DIY Head Tracker For A Tenner

Alec

Alec
Known problems with standard Leonardo?

Hi there,
I build the breadboard version of the EDTracker with some components I had lying around. I used a GY-88 (which includes a MPU6050) and a Arduino Leonardo (normal size .. not Micro Pro).
At first it worked perfectly well, but after a couple of minutes the Arduino crashes while still doing the waiting time for drift compensation (EDTracker2 (2.20.3) sketch).

By exchanging some components (I tried a normal MPU6050 and an external power source) I can now conclude, that the fault must be in the Leonardo itself or in the script (in regard to the Leonardo).

My question for the "pros": Should it work with a normal Leonardo? Or is the code specific for the Micro Pro. Or is it me?? :S

Thank you for any help! ;)
 

Bikky

Bikky
Well I got the "experts" to send me one of their builds.

Downloaded the software and drivers last night.

Plugged it in, let it autodetect one driver, then pointed to the Arduino software folder for the 2nd driver (I don't like windows complaining)

Installed Java (for the first time on my gaming rig)

Loaded the software.

Put the thing on my head (sat loose with the wire tucked under glasses arm)

and hey presto it worked a treat, particularly considering it wasn't fixed, and I've done no calibration......

Also set a tiny deadzone in ED, turned off the JS bind buttons for head moves so they always do power dist.

Now I need to make a case up.... Is heatgun glue ok on the bottom of these? was thinking of a custom tictac box or similar make up unit thing
 

NeilF

NeilF
Bikky said:
Also set a tiny deadzone in ED, turned off the JS bind buttons for head moves so they always do power dist.

Now I need to make a case up.... Is heatgun glue ok on the bottom of these? was thinking of a custom tictac box or similar make up unit thing
Click to expand...

Just incase you didn't spot it, you can define a smaller deadzone by manually dragging the slider than using the arrows (either side).

If you want to make "the maplin case", click "ED Tracker" in my sig.
 

Bikky

Bikky
NeilF said:
Just incase you didn't spot it, you can define a smaller deadzone by manually dragging the slider than using the arrows (either side).

If you want to make "the maplin case", click "ED Tracker" in my sig.
Click to expand...

Yeah used the mouse :), and if it want it small, I'll just hit my sensitivity button on the mouse and make it a tiny tiny tiny deadzone ;)

Thanks for the link to the maplin link, But can you see the LED's through it?

That's why I'm thinking tictac or similar :eek:
 

Omegahunter

Omegahunter
Bikky said:
Now I need to make a case up.... Is heatgun glue ok on the bottom of these? was thinking of a custom tictac box or similar make up unit thing
Click to expand...

There is a PDF guide on how to build the ED Tracker in to a mpalin project box, on the ED Tracker website now.

Have a look at "Enclosures" under the "Buildings" tab for it.
 

Omegahunter

Omegahunter
Bikky said:
Yeah used the mouse :), and if it want it small, I'll just hit my sensitivity button on the mouse and make it a tiny tiny tiny deadzone ;)

Thanks for the link to the maplin link, But can you see the LED's through it?

That's why I'm thinking tictac or similar :eek:
Click to expand...

No you can't as its a solid plastic case but you could drill a few holes and add clear plastic light guides if you really want to see them easy enough.

I like mine to be dark with just a little glow from the MPU-6050 led coming from the reset switch hole. Done the whole back to the future mind reader helmet thing with my first breadboard build and now just want to get on and play the game.

I'm surprised that they don't offer a clear version of the project box, but having worked with plastics and knowing the material they would use I can tell you it would be a lot harder to make a good looking case mod from one (clear crystal plastic is brittle and would crack easy when you worked on it).
 
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x6tus

x6tus
Is anyone using this on a one screen system? More specifically on a (17") laptop screen ? Is that too small to use head tracking with?
 

Omegahunter

Omegahunter
x6tus said:
Is anyone using this on a one screen system? More specifically on a (17") laptop screen ? Is that too small to use head tracking with?
Click to expand...

The screen size you have won't be a issue as you can adjust the sensitivity of the ED Tracker so it moves more or less to suit your needs.

If you're happy to play the game on a 17" screen then using a tracker on that will be no different.

But saying that I'm testing on a three 23" surround screen set up and going back to just one 1920x1080 screen at lans when testing/ showing off Elite Dangerous feels way to small to me :(
 

Druid

Druid
Im trying to adjust the sensitivity useing the + and - on the gui but they dont adjust when I click on them . The gui is monitoring the edtracker fine what am I doing wrong?
 

SentineI

SentineI
In case anyone else runs into similar problems, don't give up:

I plugged it in before flashing it, and installed the drivers from ArduinoDrivers_1.5.6r2.zip . It appeared in Device Manager as "Arduino Leonardo (COM4)", so I assumed all was OK...

After soldering it, plugged it in again, and was relieved to see Windows recognised it as before. I then ran the EDTracker2-GUI-V2.2.0-32bit program, and that's where all my problems started: It repeatedly checked COM1 & COM4, but each time it just said "error for connecting to COM4" (etc). So I tried to force the GUI to flash it, by selecting the EDTracker2Calib sketch, then the COM4 port, then clicking FLASH... but still got useless error messages.

In desperation I downloaded EDTrackerUpdateTool_v1.0.2_x86, and tried to follow instructions from the command line. Java wasn't in the command path, so I had to use Java's full path. But even after forcing it to use the right COM Port, and telling it to flash, I got "WARNING: Device failed to repond to memory erase command". Tried again with same problem :( .

I then went back to the EDTracker2-GUI, and I'm not sure exactly what I did, probably I tried forcing it to FLASH again, and for some strange reason this time it worked. Because finally EDTracker2-GUI recognises the device is connected (says "Monitoring").

Not very impressed with the (un)reliability of these tools, but I appreciate this is a free & part-time effort. So mainly want to warn others that getting started isn't easy, but they need to persevere.
 

Shorn

Shorn
I should think it's more likely to be an error with windows properly recognising and registering the device. I had a similar issue when first plugging in, so just resorted to the normal Microsoft fix of a reboot, device was found and drivers registered, then the tools worked perfectly - and have done since then.

I am quite careful in plugging the devices in exactly the same USB ports, and ensuring all the USB devices are connected before starting ED, and I haven't had a problem.

Not sure what your level of computer competence is (and that is not a dig in any way, it has an impact on the expectations of ease of install and use), it can be a bit mind-bending to get your head around the install, software and calibrating needed.

Hopefully now you have it installed and working it will give you many hours of trouble free service - I've certainly found this device to be very reliable.
 

flibblesan

flibblesan
If you are running Windows 8.1 then prepare yourself for a world of pain when it comes to the Arduino and drivers. I have a Sparkfun Micro from the hobbycomponents kit and I have to use unsigned drivers for flashing which means messing around with safe mode. (guide for this http://www.howtogeek.com/167723/how...8.1-so-that-you-can-install-unsigned-drivers/ )

Once the drivers have been installed then you shouldn't have problems with flashing the device unless Windows decides to change the com port to another number - which seems to happen to me completely randomly :(
 

brumster

brumster
ChrisH said:
But even after forcing it to use the right COM Port, and telling it to flash, I got "WARNING: Device failed to respond to memory erase command".
Click to expand...

This is just a warning message; you can safely ignore it. I issue a wipe command just to wipe the AVR but sometimes it would seem the bootloader responds quicker than the serial libs can pick up, or it just never responds at all. It doesn't really matter, since you subsequently hard-write all the data into the chip anyway, overwriting whatever is there.

I should maybe remove the message, it seems to worry people more than it should do ;)

Rob has a new version of the GUI that seems to be much more reliable on the connection front, I suspect we might see it released very soon. For now, you may just require multiple attempts in the GUI but it should work (eventually, at least!).
 

Antmax

Antmax
To get the sparkfun board to work I had to do a special reboot into win 8.1 in the mode that allows unsigned drivers too.

Load up the device manager and check the com&lpt port section. Try compiling with the ide and press the button on the edtracker as soon as compiling starts. The comport id changes to a sparkfun one at which point I have to install the unsigned sparkfun drivers.

After that, that particular USB socket will always work perfectly. But you have to do it again for each USB port you want to use with this particular EDTracker device.
 

SentineI

SentineI
Rather than drill-out a huge hole in my Maplin case (so you can reach the button), instead I bought a very tall button, so that the hole only needed to be 4mm diameter (it also looks more professional).

The one I bought was labelled 6*6mm with an 8mm button:
1383651115494.jpg

Which I bought from here for 99p:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Quality-M...-Miniature-Mini-Micro-Small-PCB-/180732232689

When that buy-it-now eBay 'auction' has expired, you can look for others selling something similar. Just make sure the "pin pitch" is 6mm*4.5mm.

And while my button is 8mm high, one slightly less tall (e.g. 6mm) might also work, since my button protrudes nearly 4mm outside of the case.
 
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