IntelliGamepad - Development Thread

[+fdr4prez]

Within the IntelliStick thread I mentioned that the IntelliStick would be the *very first* Intellivision gamepad.

 

Well, the IntelliGamepad was actually in development for about a year prior to that announcement of the IntelliStick.

 

At that time I wasn't sure if I was going to move forward with the IntelliGamepad development, but I will now work on both in tangent.

 

The same microcontroller chip, with its firmware, will be used in both, so why shouldn't I restart/continue working on both projects at the same time?

 

Here's the concept that I started in 2018/2019 and I built a fully functional proof of concept prototype and some here saw it, and used it, at PRGE-2019.

 

The Sega 3-button gamepad:

 

 

One day I thought to myself, "self? take a look here, this gamepad has three buttons, and a dpad, so what would happen if you remove that d-pad and plop in an analog thumbstick there?"

 

This is what I came up with:

 

 

Since this was all new to me at the time (and still is), I needed to first figure how to get a thumbstick joystick working.

 

I used a thumbstick and an arduino to interface with it.

 

I used the original Sega board and I cut out an opening for the joystick board and the Arduino board:

 

One downside to this concept is that the opening for the Dpad is very large and the thumbstick is a bit tall:

 

Actually, the thumbstick i am using now is a little shorter, but even the one used in that old picture wasn't uncomfortable to play with.  it is a thumbstick after all.

 

But since the dpad hole is so large, there is really nothing to hold the thumbcap on to the joystick, so if you press too hard at the extreme movement range then it will pop off.

 

If this project moves forward, I will need to work on a 3D printed cover that will go over the stick that will hold the cap in place.

 

Since I needed to design my own board to fit into the Sega gamepad housing I was hesitant to move forward with this project because i didn't want to get real boards made if the mounting holes were not in the correct location.

 

Now that i have a 3D printer, i am now able to do test prints of the board to confirm if my board design will be good for the housing.

 

It took 5 or 6 test prints to get all the mounting holes in the right spot.

 

 

I still need to confirm the button locations and where the microcontroller will mount, but that isn't so hard to do.

 

The A/B/C buttons will be the three side action buttons on the Intellivision controller.

 

The original Start button will be wired as the Pause (1+9).

 

The joystick also has a button if you press down on it, so that will be Enter of the Intellivision's keypad.

[+fdr4prez]

Here is a little video of the thumbstick being fiddled...

 

 

 

[+fdr4prez]

Once I got the arduino and joystick wired, and I wrote the code for it, here is a video that shows that I randomly push the stick around and I get all 16 directions:

 

 

 

[+fdr4prez]

This is the functional prototype that I brought to PGRE in 2019, so a few of the Intellinerds that were hanging around in Rev's booth saw it and played with it when I connected it to a system in the booth.

[+fdr4prez]

Obviously, since there are so few buttons, then this would be a gamepad that would be used for when a game doesn't really rely on keypad input.

[+jsmith73]

That's pretty great! I hope you keep a posting your progress.  

[+fdr4prez]

My original name for this project was going to be the IntelliPad.

 

But when @evg2000 released his IntelliPaddle, I then decided not to use such a similar name, so the IntelliGamepad name was born.

 

sorry, IntelliGamepad is a bit long in the tooth, but it suits it and I have limited imagination and desire to come up with another name, so IntelliGamepad it is!

 

By the way, if you've not made an IntelliPaddle, please do so.  It is a great controller.

[+fdr4prez]

As noted in the other thread, there is a mistake in the schematic and board, so I will get that fixed up before I order the board.

[+-^CrossBow^-]

On 9/1/2023 at 6:25 PM, fdr4prez said:

My original name for this project was going to be the IntelliPad.

 

But when @evg2000 released his IntelliPaddle, I then decided not to use such a similar name, so the IntelliGamepad name was born.

 

sorry, IntelliGamepad is a bit long in the tooth, but it suits it and I have limited imagination and desire to come up with another name, so IntelliGamepad it is!

 

By the way, if you've not made an IntelliPaddle, please do so.  It is a great controller.

You could also call it the "IntelliControl"... 

 

[SiLic0ne t0aD]

Awesome work man!

IntelliPad is a great name.. That's what I'd stick with.

[+fdr4prez]

PRGE 2023 was this last weekend.

 

I brought my prototype IntelliGamepad and it was on display in the Intellivision Revolution booth for the weekend.

 

I know a few here did play with it and it received good reviews 

 

I will work on getting the IntelliStick completed first, and then I will get the IntelliGamepad completed.

 

Hopefully by Springtime '24

[+fdr4prez]

On 9/1/2023 at 3:57 PM, fdr4prez said:

One downside to this concept is that the opening for the Dpad is very large and the thumbstick is a bit tall:

 

since the dpad hole is so large, there is really nothing to hold the thumbcap on to the joystick, so if you press too hard at the extreme movement range then it will pop off.

 

If this project moves forward, I will need to work on a 3D printed cover that will go over the stick that will hold the cap in place.

Even though I am not currently working on this project - i will complete my work on the IntelliStick, first - I have been thinking about this issue recently.

 

so I have printed this:

 

 

It fits right nicely into the case:

 

 

Fully installed:

 

 

[+The Intellivision Gamer]

Nice! 

[Rickster8]

It will be interesting to see how this works for a game like Super Pro Decathlon. Events like the Shot Put / Javelin / Discus all work by generating power by quickly pushing (rotating) the disc. In this case using the thumbstick.... Will be interesting to see how high the energy bar goes using this new controller.... 👍

Edited April 24 by Rickster8
Wording

[tripletopper]

AmHello.

 

Explaining my sitch:

 

I have 3 INTVFB controllers.

I use an INTV1 with Flashback adapters

 

I am most used to arcade controls.  My most used controller for all systems is an Xbox Adaptive that powers a digital fight stick.

 

If a game requires / is optimized for a 16-way stick, probably the easiest way to have 16 way control with a large joystick is to take a PC15 80s era flight stick with Thumb and index finger buttons, and convert that using whatever you're using to get 16 way.  Can you easily convert a PC15 to INTV2 pinout using your method to divide the XY space in 16 wedges and one bullseye?

 

I was wondering if a DB9 Splitter with an INTVFB on one fork, and the other fork has a PC15 to INTV2 and 3 3.5mm TRS female for each of the 3 action buttons with a INTV2->INTVFB adapter cord that I provide would work.

 

If so, I'd like to buy something to make this work.

 

Also I recommend RetroGameBoyz.com for an 8-way/4 way adapter for certain games where that would be better.   I bought their 5200 adapter.  I'll buy theirs as a 4/8 way controller interface, and yours as a 16- way interface.

 

BTW Is there a reason to have a third or fourth controller?  I have the Keyboard and add on.  Which games are 4-player?  I'm trying to see where I should sell my third INTVFB or buy a 4th INTV controller.  I originally bought thinking of getting it "padhacked" for a fight stick PCB.  Then I read about complications on doing that.

[+fdr4prez]

2 hours ago, tripletopper said:

AmHello.

 

Explaining my sitch:

 

I have 3 INTVFB controllers.

I use an INTV1 with Flashback adapters

 

I am most used to arcade controls.  My most used controller for all systems is an Xbox Adaptive that powers a digital fight stick.

 

If a game requires / is optimized for a 16-way stick, probably the easiest way to have 16 way control with a large joystick is to take a PC15 80s era flight stick with Thumb and index finger buttons, and convert that using whatever you're using to get 16 way.  Can you easily convert a PC15 to INTV2 pinout using your method to divide the XY space in 16 wedges and one bullseye?

 

I was wondering if a DB9 Splitter with an INTVFB on one fork, and the other fork has a PC15 to INTV2 and 3 3.5mm TRS female for each of the 3 action buttons with a INTV2->INTVFB adapter cord that I provide would work.

 

If so, I'd like to buy something to make this work.

 

Also I recommend RetroGameBoyz.com for an 8-way/4 way adapter for certain games where that would be better.   I bought their 5200 adapter.  I'll buy theirs as a 4/8 way controller interface, and yours as a 16- way interface.

 

BTW Is there a reason to have a third or fourth controller?  I have the Keyboard and add on.  Which games are 4-player?  I'm trying to see where I should sell my third INTVFB or buy a 4th INTV controller.  I originally bought thinking of getting it "padhacked" for a fight stick PCB.  Then I read about complications on doing that.

Thanks for your post.

 

This thread is to discuss the development of my hack of the Sega 3-button gamepad/controller and make a thumbstick compatible controller for the Intellivision. 

 

Anything else is beyond the scope of this thread and my project.

[tripletopper]

Sorry.  I just wanted to see if your design was flexible enough to make an easy to describe mod.

 

And also whether your joystick was a 16 way solution, or a 4 and 8 way solution.  You seem to use some sort of analog to INTV2 pinout adapter, as your  video shows 16 ways.  May I know what you use for the 16 way to INTV2 translation so I can cobble a solution for myself/others?

[+fdr4prez]

On 4/25/2024 at 1:07 PM, tripletopper said:

Sorry.  I just wanted to see if your design was flexible enough to make an easy to describe mod.

 

And also whether your joystick was a 16 way solution, or a 4 and 8 way solution.  You seem to use some sort of analog to INTV2 pinout adapter, as your  video shows 16 ways.  May I know what you use for the 16 way to INTV2 translation so I can cobble a solution for myself/others?

it is 16-way.

 

it is taking an analog thumbstick and it goes into an Arduino Pro Mini (really just the Atmega 328P chip itself) that is running a program that is doing the mapping from the thumbstick, and it is looking for the button presses for the buttons that are on the controller.  

 

The Arduino has 9 outputs that are going to the Intellivision.

 

You can see that all in the second picture of the first post.

[tripletopper]

Can an analog pc15 be read just as easily as an analog stick?  If so, I can have someone who is knowledgeable in that wire up a one of those converter chips programmed to be a Game Port 15 to INTV2  converter.  I understand north south east and west are four separate pins and there's two pins for what fraction of a right angle there is in between the press and a reference angle.  So it could be 1/4, 2/4, or 3/4 as the positions between the Cardinals.  Starting at one Cardinal and either going clockwise or counterclockwise from the "reference angle".

 

If it's just a simple as replacing an actual physical thumb analog stick with a PC 15 game port interface that would be an interesting sub-product that would come out of this.  An Intellivision controller interface for those who like large sticks instead of handheld pads.

 

Then instead of the three buttons being actuated by physical button presses they could be actuated by TRS 3.5 mm connectors so a handicap stick could be plugged in there.  I assume the A B and C all represents the three physical buttons that are unique on the intellivision. 

 

I could provide my own keypad with a DB9 y-adapter, a flashback controller, and the INTV2<->INTVFB converter in the right place and orientation.

 

You don't have to use a physical Genesis pad to house it.  It could be housed in anything, any shape, that could fit a PC 15 game port and three TRS 3.5mm females, so could actually be cheaper because it doesn't have to be as exacting as a physical controller which demands precise placements to be ergonomically correct.

[+fdr4prez]

4 hours ago, tripletopper said:

Can an analog pc15 be read just as easily as an analog stick?  If so, I can have someone who is knowledgeable in that wire up a one of those converter chips programmed to be a Game Port 15 to INTV2  converter.  I understand north south east and west are four separate pins and there's two pins for what fraction of a right angle there is in between the press and a reference angle.  So it could be 1/4, 2/4, or 3/4 as the positions between the Cardinals.  Starting at one Cardinal and either going clockwise or counterclockwise from the "reference angle".

 

If it's just a simple as replacing an actual physical thumb analog stick with a PC 15 game port interface that would be an interesting sub-product that would come out of this.  An Intellivision controller interface for those who like large sticks instead of handheld pads.

 

Then instead of the three buttons being actuated by physical button presses they could be actuated by TRS 3.5 mm connectors so a handicap stick could be plugged in there.  I assume the A B and C all represents the three physical buttons that are unique on the intellivision. 

 

I could provide my own keypad with a DB9 y-adapter, a flashback controller, and the INTV2<->INTVFB converter in the right place and orientation.

 

You don't have to use a physical Genesis pad to house it.  It could be housed in anything, any shape, that could fit a PC 15 game port and three TRS 3.5mm females, so could actually be cheaper because it doesn't have to be as exacting as a physical controller which demands precise placements to be ergonomically correct.

I am sure it's possible, but I know nothing about the items that you want to connect.

 

Again, this thread is about my development of the IntelliGamepad and any other topics are beyond the scope of this thread.

 

You have already started your own thread with your requests.

If someone can help you, then they can reply to that thread.

 

Please stay on topic for this thread.

 

[tripletopper]

One final question. 

 

You said you didn't want to do other projects. 

 

But are you willing to allow what you publish to be used by someone else to create a derivative product, yet not an exact clone?

 

My question is if I get someone to read what you published so far on this, do I have your permission to have this person make a pc-15 game port connected version of a 16-way Intellivision joystick adapte

 

In other words, do you okay him looking at what you've already typed and if he is able to easily make the substitution between two axis analog stick directly wired like you're doing, and pc15 game port control input, like what I want, are you okay with that?

 

Just checking.

[+fdr4prez]

13 hours ago, tripletopper said:

One final question. 

 

You said you didn't want to do other projects. 

 

But are you willing to allow what you publish to be used by someone else to create a derivative product, yet not an exact clone?

 

My question is if I get someone to read what you published so far on this, do I have your permission to have this person make a pc-15 game port connected version of a 16-way Intellivision joystick adapte

 

In other words, do you okay him looking at what you've already typed and if he is able to easily make the substitution between two axis analog stick directly wired like you're doing, and pc15 game port control input, like what I want, are you okay with that?

 

Just checking.

Please look at your thread.

[+fdr4prez]

Look at what I found - I forgot about this interview at PRGE 2023:

 

 

The video should start at around the 25-minute mark - if not, then just watch the entire video  

 

I was hoping to have both the IntelliStick and IntelliGamepad completed by now, but much more work travel and more family life events have been delaying my projects.

 

As mentioned in my IntelliStick thread, I am doing a complete redesign of that board, and that doesn't necessarily need to affect the IntelliGamepad, but it will because I want to use the same micro-controller chip in both boards to make things easier for me.

 

The bonus to all this traveling?  Well that just leaves me plenty of time in hotels to dream of additional potential controller adapters.

 

so far I have four new controller concepts floating around in my head.  Two will be super simple for me to design and the other two will require much more thought and design work.

[Crash7]

That's a nice feature to have the pause button on there.