KLaFaille

Trim reset

UPDATED 1MAY11: Due to other priorities and factors between the parties involved, this project has been placed on hold indefinitely. Thank you to all who did provide input into this thread. It will help should something similar become viable again. Keith Hi Everyone, I'm in discussions with Mike Williams of Viper Panels (http://shop.viperpits.org/) on having my UFC and CDU designs made and offered for sale to everyone. We currently need to know what sort of interest there are in these panels and a general idea of the number of people that would be interested in purchasing the panels. We are very early in the discussion process, but a rough guess of 10-20 panels will have to be created to keep costs reasonable. A rough cost has yet to be determined, but a clearer picture should emerge in the near future. On to the panels. These are drawn to scale from the A-10C flight manual, and are as close to real dimensions as you can get without having a real specimen of either unit in your hands. I believe we will be able to offer these as backlit panels, but again we are at an early stage here so nothing is set in stone yet. The panels will come complete with a button set, and I have added a couple images of final design of the UFC, and a WIP 85% complete CDU. The production buttons and plates will be laser engraved. UFC - 1 - 28MAR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr CDU and SCREEN - 6APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr Again, this thread is to gauge interest in the panels to see what sort of numbers we will be dealing with. I please ask that you keep any questions or comments in this thread. And do remember this is at a very early stage. I'll add info as things come together. Thanks, Keith LaFaille "Red"

Thanks for that info Mastiff, I just learned something new. :smartass: Red

I was playing around with my IFF panel, working on the pinout and got some of the lighting to work. This panel is has Class 1 NVIS Green A backlighting. It's made for 28V, but I cranked it up a bit for brightness.

You could use all Bu0836X cards, but in the end I think the cost would be greater than using another option such as Open Cockpit cards or PHCC or something similar. Leo's cards can't handle outputs for lights and indicators whereas the others can. Regardless of the route you take, there is software out there that allows you to take all of your HID devices and merge them into one "virtual" controller. DCS will see only one device that you assign commands to. Red

I don't plan on using the BU0836X cards for the rest of the components. I'm not sure what option I'll go with there, but 32 inputs on Leo's cards just limits you too much apart from the UFC or something similar. Unrelated to pitbuilding but on the subject of USB, I'm not sure what the limit is for inputs. I can say though that right now I have 14 various USB doodads plugged into this PC with no issues. Ah the days before all this plug and play stuff, when even something as simple as installing a modem card could require hours of enjoyment fiddling with IRQs and various other hardware nuances before it even worked.

Thanks pitbldr! Yes that's the plan. A bit crazy, I know, but after all the other work that went into getting this as close to real as possible, why not? :)

This is the final design of the UFC. Externally this is complete. Internally there are a few things to work on, some holes, a connector for the PCB, a few screws here and there, etc. Electronics will be the cheapest thing on here likely. I've priced all the actual components, and excluding the cost of PCB (may etch my own), and the BU0836X I already have, it will be just a bit north of $20 dollars in switches and the like. The nice thing is everything fits inside the head unit of the UFC and it's nicely accurate in dimensions and design to the real unit. I have an option I will pursue on getting the faceplate and buttons crafted, which may work out to everyone's advantage, but I will say nothing more on that matter at this time. I have a pattern created that once cut and bent will form the rear box, I'll have to find someone competent in aluminum welding to close the seams. Everything I have designed here can be laser / water cut from .063" and .125" aluminum sheet, and the head unit and buttons easily milled on a three axis CNC. UFC FINAL - 1- 2APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC FINAL - 2 - 2APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC EXPLODED - 1 - 2APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC EXPLODED - 2 - 2APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr

Have I considered a different option, no. Are there competitors, yes. I grabbed this with the express intent of using it for the UFC. I know there are other people out there that offer USB interface cards, cheaper too, I couldn't tell you who they are though. I have no idea what IO cards I'll use for the rest of the pit at this time. Oh, and this: I can make all the needles and little doo-dads dance around now, and I have solid values to make them go where I want them to when I want them to. The fatbody in the middle is the next goal. Red

A shittay vid of me playing around with the UFC board. I'm not a videographer, sorry. :music_whistling: Oops, didn't realize one clip went in there twice. Oh well. Red

Def an incline, might not be as sharp as what you have there Gus, but you are PFC* to the real thing. *Pretty F-ckin' Close

Yeah, these aren't rubber membrane or dome switches like what's in keyboards or desktop calculators. These are more mechanical in nature with a pre-requisite amount of force needing to be applied before the switch gives and completes the circuit, hence the word "Tactile" in tactile switch. If you want to stay with the keyboard analogy, think old IBM style mechanical "clicky" keyboard keys. The switches I have right now feel similar in use but take much more force to actuate, and the switches I'm going to use in the final version require twice as much force to actuate as what I have now. On to my proto-board UFC thingamabob.. I fixed my three little issues. The two switches that were shorted to ground were easy to fix, one had a trace that needed to be cut on the board, the other was a piece of debris causing a short. I just changed which pin I ran a lead to for the intermittent switch. It works great now.

Thanks deadman. I can do switches, you start throwing components in the mix and I'm lost. I did have a good hands on demo of Ohm's law with 3V and a 1-1k pot. Let's just say when you crank it to the low end (1 ohm) and 3 amps start going through the pot, it's like a little 4th of July show on the bench. Total, thanks for the great information, I think it will really help me out. I'd love to see an example or two if you could find your old boards. This is my first board ever so it's definitely a bit rough, but I'm glad it worked (mostly) in the end. The board itself is to small to go into a working UFC model, this was more a challenge to myself and proof of concept type thing. Regarding the switches, these tactless require about 260 grams of force to actuate which is decent and gives a nice snap. I do plan on using tactiles in the UFC and CDU, but i will likely go with 500 gram switches. They should be sufficient.

I spent the better part of last night building a prototype UFC switch board. Apart from two switches that seem to be shorted to ground, and one that acts up intermittently, it works great. I'll sort out those little minor issues later on. UFC Prototype Board (1 of 3).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC Prototype Board (2 of 3).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC Prototype Board (3 of 3).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr The TACAN panel showed up yesterday. Functionally it's fine, it just needs a few missing pieces replaced, the clear plexi replaced, and a cleaning. The volume knob was missing so I just threw on a knob that I had lying around, that's not the proper one. TACAN (1 of 1).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr

Hi icemaker, Most all the real parts I have collected thus far have come from laboriously watching and sifting through eBay all the time. Every once in a while you get lucky and find that piece you need at the right price mixed in with the rest of the junk that you don't. Red

Pics of ADI as mentioned earlier. I managed to get the leftmost needle moving up and down in a controllable manner. I may have to end up cracking it open to try and work out more of it. I'm glad I didn't go and do what I had thought originally, putting the power supply on 5V and just going pin to pin, instead I did the smart thing and checked for continuity between pins first.This is a good thing because I foun two points only had 1.8 ohms between them. 5V, 1.8ohm = 2.77A = crispy ADI = Bad Juju I really really need the TO on this thing, or a schematic at the minimum. That would help immensely. ARU-2-BA ADI (1 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr ARU-2-BA ADI (2 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr ARU-2-BA ADI (3 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr ARU-2-BA ADI (4 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr ARU-2-BA ADI (5 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr ARU-2-BA ADI (6 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr ARU-2-BA ADI (7 of 8).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr

Thanks. CNC will be the way to go on this. During the design phase of each panel I take into account the machining process. There are no weird bevels or cuts that can't be made with a three axis CNC, so far as I can tell. Whoever cuts these for me will know more about the subject and will be able to fix / inform me off inconsistencies. Luckily, I have nothing but time getting these made. In real world news, the CDU / UFC switches came in today along with my 0-30vdc 5A regulated lab top power supply; so if I stop posting, I probably electrocuted myself. :doh: Another piece of the puzzle came in also. A real ARU-2B/A ADI made for simulator use. Pics to follow when I get home from work tonight, but here's one from the seller.

Thanks pitbldr. I'm actually not using switch covers in my design for the UFC or my CDU, Total. I'm creating custom PCBs with 6x6 tactile switches which will mount inside the "head" of the UFC and CDU. I am leaving room to grow on the sides though. ;) At this point all I have to do is draw up the housing, and get the thing made and I'll be good to go. I have a BU0836X that will drive this. First pic is the finalized UFC, minus a few tweaks with font stuff. Second is the back of the UFC where the switches will live. Third is a close up of the rocker button, just for grins. Red UFC - 1 - 28MAR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC - 2 - 28MAR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC ROCKER - 28MAR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr

I've been slow working on the modeling the last couple days, been doing a lot of researching and sourcing parts. But I'm doing some work right now so here's an as I go update.. I re-drew the entire UFC front panel. I used the "standard" button size of .375" as a reference and drew the rest of the panel to scale. Come to find out it's smaller than I though. about 1.75" top to bottom and 8.35" wide. The nice thing is that now the buttons for the CDU and UFC are both the same size minus the rockers. Also, seeing as obtaining a proper Korry pushbutton indicator for the Master Caution is nigh impossible, I plan on making my own out of a push switch, some acrylic barstock, and a couple of amber LEDs. Once it's dressed and done you won't be able to tell the difference. Off to draw the rockers, then layout a pcb design and housing... Red UFC - 27MAR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC - 2 - 27MAR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr

Looking good.. nice clean setup! Red

Oh yes I forgot to mention that my copy of The Modern Hog Guide by Jake Melampy arrived today. http://www.reidairpublishing.com/products/RAP03.html What an awesome book and wonderful reference for all sorts of A-10 info and photos that just don't exist anywhere else. There are very detailed high quality photos of the plane and it's many components both internal and external, as well as stores and related support equipment. The book covers primarily the A-10A, but does go into some detail on the A-10A+ and touches on the C model as well. I highly recommend the book for anyone who is even remotely interested in the A-10. Red

Deadman - Thanks for that link, I was actually playing with their software earlier today already. Mike Powell had mentioned he gets his custom boards done by them, and that's a pretty big endorsement coming from him. Turbo - Thanks for stopping by and thanks very much for the heads up on the software, very informative stuff! :beer: Nice job on the UFC you have designed there, it looks very functional and will definitely get the job done which is what ultimately matters. What are your dimensions for the faceplate? I ended up going with 9" x 2", numbers I believe I borrowed from y2kiah's pit thread (http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=51362) and which worked out quite well. I do have to update my original model to reflect my choice in tactile switch, create the PCB, and to remove the rockers I had originally sourced. Laying out and making PCBs is one of the areas that is outside of my general sphere of knowledge and I'm hoping to wade into the kiddie pool slowly rather than end up jumping feet first into the deep end. Then again, my sphere of knowledge is getting smaller by the day at this point. :D Thanks again, Red

Thank Gus I appreciate the kind words. I'm just hoping that I'll be able to accomplish even a bit of what you've done already. There are a lot of thing I don't know anything about that I'm going to have try and overcome, i have much to learn. Bucic, you nailed it on th head. Seeing a part on the screen let's me visualize in my mind what it will be like actually interacting with it, which keeps the motivation high. Once the tactile switches arrive in the mail I'm going to take a whack at the UFC internals, my first attempt at creating a panel for the pit. I'm pretty excited to be approaching what will be my first "milestone" :) Red

Hey Bucic, Student editions certainly are a "gray" area at times I'll agree. I just wanted to make it known that such software options exist, and I realize that you weren't calling me out. Many of the distributors of .edu software do what is asked of them but really could care less after they get their money. It's much the same with the online computer retailers who have "full" copies of Windows for a couple hundred bucks, or you can buy the OEM copy for dirt cheap if you buy it with a piece of hardware, which could be a $3 dollar cooling fan. $$$ talks in this world. The corporation I work for (big defense contractor) favors CATIA for their design work, for what it's worth. :) Back to pit, yes, these models are going to be used for the construction of physical counterparts. They are as dimensionally accurate as possible, 100% accurate when I have the hard data on an item. I'm more of a visual type of person and once I can actually see something, then it all starts to click. So to answer your question: No, if this was all being done in my head or on scraps of paper, I likely wouldn't be undertaking such a huge task. I do enjoy doing this via model first because I can hopefully get all the dimensional problems out of the way, and when it comes to physically installing or assembling a component everything *should* fit correctly. Should.. :) Cheers, Red

Thanks! The student version is only $130 dollars give or take. And who doesn't know a student or two.. ;) Red