Questions regarding rotary sticks

[btp2k2]

Hey guys...I have a question regarding rotary joysticks like the one Happ sells.

I was reading the Wiki, and though it talks in great deal about what a rotary stick is and how it works....it doesn't mention much about interfacing...in fact, it mentions nothing about interfacing.

How do I hook it up so it picks up the rotation? Do I just use a standard encoder like my minipac?

Also, can these sticks still function in games that use a standard 4 or 8 way stick?

[shardian]

Here is a build your own info page:
http://www.thegallaghergroup.com/arcade/RI.aspx

Ultimarc has a description of a rotary interface, but it is not on the order page.
http://www.ultimarc.com/rotary.html

[Tiger-Heli]

So I don't have to re-type the wheel:

http://www.mameworld.net/tigerheli/encoder/main.htm#Rotary_Joystick_Interfaces

Also, RandyT is working on a new 49-way stick with a rotary option.

The Happ sticks (either optical or mechanical) work EXACTLY like a Happ Super, from what others have said - i.e. decent for 8-way, not great for 4-way.  The original DataEast sticks are hit or miss for standard games, according to an old comment from Druin.  Randy's current 49-way stick with Fl0yd's adapter works great if you don't mind the long throw (most people don't mind it).

Shardian - Yes it is - http://www.ultimarc.com/JShopServer/ (It's at the bottom with the A-PAC for some reason.)

[btp2k2]

Oh wow....I have been on ultimarc's page a gajillion times and I never saw that....

So now my question turns more toward the Rotary Joystick Interface on Ultimarc....Does this handle the entire joystick, or just the rotary function?

And it appears that you still run an I-Pac or similiar interface card for buttons, etc?

[Tiger-Heli]

Oh wow....I have been on ultimarc's page a gajillion times and I never saw that....
So now my question turns more toward the Rotary Joystick Interface on Ultimarc....Does this handle the entire joystick, or just the rotary function?

Every other mechanical rotary interface I have seen only handles the rotary function.  This looks very similar to Druin's old board so I assume it works that way as well.

And it appears that you still run an I-Pac or similiar interface card for buttons, etc?

Correct - at least if my assumption above is correct.

[btp2k2]

OK. Thanks a bunch for the insight.....

Based on the cost of the sticks alone, I might need to wait until after I win the lottery to get this project started!

[scotthh]

Here is the link to the order form for Ultimarc's rotary interface:
http://www.ultimarc.com/JShopServer/section.php?xSec=7

Looking at the picture on the description page (http://www.ultimarc.com/rotary.html), there are connections for two rotary harnesses, so you will need an Ipac (or the minipac you already have) for the four microswitches on each joystick.

What I don't understand about Ultimarc's interface is that it's USB. Since you're going to be using an Ipac anyway, why not have connections so that you can use +5, ground and four buttons from the Ipac?

[Tiger-Heli]

What I don't understand about Ultimarc's interface is that it's USB. Since you're going to be using an Ipac anyway, why not have connections so that you can use +5, ground and four buttons from the Ipac?

I hadn't noticed that, but that's a very good point.  Druin's previous interface board worked exactly as you suggest above.

The only thing I can guess is that Andy felt there were more users with extra USB ports than there were with two to four spare inputs on the I-PAC.

There are serious problems with his idea though:

First, no rotary game that I know of uses more than 3 buttons, so having the board use buttons 5 and 6 for each player would not be a problem.

Second, the I-PAC is programmable - the Ultimarc rotary interface appears as a USB keyboard and uses four fixed keys.  That's great for MAME, but for other emulators you would need to use an AutoHotKey script or some kind of keyboard wrapper to re-assign input (if there are non-MAME emulators for rotary joystick games, which I'm not sure of . . .)