Simpit A10C - Full Left Console
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- Опубліковано 6 вер 2024
- This video shows the completed full left console I have built for my A10C simpit for use with DCS (Digital Combat Simulator).
The overall console includes the following:
* Fuel System Control Panel
* TM Throttle
* AN/ARC - 186(V) VHF Radio 1 (Radio Cluster Part 1/3 (VHF AM)
* AN/ARC - 164 UHF Radio (Radio Cluster Part 2/3 (UHF)
* AN/ARC - 186(V) VHF Radio 2 (Radio Cluster Part 3/3 (VHF FM)
* Secure Voice Control Panel (KY58 Panel)
* Emergency Brake
* Aux Lighting Panel
* Stability Augmentation System (SAS Panel)
* Emergency Flight Control System (Trim Panel)
* Intercom Panel (including Stall Vol / Antenna)
I defined "Console Completion" as fulfilment of the following six points (which I set myself as completion requirements):
1. All panels implemented and working (exc. IFF)
2. Additional Controls
3. Painted with detachable sides
4. Maintenance Manual
5. Organised wiring and labelling
6. Accessible hub
Construction notes are added covering:
STEP 1. Design Console
STEP 2. Build Console
STEP 3. Modify panels to fit console
STEP 4. Paint Console
STEP 5. Fully integrate panels. Wire into central hub and test
For further details of this console, panels within it, and / or my Simpit project, please visit the following newly formed website (intended to document the Simpit's build for both my reference and the community)
www.mysimpit.co.uk
Thanks to:
FSF Ian - The developer of DCS BIOS. Thank you for your development of this fantastic software
Phil (father in law) - Thank you for use of your CNC machine and the large amount of time we spent together cutting these panels. I very much appreciate the discussions around methods of construction, effective tool usage, and general best practice across a whole range of subjects (ranging from electronics and mechanics to CNC and wood working).
Claire - Thank you for your patience in understanding my need to build this.
** For best viewing, stream at highest definition possible **
You made a maintinence manual for a one-of-a-kind controller that YOU made. That's dedication.
Cleaning out semen from within your breeches after every flight. Step #1.
Bushwhack - 'Same as takin a dump, fellah. The job's not over 'till the paper work's done!
Bravo Craig's dedication and commitment to excellence and superior anal hygiene!
How do you take a dump in an A-10?
@@johnd.ingleson799 with a diaper
Don't care what anyone says, there is nothing more immersive than physically feeling like you're IN the game.
Well done mate!
Hi ralfidude, I've been watching your videos for quite some time now so means alot to get a thumbs up from you. Cheers
I'm too stupid to ever know how to build stuff like this but I want to one day!! Totally awesome, thanks for a quick walkthrough of how it was built!
Nice job mate. About your question. i'm a Starcitizen fanboy so i will say the whole flight simpit crowd is going to grow over the next few years and people will still want something to touch even if they are using VR.
Hi StarCitizen Modding, I've been following star citizen for a couple of years. Now that were beyond 3.0 I do intend to get this at the point I have a new PC capable of running it properly. As a child I remember playing starflight on my megadrive and I flew in deep space, system to system, scanning planets for mineral density, mined them, travelled back to base, sold minerals, used money to upgrade and repeated many times over. It was amazing. So I think when mining is fully in star citizen I'll be itching to play it. Are there any mods for star citizen to export data for spaceship panels (displays, etc) so simpits can be built? Imagine building a small ship like an Aurora 1:1 scale and all fully working inside the cockpit (and Interfaced into the game). I do think star citizen has the potential to be the best game ever made
Drool!! dude you said it all. Have you seen my channel its basically based on what you said. Yes! do the scale thing, i know i will do something similar at some point a Sabre maybe. (more drool!)
As for the mods i think you are talking about an API. That is not implemented yet but is suppose to be coming, so all ship information can be used in huds and stuff.
I just had a look over at your uploads. Thats brilliant. Is your end goal to build a simpit for the Sabre.
With dcs and star citizen out there, theres just not enough time to play these
My end goal is to build the ultimate simpit for myself, i actually got into electronics just to for this 😬. I also want to inspire people into modding stuff themselves because i dont think people realize its so easy, but yes a replica would be a sort of end goal i guess.
In the future I will likely get a 3d Printer. Not sure which one yet, I'll research more when in a position to buy. For 3d software, I've only used sketchup but found it brilliant to use, straight forward and accurate. Also its free. For back-lighting, so far my approach has always been a suspended layer of led strips behind painted opal acrylic which has been engraved. I might look at other ways if needing the rear of panels to be smaller in the future. Keep up your work on star citizen mods. Down the line I'll be in the verse, cheers
:-O
R E S P E C T !
Very, very impressive !
Not only the build, but also the way you methodically approached the project and build the pit.
Very high quality pit & builder 👍
With your exact skillset, you would be a MONSTER in Eurorack modular synthesis design. Even if it wasn't your passion, you could use it to raise funds for this hobby.
I'm someone looking to get into cockpit building. I know from my point of view, I don't think you can replace the actual tactile feedback you get from real input. Imo I prefer that satisfaction. Brother I think you did a jam up job. Earned yourself a sub here.
Hi Jonathan, I'm the same as you, I really enjoy the input and tactile feedback of a physical build. What we need is a leap forward in mixed VR, then we can have the best of both. Good luck with your project, cheers
Congrats on the completed left console! Yet another very organized and well documented video. Enjoyed it as always!
That's awesome Craig. You have a lot to be proud of Sir. Your cable management is second to none. I like how you built every thing from scratch too and made your own text nomenclature.
Hi Joe, thanks for your comments. If you don't mind I may drop you a line when building the CDU as I got the exact adafruit screen you used and I adapted the text given the special characters issue and this seemed to work. However, in tests some of the text on the actual cdu in the sim was missing from the physical display. It was not always text from the same position on the screen, it was certain text from certain pages.
// CDU Line 1
void onCduLine0Change(char* newValue) {
newValue0 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(40, 0); // Set cursor position to line up with row 1 (320/10=32)
tft.fillRect(0, 0, 480, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 1 of 10 320x480 but rotated 90 deg puts 320 on verticle
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine0Buffer(0x11c0, onCduLine0Change);
// CDU Line 2
void onCduLine1Change(char* newValue) {
newValue1 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(40, 32);
tft.fillRect(0, 28, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 2 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine1Buffer(0x11d8, onCduLine1Change);
// CDU Line 3
void onCduLine2Change(char* newValue) {
newValue2 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 64);
tft.fillRect(0, 60, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 3 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine2Buffer(0x11f0, onCduLine2Change);
// CDU Line 4
void onCduLine3Change(char* newValue) {
newValue3 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 96);
tft.fillRect(0, 92, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 4 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine3Buffer(0x1208, onCduLine3Change);
// CDU Line 5
void onCduLine4Change(char* newValue) {
newValue4 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 128);
tft.fillRect(0, 124, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 5 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine4Buffer(0x1220, onCduLine4Change);
// CDU Line 6
void onCduLine5Change(char* newValue) {
newValue5 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 160);
tft.fillRect(0, 156, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 6 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine5Buffer(0x1238, onCduLine5Change);
// CDU Line 7
void onCduLine6Change(char* newValue) {
newValue6 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 192);
tft.fillRect(0, 188, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 7 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine6Buffer(0x1250, onCduLine6Change);
// CDU Line 8
void onCduLine7Change(char* newValue) {
newValue7 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 224);
tft.fillRect(0, 220, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 8 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine7Buffer(0x1268, onCduLine7Change);
// CDU Line 9
void onCduLine8Change(char* newValue) {
newValue8 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 256);
tft.fillRect(0, 252, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 9 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine8Buffer(0x1280, onCduLine8Change);
// CDU Line 10
void onCduLine9Change(char* newValue) {
newValue9 = newValue;
tft.setCursor(30, 288);
tft.fillRect(0, 284, 475, 28, BLACK); // Blank out old stale text to clear space for new text
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.println(newValue); // Message Line 10 of 10
}
DcsBios::StringBuffer cduLine9Buffer(0x1298, onCduLine9Change);
void setup() {
DcsBios::setup();
tft.reset();
uint16_t identifier = tft.readID();
tft.begin(identifier);
tft.setRotation(1);
tft.fillScreen(BLACK);
tft.setCursor(0, 0); // Start at upperleft corner when rotation is set to 1
tft.setTextColor(CDU_Brightness); // Set text Brightness
tft.setTextSize(3); // Size of text
}
For standard in game CDU you can set the text to green. I'm still working out the bugs but I was using the bright dim buttons on the CDU to dim the display. Basically I'm using 9 shades of green from light green to dark green to simulate dimming. The CDU brightness value points to a table that sets the 16 bit color of the various greens. But right now it dims only once while you press the button down and then turns to normal when you release the button.
Not sure what could be causing that. The CDU updates automatically every 10 seconds or so. Even if the data hasn't changed. I'm using it in the 8 bit format and not SPI format.
Hi Joe, thanks for sharing your code. I'll compare it to mine. Might be a few weeks until I get chance to do this. If I still have difficulties I'll record the problem and send you a video link through the Ed forums.
Ive been looking ahead at the right console and front dash. Seems to me the single most complex items are the ADI and HSI, so thumbs up for what you're doing with adapting real instruments for these. That's going to be so amazing to fly with. I think I'd spend days and days just running through instrument landings
I am very hopeful for improvements in "mixed reality" headsets. Imagine having the ability to have a full pit, masked off in the headset so that you can see and interact with the pit, but everything outside the pit is VR. They have taken some beginning steps with it, but it does have a long way to go yet. Very good work on this pit build, looking forward to more vids as you complete the pit.
A true beauty. Well done and thanks for sharing!
I'm going through all the videos I can get my hands off. I'm thinking about trying to put me together hey Sam next year. There's things in this with your well Advanced over me but maybe I can learn how to make it work before I get started.
I'm amazed, you have my respect. JOB WELL DONE
I have suggestion that would negate most of the RJ45 cabling. You could mount a power supply, master mega, and power/data rail inside each left, right and center console and you should only have one usb and power cord (or depending on your setup) leading out from each of the three consoles. I know you have a centralized keyboard encoder setup, but you could always buy some leo boards or groovygamegear usb boards and build a small hub in your consoles and keep it all tight and tidy. I'd still use the keystone jacks on each panel and the rail as they truly make everything plug and play.
Hi, when I started the build I liked the idea of a central hub which the whole simpit feeds into and making a feature of it. I still really like that but was also very impressed with the approach taken by The Warthog Project as shown in his videos.
If I build another simpit in the future I might try a different approach. Cheers
I agree, Warthog is above and beyond. Your setup is outstanding, some of the things you have said in your videos have stuck in my mind, and one of those is "cut down on wiring", so that got me thinking about combining the psu, master, and junction inside each console and front dash.
Outstanding! Your approach to wiring is an inspiration. Thanks for sharing
beautifully done. truly. My only concern is that its slightly larger than what i think you will be able to reach easily, perhaps shrinking panels/removing excess material to bring the panels closer together to make use easier. This comment is based on watching you slowly move further and further from the front by sliding your chair back. That really is the only downside I see to your design. Please keep doing what you have done. It really is inspiring to see this.
Wow! Well done! Your wiring is so neat and organised! Looks bulletproof.
Brilliant. Just brilliant.
Congratulations! Fantastic job, Sir! Following this for a while as well. Can't wait for the rest
holy shit dude. youre a beast, this is amazing
I don't see why cockpit building would be push away by VR, the former provides tactile feedback, the latter provides visual feedback. Having both would be optimal.
i bought a x56 hotas and returned it because I didnt need all the buttons for VR and i prefer to just click the buttons in game.
Wow, just wow. Well done!
Incredible! Mad respect!
My two cents in VR. I currently play with the Pimax 8KX and a 4090, so about as good as it gets (let's not debate on which headset is better here 😅).
I'm currently considering going down the SIM pit route for the KA50 having very much fallen in love with this aircraft.
As you say, resolution isn't quite there with VR, although the immersion really is something else especially with helicopters where depth of field helps massively. That said though, I really want the tactile nature of a SIM pit, having to use a mouse in VR really ruins the immersion and it's just plain impossible to accurately use panels and switches in the real world with a headset on.
Would you do a short video on the basic requirements to get a pit running, things like DCS BIos, usb controllers Vs RS etc. I'm pretty technically minded so got no doubts I can pull off a build, but as with anything this complex, an intro helps massively .
Excellent series btw, absolutely love the build.
Wow that is some nice wiring.
As to your vr question I think the future as far as flight sims goes is a mixed reality set up where people will build pits with some kind of green or blue screen surrounding it and a mixed reality headset where you can still see the outside world while having the immersion of vr, you end up with the best of both world.
Unless we get convincing haptic feedback gloves!
Amazing job :) I've dabbled with DCS bios and ardiuno/arduino joystick library.
Having tactile controls for commonly used functions switches, even Something as simple as a linear potentiometer for the Harrier nozzle control or a generic master arm switch makes a difference.
Tomcat When? :D
Thanks for the thumbs up. You are right, every panel added makes a difference and when they start being used together as one pit its amazing.
Might be a while until I get to another cockpit as a good while to finish the A10. Cheers
@@CraigSmysimpit Yes, it certainly looks like a labour of love. I've seen they've scrapped some Tornado's and the cockpit gauges are tempting me on ebay to convert them. The altimeter is the same as the F14B... maybe a rabbit hole I shouldn't go down! Cheers.
Sweet fancy Moses...
Amazing...If only I could. I would even though I use VR..
Wow! This is .... amazing!
Wow... very nice.
Just wow. Thats incredible mate
Outright sick, just AWESOME!
wow, very impressive!
日本から拝見させていただきます。
HOLLY COOL!!!!!
nice bit kit mate welldone
You Sir can build me a pit any day!
Regarding physical cockpit vs VR: it’s down to what you want. VR is a quick, cheap, compact way to experience flight and play a game. Physical is a slow, creative, expensive hobby that is more about research, learning, problem-solving etc. Real A-10 pilots fly real aircraft in the physical world they don’t sit at a desk wearing a headset (that’s Predator operators).
Hi Mark, I agree that the approach to a physical build is creative and also very time consuming. Results certainly take patience as with time pressures, some panels can take months to develop.
What's your plan for your project? Are you focusing just on the A10? Planning to do part or whole cockpit? A lot of people seem to be doing multipurpose panels, so a generic cockpit which can fly a mix of aircraft
Well done Graig. Great job. You should check out Joe Sim A10 build aswell. He is also using DCS Bios to interface and also doing a fantastic build.
Hi Adrian, thanks for your comments. Ive been watching Joe's work for a while. I really like what he's doing.
A meticulous and thorough job. Extremely well done. What is your plan for the front instrument panel? Will be very interested to see the final outcome !!
Hi Speed Bird, thanks for your comments, appreciated. As regards the front panel, I will initially build the engine instrument cluster. This will help me understand how viable using a RS487 network will be and learn more about steppers for analogue gauges. I'll then build the right console and during that time can think on the ADI and HSI. I'm not sure if I can build these and buying a real one to adapt would likely be too expensive for me, so part of the front dash may need to be a glass cockpit. So in truth, not quite sure yet. It's going to be a lot of fun trying to figure it out tho. Cheers
Ok, that sounds good. A glass cockpit would be fine (with touch screens?) if you cant afford the hardware. So I am assuming you will then put your large screen behind the hardware front panel and then just have the scenery only running on the monitor. I know it may be more expensive, but have a look here for a 202 degree field of view projection system that would give you wrap around visuals for your hardware cockpit. just an idea. www.simpit.co.nz/index.php/features-2/projection-display-solutions/avenger-pro and here is a video to give you an idea of the setup ua-cam.com/video/cD4Rojarm7E/v-deo.html
Just subscribed that build is amazing! I'll be in touch😊
Looks awesome! I think i'm eventually having a go at the F18 now that it's out
Hi Aussie Hornet, the F18 would be a lot of fun to build, awesome aircraft, cheers
THAT'S SIMPLY AWESOME!
I love your work, I love the A10 (actually is the airplane that I like the most) and, as a aircraft engineer (working on M346 and M345) I can say that you've done a GREAT JOB!
What material have you used to craft the backlit panel? Perspex?
Cheers from Italy!
Hi Skalf86, thanks for the positive comments. I use 3mm opal acrylic which is sprayed black, then engraved on a cnc machine. Back-lighting passes through nicely. Cheers
Craig S thank you! I want to build a cockpit for star citizen. Let's see what I can achieve.
Good luck for your future project
Awesome job Craig, simply amazing, I have subscribed. Just one question for now. How did you manage to work the flip covers like the toggle guard etc. I saw that they were working with DC's, where physically they are just not electrically attached to the PC.
Hi Ali Arif, thanks for the comments.
As regards the toggle protectors, the video I did on the intercom panel covers that. Check it out, it should answer your question
Cheers
You are the boss! What do you use about intercom?
love your sim pit. If you were to rebuild this today would you still use a mix of DCS-Bios and keyboard encoder?
I was thinking of building some panels for use with my A10 DCS (not a full sim) to take away some of the keyboard use. I was thinking of using Arduino and DCS-Bios only? Am I limiting myself by using this method?
Thanks
Hi Toby, that's a good question. I'm torn. Using Dcs Bios alone makes sense from a simplicity perspective and I'm sure you'll be fine with just that, but I like the keyboard encoder, because of the option to use panels with other simulators, and also because there's nothing that can really go wrong with them whereas dcs bios working is dependant on a greater number of factors
@@CraigSmysimpit Thanks for the reply.. that makes a lot of sense. The only other thing I “fly” is FS2020 but the main plan for me playing with switches and stuff was for my A10 in DCS world. I am pretty sure (as I’d expect you did) that this will become bigger and bigger and then it’ll end up with a sim pit 😂😂😂
Hi Toby, yes, once you start building it's hard to stop, lol. Good luck with your project 👍
Solid Core Fails after several kinks back and forth. Not a single bend.
Amazing work!
Where do you source your acrylic sheet? What I see on ebay is all ~£4 for an A4 sheet and I'm hoping to find stuff much cheaper than that, particularly for internal panels. Don't mind paying more for fascia panels!
Hi DundeeDriver, I get my acrylic from www.sheetplastics.co.uk
An A4 sheet of 3mm opal (210mmX297mm) is showing as £2.39 on their website.
Then it's either paying p&p or collection.
Cheers
@@CraigSmysimpitThat's brilliant - thanks!
Amazing work! Do you plan for using VR in the future?
I want this jesus christ.
amazing
Craig, how did you setup the TO Trim LED. I noticed it did light up when pressing the TO Trim Button. Is it setup to light everytime TO button is pressed?
Damn 😮
And another 60 USB slots for the right console! next!
wow omg dude, when can we expect it on amazon? Also how long to build the right console and then the front dash? Please tell me that is coming next coz this is sick
hotas warthog + leap motion + valve index = no need for that setup (but DCS can`t support leap motion as i`m aware)
for me personally ..a cockpit build is way better then vr. VR has way to many downsides beside the resolution still... and the feeling of actually touching buttons is allot better then trying to use the mouse in vr. That said .. compared to a commercial plane , fighter planes that are a cockpit build have the downside with the view because of the monitor limit. In a boeing 737 you can life with ease with 3 large screens or projectors ... while on a A10 its harder because you need to look back and up and left and right fully beside just half left , half right
Hi Craig, when you say DCS bios do you just upload that to an Arduino or something?
Hi James, check out this link
dcs-bios.a10c.de/
I'd read this and then also the Ed forums. There are a couple of different versions of this. I still use 0.7.1 (as I recall), but there are later versions and then a new hub version. Hope that helps
@@CraigSmysimpit Cheers mate. I'm researching for my Tomcat Pit. Hopefully get my hands on the VFX stick in the new year then start building panels.
Are your SketchUp files available?
how many arduino are you using? and did you use serial rs480?
Hi Steph, so far I've used
1 x Arduino Uno
1 x Arduino Mega
2 x Keyboard Encoders
I have started looking at a rs487 network for future panels, but early doors in testing that one, cheers
you know you want to make me one xd
Might I ask what monitor you're using?
Hi chris, it is a Toshiba TV. I think the model is 49U6663DB. Cheers
Have you considered creating these as a buisness?
how much did the parts cost?
Hi eatthisvr6, from a build perspective the keyboard encoders are not needed (I used these because I had them from previous and initially planned this build before knowing the full potential of microcontrollers). If you used Arduino's only and no central hub (alot build without them) then the real cost becomes the switches and knobs (simply because you will need a fair few). I found a fair portion of other costs was getting the tools, such as soldering iron, suitable storage and containers, cable cutters, crimpers, testers, decent face mask for when spray painting and sanding/cutting mdf, dremmel, small workbench, etc etc.
Alot of people don't include tools in their costings of a specific project as they get to keep and use them ongoing.
One thing I would say is, each time you use a particular component research alternatives and copies which you can get far cheaper (likely on import). So for example, the first Arduino I got was from Maplins. I ran many tests and then all future ones were copies online which rather than £25 were £3. For my terminated connections, I started with a couple of Molex brand, then moved to a cheaper brand and now buy some online which are unbranded, etc. Finally, any software you use, try to get freeware. So the 3d design of the console was in sketchup. My future planned PCB will use diptrace. Some design and printing used Inkscape. All free, but great software. Cheers
bruh...
Get yourself a girlfriend you have too much free time.
This hobby is magnatudes less expensive.