The Accessible Cocktail Table

[Ninja Supremacist]

With a worldwide market of maybe 5 people, I'm about to embark on The Accessible Cocktail Table.

With A flat panel monitor and relatively no space taken by a mid-size tower, this table will be clear underneath between players one and two.  The sides will be all wood for artwork and shaped to look like a regular cocktail table from the profile view.  The extra width _might_ take marquees.  I say might because I'm not sure I want to look down at something lighted through glass that doesn't involve the game in operation.

My leg clearance is about 26 inches so this will be higher than a classic form.  I think I'd do higher even without a wheelchair because it's not really easy to eat or drink on a standard cocktail table.  That alone makes it a universal kind of project so I'd appreciate community input.

As for the controls, I'm looking at 2 49 Way sticks from G^3 along with the GP-Wiz with three firing buttons in the center on each side to handle modern Robotron remakes like Mutant Storm along with the usual MAME collection.

Is there a problem establishing 4 49 Way sticks on a single system?  That might force a revision but I'm hoping that somebody here has attempted it before I buy those parts.

A site will go up in a few weeks to follow the progress if you so desire.  Definitely give me your impressions/ideas.  Thanks.

[ChadTower]

I like accessible cocktails.

[Ninja Supremacist]

This whole mission is to get acceptable cocktails on the accessible cocktail table.

Since everyone has a catchy name for their project, I'll come up with something better...

The HandiTron... sounds decent except that I fear it may have been trademarked by a sex toy company.

The name isn't really valid because I think the classic cocktail table wasn't really thought through well enough to begin with.  With the way Americans have grown upwards and outwards, it's definitely time for a new spin on the cocktail table anyway.

It looks like the 49 Way sticks register as analog controls meaning that I can put as many as I please on my system.  Is this right?

[Ninja Supremacist]

Voice dictation... acceptable--> accessible

[Stingray]

This project has promise. Do you have any preliminary plans or sketches that you'd like to share?

-S

[ChadTower]

Want to be different?  Forget a title.  The real necessity of a title is so that something goes on the marquee.  Since you don't have a lit marquee, don't force a title on the table.

(title on the table title on the table title on the table)

Put your instruction cards, some nice artwork, and maybe a picture of Stingray's mom under the glass.  Other than that, my idea of a classy cocktail is a small amount of art under an attractive smoked glass tabletop, showing a gleaming monitor in the center.

[KonkeyKong]

As a chair-user myself I'm quite interested in this project.  I'm in the later stages of building an accessible cab myself, but once that's done I'm gonna need another project, and coctails are kinda groovy.

[Ninja Supremacist]

Thanks for the positive response.  That's very encouraging. I agree that no name is the best way to go.

Here are the specs:

30inches wide by 40 inches deep.  30 allows the chair to get underneath.  40 allows chair plus second player for fighting games.  It's a big table.

One of my issues here is 40 inches and a 21in monitor leaves a bit of real estate on the table.  This can be good and bad.  More space for food and drink without interfering with the other player's game.  Or simply not big enough.

This can be solved with... a projector above the table.  It's a very cool concept because I could get the screen as big as I want.  Do a 40 by 72 dining room table with a _4 player setup_ on the lengthwise side with a 60in screen.  Because it's MAME, a DIY projector would do the trick.

It's serious money either way. Occam's raiser says to go with the monitor. The table would be smaller and easier to move around than a complicated projector setup... but I own my house so the projector idea sounds pretty damn cool.

Anyway, the controls on the ends would be simple.  Two Midway 49 Way sticks with three buttons in between  on each side.  I'm a Mutant Storm junkie and the two player mode rocks.  Universal control is essential.

I'm teh sux at drawing.  My strength is in explanation.  I'll try to get some pictures up soon though.

[DannyH]

If you want the smallest possible machine i would look at using an iMAC

[Ninja Supremacist]

Danny,

Go troll somewhere else.

[DannyH]

Danny,

Go troll somewhere else.

Thats not trolling!

I hate macs personally but just helped a mate fit an iMAC to his coktail cab and it worked perfectly. It took up no room, i sitll feel dirty from touching the MAC but he got them free from the school he teaches at.


How is advice Trolling???

You want the smallest most accessible machine out there, and this is the best way I can see to do it.
You also asked for ideas!

 

[DannyH]

let me further explain what I mean.

an iMAC is only as wide as the screen in some models and is only slightly larger if it has the "base" on it.

Meaning you can have a table that is only as wide as the screen therefore giving you more room underneath the table without having to do any major height adjustments. It also means you wont have too much excess weight on the raised legs of the table, making it a little more stable.

I guess as a cheaper alternative you could put a flat panel monitor in there with one of those mini mac things which are fairly affordable these days, again saving heaps of space and allowing you more flexibility in the clearance underneath and therefore meaning you do not have to raise it higher.

Still think I am trawling, or is just a general attitude problem you have

[Ninja Supremacist]

I owe you an apology.

Nothing against Apple, I simply confused "smallest possible machine" with "smallest possible cabinet" and registered it as either someone who didn't read the thread or some weirdo Mac zealot preaching in wrong place.... and I thought "eMac" which pretty much locked up the troll perception in my mind.

Your advice is genuine and appreciated.  An iMac would definitely reduce machine weight and, more importantly, the overall footprint. 

[ChadTower]

I don't see the projector concept clearly.  In which direction would it be projecting an image?  Somehow your description makes me think it would project on the ceiling, which would be a total pain the anus to play.

[DannyH]

apology accepted, I had my head in code all day so wasnt really in an explanitary mood.

THe main problem with a mac is the emulators really. Some work quite well for macs but not all.

The projector Idea would work but from all the projectors I have seen their images arent clear enough and can be quite washy, they are also subject to surrounding light washing the image so it means you need relative darkness. My friend has a projector and I played a few PS2 games on it but in the end we swtched back to his TV and kept the projector for fight night and the football

I guess another option which would reduce the footprint and other over heads making the machine even more accessible would be to use a Laptop as the computer and connect it to a flat panel LCD screen.

Your concept has a lot of merit and i would like to offer what advice I can. One cool thing besides voice software for it would be a trackball on the edge of the table used as the mouse.


let me know if there is any other advice I can help with

[ChadTower]

If you decase the PC, pretty much any computer is very small.

[DannyH]

decasing it is a bit of a problem though and it can fall under the illegal wiring laws here in australia.

[ChadTower]

Illegal wiring laws?  We're talking 5 and 12 volts.  I don't mean disassemble the power supply and rewire it, just taking it out of the PC case.

[Stingray]

I use a Mac in my cab. Mac MAME works just as well as MAME and is a ton easier to configure. But I agree with Chad, decased any PC is small.

-S

[ChadTower]

I have changed my mind.

[Ninja Supremacist]

I'm glad we straightened out my misunderstanding.

Projector idea... either a steel unit attached to the table that arcs over the table to project the image down on a silver screen area or simply mounted from the ceiling.  I'm not sure what the distance to image size ratio is against the table so if I need to come in halfway between the ceiling and the cable, I'd construct the steel thingy.  I have a friend who is quite handy in metal and wood work from his days of stage production so whatever I decide on can be done.

It wouldn't be that same as having the monitor under glass.  That's the real deal.  The problem is the real estate of 1200 square inches and a monitor with about a third of that at best.

Exposed computer... no big deal except that this table will have food, drink and the occasional assclown nearby.  Flat panel monitors are light.  Mine is suspended on a wall extension.

[Ninja Supremacist]

Chad, did I miss something?  That particular piece of equipment is perfectly accessible and requires no redesign.

[ChadTower]

But, now it will have smoked glass and artwork.

[Stingray]

But, now it will have smoked glass and artwork.

Please don't try to force a quarter into the slot.

-S

[ChadTower]

Do install the largest joystick you can find.  Emphasis on the joy.

[Ninja Supremacist]

Great.  My project thread has gone to sexual innuendo.

[AmericanDemon]

I think a sweet ceiling mounted projector would rock.  The center of the table could be a screen.  Only issue is with the wiring for the projector.  But gotta admit that it would rtock

[Ninja Supremacist]

The wiring can be done the same way '80s offices were... hollow white columns.

The distance ratio would determine whether it's on the ceiling or whether I have to make a counterbalanced steel thingamabob to get the right screen size.

Hanging the projector from something besides the ceiling allows for being move somewhere else.  As just about any projector site will say, ceiling mounts are permanent.

I can do a ninja mission on a elementary school Audio/video room for the silver screen material... unfortunately, my ninja skills aren't what they once were so I'll probably have to buy the material.

[ARCADE5280]

I have been thinking about a very similar project.  I thought that using a graphic that is sandblasted into the underside of the glass and edge lit would provide a very unique look and maintain that minimal appearance.  It would be easy to do and look very sweet.

A quick image search for "edge lit" on google turned up this example:
http://www.centurysigns.com/images/images/LitePop.jpg