Slugmouse - a mouse button emulator for hand-tracked cockpit clicking.

[slughead]

What is Slugmouse?

Slugmouse is a wireless, finger-mounted mouse button and joystick button emulator. It's available now and usually ships within a week of placing your order.

Used alongside a VR headset that can convert hand movements to mouse pointer control, you can interact directly with cockpit switches, dials, levers, buttons, knobs, etc., just by pointing with your hand and left, right, scroll up, scroll down buttons. The Slugmouse also supports a middle mouse button on the right hand and a back button on the left. Alternatively, the Slugmouse can be configured as a joystick device, providing five extra buttons per hand.

The Slugmouse is plug-and-play, or rather, pair-and-play, as it connects to your computer via Bluetooth. It does not require calibration, and the battery will last for days, with recharging taking less than an hour. Battery status is provided on your Bluetooth device screen in Windows.

The Oculus Quest 2, Oculus Quest Pro, and Oculus Quest 3 support hand tracking. However, purchasing an Ultraleap Motion Controller can add hand tracking to any headset.

You will also need to install the free Hand Track Cockpit Clicking (HTCC) OpenXR API layer for both the Oculus headsets and the Ulraleap Motion Controller. HTCC will convert the hand tracking to mouse pointer movement.

For details about configuring HTCC, please refer to the HTCC website.

Here's a video of it in action: a cold start, taxi out, departure, a circuit of the airfield, and arrival.

Here's a review by TFS:

To recap:

1. Finger-mounted, one on each hand.
2. Wireless.
3. No calibration is required.
4. Auto and manual standby options (user configurable).
5. Press the middle button to wake up instantly.
6. A battery life that will meet the needs of the longest missions and more.
7. Less than an hour to recharge using a USB-C cable
8. Standby mode battery lifetime of days.
9. Emulates left, right, scroll up, scroll down, back and middle mouse buttons or can be configured as a game controller (DX buttons).
10. Scroll up and scroll down speed increases when held down.

What can I use the back and middle mouse buttons for?

You can map them to anything in DCS. For example, the middle button on the right-hand Slugmouse could be mapped as the Pilot Salute, and the middle button on the left-hand Slugmouse could be mapped to Pilot Ready to Taxi.

How much does Slugmouse cost?

A pair of Slugmice plus the Slugcase is £150 plus P&P. Shipping to most countries is available.

How long will it take to ship?

Production time is usually a week or less from receipt of payment.

How do I order a pair?

Send me a private message or email me at team.slughead @ outlook.com (remove the spaces around the @ symbol) with the ring size of your left and right index fingers, the headset you intend to use the Slugmice with, your name, shipping address and your PayPal email address. Be sure to use a ring gauge to measure your ring size. Using tape, string, etc, will not give an accurate size and will leave you disappointed. If you use a plastic adjustable ring gauge, do not lay it flat to measure it with a ruler. That gives an incorrect measurement. If your ring gauge has a number or letter, provide the number or letter, e.g. US12 (left), US13 (right) or Z (left) and Z1 (right). Alternatively, the best option is to go to a jeweller and be measured professionally. This is usually a free service. Remember to consider room for swelling when you are hot, so don't choose a tight ring size. At the same time, you do not want it to be loose. The Slugmouse comes with three lower ring tangs of different sizes: small, medium and large, with the medium size matching your finger measurement so that you can change the fit slightly to accommodate swelling and shrinkage of your fingers.

How do I pay?

A PayPal invoice will be issued, which you can pay by credit or debit card whether you have a PayPal account or not. Once I receive your ring sizes, name, shipping address, and email address, I will issue you a PayPal goods and services invoice.

Shipping Costs

Typical shipping costs (may vary):

• UK: £9.95 Tracked 24 with Signature
• Ireland: £19.95 International Tracked and Signed 3 to 5 business days
• Australia (mainland): £24.95 International Tracked 6 to 7 business days
• Canada: £24.95 International Tracked and Signed 6 to 7 business days
• France (mainland): £19.95 International Tracked and Signed 3 to 5 business days
• Germany: £19.95 International Tracked and Signed 3 to 5 business days
• Italy (mainland): £19.95 International Tracked and Signed 3 to 5 business days
• Netherlands: £19.95 International Tracked and Signed 3 to 5 business days
• Spain (mainland): £19.95 International Tracked and Signed 3 to 5 business days
• USA: £26.95 International Tracked and Signed 6 to 7 business days

All packages are sent with tracked and insured shipping. Shipping times are from the date of shipping, not the order date.

Please ask for other countries.

How Do I Change the Tang?

PICO4 Users:

Please follow the instructions here: 

Troubleshooting

Ensure that "hot plug" is disabled in DCS settings > controls. Failing to do so will introduce stutters or severe pauses in the gameplay when the Slugmouse wakes from sleep.

If you are using Virtual Desktop, ensure that "Hand tracking" is enabled in the "INPUT" screen of Virtual Desktop.

 

If your Slugmouse is paired but the buttons are not creating mouse clicks or joystick button presses, remove the device from Windows and try pairing again. This can happen if you attempt to pair both the left and right Slugmouse to the computer at the same time.

 

Slugmouse is based on a design by rafgaj78, although it has been completely re-engineered and improved in hardware and software from the ground up. If you would like to build your own, you can find details of rafgaj's design here: https://github.com/rafgaj/Mouse-buttons-and-wheel

 

Edited April 12 by slughead
Sale ended.

[Maddaawg]

Awesome job.

[Dogmanbird]

very nice

[A.F.]

Does it work with a battery and where is the battery located, and how can it be charged?
How are the controllers tracked? 
And would this also work with the G2?

[slughead]

On 3/4/2024 at 11:42 AM, A.F. said:

Does it work with a battery and where is the battery located, and how can it be charged?
How are the controllers tracked? 
And would this also work with the G2?

The battery is on the far side of the module in the photo. It’s charged via USB-C.

The Slugnouse emulates mouse clicks or joystick button presses. Hand tracking is performed by your headset or an Ultra Leap Motion Controller and HTCC.

You can use it with a G2 and a LeapMotion hand tracker. More details of this in the link supplied.

Edited December 19, 2024 by slughead

[skins45]

Any appetite to post a quick video of it in action?  I'm very happy with my PointCTRL but my dad is getting back into DCS and I'd like to give him something like this instead of waiting months for PointCTRL.

[skins45]

I'm only asking because I'm finding it difficult how it works in conjunction with hand tracking, since in DCS, I didn't know the virtual hand acted as a mouse pointer where you would only need to map mouse clicks.

[slughead]

1 minute ago, skins45 said:

I'm only asking because I'm finding it difficult how it works in conjunction with hand tracking, since in DCS, I didn't know the virtual hand acted as a mouse pointer where you would only need to map mouse clicks.

You need to use HTCC for the hand tracking.

fredemmott/HTCC: Hand tracking for flight simulator cockpit clicking (github.com)

Edited March 4, 2024 by slughead

[rafalg78]

slughead, I'm glad you managed to build the Ring.
For me it works with HP Reverb G2 and Leap Motion. The only downside is that hands and head movements are linked. You have to get used to it. But now I can't imagine not using the Rings (I have 2 for my right and left hand).
Does hand tracking via Quest Pro also have such a negative effect?

[Phantom711]

vor 10 Minuten schrieb slughead:

You need to use HTCC for the hand tracking.

Why? The Quest hand tracking works natively in DCS.

[slughead]

Just now, rafalg78 said:

slughead, I'm glad you managed to build the Ring.
For me it works with HP Reverb G2 and Leap Motion. The only downside is that hands and head movements are linked. You have to get used to it. But now I can't imagine not using the Rings (I have 2 for my right and left hand).
Does hand tracking via Quest Pro also have such a negative effect?

Firstly, many thanks for sharing your work. I think the Quest Pro is similar. If you move your head whilst keeping your hand in the same position, the cursor will move. That's just because the camera sensor is moving in relation to the hand. So, it looks like the hand is moving. I expect pointctrl performs the same.

I have modified your code somewhat. Just minor things such as reporting the device as a mouse (code 962), setting ble.name so "Right Mouse Ring" shows in windows post connection rather than CIRCUITPYxxxx. Also, I have switched to 9.0.0-beta.2 of circuitpy so that I can use the newer adafruit libraries that support more features of adafruit_debouncer.Button such as "fell", "rose" and "long_press".

I'm now trying to get battery status to show in the Bluetooth connection but struggling at the moment.

I'll happily push up to your github repo if you would like to see the changes.

5 minutes ago, Phantom711 said:

Why? The Quest hand tracking works natively in DCS.

I think not as a straightforward cursor. The hand tracking in DCS is designed to show hands and interact with the cockpit with fingers. Frankly, it doesn't work well enough to be of anyuse. A simple mouse emulation is best until something better comes along.

[Phantom711]

@slughead

@rafalg78

Well I thought you use the hand tracking in combination with the ring. I have to recheck, but I thought there were different options in DCS how to use „hands“. But I agree…flipping switches by actual finger movements doesn‘t work well.

@skins45

EDIT: I just rechecked. With the native Quest hand tracking and hand tracking activated in DCS…if you extend your index finger, you will get a cursor and you can use mouse buttons on a separate mouse for left and right clicking. It does not appear to be tied to your head movement but it is a bit unstable for itself (so different reason…similar effect..). So this would probably still work as intended for the most part in conjunction with the ring. I wouldn‘t want to program JDAMs that way, but it‘s good enough to flip the battery switch.

Edited March 4, 2024 by Phantom711

[rafalg78]

On 3/4/2024 at 11:04 PM, slughead said:

I'll happily push up to your github repo if you would like to see the changes.

Of course, I will be very pleased and happy to see the progress.

[VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants]

Well, I would like to get my hands on one...

[ackattacker]

Seems like an elegant solution, although I’m curious if it is necessary to build your own. You can buy a number of devices online (“TikTok scrolling rings”) which should do basically the same thing?

[VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants]

Just now, ackattacker said:

Seems like an elegant solution, although I’m curious if it is necessary to build your own. You can buy a number of devices online (“TikTok scrolling rings”) which should do basically the same thing?

I will have a look. Scroll rings are not new but last time I check those were not so...elegant...

[Koziolek]

13 minutes ago, ackattacker said:

Seems like an elegant solution, although I’m curious if it is necessary to build your own. You can buy a number of devices online (“TikTok scrolling rings”) which should do basically the same thing?

Does DCS see them as a mouse?

[VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants]

I check they are for mobile devices, not sure PC/Win

Edited March 6, 2024 by VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants

[slughead]

1 hour ago, VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants said:

I will have a look. Scroll rings are not new but last time I check those were not so...elegant...

They don’t work with PCs from what I remember and don’t have left/right mouse click options. They’re just swipe controls I think..

54 minutes ago, Koziolek said:

Does DCS see them as a mouse?

Yes. It’s the PC that sees them as mice.

1 hour ago, ackattacker said:

Seems like an elegant solution, although I’m curious if it is necessary to build your own. You can buy a number of devices online (“TikTok scrolling rings”) which should do basically the same thing?

Yeah, except they don’t.

[ackattacker]

38 minutes ago, slughead said:

They don’t work with PCs from what I remember and don’t have left/right mouse click options. They’re just swipe controls I think..

They do seem to work with PCs. The main issue is that most have only three buttons. Really you need left/right and scroll up down. Not sure if software could make 3 buttons work well enough or not. But there are some with more buttons. Such as this:

https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Wireless-Scrolling-Recording-Smartphone/dp/B0C8B7X8RC

[Koziolek]

3 hours ago, ackattacker said:

They do seem to work with PCs. The main issue is that most have only three buttons. Really you need left/right and scroll up down. Not sure if software could make 3 buttons work well enough or not. But there are some with more buttons. Such as this:

https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Wireless-Scrolling-Recording-Smartphone/dp/B0C8B7X8RC

they might be  Android or OS compatible only, not Windows, but I ordered one similar and will see what I can do with it

[slughead]

4 hours ago, ackattacker said:

They do seem to work with PCs. The main issue is that most have only three buttons. Really you need left/right and scroll up down. Not sure if software could make 3 buttons work well enough or not. But there are some with more buttons. Such as this:

https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Wireless-Scrolling-Recording-Smartphone/dp/B0C8B7X8RC

It's been tried. I don't think anyone got them to work.

 

[firefox121]

I use this mouse finger mounted, found at aliexpress, works fine with my leapmotion and even without it, only with fixed cross at center ot the screen. The center is rotating wheel mouse and the other two buttons are mouse buttons, very cheap, 10-12$ or less, only the long time for shippong (a week or two).

It can also be found at amazon.

Edited March 7, 2024 by firefox121

[Koziolek]

On 3/7/2024 at 1:27 AM, firefox121 said:

I use this mouse finger mounted, found at aliexpress, works fine with my leapmotion and even without it, only with fixed cross at center ot the screen. The center is rotating wheel mouse and the other two buttons are mouse buttons, very cheap, 10-12$ or less, only the long time for shippong (a week or two).

It can also be found at amazon.

 

yes, it might be a better idea, but I could not find a left one anywhere. So if  an optical sensor is not used, can you put it back to front on a left hand and reconfigure the buttons?

[VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants]

Tried that, not work for me. 
 

if @slughead is offering, I am buying.