Main > Main Forum

Cp Layout, help requested.

Pages: << < (2/3) > >>

Doc-:

My cabinet was space constrained - so I came up with a pretty innovative way to attachand remove modular panels (with no tools) to create a "build your own" layout.  Mine is only 24" wide, but I can still put up to four joysticks in it for 2 player "smash tv" or tank layouts.

Individual joysticks, trackballs, spinners and button panels can be inserted and removed very easily on the fly to create game specific layouts.  It takes less than a minute to reconfigure the entire panel for any game.  Panels are connected with CATV (network patch cables) or USB to a simple USB hub.  All are hot-swappable.

Link is below.  I actually have more a few more panels I've created since that I need to add to the site.

BTW - Nice rotating panels REBIRTH - great job!

REBIRTH:


--- Quote from: Doc- on June 08, 2004, 12:59:42 am ---My cabinet was space constrained - so I came up with a pretty innovative way to attachand remove modular panels (with no tools) to create a "build your own" layout.  Mine is only 24" wide, but I can still put up to four joysticks in it for 2 player "smash tv" or tank layouts.

Individual joysticks, trackballs, spinners and button panels can be inserted and removed very easily on the fly to create game specific layouts.  It takes less than a minute to reconfigure the entire panel for any game.  Panels are connected with CATV (network patch cables) or USB to a simple USB hub.  All are hot-swappable.

Link is below.  I actually have more a few more panels I've created since that I need to add to the site.

BTW - Nice rotating panels REBIRTH - great job!

--- End quote ---

That is a cool idea.  I like how you can literally attach anything to the panels when yo need too.  A couple of thoughts/ideas:

- If you really wanted some CP art you could probably do it with a repeating pattern type of design (like a tiled background of a web page) - all the edges of the design one one section would match up with the edges of the adjoining sections?

- ever thing of using a track instead of dowels to hold them in place?  If the underside of each section had a track running along the bottom and top, and there was two tracks the width of the CP on the cab for the section tracks to ride on (like a drawer slider type track) you could slide them out and in and not have to worry about locking down the joystick panels?  Like you could have small hollow metal tubes underneath the sections and two solid rods in the CP which would fit through the hollow ones - just slide them in/out from one side, with a stop on that one side.  Only issue would you be that you would have to slide all the sections out and then slide them all back in each time.... the way you have it now you could replace just one section if you wanted.....

Anyway, cool idea to have an endless amount of CP's!!!!  ;)



Doc-:


--- Quote from: REBIRTH on June 08, 2004, 06:41:27 am ---- If you really wanted some CP art you could probably do it with a repeating pattern type of design (like a tiled background of a web page) - all the edges of the design one one section would match up with the edges of the adjoining sections?

- ever think of using a track instead of dowels to hold them in place?  If the underside of each section had a track running along the bottom

--- End quote ---

Yes, I think you could add some art in a repeating pattern or perhaps something graduated from top to bottom.  Printing it on sticky vinyl would probably work best, as the lexan over art could leave seams.  I toyed with a variation on the Galaga theme, but it would take a LOT of vinyl as I have (for example) something like 9 joysticks at the moment and over 20 panels in all!

I looked at some "track" options, but I really the system I have works better.  You can remove any panel by just pushing up on the front edge and pop a new one in just as easily.  Its not uncommon to swap just a panel or two for many games.  I really wanted a system that would make it very easy to swap panels with no tools.

REBIRTH:


--- Quote from: Doc- on June 08, 2004, 05:13:38 pm ---
--- Quote from: REBIRTH on June 08, 2004, 06:41:27 am ---- If you really wanted some CP art you could probably do it with a repeating pattern type of design (like a tiled background of a web page) - all the edges of the design one one section would match up with the edges of the adjoining sections?

- ever think of using a track instead of dowels to hold them in place?  If the underside of each section had a track running along the bottom

--- End quote ---

Yes, I think you could add some art in a repeating pattern or perhaps something graduated from top to bottom.  Printing it on sticky vinyl would probably work best, as the lexan over art could leave seams.  I toyed with a variation on the Galaga theme, but it would take a LOT of vinyl as I have (for example) something like 9 joysticks at the moment and over 20 panels in all!

I looked at some "track" options, but I really the system I have works better.  You can remove any panel by just pushing up on the front edge and pop a new one in just as easily.  Its not uncommon to swap just a panel or two for many games.  I really wanted a system that would make it very easy to swap panels with no tools.

--- End quote ---

Very cool! ;D

bfossett:

Thanks for the info everyone. Unfortunately i am a novice woodworker so i do not want to do anything too fancy for my first cab, such as rotating or break away cabs. Krick, thanks for the measurements! Based on those i have come up with this:




Does this look ok? Is it too crowded? I would love to hear anyones thoughs on how to improve it.

Thanks so far for the awesome help!

Pages: << < (2/3) > >>

Go to full version