How I've spent my Thanksgiving:
Nov. 22nd, 2012 03:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rbandrewsVersion 3 of the faceplate.
The picture is taken from the side so you can see the buttons are recessed now; they were a little tough to push before. Now they're really comfortable (still a little stiff, but that's just because of the kind of button they are). I also installed select and start buttons, and put in recessed holes for screws to hold it together (one is screwed in in the picture). I think the silver screws look really classy.
The button holes were adjusted in size and placement a tiny bit (the buttons snap in perfectly now and they're a comfortable thumb-length from the side) and the joystick has a little depression on the side because it's not centered on the breakout board. It fits, but the board is going to be screwed into the case bottom, so, it's not attached to the faceplate in the picture.
I made one mistake so far: I thought carefully about placing the top center screws so there would still be room between them for the microcontroller, but I totally forgot that the microcontroller will extend down too, so there's not nearly enough room between it and start / select. I know how to fix this though: the back will be in three pieces; one back for the buttons (no features but screw holes), one back for the stick (which will be easier to tweak if I only have to reprint that half), and one back that screws to both those to hold the microcontroller. This makes it easy to remove / replace the microcontroller too, you'll just undo some thumbscrews and lift it out, and all the wires will be coming out of the hole with it. Easily hackable.
Granted I still have no idea what I'm going to do about the controller. A Boarduino would be perfect but it's too long, a Teensy is too small and no screw holes, and a nano is perfect but the wrong USB chip (on mine anyway, maybe Adafruit has a better one).
I've kinda scaled back my plans from "impossible" to "fairly hard" in the interest of finishing before I run out of vacation: no shoulder buttons, no turbo / d-pad switches (I didn't get them yesterday and I plan to have the case done tomorrow when they open again), and a somewhat simpler case. I may make another controller later if this one turns out well though.
The picture is taken from the side so you can see the buttons are recessed now; they were a little tough to push before. Now they're really comfortable (still a little stiff, but that's just because of the kind of button they are). I also installed select and start buttons, and put in recessed holes for screws to hold it together (one is screwed in in the picture). I think the silver screws look really classy.
The button holes were adjusted in size and placement a tiny bit (the buttons snap in perfectly now and they're a comfortable thumb-length from the side) and the joystick has a little depression on the side because it's not centered on the breakout board. It fits, but the board is going to be screwed into the case bottom, so, it's not attached to the faceplate in the picture.
I made one mistake so far: I thought carefully about placing the top center screws so there would still be room between them for the microcontroller, but I totally forgot that the microcontroller will extend down too, so there's not nearly enough room between it and start / select. I know how to fix this though: the back will be in three pieces; one back for the buttons (no features but screw holes), one back for the stick (which will be easier to tweak if I only have to reprint that half), and one back that screws to both those to hold the microcontroller. This makes it easy to remove / replace the microcontroller too, you'll just undo some thumbscrews and lift it out, and all the wires will be coming out of the hole with it. Easily hackable.
Granted I still have no idea what I'm going to do about the controller. A Boarduino would be perfect but it's too long, a Teensy is too small and no screw holes, and a nano is perfect but the wrong USB chip (on mine anyway, maybe Adafruit has a better one).
I've kinda scaled back my plans from "impossible" to "fairly hard" in the interest of finishing before I run out of vacation: no shoulder buttons, no turbo / d-pad switches (I didn't get them yesterday and I plan to have the case done tomorrow when they open again), and a somewhat simpler case. I may make another controller later if this one turns out well though.
