Grass' pit, "Ridgewood"

[agrasyuk]

thank you streakagle. worst comes to worst i will splurge and buy premixed paint.

 

Side consoles sheeted. inside will get painted with white primer. I'm not sure yet how to proceed with outside. ordinary latex will be easy and fast, enamel is durable but dries times and times longer. I was considering to rattle can it..

 

Edited October 8, 2020 by agrasyuk

[agrasyuk]

The pointy angled MIP did not look right to me at all. Reworked the shape somewhat, and made a curved glare shield.

Side consoles are painted.

The seat is now built up, not a replica, but resembles an ejection seat close enough for me. With a bit more detail it will be passable. The G seat idea will have to wait - flaps are rigidly mounted for now. Perhaps I will motorize them few more years later ) . Ejection , seat position and other on-seat controls are in progress.

Seat cushions are sewn, went with "black fur" style of seat.

Virpil Mongoose CM2 is mounted. reflashed to use with TMWH grip. Used their 200mm curved extension, heavy spring on pitch, default on roll. Seems solid but there is a noticeable wobble near the center point and I would have definitely liked at least some damping. But for now it will do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall a neat enough looking pit so hopefully the SO's nagging "your room looks like construction" will subside for now.

 

[agrasyuk]

experimented with DCS-BIOS via max485 bus. was breaking my head why would master not talk to slaves but it looks like having good ICs helps.

Thank you Ian, Hansolo and everyone who helped make it happen!

 

mounted HCMS-2973 displays onto the "testbed" and prototyped a CMSC sketch- it's a go!

 

 

time to order the PCB

Edited December 12, 2020 by agrasyuk

[agrasyuk]

Testing CMSP screen export with four SLG-2016 displays. Displaying line 1. with 5 outputs remaining on the Nano i'm not yet sure if the same device can drive the second row.

 

I received my first ever order of PCBs:

Backplates for full-sized MFCDs, DCS-BIOS RS485 breakout board for Nano board, Amplifier for slew transducer.

breakout board will need to be redone - I forgot to expose the 5V pin.

Slew Amp is described by Gadroc here: (link)

Started assembling the Amplifier and discovered that i do not have a single 1K resistor. Spent few hours sorting through the mixed "Sort later" pile, but no luck. will have to wait till package from ebay gets here to test.

 

Edited December 12, 2020 by agrasyuk

[agrasyuk]

Revisiting my Landing gear panel design.

Indicator lenses and switch guard plate will get permanently installed after the yellow striping is painted for the DL Override area.

Testing my approach of simulating the magnetic hold switch (anti-skid) with a circuit breaker. 

 

 

 

 

 

the Needle in the flap gauge is individually lit with 3206 SMT diode.

 

Edited December 12, 2020 by agrasyuk

[gianlu320]

Hello Anton

 

Very nice project you have over there..

Can I ask you to explain how you use a Circuit braker to simulate a magnetic held switch?

I am trying to do the same for a F16 pit but I don't have any clue on how to do it.

 

Thanks

[agrasyuk]

Thank you Gianlu. 

this is a two pole breaker. one pole is used to supply the switch signal as input into arduino running a DCS BIOS slave sketch. second pin is setup to output state of the switch in game inverted . this output controls Darlington transistor that opens up a high current from supply through second pole of the breaker causing it to trip.

Naturally the problem with this solution is when you try to power the switch to from OFF to  ON the Darlington is in the open state (since the game sends inverted position - 1) and the circuit will immediately trip. This is not an issue with pure magnetic hold as you can hold the switch up until the game sends the signal to hold it on.

 

The trick is to have enough delay. delay achieved by

1. breaker with sufficient delay.

2. powering the circuit with just enough amps over the breaker rating to cause a slower trip.

In my case it's breaker rated for 1Amp,  an old laptop 16V power supply and a 10W 4 Ohm resistor (it does get warmer to the touch after few trips).

 

the quick schema and a dirty piece of code is below. I tried to write a separate handler for this with software delay , but somehow I 'm having difficulty extracting the actual switch position from the game. Video was recorded with hardware delay and the solution below. 

 

DcsBios::Switch2Pos antiSkidSwitch("ANTI_SKID_SWITCH", 4);

void onAntiSkidSwitchChange(unsigned int skidTripValue) {
   if (skidTripValue==0) {        
    digitalWrite(11, HIGH);
   }
   else if (skidTripValue==1){
    digitalWrite(11, LOW);
   }
}
DcsBios::IntegerBuffer antiSkidSwitchBuffer(0x1110, 0x0080, 7, onAntiSkidSwitchChange);


pinMode(11, OUTPUT);

 

[gianlu320]

Wow, brillant!!

Thanks a lot for the explanation.

I will try this asap

 

[agrasyuk]

Full size MFCDs. 

 

In comparison to TM MFD

[Deadman]

Nice work will you post a how to? or picture of your build?

[agrasyuk]

On 12/20/2020 at 6:31 PM, Deadman said:

Nice work will you post a how to? or picture of your build?

I didn't discover any ground breaking technology to make those.

The body comprised of laser cut .220mil acrylic mid layer and .100mil top layer. Bottom layer is the PCB holding 6.5x3.6mm SMT tactile buttons and 1206 SMT backlight LEDs. supporting back layer has a recess for rotary switch wire (rotary is not soldered to PCB) and is used as drill guide for mounting.  Middle layer is drilled and tapped to hold M2 screws. top and mid layers are welded together with dichloromethane (acrylic cement) , bevel is cut with hand router and a guided chamfer router bit. button tabs are cemented into recesses and once solid sanded. rotary switch housing is glued, will house either Grayhill or a rectangular ALPS miniature rotary. the entire assembly is sanded, washed and coated with several layers of paint until the backlighting bleed is completely blocked. waiting for the paint to dry is the hardest part, I do have several ruined assemblies where paint got lifted after i impatiently recoated before the prior layer completely hardened. 

my old molds warped after few years of improper storage, so I had to redo the button molds. buttons are cast with clear resin, washed, coated with several layers of black and then layer of grey (with days of wait between the coats). laser engraved in a fixture and hand painted with white runny paint to fill the engraved recesses. going forward i will be masking buttons during the engrave stage . white striping is a sticky vinyl tape. Not greatest solution, it's not very sticky and some stripes separated after few days. glued back on with a tiny drop of superglue. Will be lathe turning aluminum knobs for the switch.  

 

connectivity is via adapter PCB that exposes buttons into a ordinary header. I intend to use a pair of POKEY56 cards configured into joysticks since I already have those. 30 buttons + 3 switch positions leaves 3 extra inputs that I exposed on the adapter PCB. (joystick has 32 buttons +4 HAT inputs)

 

  

Edited December 31, 2020 by agrasyuk

[Deadman]

Interesting thanks for the up date

[agrasyuk]

Conversion of A-10a throttle:
removed the microswitch bank. Cut and glued a bracket from 0.25" acrylic to hold hall sensor/microswitch assembly as well as Bodnar BUO836X and slew sensor amplifier. sensor Arms are cut from 6mm acrylic, tightens around hall sensor shaft with M2 bolt. Electronics are bolted into threaded plastic with standoffs, that way the entire assembly is self standing and comfortable to work with. 
 

 

sensor Arm is of length to provide exactly 80degrees of rotation (since that's the model I got).  Microswitch is activated after the idle detent is passed. Wire management still in progress. Thinking whether to put the effort painting with the green primer... 

 

 

 

New front plate is in progress. the original is dull, lit with orange and a bit scratched. Waiting for another coat of paint and then to be engraved and lit with SMT diodes embedded into the acrylic. I found a font that resembles the actual very closely , but still Curious if anyone knows the exact font used on this panel (it's not the MS33558) . 

 

Turned some Knobs for the right grip directional switches i'm building.

One of those tasks that seems trivial  but turns into huge pain. Ended up making a dedicated tool and part holder  . Now I can turn a dozen of them in minutes with precise repeatability  if I ever need more

[Lobinjaevel]

Such an awesome build, love seeing it progress! 

 

Great job! 

[agrasyuk]

Lob, thank you for the comment!

 

Part that I dread the most,  modification of the right throttle handle. after some poking around the slew amplifier board is alive so i will be reusing the original slew stick. 
Embedded picture of the original into CAD, drew and cut replacement side plate with rearranged switch mounting points.  Cutting original handle was accomplished on table saw, one messy and smelly operation even with respirator. my attempt at 5 way switches for now needs additional work, works but the feel is horrible. 
replacement front plate is engraved. 

 

 

 

 

 

Fuel panel is complete. 
I don't want to remove section of rail from my console so the fuel reciever handle moved slightly left from original location. still this looks organic enough for me. 
Interfaced with one of my old GPWiz cards , this way I will be able to use it for other sims. 

 

 

Edited January 7, 2021 by agrasyuk

[agrasyuk]

glued the new side plate with polyurethane glue yesterday. today I grinded the edges away. Belt sander is a great tool, but it starts to melt the acrylic pretty fast. after removing the rough edges it was back to file and a vise for this job.

The shape came out pretty good.

anyone with source for Otto mini trim switches? mouser has the castle ones in stock... TK-4G4312 is backordered. I almost gave up on making my own

 

 

 

backlit Flap switch guard is being assembled. engraved face sheet will be heated and pressed around the housing. 

Edited January 9, 2021 by agrasyuk

[Deadman]

Watch ebay found some for a reasonable price. The caps were not correct but they work great 

[agrasyuk]

Not finding anything that will fit the built at the moment.
Hopefully something turns up eventually. 

 

LDG panel stencil to trace the exact cutout. Fitting for irregularly shaped surfaces. the strangely shaped SAS panel fits in perfectly. the rectangular that i made earlier will be up for sale shortly. LDG panel stencil to trace the exact cutout.

 

 

Fuel panel, now with knobs. the receiver lever is not spring loaded but spring tensioned to keep position. this provides for a nice heavy-ish pull action.

Backlight turned out beautifully for that one. IOU a picture once the console gets some power of it's own.

Edited January 12, 2021 by agrasyuk

[amido]

really a great job

Edited January 13, 2021 by amido

[agrasyuk]

Thank you very much for the comment amido.

 

MIP in progress



CMSC Details

 

 

New faceplate for the throttle is complete.
lots of SMT LEDs glued into recesses ground into the backside. Backside is layered with  clear insulating tape, aluminum reflective tape and self adhesive PVC light blocking 

old VS new.
if anyone wants the original throttle faceplate let me know (it lights up with 5V. orange)

 

And mounted. looking at this picture I think it was worth all the effort. now I need to find these OTTO directional switches. Mouser reports availability ETA of March, ebay searches come up dry. anyone has a beat on suitable mini trim switches for left throttle handle?

 

 

left console so far

 

and for the fun of it I stuffed everything I have

 

[DeadMeat]

Mini trims for the inboard throttle - I used a T4-TCG3312 (tactile version) for MIC switch and T4-CG1112 ("silent" version) for the SOI switch on my Warthog throttle upgrade... Both are in stock on mouser right now. I think the "OTTO version" of the real Mason MIC switch would be a full size T4 (same size as the trim switch on the stick grip), but the T4-T works great.

Edited January 24, 2021 by DeadMeat

[agrasyuk]

thanks DM. I was monitoring the TK series , T4 somehow didn't come up on my radar. researched the catalog some more and verified the sizes. after some back and forth and then a painful plunge I have pair of T5 switches incoming. Right engine throttle grip is painted and ready. 
 

My warthog is getting an upgraded IFF , looks like it was pulled from a Viper  . Non rectangular to fit a very specific location.
First batch of knobs painted

 

IAS, ADI and altimeter bezels

 

Trying to make functional ELEC/PNE switch with embedded pair of 6mm tactile buttons

[agrasyuk]

CMSC device is alive.

Based around HCMS-2973 displays. 
Buttons still need to be engraved. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Boltz]

Wow Anton! Fast progress and very professional. I like the new throttle panel, looks much better with green backlighting. MFDs and CMSC are absolutely top quality. Are you taking orders?

[agrasyuk]

Hi Callum, great to hear from you again and thank you for kind words. Fast? Well, I guess that is relative . From my vantage point I don't get nearly as much time as I would have liked to work on these .
I have extra PCBs left, I would love to have my devices as part of your build.

But we will need to confirm fitment and  I cannot commit to a timeframe at this point. weather is a factor, right now it's -10C so the laser coolant bucket is frozen shut .  plus started new work last week and it takes pretty much remainder of the free time. All I can promise is that I eventually will get to it   . What devices are you interested in? 

 

current version of DCSBIOS code for CMSC (still WIP) : 

 

Spoiler

/*
  The following #define tells DCS-BIOS that this is a RS-485 slave device.
  It also sets the address of this slave device. The slave address should be
  between 1 and 126 and must be unique among all devices on the same bus.
*/
#define DCSBIOS_RS485_SLAVE 2

/*
  The Arduino pin that is connected to the
  /RE and DE pins on the RS-485 transceiver.
*/
#define TXENABLE_PIN 2
#include "DcsBios.h"

#include <LedDisplay.h>

// Define pins for the LED display.
// You can change these, just re-wire your board:
#define dataPin 9              // connects to the display's data in
#define registerSelect 11       // the display's register select pin
#define clockPin 12             // the display's clock pin
#define enable 10               // the display's chip enable pin
#define reset 8              // the display's reset pin
#define displayLength 24        // number of characters in the display

// create am instance of the LED display library:
LedDisplay myDisplay = LedDisplay(dataPin, registerSelect, clockPin,
                                  enable, reset, displayLength);
int brightness = 15;        // screen brightness

void onCmscTxtJmrChange(char* newValue) {
    /* your code here */
   myDisplay.setCursor(0);
   myDisplay.print(newValue);
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer<8> cmscTxtJmrBuffer(0x1096, onCmscTxtJmrChange);

void onCmscTxtChaffFlareChange(char* newValue) {
    /* your code here */
    
   myDisplay.setCursor(8);
   myDisplay.print(newValue);
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer<8> cmscTxtChaffFlareBuffer(0x108e, onCmscTxtChaffFlareChange);

void onCmscTxtMwsChange(char* newValue) {
    /* your code here */
   myDisplay.setCursor(16);
   myDisplay.print(newValue);
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer<8> cmscTxtMwsBuffer(0x12b0, onCmscTxtMwsChange);

DcsBios::PotentiometerEWMA<5, 128, 5> cmscRwrVol("CMSC_RWR_VOL", A2);
DcsBios::PotentiometerEWMA<5, 128, 5> cmscBrt("CMSC_BRT", A1);
DcsBios::LED cmscLaunch(0x1012, 0x0100, A3);
DcsBios::LED cmscPrio(0x1012, 0x0200, A4);
DcsBios::LED cmscUnkn(0x1012, 0x0400, A5);

DcsBios::Switch2Pos cmscSep("CMSC_SEP", 6);
DcsBios::Switch2Pos cmscPri("CMSC_PRI", 7);
DcsBios::Switch2Pos cmscUnk("CMSC_UNK", 5);
DcsBios::Switch2Pos cmscJmr("CMSC_JMR", 3);
DcsBios::Switch2Pos cmscMws("CMSC_MWS", 4);

void setup() {
  DcsBios::setup();
  pinMode(A3, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(A4, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(A5, OUTPUT);
  myDisplay.begin();
  // set the brightness of the display:
  myDisplay.setBrightness(brightness);
}

void loop() {
  DcsBios::loop();
}