My new custom collective

[wombat778]

All,

I just thought I’d quickly show off my new DIY collective controller. Couple of notes:

• Made of oak, steel and electronics. All buttons are metal (mostly steel bolts that have been ground into shape). 
• Includes a physical collective brake mechanism (adapted from a bike brake) that holds the lever in place when released. When the brake is pulled, the movement is exceptionally smooth as it’s nearly frictionless and on ball bearings. When the brake is released it also sends a DX button to the sim. 
• Controls are 2x 5-way hats, an analog stick (that also can act as a 4-way hat), 3x momentary buttons, 1x latching toggle button, 2x 2-way toggles, 1x 3-way toggle and 1x rotary  encoder. 
• The collective position is based off a contactless hall sensor and magnet. 
• The whole thing runs off an RP2040 pico
• Attached to my chair with a DIY chair mount.  

So far works like a dream! Let me know if you have any interest in internal pics or more info!

 

 

Edited September 2, 2022 by wombat778

[corbu1]

Looking great….thanks for sharing

[UH1Fan]

Very nice. I've been away from this for a while. Can you please explain how you set up the RP2040 pico? I'm using a Bodnar BU0836X for my Huey sim. Thanks.

[Ala12Rv-Tundra]

On 9/2/2022 at 2:51 AM, wombat778 said:

All,

I just thought I’d quickly show off my new DIY collective controller. Couple of notes:

• Made of oak, steel and electronics. All buttons are metal (mostly steel bolts that have been ground into shape). 
• Includes a physical collective brake mechanism (adapted from a bike brake) that holds the lever in place when released. When the brake is pulled, the movement is exceptionally smooth as it’s nearly frictionless and on ball bearings. When the brake is released it also sends a DX button to the sim. 
• Controls are 2x 5-way hats, an analog stick (that also can act as a 4-way hat), 3x momentary buttons, 1x latching toggle button, 2x 2-way toggles, 1x 3-way toggle and 1x rotary  encoder. 
• The collective position is based off a contactless hall sensor and magnet. 
• The whole thing runs off an RP2040 pico
• Attached to my chair with a DIY chair mount.  

So far works like a dream! Let me know if you have any interest in internal pics or more info!

 

 

 

Could you share some pics of the inside regarding the head and buttons and wires?

Edited October 27, 2022 by Ala12Rv-Tundra

[wombat778]

Sorry for the delay everyone.  A combination of health issues and PC issues put me out of commission for awhile.

In terms of how I used the RP2040, I did everything through Arduino because i'm most comfortable coding in C and not micropython.  I just connected all the buttons and switches up to the various pins (first I put the rp2040 on a solderable perfboard). Happy to share my ugly code if helpful.

In terms of pics of the head, here you go.  It's a rats nest of wires so I am hesitant to disassemble it much more than this for fear of breaking a wire or solder joint.

I have also attached pics of the insides (which are not very pretty) where you can see among other things:

1. The Hall sensor and magnet used to detect the throttle position
2. The spring clamp that forces the brake pad against the brake rotor
3. A counterspring that dramatically "lightens" the handle such that the brake friction is enough to keep it in place
4. The brake rotor itself, which is a wooden disc with very rough steel metal on the pad side for grip and very smooth/polished steel on the other side on which a nylon bearing runs
5. The microswitch that detects when the brake has been presss/released

Happy to answer any questions!

 

[edmuss]

Love this

I'm looking to start designing my collective soon, mind if I steal your brake design? I had been racking my brains about how to get a cable pulled brake to work and never considered a sprung clamp; too set on how a bike disk brake works to consider inverting the caliper!

[wombat778]

7 hours ago, edmuss said:

Love this

I'm looking to start designing my collective soon, mind if I steal your brake design? I had been racking my brains about how to get a cable pulled brake to work and never considered a sprung clamp; too set on how a bike disk brake works to consider inverting the caliper!

Absolutely, it works great! Two thoughts from experience:

1. My original plan had been to use both sides of the clamp to grip the disc. This provided great grip strength but the problem was in mounting the clamp flexibly in such a way that one side of the clamp didn’t rub on the disc when open. In the end I couldn’t make it work and just cut one side off the clamp so the pressure was one sided. This in turn caused the disc/axle to flex, which is why I put a nylon bearing on the other side opposite the clamp (to “push back” against the clamp arm) 
    
2. I was surprised by how much force the clamp put on the disc/axle and how much deflection it caused. If I could do it again I’d probably use a thicker dowel for the axle (maybe a full inch instead of 5/8”) or something like steel

Edited November 21, 2022 by wombat778

[edmuss]

As I have free access to solidworks and a 3D printer (or I will by the time I design it), along with a tame CNC man I can probably design a specific adjustable tension clamp.  Good heads up though!

[wombat778]

Sounds good. My first collective build a year ago used 3d printed parts. But they always felt too flimsy to me and never gave me the feeling that it would last. That’s why for this build I went fully steel/oak and generally overbuilt it. 
 

But what I would have given for a CNC machine!!!

[edmuss]

It's a very handy resource to have on tap, for the cost of a few ciders I can get stuff made
For the simpler turning and drilling jobs I can just jump on a lathe on a lunchtime.

I will likely be manufacturing the structural parts from aluminium and stainless and use the printer for the odd shape bits, who knows how well it will work though!