Novint Falcon controller haptic feedback hacking.

Post by **nubie** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:56 pm

Sweet:
http://home.novint.com/products/novint_falcon.php

Hacking it:
http://www.hackaday.com/2008/03/28/reve ... nt-falcon/
http://qdot.livejournal.com/236133.html

Looks neat, useful touch feedback should allow virtual worlds to be even more immersive.

Post by **crim3** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 4:07 pm

Looks like a great device. There are some cool videos at youtube. I'd like to put my hand on it and try that "spheres demo" shown at the videos.

Post by **nubie** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 7:51 pm

You can pick one up for $160 at Walmart.com!

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product. ... id=9107831

I now want to hax up my own version (I only need to hack into 2 old ball mice for the encoders, 3 mice could make 2 of these.)

I just need to figure out what to use for the joints, I need at minimum 6 joints constrained to only move in 2 planes (and of course the 3 rotary encoders)

I don't have to have the feedback, just the 3d control would be awesome.

I am betting that this is only 3 degrees of freedom (no rotation, only sliding), but I wonder if I put a rotating control knob/stick on the end I could add a couple axis pretty easily. Or simply use one with each hand to gain the rotation axi'.

Post by **cirk2** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 4:01 am

The Device is realy nice, I tested it at the GC last year.

But the 3D input will only work in Programs written for it... The most games and others only get the 2D input...

Post by **crim3** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 5:29 am

nubie wrote:I now want to hax up my own version (I only need to hack into 2 old ball mice for the encoders, 3 mice could make 2 of these.)

I'm having the idea of using 'old ball mices' to build a throttle quadrant since the day I knew Glovepie. But to have more than 3 axis I need more than one mouse, so I need them to be USB. Have you found usb ball mouses? Or how are you going to do the communication from the encoders to the computer?

cirk2 wrote:But the 3D input will only work in Programs written for it... The most games and others only get the 2D input...

That's not a problem for the all mighty Glovepie.

Post by **nubie** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 9:40 am

Using a firmware USB implementation on an ATMega8 Microcontroller:

http://www.obdev.at/products/avrusb/prjhid.html

Or just hacking it to output a serial stream over the USB, pretending to be a USB to Serial adaptor.

I can't figure out a good cheap source of high quality joints, and under $200 seems to be good deal for the feedback motors et al. Can't afford it though. The fun part would be figuring out the math, it would be a challenge for me.

Someone just bought the Novint Falcon on ebay that was priced at $125 +20 S&H, lucky bastard.