Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum

Software Support => Automated Projects => Topic started by: GoYouSalukis on February 23, 2013, 07:38:02 pm

Title: My rotating display
Post by: GoYouSalukis on February 23, 2013, 07:38:02 pm

Hey guys, I'm new to the forum. I've built two basic 2 player MAME cabinets with 27" tv's based on a defender cabinet and one single player bartop arcade for other people.

Right now I'm working on my own machine. It is an old Super Pac-man cab that was converted to 1942. All the guts were dead, and it sat out in the sun a long time, so I don't feel too bad about converting it.

I've built the rotating mechanism for the display. It turns on a turntable bearing from Vex Robotics: http://www.vexrobotics.com/vex/products/accessories/motion/276-1810.html (http://www.vexrobotics.com/vex/products/accessories/motion/276-1810.html). To drive the VEX servo, I am using the pololu maestro servo driver.

It works pretty well, but you can be the judges: MAME Rotating Monitor Mechanism (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C--HMmH1BNo#).

I am not having much luck with getting hyperspin or mala to rotate the monitor automatically. I have two batch files that rotate the display to vertical and back to horizontal based. They call the command line .EXE that comes with the motor driver and execute two scripts saved on the device.

I don't need step by step directions, but if you can point me in the right direction, that would be great.

Here is a photo of the mechanism:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/91367516@N08/8501108885/# (http://www.flickr.com/photos/91367516@N08/8501108885/#) (can't figure out how to insert directly).
Thanks!
Justin

Title: Re: My rotating display
Post by: TopJimmyCooks on February 23, 2013, 09:10:28 pm

you need the startcom plugin by DaOldMan:

http://malafe.net/index.php?page=plugins (http://malafe.net/index.php?page=plugins)

I can give more help on this but short of time.  take a look at that and post back if that doesn't get you going with Mala.  there are hyperspin solutions too, but you have to rotate back to horizontal after every vertical game exit. 

Title: Re: My rotating display
Post by: GoYouSalukis on February 23, 2013, 10:03:24 pm

Thanks! I had tried that, but kept getting an error when I tried to register the OCX with regsvr because I wasn't running it as an admin.

It works now! Thanks!

Title: Re: My rotating display
Post by: DaOld Man on February 24, 2013, 06:47:16 am

Nice setup. Looks like the monitor rotates smoothly.
Good work!

Title: Re: My rotating display
Post by: GoYouSalukis on February 24, 2013, 10:07:44 am

Thanks for the compliment (from one of the godfathers of rots going to rotating monitors!) A few years ago I was going to make your circuit, but didn't finish it.

I like my setup, and it works great for a flat display like the Super Pac-Man, but I am not happy with the low viewing angle. Especially with a large control panel pushing me further away from the screen. I may modify the cab to tilt the display up, but I don't think the servo has the huevos to rotate a display at that angle. I bought the cheaper servo from vex. I should have bought the stronger one, but I didn't anticipate my issue.

Thanks again to you and everyone else who made rotating displays possible!

Title: Re: My rotating display
Post by: arximidis on September 04, 2013, 09:32:23 am

Hello

Very Cool!!!!


By the way, the new version of HTMLFrontEnd accepts parameters. I can pass for example a parameter to javascript (when you start the program) to rotate 90degrees. It is very easy in the new version

If you want to give you the example code don't hesitate to ask

Thank you