I only have experience with one type of game pad controller with Chronocone -- and it was a cheap one.
I did build a front-end interface circuit to take some of the noise out of directly connecting long wires to the contacts in the gamepad. It consists of opto-isolators that take the tape switch contacts to turn on the LED, and the detectors then go to some transistors to switch across the contacts of the game pad inputs.
I should tell you that most modern slalom skateboard races today use the Trackmate hardware coupled with Marcus Seyfarth's "Excelmate" software. This is the most reliable, easy-to-use setup.
We still occassionally use our Chronocone for some events that don't use the standardized spreadsheets.....
-- Pat
New timing system for race organizers: Chronocone 2004
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Pat,
Thanks for that, never thought of trying an opto couple, and when I started I had hoped that the gamepad would be enough to get us up and running. Would you be able to send to me your circuit diagram via BGriffiths@bigpond.com, please?
It is interesting that the other gamepad buttons seem quite de-sensitised to the interference, which is why I was hoping to be able to reconfigure the program to pick up the other buttons to test it out. (which begs another much harder to ask question, cause I suspect that it involves the source code) Can it be re-configured by me?
We do have an early model trackmate down here for when we all get together, with Colin Beck, but that is in Sydney, and I don't think that it has the data interface, and we are trying to grow the sport on a very small budget, so for now a new trackmate is a bit out of reach, and Chroncone simply makes more sense!
Regards
Bernie
Thanks for that, never thought of trying an opto couple, and when I started I had hoped that the gamepad would be enough to get us up and running. Would you be able to send to me your circuit diagram via BGriffiths@bigpond.com, please?
It is interesting that the other gamepad buttons seem quite de-sensitised to the interference, which is why I was hoping to be able to reconfigure the program to pick up the other buttons to test it out. (which begs another much harder to ask question, cause I suspect that it involves the source code) Can it be re-configured by me?
We do have an early model trackmate down here for when we all get together, with Colin Beck, but that is in Sydney, and I don't think that it has the data interface, and we are trying to grow the sport on a very small budget, so for now a new trackmate is a bit out of reach, and Chroncone simply makes more sense!
Regards
Bernie
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- Posts: 20
- Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2009 11:24 am
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Re: New timing system for race organizers: Chronocone 2004
New USB interface for Chronocon
Search Ebay for "Zero Delay Arcade USB Encoder to Joystick"
It is a module for arcade style game consoles, and is so much easier to use than game-pads, because the switch connectors are human size.
It also seems to be a lot more reliable than the game-pads.
Testing so far looks like Opto-isolator is not needed, because it is built for those big buttons on arcade machines.
Cheers again Pat!
Search Ebay for "Zero Delay Arcade USB Encoder to Joystick"
It is a module for arcade style game consoles, and is so much easier to use than game-pads, because the switch connectors are human size.
It also seems to be a lot more reliable than the game-pads.
Testing so far looks like Opto-isolator is not needed, because it is built for those big buttons on arcade machines.
Cheers again Pat!
Last edited by Bernie Griffiths on Wed Mar 15, 2023 12:06 am, edited 2 times in total.
Let it go.