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6DoF VR Flight Pit

Discussion in 'DIY Motion Simulator Projects' started by Historiker, Feb 18, 2019.

  1. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    So, I tried out FlyPT but with a minor disaster. The good news is that after welding on some reinforcing steel brackets the gas struts should be more secure. Lots of reinforcing steel....lots. Like, a obscene amount of steel. There is now an official shortage of usable steel in this part of the country.

    Not sure what I did wrong, as soon as I turned FlyPT on the motors went nuts and moved far past their software stops, and kept going. It was odd. I am sure it was my fault, just need to double and triple check my settings. And then toss them out and ask someone who knows what the hell they are doing to check them for me. :D
  2. pmvcda

    pmvcda aka FlyPT

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    My Motion Simulator:
    6DOF
    :confused::eek:

    You might have used the wrong bit range or type of output!
    If you have a picture of your screen to show (and measures of rig) I could take a look.
    Really sorry.
  3. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    Oh NO! I was not at all complaining about FlyPT, it was completely my fault. Sorry if it sounded like I was complaining @pmvcda. I really didn't mean for you to think I was. I very much appreciate the work that you have done.
  4. T R Para

    T R Para i make stuff up

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    My Motion Simulator:
    AC motor, 6DOF
    WOW !
    You made my Sunday morning..
    First congrats on the 6dof sim Not an easy accomplishment .
    I do not think I would enjoy being thrown around like that at my age.
    I do use NL2 to test my rig here a lot.
    Cyclops seems to play nice but others are too violent.
    Crashing the P51f in DCS might cause whiplash or worse.
    I have installed 3 emergency stop switches on my rig.
    One on each side of the cockpit and a third at the PC.
    The e-stops are used whenever I start heading to the ground.

    On my first rig which was driven by dc motors and a 2x32 sabertooth, I had a runaway motor. The sabertooth shut it down and I was impressed it did what it was suppose to.

    I purchased a bag of accelerometers/gyros from Amazon.
    I was trying to think of a way to use them as safety switches/limit switches to shut down the rig in case of a runaway or too violent of motion..

    Big thumbs up there....:thumbs
    • Friendly Friendly x 1
  5. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    @pmvcda I figured out my issue! (ok, one of many many issues at least).
    The Crank Angles in the define hexapod screen had me confused. I assumed that it meant the angles between the cranks and the rods. I had to set up the angles between the motors and the base. Once I had those done and set all movement to 10 (to start) I was able to get it running very well. This is a really impressive interface for 6DoF rigs. HUGE thankyou! (and of course if I come across you in Europe this summer you are entitled to a hug) :D

    hug:
    • Like Like x 2
    • Agree Agree x 1
  6. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
  7. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    Here is a test using @pmvcda 's Hexpod interface in Assetto Corsa and Simtools profile. The last video was too close, this one is too far, lol . One of these days I will get it right.

    In my defense; although I was slow around Zandvoort you have to admit that I did pretty well considering I was using a flight stick, throttle and pedals to drive with! :D

    • Winner Winner x 5
    • Like Like x 2
  8. BondeX

    BondeX Active Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, 3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, 6DOF
    Flight stick, throttle and pedals lol. These motors have been impressing me.
    • Like Like x 1
  9. T R Para

    T R Para i make stuff up

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    My Motion Simulator:
    AC motor, 6DOF
    How are the motor temps..
  10. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    Good question. After the run in the video above four of the motors (and their wires) were cold to the touch, but two others (different Saberteeth) were warm to the touch although not hot. The wires seemed no warmer than the motors and as they got closer to the Saberteeth the temp was cooler. That leads me to believe that the heat was mostly from the motors themselves or at the brushes anyway. The Saberteeth were all cold to the touch (heat spreaders). So far I am extremely impressed with the Saberteeth. I plan to eventually swap out the two hot running motors with two others from my other set of six and see if it is a fluke, tired motors, etc.
  11. T R Para

    T R Para i make stuff up

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    My Motion Simulator:
    AC motor, 6DOF
    Not sure but I think the front 2 typically run hotter than the rest due to the extra weight out front...
    Have you flown the P51 in DCS. How does your rig respond to the sudden impact??
  12. SilentChill

    SilentChill Problem Maker

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    My Motion Simulator:
    DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    Awesome @Historiker !! Well done , I'm really not sure about the joystick for steering though :D
    • Like Like x 1
  13. Otso

    Otso New Member Gold Contributor

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    Impressive build! It seems very responsive. What are the exact models of the motors and gearboxes you are using? And what are you using for power supply?
  14. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    42A3BEPM-E3 and 6@ 12v 30amp LED power supplies.
  15. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    The motors that are warm are numbers 2 and 5. They do not share any one side of the load. I believe that they are just warn and need some TLC, etc.

    If you have your rig properly balanced the front should not have any more of the load than the others. My center of gravity is back from the center of the top platform, that is why I made it adjustable; so I could adjust it if needed. It turned out pretty well balanced despite my best efforts to screw it up :D

    I have not yet flown the P51 with this rig but I have had some pretty rough landings in the F-5, A-4E, the Huey and a carrier landing with the F/A-18C in DCS and the Piper in X-Plane. It can be a real shock (pun intended) to the system. :D
  16. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    It is finished. I wired up the power supplies and battery. Each power supply has a 30amp fused relay and they are connected to the battery which is then connected to the saberteeth via a 200amp relay. This way when it is shut off the battery isn't back feeding into the power supplies.

    The power supplies have their own mounting panel which will be moved, eventually, to a small cabinet that will reside between the two 6dof motion rigs. I will have a switch so I can use them for wither rig.

    Another HUGE thank you to everyone for their kind words and ideas, but especially for their experience.

    IMG_20190409_181831568.jpg IMG_20190409_181824791.jpg
    • Like Like x 7
  17. T R Para

    T R Para i make stuff up

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    I am building a portable 2 dof rig for yet another project.
    The 42A3BEPM-E3 motors seem to be no longer available.
    How is the backlash/slop in the gear train?
    I have a lot of wheelchair motors available but they have too much backlash..
  18. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    There are many 24v versions of these that I have seen on eBay. There is very little slop in these gearboxes that I have seen, and I have twelve. @BondeX have you noticed much in yours?

    These are not worm geared.
  19. T R Para

    T R Para i make stuff up

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    I found a 42A3BEPM-E3 on ebay. Only just 1. Its in Michigan. Picked it up so now I just need one more....

    the 130vdc versions are there in quantity but the big torque 12vdc not so much......
    tp
  20. Historiker

    Historiker Dramamine Adict Gold Contributor

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    Yes, they are rare these days. Lots of people bought them up for DIY projects like door lifts, camper jacks, etc when they first appeared on Ebay. From what I can find Bodine only made them once and only as a special order for a specific company that ended up not using them or some such. Not sure of the details.

    I will keep an eye out and let you know if I come across another. I was checking ebay every day for a while there. I did get two from there just before christmas.
    • Informative Informative x 1