My modest MFCD Panel + Poor Mans UFC

[hog_driver111th]

Dude, since you bought 100 of those, you should make and sell landing light switches, lol...

[CubPilot]

Great stuff Cubpilot. How will you get your gear lever to work with the sim? I would like to try something similar

 

It's pretty straight forward for the LDG Gear Lever. The micro switches are hooked up so that the switch makes contact with the gear UP position (this is one "Button #"), the other switch makes contact with the gear DOWN position (this is another "Button #"). Then the wires from these switches are connected to some sort of USB board. Leo Bodnar has several (which is what I have been using for my TM RCS rudder axes, it also has provisions to add 32 buttons & a hat switch). Groovy Game Gear has a similar USB board. There are others.

 

Hook the switches up to one of these boards via USB, and what DCS A-10C sees is another game controller. Then, in the case of the LDG Gear, just bind the proper switch position (Button #) to the UP & DOWN assignments in the DCS Controller Options screen from your USB controller that the switches are attached to.

 

 

[pcalvert]

Thanks CubPilot. I have to get a board for the UFC Pitblr is making for me, so I could probably connect it up to that. I'll give it a go and post some pics...... cheers!

[CubPilot]

If you are in the USA check out the Groovy Game Gear USB board. If across the pond in Europe Leo Bodnar's "X" USB board would be good. They both do pretty much the same thing with some minor differences. Choosing one over the other can save on shipping.

[Succellus]

Awesome Cubby!!!!

[Mr_Burns]

Nice work there cub pilot, you are very skilled, are you a carpenter by trade or just talented (or both!).

 

I have just built a ACHP Panel, Im not ready to program it yet, have to wait until I get my new PC - graphics card just died on me and its time for an i7 2600k I think.

 

Have you any advice or screens on how you programmed the ACHP - I watched Tigershark video and will use it again when its time to actually do it but did you have any problems?

 

I changed the position of the IFFC button (bottom right) to read on off test because the middle of the switch is off, but what about on the baro radar alt switch?

 

Another thing, Im going to make mine out of MDF but I was thinking of making the panels out of plastic and inserting them into a cutout in the MDF. What are your thoughts on this or how did you tackle it? I find the MDF is just too thick for the switches and I make a mess trying to countersing the back - are you using a router?

 

Really inspiring and your UFC isnt a poormans!

[CubPilot]

Nice work there cub pilot, you are very skilled, are you a carpenter by trade or just talented (or both!).

 

I have just built a ACHP Panel, Im not ready to program it yet, have to wait until I get my new PC - graphics card just died on me and its time for an i7 2600k I think.

 

Have you any advice or screens on how you programmed the ACHP - I watched Tigershark video and will use it again when its time to actually do it but did you have any problems?

 

I changed the position of the IFFC button (bottom right) to read on off test because the middle of the switch is off, but what about on the baro radar alt switch?

 

Another thing, Im going to make mine out of MDF but I was thinking of making the panels out of plastic and inserting them into a cutout in the MDF. What are your thoughts on this or how did you tackle it? I find the MDF is just too thick for the switches and I make a mess trying to countersing the back - are you using a router?

 

Really inspiring and your UFC isnt a poormans!

 

 

Thanks for the kind comments. Nope, not a carpenter, although I know enough to be dangerous, but still keep my fingers intact. . Used to be an Offset Pressman for many years, now I have gone over to the "Dark Side",..... I fix copiers. I dabble in wood, metal, a bit of welding, etc. I'm pretty handy but I know that some others could put me to shame. I have a router, router table, jigsaw, contractors table saw, milling machine, small metal lathe, + smaller tools.

 

For MFCD monitor screens if you look at the first or second post (about my panel, not in the hijacked section) I'm sure I gave the info on what I used. Tigershark did a great job on the switch setup info, I used that, especially the part on modifying the .lua file for detecting the OFF position of switches.

 

The most problems I had was with attaching the three position switches to the USB board. I had an older Leo Bodnar USB board I was using for my rudders & TB's. This has the axes + 32 buttons + hat switch on the USB and is seen as another USB controller by the sim. But to use this with the switches I needed a switch matrix breakout board with diodes on it to hook all the switch wires to (then hooked to the USB board w/12 wires). I made that OK, but hooking up the three position switches was a problem for a while (actually a problem from hell !!). But I found some help and finally got it sorted. If you get Leo's USB board do yourself a favor and get the "X" version. No matrix breakout board needed, just hook up the switch wires to it. A bit more $$, but worth every penny IMHO.

 

No need to change the labeling on any of the three position switches. The center position is physically off with these switches. So when setting them up you hook the center switch terminal to GND, the outer terminals to a button position on the USB board (one button position for each terminal), so a three position (ON-OFF-ON) switch would have wires to two buttons on your USB card, middle switch wire to GND. The OFF position will need an addition to the .lua file which basically detects when either button connected to the switch is turned OFF and triggers that event to the sim (which can actually turn something OFF or ON, depending on what's needed, like the "baro/radar/alt" switch). It would be good to visit Tigersharks thread, he has a video explaining this in detail. After the .lua file is altered it's just a matter to assign the various switch's to the sims key bindings. You need to check the sims key bindings, some have them for the OFF position of some switches, some items don't.

 

I used thin aluminum as a base for the AHCP switch panel, a laser printed switch labeling sandwiched between the aluminum with a layer of plexiglass on top (I tried a non-glare plxi used for pictures, Home Depot). The labeling was used as a template for drilling (small black "+'s" marking the center of the switch holes, which I did in white). The MDF (1/2" in my case) is cut out where the group of switch bodies live on the back side to give the needed clearance for them while leaving enough MDF material for the panel's attachment screws in the corners. Still have to be careful not to tighten the panel screws too tight, they will break the plexiglass if too tight, just touching is good.

 

A good Forstner Bit in a drill press makes real clean, flat bottom holes, limiting factor is the depth of the drill press throat (distance from bit to column). I used the F bit for some switches that were alone and not in a panel group (Stores Jettison & Fire Ext Bottle switches). Hand holding one would work if you didn't try to rush the cut and the piece was clamped down so it could not move, it would be harder to control depth & keep it straight than when using a drill press.

 

NOTE: A regular drill bit will most likely break plexiglass, It needs a special grind on the tip of the drill, but a Uni Step Drill bit of the proper size will work very well and it makes nice round holes. A bit expensive, but again, worth it IMHO. Make sure the Plxi is supported while drilling.

 

Been taking a break from this project, but I will post more when I get back to it.

 

Edited July 3, 2011 by CubPilot

[CubPilot]

LDG Gear Panel

 

The LDG Gear Panel I made is not exactly as in the A-10C, mine fits the room that I have for it on my panel and adds the Anti-Skid, LDG & Taxi Light, and Downlock Override switches along with the LDG Gear Handle.

 

 

 

The LDG Gear indicator lights and Flap Position Indicator are non-functional, just thought the graphics added a bit to the panel so it says "aircraft". I can't show it attached to the wing panel and the main panel yet. I just painted the left wing panel and the paint is still wet. The four holes are for the panel mounting screws. I tried painting the three balls on the LDG & Taxi light switch gold, but didn't like it. Saw a pic of the real thing and they were silver, so scratched the paint off the balls on my switch and I like that much better.

 

 

:pilotfly:

Edited July 20, 2011 by CubPilot

[beynesairforce]

I look Flim's video about his mini pit. it seems he use a leo card for the interface and he's able to have landing light (3 green and LDG handle) working.

 

You do a great job CubPilot ant making a patchwork of your and Flim pit should become my priority.

[CubPilot]

I look Flim's video about his mini pit. it seems he use a leo card for the interface and he's able to have landing light (3 green and LDG handle) working.

 

You do a great job CubPilot ant making a patchwork of your and Flim pit should become my priority.

 

Thanks. Flim does nice work too. Leo's USB cards emulate a USB controller and as such only send the axis and button press info via USB TO a sim.

 

To make the LDG Gear & indicator Lights active on a instrument panel you need to GET the info from the sim to turn them on and off as required. This requires a different kind of card. I think that Flim is using a Phidgets 1031 Advanced LED controller card which is designed to do this along with Helios to bind the various lights outputs from the sim to the Phidgets card.

 

 

:pilotfly:

[CubPilot]

LDG Gear Panel installed on instrument panel

 

Paint is dry, attached the left wing panel and LDG Gear Panel to the main instrument panel.

 

 

 

I decided to paint the wing panels gray, similar to the real A-10C panel. They are attached using wood dowels, but only glued in on the main panel side so I can take the wing panels off easily if I want to add any other switches to them. That way the monitors and other items aren't in the way while drilling holes, etc., it keeps the MDF dust (nasty stuff) away from the rest of the panel components. The LDG Gear panel is a bit darker than shown, I tweaked the photo to bring out some of the detail in the shadows.

 

 

 

:pilotfly:

Edited July 21, 2011 by CubPilot

[beynesairforce]

Did you planned to "backlight" your "mini-pit" or not ?

[juankeiko]

Thanks. Flim does nice work too. Leo's USB cards emulate a USB controller and as such only send the axis and button press info via USB TO a sim.

 

To make the LDG Gear & indicator Lights active on a instrument panel you need to GET the info from the sim to turn them on and off as required. This requires a different kind of card. I think that Flim is using a Phidgets 1031 Advanced LED controller card which is designed to do this along with Helios to bind the various lights outputs from the sim to the Phidgets card.

 

 

:pilotfly:

 

The board for LED appears on your post is fine. But if you want to do in a more simple and economical you can use a RELAY.

The same function. It is not difficult. It is basic electronics.

There are many videos on youtube that explains how to add LEDs.

Regards.:thumbup:

[CubPilot]

I'm not going to do back lighting on the switch panels at this time. I'm going to use flood lighting as I used for the keypad as shown in this post. It works much better that the picture shows (due to using flash to take the picture) and also illuminates the AHCP lettering well enough to be very usable in a darkened room. I'm not completely ruling back lighting out, but I just don't want to spend the time on that now.

 

juankeiko, maybe I missed something. I can see how I could have three LED's to turn on when activated by my panels Gear Down switch, but I'm talking about having the Gear Down LED's reflect what DCS A-10C's Gear Down indicator lights are showing inside the sim and interfacing that info to my Gear Down panel lights. If I had LDG Gear damage my panel would still indicate all three were down & locked while the sims indicators might not.

 

 

:pilotfly:

[pcalvert]

Hi CubPilot, where did you get the 'wheel/ knob' for your landing gear lever? Did you make it?

[CubPilot]

Sorry for the delay, just back from vacation.

 

I made the LDG Gear knob from some aluminum I had laying around, so currently, being solid aluminum, it can not have a light in it like the real thing does.

 

At this point I'm looking for functionality and not an exact copy of the real thing. The handle shaft is made of some 1/4" x 1" aluminum bar stock I also had on hand and I put a bend in it as the real one has, not to any specs, just bent it so it looked about right. The knob has a slot milled into it so the end of the bar stock fits inside the knob, it's held on with two small set screws on one side of the knob.

 

 

:pilotfly:

[CubPilot]

The Matrix From Hell!

 

I thought I might as well show my button matrix breakout board.

 

I had no previous experience with button matrix's before. I was using a Leo Bodnar BU0836 USB PCB to convert my TM RCS rudder axes to USB and decided to add the AHCP panel switches + the others to make full use of the USB board. This USB board is the older version and to use its 32 buttons a button matrix was needed as shown below.

 

 

What's a button matrix? Well on the BU0836 it is a 6x6 matrix (6x6=36, I said there are 32 buttons..??? The other four are for a HAT switch). There are 6 ROWS and 6 COLUMNS. The BU0836 only has 6 header pins on the PCB for ROWS and 6 header pins for COLUMNS. With a full compliment of buttons + the hat switch each header pin would need 6 wires attached to it, not an easy thing to do because the header pins are small & close together. The answer is the button breakout board to the rescue. It will allow easy connections to be made to each ROW & COLUMN. It also allows the diodes to be on this PCB instead of being wired at each button/switch. It makes it easy to modify the button/switch wiring.

 

So.... how the hell does this matrix work with only 12 connections (6 ROWS & 6 COLUMNS) on Leo's USB board with 32 buttons + 4 hat switches connected to it? Well, the microprocessor on the USB board scans each ROW looking for a COLUMN that is shorted (button pushed or switch closed). The processor can tell which COLUMN is shorted and along with knowing what ROW it's on it can determine the button number that is being pushed (or the switch that is closed) and send this info for processing to the USB interface. It scans each row very quickly so button "lag" is not a problem.

 

The diodes (depicted by a bar and triangle "|<" above) acts like a one way valve. It allows electricity to flow in only one direction. If the matrix was made up of buttons and only one button was pressed at one time the diodes would not be needed. But, because we are using switches that could result in multiple "button" presses the diodes are needed. Certain combinations of multiple button presses can result in "phantom" button presses, that is a button could be shown as being pressed but it physically is not pressed. This has to do with the varying paths that the electricity can flow in the matrix with different combination's of multiple button presses. The diodes prevent this from happening.

 

If I were buying this USB board today I would get the "X" version, no button matrix is needed, just connect the button/switch wires to its connectors.

 

 

This is what I started with (show above). At the top a bunch of diodes (like the one shown above), the green PCB terminal wire connectors, short wires (not shown),and the Strip PCB. The PCB I used was a bit bigger than what is shown above. One side has copper traces (wires) running in one direction, the other side doesn't. The copper traces reduce the wires that you use on the PCB and can be cut to isolate the different electrical circuits.

 

 

First thing I did was work out a wiring diagram that I thought would work & fit on my PCB. At the bottom of the PCB above are the two groups of connections that are attached to Leo's BU0836 USB board. The group at the bottom left connects 6 ROW wires to the USB board, the group at the bottom right connects 6 COLUMN wires to the USB board.

 

The two vertical rows to the left are the terminals for the ROW connections from the buttons/switches, the diodes are arranged in between the connectors. Along the right side and at the top are the connectors for the COLUMN connections from the buttons/switches. The wires on the PCB make the proper connections for the COLUMNS.

 

There are six groups of six connections for the buttons/switches. Each group of 6 button/switch connections are either one ROW or one COLUMN depending on which ones are being considered. I marked these to avoid confusion later on.

 

 

The above picture shows the back of the breakout PCB, the ROWS & diodes are on the left half, the COLUMNS & wire connections are shown on the right half of the PCB. Because one group of 6 COLUMN connections are turned 90 degrees from the other COLUMN connections I had to come up with some "funky" wiring to get it right............. but it works. :thumbup:

 

 

Above is shown the breakout PCB connected to the BU0836 USB board (blue colored PCB). At the right of the BU0836 PCB are the pin headers where the wires connect to (with yellow shrink tube on wires). The top group are for my rudders, the bottom group are for the button/switch matrix.

 

The green PCB below the BU0836 PCB is a DB15 connector breakout board. Plug your DB15 rudder cable (NOTE: DB15 Gameport rudders won't work, my DB15 is a custom cable) into the connector and each pin of the DB15 connector has a screw connection on the right side of the PCB (blue terminal strip). Attach the wiring correctly and then do the same at the BU0836 and the DB15 is attached to USB. It just worked out really well, the BU0836 fits on the DB15 breakout board nicely! :thumbup:

 

So, why do I call this the "MATRIX FROM HELL" ? Well it had to do with how I wired some of my switches on the AHCP panel. Most are grouped with 6 contacts wired with a common ground, meaning one ground wire for 6 contacts and 6 other wires (from other side(s) of each switch) going to the matrix breakout board. It took some experimenting and some :helpsmilie:from others to get this to work properly. After much swearing and wondering WHY I got myself into this I finally got it working. My matrix breakout PCB board was wired correctly, but some of the switches had to be hooked up in a manner that one would not think was correct at first glance, even for the "pro" who helped me. :doh: >>>>>>>>>>>>> But it works!! :thumbup:

 

 

 

:pilotfly:

Edited August 16, 2011 by CubPilot

[CubPilot]

So, I unhooked the panel from the computer to tidy up a few things on the backside.

 

 

This "wiring spaghetti", an example of wiring gone wild, will never do! It invites trouble with wires getting caught on something and being pulled out of the connectors. The wires are as long as they are so they are long enough to be able to make changes to the connections to make it all work correctly.

 

 

Now, this is much better! The wiring is more controlled and I can actually see the connector markings now. If I were to make the USB button break out board again I think I would have had the connectors at the back turned 180 degrees like the middle connectors are. It would make connecting the switch/button wires much easier. :doh:

I have about 5 more button/switch connections left plus the four hat connections. The wiring going towards the right goes to the LDG Gear, Taxi/LDG Light and the other items there.

 

 

This is a broader view of the back of the panel. It is clamped to the 2x4 so it's level, which makes it easier to work on & prevents it from tipping over. I would not want to break the monitor screens. I dropped one on the floor while taking them apart earlier in the build..... the results were not good.... had to order a new one. I had to move the USB hub to the right side (partially hidden by the clamp) when I added the AHCP switch panel below the keypad (green PCB at the upper middle), there wasn't room for both the AHCP panel & the USB hub there. To the left you can see Leo's USB PCB on top of the Rudder DB15 breakout PCB. The USB cable connection is pointed towards you, the rudder DB15 connector is pointed to the left.

 

The white item attached to the left side of the left monitor is the ON/OFF/Dimmer for the LED flood lighting. I just reach around the right side of the panel (from the front) to access the control knob to adjust the LED brightness or turn them On or OFF. These are very bright 12v 5050 SMD LEDS. Each LED has three lighting chips in it, so you get three times the brightness in that configuration. I found another cool 5050 SMD LED item and I plan to use it to make a LED post light to put over the LDG Gear Panel to illuminate it. It will be added onto to the LED wiring already there and will be able to be dimmed with the others. I think I can make it work, we will see.

 

 

 

:pilotfly:

Edited June 18, 2012 by CubPilot

[walker450]

Great work! I love how it has progressed.

[HitchHikingFlatlander]

Looking great Cub.

[TulsA-10]

Man that setup looks really good. I solder everyday on cell phones and game systems. SOldering is an art form and yours looks good. I really liked your T-Handle setup.

[CubPilot]

My Version of the Whelen Post Light

 

First of all thanks for all your kind comments. TulsA-10, I do OK at soldering, but I haven't tackled the really small SMC connections as in a cell phone. I did the matrix PCB using a cheap Radio Shack iron, but since then found a real good deal on a Weller electronically controlled digital soldering station that I couldn't pass up.

 

OK now on to the post light.

 

 

This is a Whelen Post Light. It is made to be a replacement for one of the screws that hold aircraft instruments to the instrument panel. It uses an incandescent bulb. My version will use a very bright 12v 5050 SMD LED instead of the incandescent bulb and since there are no real aircraft instruments in my "computer" A-10C instrument panel the mounting will be a bit different.

 

 

 

 

I found this neat 12v 5050 SMD LED that is mounted on a small, thin, flexible, pcb. The backside of the LED has double sided adhesive tape on it to attach it to any surface. It also has flat wires from the pcb that the "normal" wires are attached to. The wiring includes the proper size resistor for use with 12v DC. This is perfect for my needs as the other panel lighting LEDs are the same type with the same voltage requirements and I can add the post light LEDS to the same circuit so that they all are controlled via the Dimmer/ON-OFF unit .

 

I bought the Whelen Post Light Caps for 0.48 cents each (black item to the right). Then made my own aluminum "post". I turned it to the proper dimensions so the hood would fit. Because I could not feed the LED wires through a hole (due to size of the resistor on the LED wiring and the diameter of the post), I elected to mill a slot down one side of the post for the LED ribbon wires.

 

 

 

 

Shown above is the 5050 SMD LED stuck onto the end of the post with the flat ribbon wire positioned in the slot. This LED has three LED Diode lighting chips on it and outputs 5 times the brightness of a regular 5mm LED!

 

 

 

 

 

This picture shows the ribbon wire and the slot more clearly. I used double sided tape to hold the ribbon wire to the bottom of the slot. The slot is deeper at the left so the ribbon wire will not get caught by the nut that fastens the post light to the instrument panel.

 

Notice the raised portion at the right end of the post. The Cap has an indentation that will mate up with the raised part, thus holding the Cap on to the end of the post.

 

 

 

 

A little bit of epoxy and the slot disappears. I was careful not to let the epoxy run over the sides of the slot. I let it set up some and then trimmed it flat across each side of the slot. After painting, the flat area will not be very noticeable because it will be out of view near the bottom side of the post.

 

Notice the white material inside the post cap. It's reflective and will redirect the light of the LED down onto the panel.

 

 

 

 

Above shows the back side of the post light. It is held by a "pal" nut (used as a jam nut in aviation in certain situations). I need to secure the wiring so the flat "wire" will not become damaged if the wire gets tugged on a bit.

 

 

 

 

 

So, here is the Post Light mounted in the instrument panel illuminating the LDG Gear Switch Panel, the LED is at full brightness. The inside of the Post Light is not seen when in use, you see it here because of the camera angle. There is another Post Light above and to the left of the Flap Indicator (it is not a switch as some have thought). I will probably add a post light there to illuminate the lower part of this panel and LDG Gear Down lettering.

 

 

 

 

 

Just for fun here's the UFC keyboard and AHCP panel with the LED flood lighting. It works pretty well and is very usable in the dark. Again, the LED units at the top at each side of the APU Fire Pull handle are seen due to camera angle, but are not seen in normal use. I'm going to redo the keypad key labeling with a black background (it's a medium dark gray color now) so it will show up better, more like the AHCP panel lettering

 

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how this turned out! :thumbup:

 

 

 

:pilotfly:

Edited June 18, 2012 by CubPilot

[TulsA-10]

WOW! nice lighting.. i'll have to try this out when i get my build going. Hey if your looking for a great iron i can tell you a weller wes51 with the .64 long conical tips is the best iron i've ever used and it's only around $85 online. I have use $2G Pace irons and did not like it compared to the weller. I own a cell phone and game console repair shop here in tulsa and have been soldering for 15 years so if your looking for a better iron the wes51 is all i'll use.

 

You should put up a youtube walkaround with the lighting.

Edited September 1, 2011 by TulsA-10

[CubPilot]

WOW! nice lighting.. i'll have to try this out when i get my build going. Hey if your looking for a great iron i can tell you a weller wes51 with the .64 long conical tips is the best iron i've ever used and it's only around $85 online. I have use $2G Pace irons and did not like it compared to the weller. I own a cell phone and game console repair shop here in tulsa and have been soldering for 15 years so if your looking for a better iron the wes51 is all i'll use.

 

You should put up a youtube walkaround with the lighting.

 

Actually, the Weller soldering station I bought is a WESD51 with the Digital temp readout. It reads and controls the temperature of the tip on the iron same as yours. Very nice unit, and I got it at a reduced price with a rebate to boot! So far I'm happy with it. :thumbup:

 

I'm not sure what tip it came with but I will check out the .64 conical tip. Where is a good place to find them reasonably priced (if that's possible)?

 

Not sure about the uTube video. My still camera will do video, but it isn't very good.

 

The lighting is much better looking than what the camera shows. It is a much more even lighting with out all the hot spots. For example in the last picture in my previous post there is not the green hot spot between the Laser Arm & TGP switches when viewing it with your Mk II eyeballs. The intensity does drop off with added distance from the light source, but the approximate same distance from the light source will appear to be the same brightness. There are shadows from the switch handles, but it still is very usable as far as seeing the switch markings. At the brighter settings anything that may be below the panel can be seen, like cockpit checklists for example.

 

 

:pilotfly:

Edited September 1, 2011 by CubPilot

[TulsA-10]

They come with a .32 most of the time. the smaller tip is perfect for just about anything unless you are soldering heavy pcb's or think grounds. The temp setting i use is 750 for lead and 900 for lead free. The wesd51 is a good unit.

 

Keep up the good work man!