Started 2DOF SCN5 Platform for FlightSim FSX

Your simulator is amazing. the work and effort you put into it to get all that detail is good. I dont know if ive already asked this but can you do a video when you have time to put on this site.

Also one more question. When I looked at the actuators , there is no dampning rubber system in place? Is the ride just as comfertable for you, does it make any difference not having and dampning bars for your experiance?

thank you.

Fahim I answered your previous mail on the software thread a copy of which is below. On your question about the dampers I have copied Bernard's idea and placed rubber dampers between the seat frame and the main frame at the back which seems to absorb quiet a bit. As you can see my main interest is FSX FlightSimming which does not require as fast a motion as the cars. I have almost got a profile ready which I will mail in in the next day or so with a few problems which I have encountered.

Kind regards

Toni

COPY OF MAIL MENTIONED ABOVE
Fahim thank you for your kind remarks. The truth of the mater is that I am not a video man , however what I had intended to do when I get my platform profile up and running was to put up a detailed description of my building of same and putting the final touches to it regarding software etc.that might be of some help to anyone getting involved in the construcion of a motion platform for a flight simulator. You will have to let me how to put a video on desplay here, I know how to put the pictures in but not a video.
The profile ( which I did not anticipate ) is what i am trying to create at the moment and both Egoexpress and Chris are providing great help in this area. You know that book series Wordprocessing for Dummies etc. etc., I think I will call the thread A Motion Platform For Dummies , the reason being that when I started in June that is what I was as regards motion platforms and only for all of the wonderful help that i have recieved from a lot of dedicated guys on this site I could never have completed it, my sincere thanks to all that have helped and I am in the final stages now.

Thanks to Chris and Egoexpress I have been able to create a profile for FSX FlightSim suitable for a Boeing 737 and I attach a copy of same below. I have also included a copy of settings which might help the Gurus on this subject to offer suggestions to improve same. As we know most of the members are involved far more with car motion than flightsim but from what I have learned so far the basics of creating a profile with X-SIM are very much the same regardless of type and I am hopeful that members like Bernard and lots of others who have created fantastic car profiles will put on there goggles and help!

I should explain that there are three FSUIPC Effects that I feel are neccessary to make a FlightSim Profile worthwhile and they are as follows ;

1. Effect No.35 ( This provides the motion to Bank the plane ether Left or Right )
2. Effect No.36 ( This provides the motion to Pitch the Plane Up or Down )
3. Effect No.38 ( This provides the motion for Acceleratin or Braking on the ground )

Now a few mails back Egoexpress advised to only try one effect for starters and to progress from there, he was dead right. Chris advised to create each effects independent of each other and tweak them to an acceptable level before attempting to combine them, he was also dead right.
I did what was recommended and created and tweaked effect 35,36 and 38 independently and had them all working as independent profiles at an acceptable level , I then tried to combine them and that was where everything turned upside down. The movements were all out of sync. and other movements came on the scene which bore no connection to the planes movements. I feel I tried every concievable combination and every option I could find to try and make them compatable but with no success.

Finally I saw that there were three options one could use with the FSUIPC effects and they were as follows 1. Effect to be used on flight only. 2. Effect to be used on ground only. 3. Effect to be used for flight and ground (Default). I decided to cheat a little bit and confined Effect No.35 to Flight Only and Effect No.38 to Ground Only and then combined the two in the one profile. BINGO, it worked and both of these effects are working fine in the profile attached below . I am afraid I could not include Effect No.36 or it would have spoiled the whole profile as described above. Can anybody help with this ?

The profile attached with just two effects, 35 and 38 works pretty well but if I can be a little critical of my own profile I would describe the folllowing. If I bank to the left the seat motion and the plane movement are in perfect sync. but if I then bank to the right the motion of the seat will continue to the left until it reaches a certain point and then change the motion to the right, when it arrives back in center position the sync. is perfect again. The same applies when I bank to the right. Any suggestions ? On the Acceleration and Braking on the ground with the other effect (38) the forward and backward movement apply but they are far slower than they should be. I can understand this as I have had to reduce the Main Interface Settings dramatically to provide the appropriate sync. for the Banking, however I wondered is there some way that you can speed up the acceleration and braking motion on this effect without changing the Main Interface Settings as this would put the Banking way out of sync ? I have tried a comprimise in the settings with values but I am afraid that they are miles apart and when one is acceptable the other is not. I have also tried Threshhold and Percent but with no luck. Any help or suggestions would be most appreciated.

Kind regards

Toni

PROFILE DETAILS
Game: FSX Flight Simulator
Intended Sim Hardware: 2 SCN5 Frex-Style design
Actuators: 150mm
25% Limiter: Yes
Math Plugins Used: 1:1 G-Force
Designed for Specific Aircraft: Boeing 737-400
Includes Gauges: No
Speed Value : 10
Acceleration Value : 100
Comment : Smooth Realistic Movement With Room for Improvement as Outlined

I have prepared a chart below which I hope will encourage some of you Gurus to cast your eye on the profile in my last mail and perhaps make a few suggestions to improve same. All you have to do now is put the X in the right box and Bob's your Uncle !! It could not be easier !!

Anyway this chart may be of general use to some people, by the way when you may print it make sure that you choose Landscape in your printer as it made it more compact this way.

Regards

Toni

Can anyone offer any help at all !!

Regards

Toni,
I'm also embarking on producing a motion platform for FSX and could really do with your help. If you have Skype could you add darren.karp so we could have a live chat?
Thanks
Darren

Darren

In reply to your mail. As you can probably read from my thread I am at the final stages of completing the software end of my motion platform for FSX and am at the moment pleading with the guys to help me with tweaking my profile which will complete the whole project. I am hopeful that this help will be forthcoming soon !!

It is my intention that when I am in a position to offer members like yourself a complete package of my building of this motion platform with all the ups and downs in doing so , however, as another member has said It is great to have the moton platform but you need the petrol to drive it . The mechanical and electrical side of my platform is working perfectly and all I am short of is the final completion of the profile.

If there is anything in the meanwhile that I can help you with please ask and if you would prefer direct communication please do not hesitate to contact me by e-mail ( my address is available on site I think, if not I will send it to you ). The good news is that it is possable for us newbees to build a motion platform for FSX that works but only with all the help that we can get from the guys on this site without whose help I could never have got to this stage with mine, sometimes we have to be patient in getting replies but they will come !! You have to take into account that us flightsim boys are in the minority here and can only expect interest accordingly.

Regards

Toni

Thanks for the reply Toni. Do you not think that 2DOF will not offer the right flight sim experience? I've been told by a number of people that 3DOF is the minimum, be it yaw according to Simcraft or heave.

Darren if I could answer your question by saying How long is a piece of string

There is no question about it that the more DOF's you are prepared to use and the motion platform is well built the better it will get from two up to six, however, this does not mean that all platforms built with the same number of DOF's will perform equally well . A lot can depend on what type of motors or actuators you decide to use and also how much you are prepared to spend ! As I see it the object in building one should be that what you end up with should provide you with whatever your level of satisfaction requires.

Before I built mine I was for a long time unsure of what level I wanted to achieve ,the only thing I was sure about was how much I was prepared to spend !. I read nearly every post in this forum and from the experiances which I found that the other members had it decided for me the general type of platform that I wanted . Thanks to the wonderful help the guys here have given me I am delighted with what I wound up with. I dont think that if you were to compare any two platforms they would be identical, some simular perhaps, but not identical.

In my case I wanted a platform to fit in like a glove with my cockpit which I had built over the years and I am delighted that it does just this and does not stand out looking as an afterthaught.

Hope this helps.

Regards

Toni

P.S. Gurus, dont forget I am still looking for help !!

Hi Toni!!!

Im from Brazil and I start up to use my 737NG simulator witch the motion.
Do you have some improvement in your profile? Im just started up and I hope to exchange information and help you soon!

Best Regards,

Mauricio Catelli

Greetings,
Good work, I'm working on a Joyrider configuration and enjoyed your presentation, even though the one I'm working on has motors and uses USO. I've got a question for you, when I do a 2 minute turn on my rig, half way thru the turn, I get a complete reversal of the direction of the sim (left to right), any comments on this phenom.
jsmith2307

Hi there

I am afraid that to give you a constructive answer I would need a lot more information on your setup and rig. As you have outlined you have gone down a different road to me in what you are using. Also what software are you using and what profiles are you trying ?

Regards

Toni

Greetings,
Thank you very much for responding,
I same get the output on both Profile2 and X-sim Converter with no difference. I tried to make some sense out of your profile Goshawk T-45 Banking and I think I've got a pretty good idea, but I used Extractor input 29: addr 31C0: X Accel. FS2002+ .
Description of the problem: lets say I'm making a left hand turn, the sim starts out in a left hand turn for 90 degrees and gradually shifts to the right all while FS2004 continues in a left hand turn, if I continue with the left turn the sim gradually reverses back! The same thing occurs when it turns to the right.
When I'm going 180 degrees in a different direction, the sim starts out going right when I put in LEFT INPUT on the controls, and it gradually reverses itself. Very confusing!
jsmith2307 :?