Arkanoid-like spinner...can I interface this to PC?

[AE35]

Hi all!

This spinner was used on Arkanoid machines in my neck of the woods..back
in the day



Can anyone tell me if I can interface this with a PC, and how do I do that?

Thanks,

Nicholas

[Lilwolf]

cheapest way to do it is to see if you have any old ball mice your not using anymore... take it apart (down to just the board) and line it up with the wheel around the existing optics.   The only trouble is getting the mouse board in the perfect spot with something strong enough to make sure it doesn't have to be touched ever time you use it.

Harder but better, but still cheap.  Hack that same mouse to use the optics thats already on your spinner. 

Then... find an old prehacked mouse.  Oscar used to sell them for 10 bucks.  I wish I bought more when he had them for sale.

Then... Buy a trackball encoder.   This is the best, cleanest solution... but requires money.   Optipac or the Keywiz one

[Kremmit]

If the optic is the same on Arkanoid spinners from this "neck of the woods" (and I'll bet it is), then the answer is yes.  Can you get a shot of the optic board itself?

Also, out of curiosity, where are you?

[Encryptor]

You can also buy a new optic board for it. I bought 2 of them and used them on original Tron spinners and they work great. You can check them out here. When I bought mine a couple of months ago they were like $7 or $9 + shipping.

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=48855.0



Encryptor

[Hoopz]

You can also buy a new optic board for it. I bought 2 of them and used them on original Tron spinners and they work great. You can check them out here. When I bought mine a couple of months ago they were like $7 or $9 + shipping.

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=48855.0



Encryptor

Ditto.  These optic boards are great.  I also put one in a Tron spinner.  That may be the easiest way to go.

[Kremmit]

Probably no need for the replacement optic.  Every Arkanoid board I've ever seen or heard of worked just fine.  I wouldn't even question his board, except for that "round these parts" comment.  If he's got a Czech bootleg of a Russian knockoff that only runs on 220 VAC or something weird, then all bets are off.

But most likely, it's fine just the way it is.

[AE35]

You can also buy a new optic board for it. I bought 2 of them and used them on original Tron spinners and they work great. You can check them out here. When I bought mine a couple of months ago they were like $7 or $9 + shipping.

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=48855.0

They look very interesting. Are the like the Opti-Pac? I take it I could use an Opti-pac perfectly?

I'm from Denmark

[Encryptor]

It just replaces the optic board on your spinner. Then you wire it to your encoder just like you would any other spinner. It doesn't look like your optic board would be a hard one to hook up. The Discs of Tron spinner below is almost impossible to figure out where to hook up the voltage or the axis wires. It is the same optic board as the Tron spinner. That's why I replaced mine. The boards are just like the optic sensors inside a mouse or a trackball.

Encryptor

[Kremmit]

Those replacement optics linked above are not interfaces- they just replace the existing optic board on your spinner.  They're needed for spinners like the Tron ones linked above, as those spinners' original optic boards can not be hooked up directly to any of the available computer interfaces.  They are not needed for an Arkanoid spinner.

What you need is an Opti-Wiz, Opti-Pac, or hacked mouse to hook your existing optic board to.

[fixumdude]

Kremmit is correct, I had an old arkanoid spinner I got from ebay, the optic board didn't work, but it looked just like the boards from several of the trackballs/spinners I've seen, same connector, similar optics, etc.

If you can figure out which pins are the +5V and ground then you should be able to plug it directly into an optipac/optiwiz/mouse hack without the need for a new optics board.

fixumdude