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Optical Buttons?

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Paul Olson:
@Jakobud  Not sure about leafsprings, but microswitch buttons use a spring inside the button.

Paul

Hoagie_one:
an analog button could be usefull for racing games that use an analog pedal.

tetsujin:

--- Quote from: Jakobud on January 31, 2005, 05:59:06 pm ---Don't forget that Microswitches and Leaf Switches both serve as springs as well, so an absence of those in a button will make the button so it doesn't spring back up.

--- End quote ---

Yeah, I thought of that.

The buttons in question do have their own springs, and don't depend on the upward force from the switch, but the upward force of the button's spring is certainly supplemented by the leaf switch itself.  The button still springs up, but with a little less force.  I do wonder whether from a gaming comfort standpoint whether a leaf switch button with no leaf switch will be springy enough for good gameplay.  I think they'll probably be OK, but we'll see.

I don't think I'll be building any optical analog buttons.  :)

NoOne=NBA=:
MOST of the resistance and return force, in both types of buttons, is provided by the switches themselves.
I've run buttons with the internal springs removed, and there is little noticable difference.
On the other hand, set your leafswitches so that the button is not right at the end of them sometime, and see how long it takes you to get cramps in your fingers from having to push so hard.

That said, I haven't had to do ANY maintenance on my leafswitches, other than the initial adjustments.
They just don't take that much abuse in a home environment.
I've got cabs with 20 year old leafswitches in them, and they function perfectly.
You may need to clean the contacts initially when you get them; but they shouldn't wear out, or become unreliable, in a home environment.
They just don't get that much use in a home environment.

I prefer the leafswitches because they can be set so that it requires almost NO pressure whatsoever to trigger them.
I do make custom mounts for my leafswitches however.
These mounts put the center of the button ALMOST to the end of the switches.
This allows the lightest touch possible to trigger the button.
Once you have that, if you adjust the top leaf so that it touches the button at rest, and the lower leaf so that it ALMOST touches the top leaf, ANY pressure you put on it will trigger the switch.
This contrasts sharply to the microswitch buttons, which don't contact until the switch is almost to the end of its travel.

My thought is that optical switches will fall closer to the microswitch feel, than to a properly adjusted leafswitch.
This is because you will have to have enough travel in the switch for the interrupter to COMPLETELY break the beam on the opto-switch, and then travel far enough back up to allow normal operation.
It may be possible to adjust the interrupter so that it gets closer to leafswitch travel by allowing it to partially block the sensor; but I think this would also create a condition where they would start becoming unreliable.

Trimoor:
I disagree.  Optical sensors can be found with a very narrow beam suitable for this purpose.

Why not try hall effect sensors?  They detect the proximity of a magnet, and switch on accordingly.  They can have a very narrow threshold, and wouldn't require a complex holder.  Glue a tiny magnet to the end of the button, and put the sensor the right distance away from it.  You can even get analog sensors if you really want.

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