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The Mechanics of Motion Sensing
Dr. Eggman writes, "The AP has a short technology piece on the mechanics that go into the motion-sensing capabilities of the Wii and PS3 controllers. It also details some of the past uses of the technology and gives a nice overview of just how far the technology has come from the earliest missile-guidance sensor equipment."
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I got a motion sensing joystick you can play with!
Don't mod me, bro'!!!!
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//WR
Interesting, but I have one question. Do the silicon springs recalibrate every so often, or will they wear out and break? My old N64 controller did this.
...the whole idea of videogaming was to move as little as possible.
At least, that's the impression I get from the average ass size of some gamers I know.
I, for one, welcome our new aerobically-inclined SuperMario overlords. The question is this: is Nintendo too family oriented to move into the obvious niche here -- motion sensing interactive pornography?
These stories are free but worth money.
fourth
See, I think we should re-incorporate early guidance systems into modern-day game controllers.
I mean, think about it: game controllers with trained pigeons in 'em! That'd take force-feedback to a whole new level!
Obliteracy: Words with explosions
Globalvr's new Ultrapin features Globalvr's Patent Pending U-Shock Board Which allows players to interact with the cabinet for a totally realistic pinball experience. You can BUMP and NUDGE the cabinet to affect the ball in play - just like real pinballt ml
http://www.globalvr.com/products_ultrapin_intro.h
It would be cool to incorporate this type of controller into a portable device. You could have portable laser-tag like games with real-time mapping, or incorporate some type of ball and it automatically keeps score and records the game. You could have "operations" players indoors that have some different role (view the maps, for instance, and direct the players)
With networking and GIS in a portable device, it's almost necessary to have new interfaces to use all the new space it knows about. In gaming it's the most fun but these types of thing could be used in more professional ways also.
Cool! Amazing Toys.
"I mean, think about it: game controllers with trained pigeons in 'em! That'd take force-feedback to a whole new level!"
You'll need a speaker-hole so that the birds in the controllers could communicate with the miniature pterodactyl inside the console box that actually pulls the strings and sticks to make the game work.
Where were you when the voynix came?
Laser Tag with a doom-style map on the gun/on a wristband?
Brilliant!
Then again, it also makes a great set for a horror movie (big arena, psychopath with a real gun, etc, etc *groan*)
Given the 10+ year development and 20+ year use lifecycles of military equipment it's surprising to see consumer gear _behind_ military tech.
The main reasons for this, of course, are obvious. It's not often that your games console needs the same provable failsafes as a weapon of mass destruction and equally it doesn't cost £10m a unit (launch day eBayed PS3 excepted) so replacing it within a short timeframe isn't going to give you a massive budget deficit.
Think of the Children; Sleep with your Sister
I thought the "snare" was the first motion-activated weapon. Or was it the "covered pit"?
Think about it. Or have something like Worf's workout from ST:NG! That be sooo cool!
Yeah, I've used those exercise bikes with the screen - it shows you racing with others. It's ok.
the winds of change, which are blowing at gale force.
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http://www.freescale.com/files/sensors/doc/data_sh eet/MMA7260Q.pdf
A good picture of a two-axis accelerometer can be seen here: http://users.wpi.edu/~cfurlong/me-593Mech.html (second picture down). Sensing is usually performed by capacitive combs, structures which act as capacitors, with their capacitance varying with displacement.
MEMS accelerometers have dropped in price in recent years because there's a big market: the automotive sector. A typical new car needs two accelerometers, one for the traction control system measuring roughly plus-or-minus 2 to 4g, and one for airbag deployment measuring more like 50g.
Two big manufacturers are Analog Devices and ST Microelectronics, though others exist.
The high demand of the automotive sector has driven prices right down; sensors which would have cost hundreds of dollars in the past can now be purchased in bulk for less than $4. In fact, you could order one right now; component retailers will sell you one for less than $15.
"Goodness me, how unlike the FBI to abuse the trust of the American public." -- The Onion
Typically it's in my pants while watching Pamela Anderson's sweater meat bounce around like a raver on extacy. Come on! Laugh! It's funny! You KNOW you WANT to.
-"...bad old ideas look confusingly fresh when they are packaged as technology" - Jaron Lanier (Digital Maoism on Edge.o
I know where you can BUMP and NUDGE to affect the gameplay... an actual PINBALL game!!!
It's always irked me to see some hand-held P.O.S. that touts "realistic pinball action". (...action ...action ...ction ...tion)
If I want to play pinball, I'll play pinball.
However, if I want to ride a dragon... well I can't really do that now, can I?
THAT is why the new controllers are so incredible; they give a new, visceral edge to creative gaming... rather than try to "come full circle" with a gaming platform that's already been around- and around- and around again.
I'll grant you that someone will ultimately make a pinball-sized cabinet with two HD screens on it that uses the very implementation you describe. It will be neat, but it won't be real.
You'll get a two-fold "wow factor" out of me when you can manufacture a true-physics pinball game that truly does something no other pinball game has done before. (Remember the face in "Fun House"? Now, that was some awesome innovation, back in its day.)
This post © Copyrite Duggeek, all rights reversed.
Axises?? How can you mispluralize one of the most entertaining plurals around? Axes, dammit.
there is no need to sign your posts. this isn't usenet. your username is right there above your post. stop it.
oops! http://www.freescale.com/webapp/sps/site/prod_summ ary.jsp?code=MMA7260QT
There are some app notes below.
The Nintendo Wii Remote one-ups the Sony controller by including an infrared camera.
I think they meant to say: The Sony controller dumbed down the Wii Remote by excluding the infrared camera.
Hobby Robotics
Right from the source: http://www.st.com/stonline/products/literature/ds/ 11115.pdf
These things are not exactly new. They are used in the automotive sector, or for "stabilizers" in camcorders.
The sooner you fall behind, the more time you have to catch up.
So what happens if in a game if you point the camera away from the sensor bar? For example, in tennis when you swing the remote I would imagine the camera would lose track of the bar at some point during the swing. How does the system know if you're swinging the racket in the right plane? (Or does it even know?)
so I can finally keep Mario from falling down the bottomless pit by jerking the controller above my head?
A few years ago I went to a talk on making a position sensor for fire fighters. Remember GPS works poorly inside buildings. The idea was to use microaccelorometers to track the position of the firefighter inside a building. The author mentioned they placed the device in the heel of the boot. This way they could sense when the motion was stopped so they could rezero the accelerometers. Eliminating zero drift has always been a problem with guidance systems.
Who decided that things that measure tilt should be called "accelerometers"? They can be used to measure acceleration, but thats not what the sensor directly measures!
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Open Source Sysadmin
"Put me down Steve"
I thought nintendo was supposed to be using the Gyration miniature gyroscopes. Link here
That boxing game is crazy-fun. Think Mike Tyson for NES, but obviously with way better graphics and much more interaction. You use both the Wiimote and Nunchuck (which is how I found it it was also a motion sensor, used to simulate your other hand) to throw literally throw your punches. After three matches, I was starting to work up a sweat. Of course this was after I'd only got four hours of sleep and had been up since 4am waiting in line. Not one who uses my upper body strength on a frequent basis, my arms are a bit stiff today.
Prove it.
I was worried that something like metal fatigue would set in. But metal fatigue is a result of microscopic fractures in the crystalline structure of the metal. These sensors have moving parts that are fabricated from a single flawless crystal. So nothing like metal fatigue can take place.
Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
I've played the silver ball for 36 years and with one exception I would agree with you. That exception is 3D Ultra Pinball Thrillride -- a video game that plays better than a pinball machine. It is as good as any pinball game in terms of game play, variety and realism. It is better because you never have to clean it or replace worn out components. I picked up a surplused copy for about $10. Much as I love ST:TNG (the show and the pin), a $10 product that never wears out, is fully mute-able and is legally/easily backupable beats it by a mile.
I come here for the love
I don't know what he's saying, but all those big words... they move me.
Consciousness is a myth. Trust me.
during play, this alreadyR dead. It is 4as significantly
Sure, a guidance system will have accelerometers, but by far the more important part is the gyro. The Wii does not have a gyro. While silicon gyros do exist, they're still relatively large and expensive.
Engineering is the art of compromise.
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I think this is another ploy in the american plan to monitor the politically divergant opinions of europeans and other non-americans. :P
Not that it's a particularly big market or anything, but MEMS gyros are also used in R/C helicopters as a stabilization/pilot-assist device. They keep the tail of the helicopter pointed in basically the same direction, by adjusting the pitch of the tail rotor dynamically. Without a gyro, the pilot has to constantly make this adjustment in real-time, or risk putting the heli into a spin.
For somewhere around $90-120, you can run out today and get yourself a single-axis "Silicon Micro Machine" gyro that's set up to output a signal to control a standard hobby position servo. The gain on most of them is adjustable, but I assume that you could set it up so that the magnitude of the signal was basically proportional to the deviation from a particular position. Might be a little easier for a hobbyist than going the total DIY route from raw parts.
"Ladies and gentlemen, my killbot features Lotus Notes and a machine gun. It is the finest available."
I found this absolutely fascinating video that shows exactly how the sensor bar detects the Wiimote's position - and how you can possibly hack up your own "sensor bar": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTGSkYRDpWY
There's another way to avoid damage due to stress. As an alternative, some accelerometers monitor the movement of heated air in a cavity (source). Surprisingly, they can be made MEMS and are cheaper than the mechanical ones (though usually with a factor-of-two loss of accuracy).