Electrical device that delays signal send

[sphetr2]

Hello all. I have a couple of questions. I numbered them so you could easily answer them.

(1) First, is there an electronic device that delays the sending of a signal from the pushbutton to the encoder?

I'm using a DC in a cabinet, and I'm using MAME4ALL and planning on using the X-Arcade BYOA kit. I understand that you press a button to toggle between digital and analog controls. MAME4ALL DC's coin insert is "Analog Joystick right." I was thinking that the insertion of a coin sends a signal to toggle to analog, then a delayed signal tells it to press joystick right, then an even more delayed signal tells the encoder to switch back to digital. This would insert a coin and keep it digital, keeping people that come over from getting confused between digital and analog.

Also, I have another question, while I'm at it. (2) Can I set digital or analog as the default input? For instance, what if I want all of my games to boot into digital, can I set that? Or does the X-Arcade keep the setting from last time?

Oh, and one more question. (3) Is there a controller splitter for the Dreamcast? I want to plug in two lightguns and arcade controls  into the first and second player ports. Is there a commercial splitter, or would I have to hack one out of controller extension cords? Would controller extension cords even work? Note that I'm not trying to play with 8 players. It's just that I don't want to have to switch the lightguns and arcade controls every time I want to play a game that requires one or the other. By hacking extension cords, won't the dreamcast just accept all the signals coming from both the arcade controls and the light guns (i.e. whichever one I'm using)?

Thanks in advance. Sorry if my questions are a little confusing.

[NickG]

1) one thing you can use are 555 timers
http://555-timer.clarkson-uk.com/operation/delay.html
one way is to just daisy chain the circuit above and use adjustable resistors so you can reduce the times of each step after you build it.  You'll need to modify it for outputting lows, highs or relayed "dry contacts."  I'm not sure what sort of "short"cuts you can use with the Xarcademodule  You could probably employ a pulse for toggling the A/D mode and a constant for the the analog joy right, etc. etc. etc.

If you're going to go through that much trouble you could just hack a control pad instead, plug it into the player four port and hook the extra buttons to your coin inserts.
That is, if the MAME4ALL DC config menu allows player four.

2) can't remember if it remembers what mode if you power down or unplug it, but no matter what mode you're in, your controls will be digital with the xarcade byo (analog is emulated for game compatibility - a switch is a switch).... unless you are planning on rigging up real analog controls and running them through an ADC and then to the X-arcade kit and then some how configuring speeds in the MAME4ALL configurations....wow...that sounds like way too much trouble.

3)  You are probably gonna require some active switching;  you will need to keep the guns separate from the xarcade or the dreamcast might not recognize them.  I think Dreamcast's Maple bus uses id's like USB does, and that if you connect two controllers to one port it will probably just malfunction.  Would you connect player one and two to a single port?  Doesn't sound like it would work, does it?  I suggest splicing the cables with a Data switch.

[sphetr2]

3)  You are probably gonna require some active switching;  you will need to keep the guns separate from the xarcade or the dreamcast might not recognize them.  I think Dreamcast's Maple bus uses id's like USB does, and that if you connect two controllers to one port it will probably just malfunction.  Would you connect player one and two to a single port?  Doesn't sound like it would work, does it?  I suggest splicing the cables with a Data switch.

Well, as long as it's only receiving input from one, would it still malfunction?

I tried the MAME4ALL idea you had. It would work, but unfortunately in multiplayer games it only inserts credits for player 4. But if I could succesfully make a controller splitter, then I could wire it to insert for all players. Maybe. I hope.

Oh, and I don't understand your data switch thing. Are you talking about making a switch w/ extension cords, or using a parallel or serial data switch and interfacing that with the dreamcast?

Thanks.

[NickG]

Give this a glance: http://mc.pp.se/dc/controller.html.
You may be able to leave GND and +5V connected.  You will probably still need a means of temporarily disconnecting the serial data lines and the sense. (I 'm not sure about the sense, but it may help the controller sync or something)  So, you at least need switch or switching circuit for those lines.  I don't know any of this for certain, sorry.  If you try directly splicing the control first, then let me know if it worked.

That's too bad about the multiplayer games.  Maybe if splicing worked you could connect your joysticks to the Xarcade and leave it in analog mode,  connect the coin insert to a digital pad direction on  a dreamcast pad, and remap accordingly.  Here is an idea you can simulate by unplugging and plugging your controllers (or maybe you've already tried it?):

1.  plug in your Xarcade with Mame4all running; default button mapping;  start a game
2.  tape down and analog right on a dreamcast pad
(see where I'm going with this?)
3.  unplug the Xarcade and plug in the rigged dreamcast controller.
Do you get errors, a coin insert, nothing happens or what?

If this worked and you get a coin insert then you could probably build (find?) a fancy switching circuit instead of using a mechanical switch.  That way you could implement a momentary switching for the coin insert, and just have latching switch sections two switch between guns and joysticks/buttons.  If you are using real coin mechs then you would probably still need a delay to assure the coin insert controller communicates the coininsert before the switching board goes back to the xarcade.
 

Oh, and I don't understand your data switch thing. Are you talking about making a switch w/ extension cords, or using a parallel or serial data switch and interfacing that with the dreamcast?

Thanks.

Yeah, a serial data switch.  Just to open it and solder directly to the switching mechanism and mount the switch to a convenient spot on the cabinet.  A cheapy Audio/Video selector might work, too.  Actually, If you can find one that is powered and latches the inputs maybe you can hack a momentary trigger to the coin insert controller's connections (while momentarily disconnecting the X-arcade as you would have for the DIY switching board idea above.

 
 

 

[sphetr2]

1.  plug in your Xarcade with Mame4all running; default button mapping;  start a game
2.  tape down and analog right on a dreamcast pad
(see where I'm going with this?)
3.  unplug the Xarcade and plug in the rigged dreamcast controller.
Do you get errors, a coin insert, nothing happens or what?

It doesn't do anything.  I think MAME4all wants all of your controllers plugged in upon boot. I plugged it in and nothing happened. And then I removed the tape (setting joystick back to the center) and pressed analog right again. It froze and (after some mad wiggling of the joystick by me) went back to the menu  .

Too bad, because that was a great idea. Looks like I'll have to go with those 555 things for coin inserts and just manually switch the guns. Unless you have other ideas...

EDIT: Someone in Consoles said that the DC auto detects the light guns in games that use them, even if they're in player 3 or 4 ports.

[NickG]

Out of ideas for now...