AMAZING! I may very well have some of the only HLMP series rectangular annunciator LEDs on the planet that glow a color besides red, yellow, or green, thanks to milling out the old LEDs and epoxying new LEDs in their place, while keeping the same diffuser and shape. My mill is gonna save me a metric buttload of hand cutting or dremeling for my DSKY bezel!

You will love owning a mill! :D

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Any suggestions for helmet/third person webcam? I want to helmet cam to resemble my vision(go pro maybe?), and the third person to be just a regular view. Not sure what angle I want them to be at though. It would be cool if I could get one wide enough to get both pilot seats in one shot, but Im not sure that will happen. 

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12 hours ago, Kotagi said:

Any suggestions for helmet/third person webcam? I want to helmet cam to resemble my vision(go pro maybe?), and the third person to be just a regular view. Not sure what angle I want them to be at though. It would be cool if I could get one wide enough to get both pilot seats in one shot, but Im not sure that will happen. 

Do you have a budget in mind?

Logitech C920 HD Pro would be wide enough to put behind the seats to get 'cockpit' view; 

Then a logitech C270 could be easily modified to attach to a helmet for helmet vision...

That's what I'd do most likely :) 

Alternatively, you could get a basic SD security camera of ebay; open it up from the enclosure - it's a basic board. 12volts on, and a simple composite video connection out.

You could then have it attached to a multiplexing screen which also allows for single select view for 'close up' (Fill the screen).

You're giving me lots of ideas for mine own (when / if I ever get a chance to build it :P

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18 hours ago, Sputnix said:

Do you have a budget in mind?

Logitech C920 HD Pro would be wide enough to put behind the seats to get 'cockpit' view; 

Then a logitech C270 could be easily modified to attach to a helmet for helmet vision...

That's what I'd do most likely :) 

Alternatively, you could get a basic SD security camera of ebay; open it up from the enclosure - it's a basic board. 12volts on, and a simple composite video connection out.

You could then have it attached to a multiplexing screen which also allows for single select view for 'close up' (Fill the screen).

You're giving me lots of ideas for mine own (when / if I ever get a chance to build it :P

Ya those definitely look like they can work

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  • 2 weeks later...

So the reason I havent posted anything is that i had pretty major surgery of my shoulder and using my arm is almost impossible for right now. It will take 2-8 months to recover, barring any setbacks.  Luckily most of the major work is done(in the front 2 sections) Ive broke the electronics down into 3 separate categories, each with 2 phases that need implementing. The 3 categories are:

1- Meters- PWM Output(https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-16-channel-servo-driver-with-raspberry-pi/overview)

2-Buttons/Switches - GPIO IN (https://www.abelectronics.co.uk/p/54/IO-Pi-Plus)

3-Segment Displays/Indicator Lights- PWM Output(The reason I am using a pwm board instead of a gpio board is that the pwm boards can be chained together to give a total of 992 outputs. The gpio boards cannot be chained so I went with the pwm board)

When I said that there are 2 phases per category, they are as follows

Phase 1- Verify functionality of circuit/ Establish total room for expansion

Phase 2- Scale circuit to desired scale(Basically replicating)

Typing is painful and takes forever so I apologiize now if it takes time to reply

As of now, I have completed phase 1 of the meters.

Im wating of some circuit boards to come in the mail to start phase 1 on the other 2. I wont start phase 2 until phase 1 is totaly complete, So i dont run into capacity problems

 

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32 minutes ago, Kotagi said:

So the reason I havent posted anything is that i had pretty major surgery of my shoulder and using my arm is almost impossible for right now. It will take 2-8 months to recover, barring any setbacks.  Luckily most of the major work is done(in the front 2 sections) Ive broke the electronics down into 3 separate categories, each with 2 phases that need implementing. The 3 categories are:

1- Meters- PWM Output(https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-16-channel-servo-driver-with-raspberry-pi/overview)

2-Buttons/Switches - GPIO IN (https://www.abelectronics.co.uk/p/54/IO-Pi-Plus)

3-Segment Displays/Indicator Lights- PWM Output(The reason I am using a pwm board instead of a gpio board is that the pwm boards can be chained together to give a total of 992 outputs. The gpio boards cannot be chained so I went with the pwm board)

When I said that there are 2 phases per category, they are as follows

Phase 1- Verify functionality of circuit/ Establish total room for expansion

Phase 2- Scale circuit to desired scale(Basically replicating)

Typing is painful and takes forever so I apologiize now if it takes time to reply

As of now, I have completed phase 1 of the meters.

Im wating of some circuit boards to come in the mail to start phase 1 on the other 2. I wont start phase 2 until phase 1 is totaly complete, So i dont run into capacity problems

 

Good to see production is still going.

Get well soon!

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I also ordered everything for the ox cnc machine. The parts are coming from literally all over the world so its going to take awhile to get everything. I will update once I have some progress of that as well.

Lastly..a good fried of mine loves Warhammer. He has all of the super expensive model sets that look out of this world. But ive seen them when he gets them, and they are just halved gray plastic shapes basically. The paint he puts on these things are epic. unfortunately he lives 2000 miles away.Anyways, getting side tracked, I thought about going to a warhammer tourney and seeing of anyone would want to help me paint the interior of the sim in exchange for a good smoke session and bbq or something. I will feature them on here if anyone helps, but I was just thinking if I can get that level of detail painting inside this, It will really bring it all together. Like dirt, wear and tear, imperfections, and all the little things. I consider the paint of the sim now as a primer. So anyway. I need to stop typing now

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On 2/7/2017 at 6:13 PM, Kotagi said:

I only need 3 more meters now!

I must embarrassingly admit that I stared at this post and re-read it like THREE times, thinking to myself "Three meters of what?" Last night I built the units display decoder for my DSKY, so I have SI units on my mind, not analog meters! LOL :P

I like the idea of the third person and helmet cam views, though I'd go nuts wearing a helmet! Could make for interesting YouTube videos, recording flights with captures of the actions in the cockpit. I know some people use cams to show themselves... Showing the cockpit controls seems very fitting. Have you considered trying to get some kind of fish eye lens so you can capture both pilot views of the main and and overhead panels. A mild fish eye would only distort things a little, but give a very wide angle. I'm not really certain what kind of wide field of view lenses are available. It would seem to me that having a camera mount on the center console (or hanging the mount from above, either way), between the seats, set back just a small amount would seem to be the simplest camera mounting position for getting both sides.

Focal_length.jpg
So, a shorter focal length lens seems to give a wider shot. It introduces perspective distortion, but you get one of these mounted between the head position between the two seats, and it might be able to capture much of the controls for third person view. Searching for "wide view HD security camera" comes up with a few all in one solutions that are compact, and already are built for permanent mounting.

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8 hours ago, richfiles said:

I must embarrassingly admit that I stared at this post and re-read it like THREE times, thinking to myself "Three meters of what?" Last night I built the units display decoder for my DSKY, so I have SI units on my mind, not analog meters! LOL :P

Oh good, it wasn't just me. :wink: 

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Honestly, it's hard to tell. The key will be finding an angle and camera position that lets you get as much of the controls and readouts as reasonably possible within the field of view. I'd definitely look into wide field angle security cameras, and go HD if you want to actually be able to see any details. Regarding the camera tilt angle, that's gonna be dependent on the lens you end up with, and whether you're able to catch the overhead panel, main controls, screens, etc, while avoiding seeing the back of your head. Tricky business, those camera angles! :D

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  • 1 month later...

Ok my shoulder is starting to get movement back and I finally got the cnc finished. Here are some pics. This is going to help drastically. Im still learning how to use it but its coming along well. Im going to cut out a throttle shroud and then wire up the joystick and throttle. So progress is starting again finally, but will be slow for awhile. :wink: 

 

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  • 2 months later...

LG1KdJZ.jpg

Working on the housing for the throttle. This is the prototype right now. I am going to make it again because I didnt put enough tabs on the cut so I had some movement. But I like the design so far. I am going to sandwich some leather in between the top 2 layers and cut a slit for the throttle to pop through. Im going to paint it light grey. Im going to 2 tone the greys throughout the sim. I started with a darker grey on the panels and the accessories and bezels will all be light grey. Hopefully, everything is subject to change if I have a better idea later

I also got a cover for the screens so that no light comes through and it makes a world of a difference. I was playing PUBG yesterday in it and it was pretty sweet. I adjusted the brackets on the screen and now it is a perfect fit. I also had an idea on how to maintain the ability to use a mouse and keyboard normally without having to swap components or build something that doesnt look nice just to have a flat surface. I decided Im going to use the last 2 window slots that dont have screens as hideaway tables. I will build retractable tables with hinges so that I have fold them down when I want to play normal games and fold them up with its time to use the sims controls. So I think that is the perfect solution. My cousin thought of that honestly have to give him the credit. lol

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...
On 2/2/2017 at 4:37 PM, Kotagi said:

So the reason I havent posted anything is that i had pretty major surgery of my shoulder and using my arm is almost impossible for right now. It will take 2-8 months to recover, barring any setbacks.

On 4/7/2017 at 7:02 PM, Kotagi said:

Ok my shoulder is starting to get movement back and I finally got the cnc finished.

How goes the recovery? I hope the shoulder's healing up properly. I know all to well how long shoulders can take to heal.

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