Although 'meant to be seen' is more about 3d, this group said haptic discussion is okay and I figured if anyone would know people here might.
I heard of those D-box motion chairs first two years ago, never have had a chance to try them out. They seemed cool but at stratospheric prices into the five digits I think I need a new car first, or to pay off my school loans... : P Nonetheless i'm fascinated at the things..
What I was wondering is... is there anything along the lines of:
- Open source hardware that can do the same thing? (primarily concerning home experimentation even if not compatible, just something like buy so much C-channel aluminum, cut, bolt, add motors etc etc since I can assemble stuff but am not much for figuring out the physical engineering)
- Open source controller software to control the above? (think some kind of standard, i've seen other flight sim and racer cockpit people have motion equipment from certain games and I dont know if it's homebrew programming or special driver support or how they are done.. is there anything along the lines of a standard for this?)
- Alternative decoders (commercial, pay or whatever) for the D-box signals that could interface with other home haptic interface equipment? Or attempts to figure out how the control protocol works? Afterall even if I bought a D-box, perhaps as a hardcore gamer I might want to tap the motion signals and have them add some other sensation on top of it, like triggering signals to some Clark tactile transducers or something...
- Encoder information, like if I were to make a game to put those signals on the game without paying for an expensive development kit? (think something released freeware not commercially or for money, if i'm making money they have a right to also)
My interest of course is everything from making a homebrew rig to enjoy a few movies like the new Tron a few years ago which apparently had D-box control codes included, to using it in flight and driving sims... as cool as it is I can't see anything in the design that should cost the price of a good car. : P
D-Box motion chairs - open source/alternatives?
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- One Eyed Hopeful
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- xhonzi
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Re: D-Box motion chairs - open source/alternatives?
I have D-Box. I too have been interested in something less pricey, more open-sourcey. I haven't found it- I don't think it exists.
Let me know if you find something.
Let me know if you find something.
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- Petrif-Eyed
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Re: D-Box motion chairs - open source/alternatives?
There have been a number of threads here about the D-Box motion simulator, and some open source alternatives were discussed in various threads. Here is a recent one:
http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=16007
Here are some more:
http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpBB/search.php?keywords=dbox
And some videos (including a DIY motion platform) here:
http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=16444
This seems to be popular:
http://www.x-sim.de/forum/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=132
http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=16007
Here are some more:
http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpBB/search.php?keywords=dbox
And some videos (including a DIY motion platform) here:
http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=16444
This seems to be popular:
http://www.x-sim.de/forum/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=132
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- Certif-Eyed!
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Re: D-Box motion chairs - open source/alternatives?
Almost all vendors who sell motion simulators and software to consumers grew out of the x-sim forum Geekmaster linked in his post. From a price-performance standpoint this seller is probably the best bet, providing a proofed and popular system and concept where you're able to upgrade your rig bit by bit http://simxperience.com/Home.aspx
Afaik supporting all racing sims and providing settings for all the cars in iRacing. The difference between the x-sim software and his software is that it's already tweaked and optimized for those actuators, more or less a turnkey solution but more open and with better support than d-box.
Afaik supporting all racing sims and providing settings for all the cars in iRacing. The difference between the x-sim software and his software is that it's already tweaked and optimized for those actuators, more or less a turnkey solution but more open and with better support than d-box.
- xhonzi
- Binocular Vision CONFIRMED!
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Re: D-Box motion chairs - open source/alternatives?
This may interest some of you:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/793724/for-al ... t_21216129
There was a user named BigPines who was trying to decode/hack the D-Box codes for a couple of months. I think he eventually gave up, but he had some success... His comments and the usual banter cover several pages.
http://www.avsforum.com/t/793724/for-al ... t_21216129
There was a user named BigPines who was trying to decode/hack the D-Box codes for a couple of months. I think he eventually gave up, but he had some success... His comments and the usual banter cover several pages.