DIY gaming wheel usb. DIY gaming steering wheel with pedals for your computer

Some computer games require the use of additional peripheral devices - joysticks, for example, or a steering wheel with pedals.
All these devices, of course, are sold in specialized stores, but you can make them yourself.

In this article we will talk how to make your own steering wheel and pedals for your computer.

Most personal computers used for gaming have a sound card. This card has a game port into which you can connect joysticks, gamepads, steering wheels, etc. All of these devices use the capabilities of the game port in the same way - the only difference is in the design of the device, and a person chooses the one that is most suitable and convenient for the game he is playing.

Gameport The personal computer supports 4 variable resistances (potentiometers) and 4 momentary switch buttons (which are on while pressed). It turns out that you can connect 2 joysticks to one port: 2 resistances (one - left/right, the other - up/down) and 2 buttons for each.

If you look at the sound card, you can easily see the game port, as in this picture.

The blue color indicates which pins in the port correspond to the joystick functions: for example, j1 X means “joystick 1 X axis” or btn 1 - “button 1”. The needle numbers are shown in black and must be counted from right to left, from top to bottom. When using a gameport on a sound card, you should avoid connecting to pins 12 and 15. The sound card uses these outputs for midi for transmission and reception, respectively. In a standard joystick, the X-axis potentiometer controls left/right movement of the handle, and the Y-axis resistance controls forward/backward movement. In relation to the steering wheel and pedals, the X axis becomes the control, and the Y axis, respectively, the throttle and brake. The Y axis must be split and connected so that the 2 separate resistances (for the gas and brake pedals) act as one resistance, just like a standard joystick. Once the idea of the gameport is clear, you can start designing any mechanics around the basic two resistances and four switches: steering wheels, motorcycle handles, airplane traction control... as far as the imagination allows.

steering wheel for computer

This section will explain how to do rudder core module: a tabletop housing containing nearly all of the mechanical and electrical components of the rudder. electrical diagram will be explained in the wiring section and will also cover the mechanical parts of the wheel.

In the pictures: 1 - steering wheel; 2 - wheel hub; 3 - shaft (bolt 12mm x 180mm); 4 - screw (holds the bearing on the shaft); 5 - 12mm bearing in support casing; 6 - centering mechanism; 7 - limiter bolt; 8 - gears; 9 - 100k linear potentiometer; 10 - plywood base; 11 - rotation limiter; 12 - bracket; 13 - rubber cord; 14 - corner bracket; 15 - gear shift mechanism.

The pictures above show general plans of the module (without gear shift mechanism) from the side and from above. To give strength to the entire module structure, a box with beveled corners made of 12mm plywood is used, to which a 25mm protrusion is attached at the front for fastening to the table. The steering shaft is made from a regular mounting bolt 180mm long and 12mm in diameter. The bolt has two 5mm holes - one for the stop bolt (7), which limits wheel rotation, and one for the steel pin of the centering mechanism, described below. The bearings used have a 12mm internal diameter and are screwed to the shaft with two screws (4). Centering mechanism - a mechanism that returns the steering wheel to the central position. It must work accurately, efficiently, be simple and compact. There are several options, one of them will be described here.

The mechanism (fig. left) consists of two aluminum plates (2), 2 mm thick, through which the steering shaft (5) passes. These plates are separated by four 13mm inserts (3). A 5mm hole is drilled in the steering shaft into which a steel rod (4) is inserted. 22mm bolts (1) pass through the plates, bushings and holes drilled into the ends of the rod, securing it all together. The rubber cord is wound between the bushings on one side, then along the top of the steering shaft, and finally between the bushings on the other side. The tension of the cord can be changed to adjust the resistance of the wheel. To avoid damage to the potentiometer, it is necessary to make a wheel rotation limiter. Almost all industrial steering wheels have a rotation range of 270 degrees. However, the 350 degree rotation mechanism will be described here, reducing which will not be a problem. A steel L-shaped bracket, 300mm long (14), is bolted to the module base. This bracket serves several purposes:
- is the attachment point for the rubber cord of the centering mechanism (two m6 bolts of 20mm at each end);
- provides a reliable stopping point for wheel rotation;
- strengthens the entire structure at the moment of tension of the cord.

The limiter bolt (7) m5, 25 mm long, is screwed into vertical hole in the steering shaft. Directly under the shaft, a 20mm m6 bolt (11) is screwed into the bracket. To reduce the sound of an impact, rubber tubes can be placed on the bolts. If needed smaller angle rotation, then two bolts must be screwed into the bracket at the required distance. The potentiometer is attached to the base through a simple angle and connected to the shaft. Most potentiometers have a maximum rotation angle of 270 degrees, and if the steering wheel is designed to rotate 350 degrees, a gearbox is required. A couple of gears from a broken printer will fit perfectly. You just need to choose the right number of teeth on the gears, for example 26 and 35. In this case, the gear ratio will be 0.75:1 or rotating the steering wheel 350 degrees will give 262 degrees on the potentiometer. If the steering wheel rotates in a range of 270 degrees, then the shaft is connected directly to the potentiometer.

Computer pedals

Module basis " pedals" is made similarly to the handlebar module from 12mm plywood with a hardwood cross member (3) for attaching the return spring. The flat shape of the base serves as a footrest. The pedal stand (8) is made of 12mm steel tube, to the upper end of which the pedal is bolted. Through the lower the end of the post passes through a 5mm rod, which holds the pedal in mounting brackets (6), screwed to the base and made of steel angle. The crossbar (3) runs across the entire width of the pedal module and is securely (must withstand the full stretch of the springs) glued and screwed to the base (. 2). The return spring (5) is attached to a steel eye screw (4), which passes through the crossbar directly under the pedal. This mounting design allows you to easily adjust the spring tension. The other end of the spring attaches to the pedal potentiometer. a simple L-bracket (14) at the rear of the module. The rod (11) is attached to the actuator (12) on bushings (9, 13), allowing the resistance to rotate through a range of 90 degrees.

Gear shift knob for computer

The gear lever is aluminum construction, as in the picture on the left. A threaded steel rod (2) is attached to the arm through a bushing (1) and passes through a hole drilled in the L-shaped bracket at the base of the steering module. On both sides of the hole in the bracket, two springs (1) are installed on the rod and tightened with nuts so that a force is created when the lever moves. Two large washers (4, 2) are located between two microswitches (3), which are screwed one on top of the other to the base. All this is clearly visible in the pictures below.

The figure below shows an alternative gear shift mechanism - on the steering wheel, as in Formula 1 cars. It uses two small hinges (4) that are mounted on the wheel hub. The levers (1) are attached to the joints in such a way that they can only move in one direction, i.e. towards the wheel. Two small switches (3) are inserted into the holes in the levers, so that when pressed they rest against the rubber pads (2) glued to the wheel and operate. If the switch has insufficiently rigid pressure, then the return of the levers can be ensured by springs (5) mounted on the hinge.

Connecting the steering wheel and pedals to the computer

A little about how does a potentiometer work. If you remove the cover from it, you can see that it consists of a curved conductive path with contacts A and C at the ends and a slider connected to the central contact B (Figure 11). When the shaft rotates counterclockwise, the resistance between A and B will increase by the same amount as it decreases between C and B. The entire system is connected according to the circuit of a standard joystick, which has 2 axes and two buttons. The red wire always goes to the middle contact of the resistance, but the purple one (3) can be connected to any of the side ones, depending on how the resistance is set.

With pedals it's not so simple. Turning the steering wheel is equivalent to moving the joystick left/right, and pressing the gas/brake pedals up/down, respectively. And if you press both pedals at once, they will mutually exclude each other, and no action will follow. This is a single-axis connection system that most games support. But many modern simulators, such as GP3, F1-2000, TOCA 2, etc., use a two-axis gas/brake system, allowing the practical application of control methods associated with the simultaneous use of gas and brake. Both diagrams are shown below.

Since many games do not support dual axis, it would be wise to build a switch (picture on the right), which will allow you to switch between one- and two-axis systems with a switch installed in the pedal module or in the “dashboard”.

There are not many parts in the described device, and the most important of them are potentiometers. First, they must be linear, 100k impedance, and in no case logarithmic (they are sometimes called audio), because those are intended for audio devices, such as volume controls, and have a non-linear impedance path. Secondly, cheap potentiometers use a graphite trace, which wears out very quickly. The more expensive ones use metal ceramics and conductive plastic. These will work much longer (approximately 100,000 cycles). Switches - any kind, but, as was written above, they must be of the instantaneous (that is, non-locking) type. These can be obtained from an old mouse. A standard D-type joystick connector with 15 pins is sold in any store that sells radio components. Any wires, the main thing is that they can be easily soldered to the connector.

All tests must be carried out on the device disconnected from the computer. First you need to visually check the solder connections: there should be no extraneous jumpers or bad contacts anywhere. Then you need to calibrate the steering potentiometer. Since a resistance of 100k is used, you can measure the resistance between two adjacent contacts with the device and set it to 50k. However, for a more accurate installation, you need to measure the resistance of the potentiometer by turning the steering wheel all the way to the left, then all the way to the right. Determine the range, then divide by 2 and add the lower measurement result. The resulting number must be set using the device. In the absence of measuring instruments, you need to set the potentiometer to the central position as much as possible. The pedal potentiometers should be slightly turned on when installed. If a single-axis system is used, then the gas pedal resistance should be set to the center (50k on the device), and the brake resistance should be off (0k). If everything is done correctly, then the resistance of the entire pedal module, measured between needles 6 and 9, should decrease if you press the gas, and increase if you press the brake. If this does not happen, then you need to swap the external resistance contacts. If a two-axis connection is used, both potentiometers can be set to zero. If there is a switch, then the circuit of the single-axis system is checked.

Before connecting to a computer, you need to check the electrical circuit to ensure there is no short circuit. Here you will need meter. We check that there is no contact with the +5v power supply (pins 1, 8, 9 and 15) and ground (4, 5 and 12). then we check that there is contact between 4 and 2, if you press button 1. The same thing between 4 and 7, for button 2. Next, we check the steering wheel: the resistance between 1 and 3 decreases if you turn the wheel to the left, and increases if you turn the wheel to the right. In a single-axis system, the resistance between needles 9 and 6 will decrease when the gas pedal is pressed and increase when the brake is pressed.

The last step is connecting to the computer. Having connected the plug to the sound card, turn on the computer. Go to "Control Panel - Gaming Devices" and select "add - special". Set the type to “joystick”, 2 axes, 2 buttons, write the name of the type “LXA4 Super F1 Driving System” and press OK 2 times. If everything was done correctly and your hands are growing from the right place, then the “status” field should change to “OK”. Click "properties", "settings" and follow the instructions on the screen. All that remains is to launch your favorite toy, select your device from the list, if necessary, configure it further, and that’s it, good luck!

As you probably know, playing various car simulators using a steering wheel and pedals is much more convenient and realistic than using a keyboard. To accurately fit into a turn, you do not need to repeatedly press the keyboard buttons, but simply smoothly turn the steering wheel as required. Gas and brake also need smooth control, so pedals are a mandatory addition to the steering wheel. Of course, this is very far from real driving in a real car, but once you try to play using a computer steering wheel, you will no longer want to play with the keyboard.

If the cost of a normal factory steering wheel may discourage you from purchasing it, the best option will make the steering wheel and pedals yourself, especially since they can be easily made at home without having special skills. Besides, it won’t be such a shame to break them.

Steering module design

The design of the steering wheel itself is very simple, and if available necessary tools and materials, making a steering module at home is not difficult at all.

Try to plan what you are going to do first by sketching out simple sketches. These don't have to be masterpieces, ordinary thoughts or ideas. It's amazing how often you can discover errors in your thinking before they become reality. This will save you a lot of time later.

The pictures above show general plans of the module: top, front and side. The base of the tablet is made of thick plywood to give strength to the structure.
A long bolt with a diameter of 12mm was used as the steering shaft. The steering wheel and two bearings with an internal diameter of 12 mm are secured to it with nuts. U-shaped metal clamps press the shaft with bearings to wooden supports. The limiter keeps the shaft from turning in the central position. It is necessary so that a sudden movement does not damage the variable resistor.
The resistor (potentiometer) is attached to the base through a simple steel angle and connects directly to the shaft using a piece of rubber hose. For ease of connection, a small plastic handle with a diameter matching the diameter of the steering shaft is placed on the resistor axis. You must ensure that the centers of rotation of the steering wheel and shaft strictly coincide.

Steering wheel design

First, you need to design your steering wheel. Then, armed with a ruler and compass, draw detailed drawing steering wheel The shape where the fingers wrap is especially important, so you need to find the most comfortable position for your hands. Remember, if you're an avid racer, you'll be spending long hours clutching this wheel in your hands.
Making a steering wheel for a car simulator is not as difficult as you might think. It can be made from one or several layers of phonera, gluing them together. Cut it out with a jigsaw, sand the sharp edges and cover it with several layers of black paint, sanding each layer in between.

Next, you will need to make a hub for the rear of the steering wheel. This is nothing more than a square or round block of wood that provides space between the wheel and the front panel and also provides additional strength. Fix the hub firmly to the back of the handlebar furniture glue or fasten with screws. Drill a 12mm hole in the center for the steering shaft (straight! preferably on drilling machine) and the steering wheel can be painted.

Steering wheel centering

First of all, the steering wheel requires a good returning force, which, when turning, will return the steering wheel to its original position. This method Centering consists of drilling a horizontal hole through the steering shaft and inserting a 5mm bolt with the head cut off. Grind off the ends of this bolt on both sides with a file and drill holes in the resulting areas. They will allow you to secure the springs in this place. The steering shaft also needs to be ground off on both sides to ensure good fixation of the nuts.

Then screw the bolt into the drilled hole on the axle and tighten it tightly with nuts on both sides. The other end of the spring hooks to the steel L-bracket. When the steering wheel is turned, the springs stretch; when the steering wheel is released, the springs return to their original position and return the shaft back to the middle position. You can adjust the steering return force by tightening or loosening the springs.

Steering module lock

An important factor in the manufacture of the steering wheel is the fastening system to the table. This fixation system ensures quick installation and removing the steering module, with a fairly rigid fixation.

We bend the U-bracket from the steel plate and drill 4 holes for self-tapping screws, as shown in the figure. After cutting a special presser foot out of hard wood, you need to drill an 8mm hole in the middle for a 5mm bolt. Then, screw the foot to the U-bracket with self-tapping screws so that the foot moves freely in it. The distance from the base of the module to the foot should be approximately equal to the thickness of the table to which you are going to install it.

Drill a hole through the base of the steering module and firmly insert a threaded T-sleeve or threaded insert into the hole that can accept a 5mm bolt. Then screw the U-bracket to wooden base module with two self-tapping screws, pass a bolt with a rotary handle into the hole of the tab and screw it into the T-sleeve. Make sure that the foot moves down freely when the clamp is loosened. To reduce slipping, you can glue a piece of thin rubber to the edge of the foot.

Designing Pedals

Anyone who likes to drive in car simulators knows how important it is to have pedals in addition to the steering wheel. They allow you to free one hand and give your legs work, increasing the realism of control and at the same time simplifying the performance of some maneuvers.

This design is very reliable and easy to manufacture. The base and pedals are made of plywood and attached to each other using pieces of furniture hinges. A hole (about 10mm) is drilled in the base under the pedals for free movement of the lever.

The lever is made from metal rod and bends in one direction on both sides, as seen in the figure. You can secure it to the pedal with a small nail bent into a U-shape.

Springs are necessary to return the pedals to their original position and must provide increased pressure. It is not necessary to fasten them, because... they will be sandwiched between the pedals and the base.

Variable resistors (100k) are attached to the base via L-brackets on back side basis. A handle is inserted onto the resistor shaft. It is made from wood or plastic. Use whatever material you have. Two holes are drilled in the handle. The resistor shaft is tightly inserted into one, and the lever into the other, so that it rotates freely. The handle will also act as a reverse limiter, so make it stronger.

As you can see in the picture, the pedals are connected to the resistor through a lever. When the pedal is depressed, the lever passes through a hole in the base and moves the handle down. This increases the resistance of the resistor. With the help of springs, the pedals return to their original position.

In the same way, you can additionally add a clutch pedal to the pedal unit if your car simulator fully supports three pedals.

Gear shift mechanism

Gear shift knob

Almost all modern car simulators support “direct” gear shifting: the player, as in a conventional manual transmission, moves the lever to the desired gear. For this purpose, high-end computer steering wheels have a direct shift lever for 6-7 gears. In this article I will tell you how to make a seven-speed shifter, made in the form of a separate block, fixed in any convenient location separate from the steering wheel. This will be a device with a “direct” gear shift lever for 6 speeds (not counting reverse), simulating a conventional manual box transmission

The main mechanism is made on the principle of a conventional joystick and allows the lever to tilt along the X and Y axes.

Molds for the mechanism can be made from 1mm steel. Bend them as shown in the figure and connect them together through the holes with a sleeve.
The lever itself is made from a regular steel rod (approximately 8mm). A hole is drilled in the lower part of the lever and a bushing is inserted into it through the mechanism. This will be the center of rotation of the lever along the Y axis, which directly presses the buttons.

Just above the axis of the lever, the hole is not fully drilled. A spring and a small ball from the bearing, matching the diameter of the hole, are inserted into it. In addition, two holes are drilled on the top of the mechanism. The ball falls into these holes and does not allow the lever to move freely from the button, leaving it on.

This is necessary in order to record the pressed button, because When you release the button, in many simulators the neutral is automatically switched on.

To avoid damage to the buttons from being hit by the lever while pressing, the buttons are mounted on spring steel plates, which are directly attached to the base. The lever presses on the button, which, after turning on, will bend through the plate in the opposite direction. Plates of this steel can be obtained from unwanted VHD video cassettes.

The plate with guide grooves for the gears is cut out of aluminum and mounted on top of the structure. At the ends of each guide, on the bottom side, 7 plates with buttons are attached.

It immediately becomes clear that 4 buttons available from Gameport will not be enough, so you need to find a way to get 7 independent buttons. The most simple option it would be if the electronics were an old USB joystick or gamepad. It usually has enough buttons and you don’t have to worry about soldering a new device.

There is another way to connect the device to the Gameport by soldering a small board. As you can see in the figure below, by connecting 4 buttons from the Gameport using diodes together, you can get a configuration with 7 buttons and one POV.

I can’t say anything about the performance of this scheme, because I haven’t used it myself. It is quite possible that special drivers will be required for it to be recognized by the operating system.

To change gears, you can also make paddle shifters, as on some sports cars and in Formula 1. The levers are located on back side steering wheel and can be used with your fingers, allowing you to maintain contact with the gearbox when turning the steering wheel. This device is supported by all games, as two buttons are enough to operate it.

This simple circuit, which shows the basic location of the control levers. The lever can be made of wood, metal, plastic, or whatever. At the end of the lever, two holes are drilled for the screws on which it will be held. The screws should be the right length so that they do not press too hard and restrict the movement of the lever. Two springs are needed to fix the levers in the neutral position. To secure the buttons, you can glue them to the base of the steering wheel in in the right place.
When choosing a place on the back of the steering wheel to attach the levers, make sure that they will not interfere with control. If necessary, you can come up with your own convenient shape for them.

Electrical connection diagram

To connect the steering wheel and pedals, it is necessary that a sound card with a GAME/MIDI port is installed on the computer, to which gaming devices (joysticks, gamepads, steering wheels) are connected, or the game port can be built into the motherboard of the system unit.

The steering wheel circuit is no different from that of an ordinary joystick and does not require any drivers or special programs. The gameport supports 4 variable resistances (100k resistors) and 4 momentary buttons that are on while pressed.

In order for the computer to identify the gaming device, it is enough to connect two resistors to the gameport on the X and Y axis. In our case, these are variable resistors for the steering wheel, X axis (3) and gas pedal resistors, Y axis (6). The brake pedal uses axis X1(11). And the remaining Y1(13) axis can be used for the clutch pedal.

Resistors must be linear (not from volume controls!) from 50k to 200k (it’s better to take 100k). The red wire (+5V) always goes to the middle contact of the resistor, but the axis (3, 6, 11 contacts) can be connected to any from the sides, depending on how the resistor is installed. If when you turn the steering wheel to the left the cursor goes to the right, you just need to swap the external contacts of the resistor. It's the same with pedals.

A standard joystick plug with 15 pins can be purchased at any electronic store or radio market. It is better to take a shielded 10-core wire.

Calibration

Before connecting the steering wheel and pedals to the computer, you need to calibrate the resistors. For more precise adjustments, you will need a special measuring device. The steering resistor must be set to the central position. If you are using a 100k resistor, then you can measure the resistance between two adjacent contacts with a device and set it to 50k. The gas and brake pedal resistor can be set to the minimum resistance (0k). If everything is done correctly, the resistance of the resistor should increase when you press the pedal. If this does not happen, then you need to swap the external contacts of the resistor.

Before connecting to a computer, you must check that there is no short circuit between the +5v contact (1, 8, 9) and ground (4, 5), otherwise the gameport may burn out!!!

For greater durability, instead of variable resistors, you can install an optical pair (LED + photodiode). There are no rubbing parts in such a device, and therefore there is virtually no wear. Optocouplers can be taken from old computer mouse+5V is soldered onto the middle leg of the photodiode, the output of the corresponding axis is on any of the outer legs. A resistance of R 100 Ohm limits the current through the LED.
You can see more details about optics

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DIY steering wheel and pedals for your computer

As you probably know, playing various car simulators using a steering wheel and pedals is much more convenient and realistic than using a keyboard. The steering wheel allows you to set a certain angle of rotation, which allows you to smoothly turn the steering wheel as much as required in order to accurately fit into the turn. Gas and brake also need smooth control, so pedals are a must-have addition to the steering wheel. When pressed, they allow you to maintain a certain speed on the track.

If you don’t want to spend extra money on buying a factory steering wheel, I suggest making a simple steering wheel with pedals and a gearbox yourself, especially since they can be easily made at home without any special skills. Besides, it won’t be such a shame to break it. Of course, this is far from the factory model of the steering wheel, equipped with all the bells and whistles, but in order to feel like a racer and enjoy the game, it is quite suitable.

Steering module

Diagram of a homemade steering module

The design of the steering wheel itself is very simple, and if you have the necessary tools and materials, making a steering module at home is not at all difficult.

The pictures above show general plans of the module: top, front and side. The base of the tablet is made of thick plywood to add strength to the structure.
A long bolt with a diameter of 12mm was used as the steering shaft. The steering wheel and two bearings with an internal diameter of 12 mm are secured to it with nuts. U-shaped metal clamps press the shaft with bearings against wooden supports. The limiter keeps the shaft from turning in the central position. It is necessary so that a sudden movement does not damage the variable resistor.
The resistor (potentiometer) is attached to the base through a simple steel angle and connected directly to the shaft using a piece of rubber hose. For ease of connection, a small plastic handle with a diameter matching the diameter of the steering shaft is placed on the resistor axis. You must ensure that the centers of rotation of the steering wheel and shaft strictly coincide.

Making a wooden steering wheel

First, you need to design your steering wheel. Then, armed with a ruler and compass, draw a detailed drawing of the steering wheel. The shape where the fingers wrap is especially important, so you need to find the most comfortable position for your hands. Remember, if you're an avid racer, you'll be spending long hours clutching this wheel in your hands.
Making a steering wheel for a car simulator is not as difficult as you might think. It can be made from one or several layers of phonera, gluing them together. Cut out with a jigsaw, sand the sharp edges and cover with several layers of black paint, sanding each layer in between.

Next, you will need to make a hub for the rear of the steering wheel. It is nothing more than a square or round block of wood that provides space between the wheel and the front panel and also provides additional strength. Firmly fix the hub to the back of the steering wheel with furniture glue or screw it with screws. Drill a 12mm hole in the center for the steering shaft (straight! preferably on a drill press) and the steering wheel is ready to be painted.

Steering return mechanism

First of all, the steering wheel requires a good returning force, which, when turning, will return the steering wheel to its original position. This alignment method involves drilling a horizontal hole through the steering shaft and inserting a 5mm head bolt. Grind off the ends of this bolt on both sides with a file and drill holes in the resulting areas. They will allow you to secure the springs in this place. The steering shaft also needs to be ground off on both sides to ensure good fixation of the nuts.

Then screw the bolt into the drilled hole on the axle and tighten it tightly on both sides with nuts. The other end of the spring attaches to a steel L-bracket. When the steering wheel is turned, the springs stretch; when the steering wheel is released, the springs return to their original position and return the shaft back to the middle position. You can adjust the steering return force by tightening or loosening the springs.

Attaching the steering wheel to the table

An important factor in the manufacture of the steering wheel is the mounting system to the table. This fixation system ensures quick installation and removal of the steering module, with a fairly rigid fixation.

Drill a hole through the base of the steering module and firmly insert a threaded T-sleeve or threaded insert into the hole that can accept a 5mm bolt. Then screw the U-bracket to the wooden base of the module with two self-tapping screws, pass the bolt with a rotary handle into the hole of the tab and screw it into the T-sleeve. Make sure that the tab moves down freely when the clamp is loosened. To reduce slipping, you can glue a piece of thin rubber to the edge of the foot.

Designing Pedals

Designing homemade pedals

Anyone who likes to drive in car simulators knows how important it is to have pedals in addition to the steering wheel. They allow you to free up one hand and give your legs something to do, making the controls more realistic while making some maneuvers easier.

The lever is made of a metal rod and bends in one direction on both sides, as seen in the figure. You can secure it to the pedal with a small nail bent into a U-shape.

Variable resistors (100k) are attached to the base via L-brackets on the back of the base. A handle is inserted onto the resistor shaft. It is made from wood or plastic. Use whatever material you have. Two holes are drilled in the handle. The resistor shaft is tightly inserted into one, and the lever into the other, so that it rotates freely. The handle will also act as a backstop, so make it stronger.

As can be seen in the figure, the pedals are connected to the resistor through a lever. When the pedal is depressed, a lever passes through a hole in the base and moves the handle down. This increases the resistance of the resistor. With the help of springs, the pedals return to their original position.

In the same way, you can additionally add a clutch pedal to the pedal unit if your car simulator fully supports three pedals.

Shifting gears

Gear shift mechanism

Almost all modern car simulators support “direct” gear shifting: the player, as in a conventional manual transmission, moves the lever to the desired gear. For this purpose, high-end computer steering wheels have a direct shift lever for 6-7 gears. In this article I will tell you how to make a seven-speed shifter, made in the form of a separate block, fixed in any convenient place separately from the steering wheel. This will be a device with a “direct” gear shift lever for 6 speeds (not counting reverse), simulating a conventional manual transmission.

The main mechanism is made on the principle of a conventional joystick and allows the lever to tilt along the X and Y axes.

This is necessary in order to record the pressed button, because When you release the button, in many simulators the neutral is automatically switched on.

The plate with guide grooves for the gears is cut out of aluminum and mounted on top of the structure. At the ends of each guide, on the bottom side, 7 plates with buttons are attached.

It immediately becomes clear that 4 buttons available from Gameport will not be enough, so you need to find a way to get 7 independent buttons. The simplest option would be if the electronics were an old USB joystick or gamepad. It usually has enough buttons and you don’t have to worry about soldering a new device.

To change gears, you can also make paddle shifters, as on some sports cars and in Formula 1. The levers are located on the back of the steering wheel and can be used with your fingers, allowing you to maintain contact with the gearbox when turning the steering wheel. This device is supported by all games, as two buttons are enough to operate it.

On the left is a simple diagram that shows the basic location of the control levers. The lever can be made of wood, metal, plastic, or whatever. At the end of the lever, two holes are drilled for the screws on which it will be held. The screws should be the right length so that they do not press too hard and restrict the movement of the lever. Two springs are needed to fix the levers in the neutral position. To secure the buttons, you can glue them to the base of the steering wheel in the right place.
When choosing a location on the back of the steering wheel to mount the levers, make sure that they will not interfere with steering. If necessary, you can come up with your own convenient form for them.

Electrical diagram

Electrical diagram for connecting to Gameport

The resistors should be linear (not from volume controls!) from 50k to 200k (it’s better to take 100k). The red wire (+5V) always goes to the middle contact of the resistor, but the axis (3, 6, 11 contacts) can be connected to any of the side ones, depending on how the resistor is installed. If, when you turn the steering wheel to the left, the cursor goes to the right, you just need to swap the external contacts of the resistor. It's the same with pedals.

A standard joystick plug with 15 pins can be purchased at any electronic store or radio market.
It is better to immediately choose resistors from expensive ones, they will last longer. Cheap ones will start to make noise within a couple of months (the steering wheel will twitch). In this case, cleaning and lubricating them (for example WD40) can help.
It is better to take a shielded 10-core wire.

Steering wheel calibration

Before connecting the steering wheel and pedals to the computer, you need to calibrate the resistors. For more precise adjustments, you will need a special measuring device. The steering resistor must be set to the central position. If you are using a 100k resistor, then you can measure the resistance between two adjacent contacts with a device and set it to 50k. The main thing is that when adjusting, the center of the steering wheel coincides with the middle of the resistor stroke. Well, so that the working area of the resistor does not end at the edges of the steering wheel stroke. The gas and brake pedal resistor can be set to the minimum resistance (0k). If everything is done correctly, the resistance of the resistor should increase if you press the pedal. If this does not happen, then you need to swap the external contacts of the resistor.

Attention! It is forbidden to connect/disconnect the joystick while the computer is turned on! This may cause the sound card to fail or motherboard your computer!

Before connecting to the computer, you need to check the wiring of the steering wheel and pedals so that there is no short circuit between the +5v contact (1, 8, 9) and ground (4, 5), otherwise the gameport may burn out.

Connect the plug to the sound card. In the Control Panel, select "Game Devices" then the "Add" button. In the menu, select “joystick 2 axes 2 buttons” and click “OK”. If everything was done correctly, the “status” field should change to “OK”. After this, we need to calibrate the gaming tablet. In "Properties" click on the "Settings" tab, then on the "Calibrate" button and follow the instructions. When calibrating, I recommend additionally using the DXTweak2 program. The setting criterion is smooth movement throughout the entire range of rotation of the corresponding axis without the cursor “dropping” at the edges of the range.
That's it, download your favorite car simulator, select your device in the settings, configure it and have fun!

For greater durability, instead of variable resistors, you can install an optical pair (LED + photodiode). There are no rubbing parts in such a device, and therefore there is virtually no wear. Optocouplers can be taken from an old computer mouse. +5V is soldered to the middle leg of the photodiode, the output of the corresponding axis is to any of the outer legs. A resistance of R 100 Ohm limits the current through the LED.

The best modern car simulators

Need for Speed SHIFT

Need for Speed SHIFT is a new racing simulator. It not only combines realistic physics, beautifully modeled car models and varied tracks, but also offers players the most authentic racing car driving experience possible. NFS SHIFT focuses on spectacular and unprecedented realism. Here you don’t just see the car and the track, but feel every turn, every hill and every pebble under the wheel. You heel slightly when turning, tossed up on hills and mercilessly shakes, flips and shakes in accidents. Colliding with another vehicle or a static obstacle can truly feel like you've been involved in a serious accident. A complex combination of sound and visual effects creates a stunning illusion of presence. You can get behind the wheel of 70 photorealistic cars, meticulously copied from real-life cars.
Need for Speed SHIFT takes realism in car simulators to a whole new level.

GTR2 provides calculation of a huge number of vehicle parameters, making the control as close to real as possible. The physics is real down to the smallest detail - as it should be in a modern simulator, you can feel everything - uneven surfaces, differences in grip on asphalt and curbs, tire temperature. Braking and acceleration pose a real problem, forcing you to actively and subtly work with the gas and brake. A huge advantage of the game is that it includes a serious driving school, consisting of two parts, in the first of which we are taught to brake, accelerate and correctly take turns and their connections, and in the second they give us the opportunity to learn all the routes available in the game sequentially, section by section. The range of cars is as wide as possible. The game uses 144 cars, recreated from real drawings and telemetry data. Behavior different cars adequately differentiated. Races take place on 34 tracks with photorealistic environments, which were created using GPS and CAD data. The sound in the game is extremely informative and gives a clear idea of the behavior of the wheels.

Live for Speed

Live for Speed is a serious racing car simulator. The main distinguishing feature of LFS is its high level of realism. No arcade modes or control assistance. The most important attributes of auto racing have been implemented, in particular the settings of various components, fuel consumption, temperature and tire wear, asphalt and dirt tracks, which affects the behavior of the car and its characteristics. This advantage is achieved by modeling car models according to the rules of mechanics. The LFS suspension is designed in detail; its arms break under impacts. The cars themselves in LFS also receive damage, which is simulated when the car comes into contact with an obstacle. You can compete with computer opponents or with real racers from all over the world. Moreover, the game has the best network code to date. You can even play on a modem, and wage a close, even contact, fight with more than 20 racers at the same time. LFS turned out to be a very successful car simulator, with excellent characteristics and an excellent set of capabilities, despite the low system requirements to the computer.

rFactor

rFactor is another contender for the title of modern simulator. Initially, only a few fictional cars and tracks are available in the game, but along with the game we get an editor that allows us to change most of the game to suit our needs, or connect to the Internet and download the creations of other players. It is thanks to the efforts of the players that the rFactor engine still looks acceptable. In addition to the circuit racing tracks, there is a full-fledged garage where you can customize the car almost to the grade of metal from which the body is made. The car can be upgraded using earned funds, which, however, are withdrawn without warning for violating the rules, such as speeding in a pit stop or running a red light. By downloading the demo version, you can get yourself a small mini-simulator for free, which will give a sophisticated “simulator” something to puzzle over. It should be noted that the game does not suffer from a lack of popularity, and there is always a company to race on the servers. And the developers care and cherish their child with constant updates and additions.

Racer is a completely free, freely downloadable, non-commercial racing simulator. Strengths Racer games are its physics and graphics. Advanced shader systems are used, and the effects in the game are surprisingly realistic. All cars and tracks in Racer can be freely customized by the user. What's more, some Racer editing tools come bundled with the game download so you don't have to scour the Internet to find necessary programs. Thanks to this policy, a huge range of cars is available for the Racer game: Formula 1 cars, trucks, regular sedans and expensive supercars. You can even find exotic ones vehicles, such as shopping carts. Any Racer user can create their own car using existing tools, or side programs such as 3D Max. The same goes for the trails. Thanks to Racer's many fans, their choice is also huge: from mountain serpentines to famous racing rings. Racer can be considered perhaps the best non-commercial driving simulator.

3D Instructor 2.0 Home version

The new educational driving simulator is a completely new development in relation to the first version. The main emphasis of the program is on training novice drivers and realistic car control. This unique program will help you prepare for passing the practical exam in the traffic police and feel more confident on the congested streets of the capital. You can drive a car in test mode, trying to score the fewest penalty points, or simply drive around the city, practicing your driving skills in difficult traffic situations. The ability to set different traffic intensity - from empty streets to dense traffic jams - will help you match the traffic congestion to your driving experience, and hone the attention and reaction necessary to avoid an accident. Here you can drive cars different models: VAZ 2110, VAZ 2106, Toyota Corolla, GAZ 3302 (Gazelle onboard), and also evaluate the variety of areas of the virtual city included in the game.

Textbook

Virtual driving technique

Learning to drive a virtual car using the steering wheel and pedals for a beginner is not as easy as it seems. It may take about a week or two just to master the steering wheel, a month or more to learn the basics of driving technique and working the pedals.
Almost all serious car simulators have an arcade racing mode, but if you want to achieve maximum realism in virtual driving, then I recommend abandoning the steering assistance. You will have to constantly study, work and improve your riding skills. Thus, at first you will make a lot of mistakes, but the process of mastering the simulator will go faster.
For any car simulator, a steering wheel and pedals are essential, so take care of making or purchasing them in order to fully use the tips from this article. All tips about driving techniques can be applied to any car simulator you like. So let's begin.

Choose your cockpit view.

All arcade “rear views”, although they give a more complete picture of the dimensions of the car in the context of the track, do not provide information about drifts and drifts. Being in the cockpit, you see the world as it is, so you can always easily recognize a skid by its rotation or displacement relative to the car. In addition, if possible, you should always choose a view in which there is some part of the car in the frame - the hood, the windshield pillar, and so on. The shift and rotation of the world is always better seen when there is some object in the center of the field of view. In the absence of one, you have to navigate, at best, by virtual instruments in the corner of the screen. This leads to reaction delays and increased fatigue. In addition, driving with a view from the cockpit develops an internal sense of the vehicle's dimensions.

Don't taxi in the air.

After a wrong jump from a springboard, when the car flies sideways, there is a great temptation to taxi it before landing. Don't give in. Even if you drive so well that, guided only by an inner feeling, you can put the front wheels exactly on course while still in the air - don’t do it. Leave the steering wheel in the middle position. Keep in mind that the car will not behave the same when landing as usual - due to vertical acceleration it will have much more grip, so any rotation of the wheels combined with the sharp increase in oversteer due to the fall will result in at least to skid. Place the front wheels in the middle position and after landing, let the car slide a little, then, when it has already risen on the suspension and its steering has returned to normal, smoothly level it. Although, of course, it is even better to follow the following advice.

Don't jump.

Try not to leave the ground. Of course, the jump is spectacular. But jumping on an unfamiliar track, often in a blind spot, possibly close to the next turn, is very dangerous. Press down the car on uneven surfaces by reducing the speed at the moment preceding the moment of lift-off. This will increase steering and prevent the car from jumping on bumps. Just release the gas or lightly press the brake. Sure, you'll lose a few hundredths of a second, but otherwise you could hit the car and lose everything.

Properly prevent coups.

When cutting a turn, the car often runs its inner wheels onto a higher shoulder than the road surface, a shoulder, a stone and other obstacles. This may cause the car to end up on its two outer wheels. It would seem that everyone knows how to ride two-wheeled bicycles and knows that in this case you just need to turn the steering wheel in the direction of a possible fall. But this is just lip service, since the problem is usually not limited to roll. Hitting an obstacle located inside the turn leads to straightening of the arc, and the car begins to move outward tangentially to the turning arc. Instinct in such cases forces you to turn the steering wheel inward, which inevitably leads to the car turning over. Control yourself, steer outward, put the car on its wheels and only then solve the problem of leaving the trajectory.

Learn to Drift.

The steering wheel, oddly enough, is a very minor part of a racing car during Drift. The radius of the turning arc is set by the gas and brake, and the steering wheel makes corrective movements to optimal angle skidding An increase in traction leads to more slip, and the car goes outward. A decrease in traction leads to a narrowing of the arc until the sliding stops. As you already understand, the task here is not to get the car out of a skid as quickly as possible, but on the contrary, to sweep the rear of the car in a controlled skid for as long as possible.

Typically, turning the steering wheel is needed at the beginning to move the front of the car inward before sliding, synchronized with braking or pulling the handbrake. Then, after the start of the skid, the steering wheel returns to the middle position and makes corrective movements throughout the entire slide. If the rear of the car is carried more than the trajectory requires, you must immediately turn the steering wheel in the direction of travel, while maintaining engine speed. Then the car will go in the direction of the front wheels. In order to complete the lateral slide and straighten the car, you need to smoothly release the gas. Remember that if, in order to keep the car on the track, you make too many sweeping movements of the steering wheel, then this means that you are not using the pedals correctly.

Combine multidirectional turns.

If you have two opposite turns on your way, which follow one another, get ready to go through them in one go. If you are cornering with a controlled drift, then use the pendulum effect by using the skid of the first turn as a counter-shift for the second. At the moment the arc breaks, sharply increase the steering by releasing the gas and/or braking and turning the steering wheel, throw the car into the opposite side. If the turns are not sharp and are passed without skidding, then just try to carefully smooth out the trajectory.

There is one general technique that allows you to go through a bunch of turns faster and safer. Usually the pilot tries to brake as late as possible, seemingly gaining time, but on a series of turns, braking late, on the contrary, leads to a loss of several hundredths, or even tenths. Let's look at what happens as a result of late braking. We fly into the first turn high speed, saving some time on braking. We enter a skid and slide to the outside, as is done in a single turn. But in the case of a single turn, we simply come out of the skid and accelerate, gradually returning to the middle of the track. Here we need to go through another turn, which we are forced to enter from the inside, along a steeper arc and at a lower speed. As a result, we exit the ligament more slowly onto the next straight section of the route. Now let's do it the other way around. We will brake early in the first turn, carefully “lick” the inner edge of the first turn and, in a wide arc, with greater speed and acceleration, and not with braking, as in the first case, we will enter the second. The exit speed will be much higher, which will give us an advantage on the next straight section. It turns out that we are killing two birds with one stone - we are gaining time and driving more reliably. So, if you are faced with a choice of which turn of the ligament to go through faster - the first or the last, always choose the latter. It's both faster and safer.

Combine unidirectional turns.

It's like combining multidirectional turns with one "but" - the second turn is usually not visible, so you need to act with extreme caution. There is also a special situation - when the turns are twisted. In this case, you need to write out a special arc. As always, we should resist the temptation to take the first turn as a single, remembering that there is a second turn that is much steeper than the first. When approaching a corner, time your braking by looking at the rightmost visible point the far edge of the first turn. This is not difficult, since we do not need to fantasize about the blind spot - we simply focus on the farthest visible area. Remembering that the second turn is steeper, we put the car into a skid in advance and keep the car’s nose towards the second turn. This reveals to us full review the second part of the link, and all we have to do is just finish the arc and leave. The advantages are obvious - we don’t take risks and draw an arc only along visible sections, we combine both turns into one arc without risking additional braking in the turn, we go through the last turn faster, which gives us a speed advantage on the next section of the route.

In conclusion.

If you make a mistake, accept the loss of tenths of a second and calmly, without nerves, try to minimize the losses. In any case, never try to fit your riding to a single ideal template - just ride, taking your mistakes as another input, along with the unevenness of the track, the properties of the surface and other surprises. Experience will be gained with every lap around the track and with every online race. It may take a long time until you learn to drive more or less well. Here a beginner needs persistence on the path to the goal. And of course, you shouldn’t be upset about mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, even veterans. Just learn and enjoy every second you are behind the wheel.

DIY gaming wheel usb. DIY gaming steering wheel with pedals for your computer

steering wheel for computer

Computer pedals

Gear shift knob for computer

Connecting the steering wheel and pedals to the computer

Steering module design

Designing Pedals

Gear shift mechanism

Electrical connection diagram

DIY steering wheel and pedals for your computer

Steering module

Diagram of a homemade steering module

Making a wooden steering wheel

Steering return mechanism

Attaching the steering wheel to the table

Designing Pedals

Designing homemade pedals

Shifting gears

Gear shift mechanism

Electrical diagram

Electrical diagram for connecting to Gameport

Steering wheel calibration

The best modern car simulators

Need for Speed ​​SHIFT

Live for Speed

rFactor

3D Instructor 2.0 Home version

Textbook

Virtual driving technique

Choose your cockpit view.

Don't taxi in the air.

Don't jump.

Properly prevent coups.

Learn to Drift.

Combine multidirectional turns.

Combine unidirectional turns.

In conclusion.

Need for Speed SHIFT