Getting real time data for custom motion simulator

Hi, hopefully this is in the right place...
We've got a full car cockpit mounted on a 6DOF hydraulic motion platform that currently works with Live For Speed and we want to get it working with rF2.
We currently use outsim and outgage with LFS to make it send UDP packets to our hydraulics computer which then uses the sent acceleration and speed on 3 axes to move the platform.
The information regarding speed/revs/etc. is also sent via the CAN bus of the original car to have the car display the game speed/revs/etc., which is also done with a few lines in a configuration file.
We want to do the same with rF2. I notice that there's a number of software packages available for USB systems etc. which is probably simpler for most people, but we just want the raw data sent in real time, which I have yet to find a solution to.
I take it this would be best done with a plugin? I have some experience with C and C++ but am at a complete loss when it comes to compiling dll files (I couldn't even get the source files in the example plugin to compile!), so any help, whether it be direct help or just a link to a tutorial (which I looked for, but seemed unable to find) for the basics of writing a plugin.
Thanks! Even just pointing me towards a different forum if there's another which would be more appropriate to post this question in...
Let me know if you need any more info!
tl;dr Is there an outsim/outgage equivalent in rFactor 2?

Hello Fontys,

To compile ISI example plugin : you have to download Visual Studio C++ 2010 Express (from Microsoft, it's free and large : 300Mo !)

Once done, unzip the ExamplePlugin : in "VC7" sub-directory, you double click on the file "ExamplePlugin.vcproj".
Visual Studio will open the sources and convert it to newest version .vcxproj.

Once done, you compile it as a .dll in the options of the projet.

These are the first steps
Mat

Mat, Thanks! I too have been trying to work with the sample plugins but no luck so far. I did install Visual Studio Express (2012 a 5 gb download!!) but did not know where to put the sample files. I will give that a try.

Fontys, Welcome to the XSimulator.net community! I do hope you find the information that you need here and I personally would love to see more information on your build.

Yes Fontys, welcome. Answers should come soon enough for your project.
People are friendly and helpful here.

Thanks guys, that's helpful, though I don't consider those big files as I've got a 100mbps connection
Managed to compile everything fine, but still have little idea what I do next.

I notice that you're all SimTools beta testers; would that be any help for me, or is that more focussed on electric actuators directly controlled by the PC?
Due to my C++ skills being limited, it would definitely be better if I could just use something existing such as how you can use Outsim and Outgage in Live For Speed to output those signals via UDP or even a more detailed tutorial on how to get started.


@Historiker
The setup has the shell of a Mitsubishi Colt mounted on a hydraulic hexapod controlled by a separate hydraulics computer. It uses the original internal fixings (including wheel, pedals etc.) to control the game. It also uses the original power steering motor for force feedback purposes (though I've also been having some problems with that lately). All this is connected and controlled primarily by a PC/104 running a simulink model in real time.

Hi Fontys
Attached a zip file including all the necessary files to compile your own plugin with Visual C++ 201x Express
The dll collects pitch, roll, yaw and surge-, sway- and heave-acceleration and sends them out to UDP port 10815.
rFactor2 starts sending data out only about 5 sec after the start. This is an issue of rFactor2 and not of the dll/UDP server/client
I have stripped out all the unnecessary stuff, so its nice and clean for whatever you want to change.

How to send the data to a CAN bus I have no experience.
rFactor2_dll.zip

PS: A picture of your simulator would be nice

Yes, pictures....

Wow, thanks. That seems great. I'll probably have more questions soon, but that gets me off to a start at least. THANK YOU.
I'll try and post some pictures tomorrow

You will find that this is an incredibly supportive community, I have.

I look forward to the pictures!

Pictures p.s. Stupid dropbox; they showed fine for me.

Wow! Impressive!
The next time I'm in Eindhoven I'll come visiting you and you have to offer me a ride on your simulator!

Being able to have a direct connection between the bottom frame and the platform instead of needing moment arms surely helps that fact. Well, that and the fact that there's a 0.5m cube hydraulics cabinet out of sight

HOLY......CRUD!

I WANT ONE!!!!

Absolutely well done! Inspiring!

I showed this to my wife and received "that look" and a one word response: "No".

Hi @value1,
For sending gauge data to the car via CAN, the part from simulink to CAN is done and works right now. I need to get the relevant data out of rFactor 2 however, and to change my simulink model to unpack both the gauge and sim info from one packet.
The values our platform need are actually angular velocity and x,y,z accelerations, so I had to change the cpp file a bit to get that right (I hope).
I also added more values to the UDP packet for rpm etc. Can you please check it for me? I'll also attach a excel file with what the LFS UDP packets contain and (or what I think at least are) corresponding values for rF2.
I have also attached a wireshark log of me driving out of the pits, turning around and then driving to the end of the straight and crashing into the wall.
Thanks again!

Hi Fontys
Good progress!
Your .cpp looks fine. Just for clarification: You are aware that mLocalRotAccel is pitch/roll/yaw acceleration [rad/s²] rather than angular velocity (which is mLocalRot in [rad/s].
Also -mLocalVel.z is just the speed in z-direction; "proper" speed would be sqrt{(mLocalVel.x)² +(mLocalVel.y)²+(mLocalVel.z)²}.
AFAIK the output of LFS is in world coordinates, while the mLocal... variables in rFactor are in (obviously) local coordinates. Check, what is really expected by your controller.
Also check the direction of the coordinates. In LFS X is forward, Y is left, Z is up while in rFactor
// The local vehicle coordinate system is as follows:
// +x points out the left side of the car (from the driver's perspective)
// +y points out the roof
// +z points out the back of the car
// Rotations are as follows:
// +x pitches up
// +y yaws to the right
// +z rolls to the right
(see InternalsPlugin.hpp)

BTW: Have you considered using rFactor? There are many nice road (rather than racing) tracks available for your Mitsubishi.

Hi value1
Yeah, I don't know why I used mLocalRotAccel when what I want is velocity... The things you miss when staring straight at a problem, eh?
For the speed, is the "proper" speed what I want to use? The speed given at the end of the line of code is just for outputting to to speedometer, so it doesn't really matter that much. Is it still worth using the "proper" speed in your opinion?
I do know I need to check the coordinates all work well today. I believe I compensated properly for the different coordinate systems between LFS and rF2.

I actually installed rFactor first, but when rF2 worked well too it just seemed better to use the newer software. Is it easy to use the same plugin for motion etc. with rFactor? Where does one find these road tracks, as that sounds like something to look into (sorry if that's a stupid question, I'm somewhat new to all this).

Four eyes see more than two

If it's only for the speedometer and because you'll try to stay on the road anyway, it's probably not important. On the other hand, it's also no big deal calculate it correctly.

Just make sure everything is in line.

For rFactor you'll need a slightly different plugin. You can find the source in the Mod/Dev Corner under rFactor internals plugin. Either of these versions V1 - V3 should work for you.

You can find many tracks and cars at rFactorCentral. For some you will have to dig a little deeper; e.g. Bollenbachtal, Göstling-Hochkar, Hemberg, Homburg, Klausenpass, Linz, Lückendorf, Mickhausen, Oberhallau, Osnabrück, Rueschegg, Solitude, Spa-Francorchamps 1967, St. Ursanne, Trier, Unterfranken, Wolsfeld. These are all temporary road tracks – you might find some others nearby your location!