JB's Seat mover build

I found this forum a few years ago and immediately got to building a crude prototype. My initial interest was just in flight sims so I was planning to build a joy rider design, but after all my research I thought racing looked more fun so I ended up building a seat mover instead! Aviation is still my first passion so I may very well end up building a joy rider some day too!

Well, life and other hobbies got in the way for a few years and I am just now picking this back up! I also never got around to starting a build thread so I will post some pics of my existing prototype and also document the process of refining this prototype into a more polished unit I can be proud to show off!

The Prototype
I really just wanted to make something that worked before I spent a bunch of money on parts and gear. I already had several arduinos so the monster moto was an easy choice at the time. I actually love the building and coding process too so I usually go that route with most of my projects!

Details:
Standard 2DOF Seat mover with Arduino/monster moto/wiper motors

Motors - wiper motors are from a pick-n-pull type junk yard. These came from Ford Expeditions - my thinking was a bigger truck like that was likely to have beefier motors. These have not be stressed too much, but they have been working great so far. No ground isolation was needed for these and they already had a beefy arm on them. The motors move me around pretty well and stay cold to the touch so they seem to be up to the job. The plan was always to get bigger ones eventually but these are working well for now.

U-joint - I bought something very similar the pic below and took it to a local welding shop to fabricate a way to mount it. I got something usable but I feel like there is some slop in it so I may end up replacing it with something better.



Software - I started with @RacingMat's arduino code and refined the code a bit and got it running pretty well. I then found the SMC3 code from @RufusDufus and am currently working on getting it tuned. I do like that it is a full-blown PID controller, although so far I don't think it feels any different than my customized code. I think once tuned it will probably end up being pretty good.

The seat is a standard cheapo ebay racing seat and the frame is nothing more than a sheet of 2x2 plywood and some threaded pipe. Its not pretty but it got the prototype working quickly and without having to pay another welder!

Here are a few pics of it with my kids on No Limits 2 (great fun by the way!)

I don't have an Oculus Rift (yet) but even these FPV goggles add a lot to the immersion! I need to start saving my pennies as the Rift + PC upgrades will make that an expensive addition!

I took a lot of pics as I was putting it back together over the last few weeks so I will get them posted in the next few days.

So the prototype is a success, at least with No Limits 2! I am working on a crude wheel and pedal stand so I can test out some racing games. That will be crude and ugly too at first!

The Plan
Now that I know it works I have a good starting point for designing a proper rig. I want it to look like a professional unit and not something I threw together with scraps from home depot! I would also like to make it as compact as possible so it can be broken down and transported fairly easily. I have an SUV so I think as long as the seat is removable and the bottom frame is somewhat modular I should be fine.

Obviously the frame is the first place I need to start. I went back and forth on aluminum box/angle bolted together, extruded aluminum, etc. but I am now leaning towards just welding up a steel frame. Of course I will need to learn how to weld but that actually sounds fun to me! I have started thinking about the design but don't have anything drawn up yet.

I hope to be posting many more updates in the coming days!

JB

Very nice effort! I am currently about to start my software installation on my 2DOF Race Sim with the SMC3 code as well... DO keep us posted as to how you go. Im gonna need help in that department I believe

good project!

Would you mind sharing the refinements you made?
Thanks

Yeah sure. I can send you the actual code later. I think the biggest change I made was a new routine to calculate the pwm value. It just smoothed it out so it felt much less jerky. I tried several other things as well but I think that is really the only one that made a noticeable difference. This was all using no limits 2 for testing btw. I never really tried it with a racing game.

FYI - Sent you a PM with the code.