Video: Force Feedback seat for Elite, anyone?

Red_13

Red_13
Check out this video... (Sorry, can only find it on FaceBook... If anyone can find a YouTube link, please add.)

https://www.facebook.com/Akaymusic/videos/10153886860348378/

If you don't have FB, it's basically a seat with the steering controls (its for a race car sim) and monitor all locked in together, and this whole kit mounted on a rotating platform, that has 3 hydraulic lifters that sway the seat up and down and left to right. Very ingenious.

So, how do we get Elite to output data in some way to be read by the same chair?

What feedback do you think it should have? The obvious ones I can think of are:

1. Acceleration and deceleration of the throttle, moving you back and forth respectively.
2. Pan, tilt and Roll as per your joystick movement
3. Collision detection of other ships and stations
4. Getting hit by projectile or explosive weapons (not lasers, I figure)

So... Anyone out there able to figure how we could get this done? Do we need FD to do something or is there some data coming out of something (like the video) already, and all we need to do is interface it?

If anyone technical enough to answer this last question with 100% surety, then we can take the next step of making it happen. :)
 

Asp Explorer

Asp Explorer
That was a lovely video, and I'd absolutely love to have the hardware to do that. I'm assuming it's a motorbike simulator, but on a motorbike it's the other way round (You lean in to keep the bike as upright as needed). Even given the steering wheel as an input device (horrible things), the poor guy is going the opposite way to put input control on the bike. It just needs a bit of software tweakage :)

Now, who is up for a kickstarter to do an Elite version of this with VR support and a lifetime supply of bibs? :D
 
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Red_13

Red_13
Asp Explorer said:
That was a lovely video, and I'd absolutely love to have the hardware to do that. I'm assuming it's a motorbike simulator, but on a motorbike it's the other way round (You lean in to keep the bike as upright as needed). Even given the steering wheel as an input device (horrible things), the poor guy is going the opposite way to put input control on the bike. It just needs a bit of software tweakage :)

Now, who is up for a kickstarter to do an Elite version of this with VR support and a lifetime supply of bibs? :D
Click to expand...

I'd be up for a Kickstarter in a heartbeat if it became a reality! :)

As to the video, no it's a driving game... Think about it, when the guy is going around a right hand bend, the forces on his body would make him sway over to the left... And that's what it does in the video. I think it sways a bit over the top, mind you... But it does show the range of movement which is HUGE! It means that you could combine a number of movements to get the combined forces on your body, like both rolling AND accelerating forward.

I would love if someone from FD could make a comment about the possibility of outputting something, somehow. Like... Maybe a USB connection but the program would have to be aware of it and drivers and such. I'm sure it is immanently possible! But I doubt it could happen without FD's "help" in opening the interface or such. (Sorry, not being that technical.)
 

Asp Explorer

Asp Explorer
I merely based my motorbike guess on the insane clutch whine, downrevving, brake dive and sequential shifting. I know F/rally cars can have the same transmission system, but from the movements it just didn't seem car-based to me. But again, I have no idea. I just looks like a whole heap of fun :)
 

Mosait

Mosait
Here's a company I researched (http://www.bluetiger.com/index.html) along with others, for my company. They seem to have a fairly versatile setup for several grand. I'm hesitant with something like this since I use a rift setup, and there are some issues with the motion and the current rift sdk.
 
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atlas974

atlas974
@OP

You can make your own motion rig if you want and have the will, i'll advice you to take a look here http://www.xsimulator.net/. Awesome community and a lot of DIY project with people that already made motion platform for Elite and racing games.

I've made mine (only 2 DOF aka pitch and roll), and using it with Elite and the rift is another level of immersion. Took me 2 weeks with most of the parts available (12 days of building and 2 days to fine tune the software part).

Right now Elite don't provide telemetry, it's been asked before but i think Fdev have (rightly) a lot of others things to do first. Simtools is a software used to command the motion platform. Thanks to awesome poeples from xsimulator community (Value1 is the one who keep the plugin for Elite in order to work) you can enjoy a really good and unique experience.

The problem is that each time the client is upgraded, the plugin need to change because there isn't telemetry output. So i know it's not top priority but Frontier take a look please ;)
 

Red_13

Red_13
Mosait said:
Here's a company I researched (http://www.bluetiger.com/index.html) along with others, for my company. They seem to have a fairly versatile setup for several grand. I'm hesitant with something like this since I use a rift setup, and there are some issues with the motion and the current rift sdk.
Click to expand...

Man, great find!! +1 Rep

I've contacted Blue Tiger and asked them to get in touch with FD to see if they can incorporate the required DLL/driver. Only problem with that being that it is not Mac compatible if using a DLL, I'd guess. Hopefully there isn't too much pain to convert for Mac and XBone.

If FD monitor this forum and see this post, here is the blurb from the Blue Tiger website:

[FONT=arial, verdana, helvetica, sans serif][SIZE=+3]Game Developers[/SIZE][/FONT]BlueTiger is seeking game companies that are excited about the future of motion simulators for the video gaming industry and interested in making their games Motion Simulator Enabled. Console game companies are also invited to make their games Motion Simulator Enabled.


BlueTiger has designed a relatively low-cost high-quality motion simulator for the home consumer and arcade markets that is compatible with virtually all PC, Internet, and console games using a standard Ethernet connection. The motion of the simulator is precisely coordinated with the video game by using data (such as pitch, roll, and accelerations) from the game engine via a standardized DLL driver created and supplied by BlueTiger.


The DLL driver is available to all software and hardware developers to quickly establish an industry standard. BlueTiger will provide the DLL, Sim-Sim Test Tool, BlueTiger Utility Program, and assistance if needed. Most games can be upgraded in only one to two days.


If your gaming company is interested in learning more about becoming a BlueTiger partner, please contact us. http://www.bluetiger.com/contact.html




In case FD don't see this particular post... How do I get this suggestion into them?

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atlas974 said:
@OP

You can make your own motion rig if you want and have the will, i'll advice you to take a look here http://www.xsimulator.net/. Awesome community and a lot of DIY project with people that already made motion platform for Elite and racing games.

I've made mine (only 2 DOF aka pitch and roll), and using it with Elite and the rift is another level of immersion. Took me 2 weeks with most of the parts available (12 days of building and 2 days to fine tune the software part).

Right now Elite don't provide telemetry, it's been asked before but i think Fdev have (rightly) a lot of others things to do first. Simtools is a software used to command the motion platform. Thanks to awesome poeples from xsimulator community (Value1 is the one who keep the plugin for Elite in order to work) you can enjoy a really good and unique experience.

The problem is that each time the client is upgraded, the plugin need to change because there isn't telemetry output. So i know it's not top priority but Frontier take a look please ;)
Click to expand...

WOW! Now this is really cooking with gas! :)

Will read it all up tonight but this is awesome.

Now, if only FDev would take note and adopt some sort of standard.

How do we get this put on a list of some sort and make some noise about it?
 

ranix

ranix
I wouldn't trust a Kickstarter to produce with something so expensive. Oculus had a very clear vision that I thought was achievable which made me comfortable backing them. A lot was weird about the Rift kickstarter. The thing that really turned my head was that they'd succeed even if the Rift as a device was a failure. Simply by completing the Kickstarter and shipping very rudimentary devices, they'd convince competitors that the tech was becoming viable and there was a market for VR at that price point. Whether or not the DK1 would be a cool piece of kit was totally secondary to helping the project become a success. It could have been (and it kind of is) a worthless lump of plastic that made me physically ill and still have accomplished its goals.

With a motion platform though I really don't see how you could possibly build and ship those for less than a grand and the prospect seems kind of daunting. And you have to physically be in it, it's lurching around, so you have to be really mindful of the quality of the parts or it could break and injure someone or destroy something in the house. I'm just really trepidatious about the idea in general. I mean, if someone like Playseat came out with one, I'd probably give it a go, but I'd even be a little worried about the quality of that, you know? Like, I'd be worried unless I waited to see how the reviews turned out, just like with the plain old driving seat.

And if you do get one and it does break or the software isn't very good, now what? I can see it being a good idea if you were going to build something yourself anyway like atlas974 and you've got the drive to spend 14 days of work on it. I've got other projects I need to finish first! And that Novint Falcon still bothers me, huge potential totally wasted and only had support for like 3 games.

Good luck to you guys if you do kickstart something though, it would be totally awesome if it worked out.
 

Red_13

Red_13
@Ranix

Thanks for listing those other sources of seats... I'll look into them.

Question for all:

I have a HOTAS setup and I'd imagine anyone with a RIFT would as well. But thinking about it, it leaves your feet doing nothing, yet they are still valid input mechanisms, at a minimum for pedals.

What would you use those pedals for?
 

ranix

ranix
I like to use the pedals for yaw and fwd/reverse throttle. My joystick doesn't have a twist rudder axis, so I need the pedals. I also like to change and apply reverse throttle more frequently in combat than you can with just a HOTAS throttle.
 

Jonathan E

Jonathan E
atlas974 said:
@OP

You can make your own motion rig if you want and have the will, i'll advice you to take a look here http://www.xsimulator.net/. Awesome community and a lot of DIY project with people that already made motion platform for Elite and racing games.

I've made mine (only 2 DOF aka pitch and roll), and using it with Elite and the rift is another level of immersion. Took me 2 weeks with most of the parts available (12 days of building and 2 days to fine tune the software part).

Right now Elite don't provide telemetry, it's been asked before but i think Fdev have (rightly) a lot of others things to do first. Simtools is a software used to command the motion platform. Thanks to awesome poeples from xsimulator community (Value1 is the one who keep the plugin for Elite in order to work) you can enjoy a really good and unique experience.

The problem is that each time the client is upgraded, the plugin need to change because there isn't telemetry output. So i know it's not top priority but Frontier take a look please ;)
Click to expand...

Is yours similar to this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An9zM_RNdN8
 

SlackR

Banned
SlackR
I was thinking about tracking one of these down to go alongside the Rift, but I think the not being in zero G / not inverting would be an issue... I have therefore decided to build my next rig on the international space station! :p
 

Captain.Oculus

C
added

I have a motion simulator that I use with the DK2. It is from Canada and called a "Dreamflyer" it is sold in black and orange. I've added my own flair to it, using orange felt, and hardware to mount surround sound speakers where the monitor(s) would typically be. A double camera mount in the front allows the DK2 camera and a webcam to see me / track me. http://twitch.tv/captainoculus

It's pure Ecstasy... and yes... I'm a pilot.

20150727_114051_001.jpg
 
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