Foot Pedal Controller

[pmpddytim]

I about to buy some homebrews and was thinking of getting Thrust+Platinum. Should I get the foot pedal controller or not?

 

-Tim

[sku_u]

The game is much more playable and enjoyable with the controller.

[Xot]

Agreed. Foot pedal =

[pmpddytim]

All righty I get it. ONe prob though the page says Add $10 to get the controller. Do I have to click somwhere or what? I'm not seeing the option to get it.

 

-Tim

[Thomas Jentzsch]

While I am more used to playing with a simple joystick, playing the game with the footpedal is fun too, especially when you can use a driving controller too.

[pmpddytim]

I went ahead and ordered Thrust w/o the controller and figured if I decided I needed it I could always order it later. Also, since Thomas said he plays it with a joystick I figured thats how I should try first.

 

I also picked up Climber 5 because of the good things I've seen StanJr. write about it.

 

Next time I plan on pickigng up Jammed and Marble Craze, and of course HSRRPG when it comes out.

 

Thanks

-Tim

[Tsukasa]

All righty I get it. ONe prob though the page says Add $10 to get the controller. Do I have to click somwhere or what? I'm not seeing the option to get it.

 

-Tim

 

I would guess that when paying for the game, you add $10.

I.E. instead of paying $35 with paypal or whatever, pay $45.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

I went ahead and ordered Thrust w/o the controller and figured if I decided I needed it I could always order it later.

But later it will cost you $15.

[pmpddytim]

 But later it will cost you $15.

 

But if I end up not needing it it saved me $10. Also I could probably rig somthing up myself with some arcade buttons, wood paneling and a littel bit of wire............Hmmmm, I have a new project.

 

-Tim

[bjk7382]

I also never thought those would be very convenient. Yes it adds more control to the game with the driving controller and the foot pedal, it just seemed akward to have to use your feet to play a game.

 

I have used my nes controllers so much that I tried to use a joystick for it and didn't have the coordination to get past the third level. I think it is all what you are used to.

[mos6507]

I thought I'd revive this thread to let you know of a finding regarding the footpedal controller when used with driving controllers.

 

Those who have followed the progress of Death Derby over the years know that I've been worrying about how to manufacture a Y-cable so that you could hook up a joystick in-line with the driving controller. The driving controller only uses two bits to encode the rotation, leaving the other two bits free. I made a working prototype Y-cable but it was a PITA because I was connecting each wire to the DB9 pins one at a time. Sega made extension cables for the genesis which could have been spliced together so that you wouldn't have to worry about the junction between the wires and the DB9s, but the cost was an issue.

 

When AtariAge started selling Footpedal controllers it looked like they could kill two birds with one stone. Presumably, if you bundled two footpedals and two driving controllers with DD, you'd have everything you need. Using pedals is ideal for a driving game like this, better than having a separate joystick that you'd have to secure somehow.

 

The first order I put in for a footpedal got lost after delivery to my old apartment unit. I suspect the residents stole it but they wouldn't cop to it.

 

Anyway, I ordered two of them again and sent them to my work and they came through this time. So tonight I was able to test the theory. Here are the results.

 

 

 

Normally with a joystick you'd never trigger opposite signals at the same time (left and right, or up and down).

 

The way the footpedal circuit works, it prevents this condition. Unfortunately, the grey-code of the driving controller needs to be able to do that. Otherwise rotation is jerky in Indy 500 and Death Derby WIP.

 

In other words, even if you map all signals to "Joystick" it's not a true pass-through. It's going through the footpedal circuit and filtering out the up/down and left/right signals, only passing through one or the other.

 

 

The good news, however, is that by cutting the white and blue wires on the input and output and then just joining the inputs to the outputs, sidestepping the footpedal circuit, Indy 500 and DD work perfectly again.

 

This is a solderless procedure that anybody should be able to do. I just wrapped the wires together and taped it with electrician's tape.

 

What this does is kill the ability of the footcontroller to map to the up or down signals.

 

I would guess that via some switch or switches it should be possible to go back and forth between driving-controller-compatibility mode and regular footpedal mode. I may experiment with that myself but I am no electronics expert.

 

Worst case scenario is that AA could offer pre-modded footpedals with a DD bundle when the time comes, and that these might have this limitation in them. That's assuming they would want to do the premods, but like I said, it's an easy thing to do once they come in.

 

Again, full compatibility is only important if you want to be able to use one of the pedals mapped to up or down.

 

 

How I have it set up right now with DD:

 

 

Yellow Pedal = Gas

Orange Pedal = Reverse Gear

Green Pedal = Forward Gear

 

Switch assignments:

 

Up maps to joystick (switch is disabled anyway)

Right maps to pedal 2

Down maps to joystick (switch is disabled anyway)

Left maps to pedal 3

Fire maps to pedal 1 (or set this to joystick if you want a traditional gas pedal on the driving controller)

[Rob Mitchell]

The good news, however, is that by cutting the white and blue wires on the input and output and then just joining the inputs to the outputs, sidestepping the footpedal circuit, Indy 500 and DD work perfectly again.

 

This is a solderless procedure that anybody should be able to do.  I just wrapped the wires together and taped it with electrician's tape.

 

What this does is kill the ability of the footcontroller to map to the up or down signals.

 

I would guess that via some switch or switches it should be possible to go back and forth between driving-controller-compatibility mode and regular footpedal mode.  I may experiment with that myself but I am no electronics expert.

 

The footpedal unit has built-in switches which also allow for no action on the part of the unit. The good news is that no modification or wire cutting is necessary.

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Rob Mitchell]

Let me clarify: If the switches for function up and function down are left in the "JOYSTICK" setting .. this will allow for the driving control to work. No need to cut wires at all!

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[mos6507]

Let me clarify:  If the switches for function up and function down are left in the "JOYSTICK" setting .. this will allow for the driving control to work.  No need to cut wires at all!

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

 

 

 

The switches are there, and you would think they would work that way, but they don't.

 

It may appear that driving controller games work with the footpedal, but the rotation is slower and uneven as if there are deadspots. That was the first thing I noticed when I plugged in the driving controller and knew that something was getting filtered out.

 

I verified this with the "testcart.bin" program. When you plug in a driving controller, you see up and down but never are up and down icons lit at the same time. (This would be equivalent to, let's say, trying to play Indy 500 on an emulator with the cursor keys. The cars do rotate a little but it's really not playable.) It really doesn't matter how you set the switches. The footpedal simply does not allow up and down at the same time, or left and right at the same time.

 

This is true for both units I purchased so I think this is not a fluke.

 

Only when you splice the wires together does the driving controller appear to go through the proper grey-code cycling on "testcart.bin".

 

If you own a footpedal and a driving controller, run it through that test for yourself and let me know what you see.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

If you own a footpedal and a driving controller, run it through that test for yourself and let me know what you see.

Hm, works perfect with Thrust+ DC.

[Rob Mitchell]

If you own a footpedal and a driving controller, run it through that test for yourself and let me know what you see.

Hm, works perfect with Thrust+ DC.

 

I just tried out my footpedal controller with the TestCart and these are my findings.

 

1. It does not allow for both opposite functions to be simultaneously triggered. So neither U and D can be set simultaneously. Nor can both L and R be set simultaneously. Fire is independent of the other four.

 

2. So when using the driving controller, quadrature transition 1 1 is forbidden by the footpedal. So only three transitions are allowed. For some reason the programs (Thrust, Death Derby, maybe Indy 500 too) that decode the quadrature signals compromise and allow the next transition to be read.

 

3. So I was curious and decided to take the footpedal controller apart and see what is happening. Inside I found an IC (Toshiba TC4066BP) which is some kind of quad bilateral switch. Also included are seven resistors amongst the 5 slider switches and three mechanical switches under the 3 pedals. This thing is robust! Electronically it is much more complicated than I expected. There's alot more going on than just sliding 5 setting switches.

 

With regard to Indy 500: When checking the driving controller though the footpedal, it requires about 24+ transitions to allow for the car to go through a 360 turn. So obviously the program is compensating for lack of the 1 1 transition. What that means is that the Indy 500 car has sluggish steering .. or you have to turn the controller futher to get the same turn result.

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Rob Mitchell]

Ok Glenn .. Now that I just reread your posts .. I guess I just reiterated what you had already said.

 

Now I think I will take apart my footpedal again and check the wires already mentioned and see about adding a sliding switch to the back of the unit. Should be an easy fix.

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Thomas Jentzsch]

For some reason the programs (Thrust, Death Derby, maybe Indy 500 too) that decode the quadrature signals compromise and allow the next transition to be read.

Actually Thrust works perfect, because it uses a separate port for the driving controller. Else, it would probably not work at all, because a skipped transition would make my code waiting for that transition forever.

 

Now I wonder, how DD (which IIRC uses the same code) works at all.

[Rob Mitchell]

Now I wonder, how DD (which IIRC uses the same code) works at all.

 

I forgot that your Thrust uses a separate port. I always use the Starpex 5 button controller for Thrust. The only way to play this game!

 

I plan to place a slider switch in my footpedal controller and test the driving controller again later today. For those who may be interested .. the switch necessary to accomplish this will be a DPST or the more commonly found a DPDT can be used.

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Stingray]

I finally got around to buying Trust driving controller edition and a set of foot pedals. Now I can't find my driving controlers. One of these days I'll get my sh*t together and be able to play this game.

 

-S

[bjk7382]

I finally got a foot pedal controller with my christmas order. I tried playing thrust with it and the driving controller and found it to be quite cumbersome to use and doesn't improve the control that much.

 

Maybe I just need to spend more time with it, after playing it with a joypad for so long.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

I tried playing thrust with it and the driving controller and found it to be quite cumbersome to use and doesn't improve the control that  much.

Same here, I am used to joystick or keyboard control.

 

But some people seem to really prefer it that way.

[Rob Mitchell]

I plan to place a slider switch in my footpedal controller and test the driving controller again later today.  For those who may be interested .. the switch necessary to accomplish this will be a DPST or the more commonly found a DPDT can be used.

 

I finished the project today. What I did was solder four wires to the bottom of the circuit board where the two pairs of white and blue wires connect. Then I wired them to the slider switch which short the two color pairs and thus bypass the circuit. When the switch is in the open setting,the original function of the controller is preserved! I mounted the switch in the back of the controller after cutting an appropriate sized hole. Looks and works great! Thanks Glenn!

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Stingray]

Finally found one of my driving controllers last night so I got a chance to try out the driving controller/ foot pedal setup. What a blast that was. I have a feeling that those two controllers will stay plugged in for a quite some time to come, and Thrust+ is staying in the cart slot!

 

-S