My First Cab--a (portable) cocktail design

[caver01]

I am pretty new here, but I have been lurking around for years building up to a point a month ago when I finally placed the order for my parts. What an exciting time!

I did a lot of research, like many of you, until I settled on a few simple design requirements. Using some existing hardware, I assembled my cabinet and the results are better than I expected. I did make a few design compromises, but for the most part, it came out as expected.

Requirements:
First, it had to be a 3-sided cocktail. I wanted to have 4 player Gauntlet capabilities as well as Street Fighter. That pretty much decided I needed 2 players side-by-side, and cocktail design fit well.
Second, I already had a small LCD that I wanted to put to use. This changed everything because it forced the entire project to be SMALLER and meant that the result might even be portable. I saw these as good things.
Third, I wanted to have two spinners. I know, it's a bit of an indulgence, but my friends and I have fond memories of playing Off The Wall (sente) at our local arcade. This is like a cross between tennis and volleyball and requires 2 spinners. Also, I played a lot of Blasteroids in college, so I figured, why not! Besides, the new spinners take very little space inside the panel.
Fourth, I wanted to emulate the AppleII. This didn't really affect the cabinet design, but my friends and I spent so much time gaming at home on the //e that it would be silly not to try to get MESS working along with a bunch of other emulators.

Getting started:
So, I started to compile a hardware parts list. For a while, I thought I was going to skip the monitor and have it be a game console that just used my TV. Then I stumbled onto the Intel ATOM processor and a couple of Mini-ITX boards and that made my decision! I settled on an Intel mobo with an ATOM 330 DUAL CORE cpu. Everything else is built-in (video, MANY USB, IDE, SATA, etc.). This board is plenty fast for the games I want to play and it's small form factor meant I could do a somewhat portable cocktail.

Ok, so, without further ado, here's my first cab, just completed. I still probably need to add some kind of handle along the back so it's easier to carry, but for the most part, it's done. I am no professional woodworker by any stretch, nor did I have the tools to round corners and such. But, for not doing T-moulding or making my panels slant away from the screen, I think it turned out pretty good! I'd love to know what you all think.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3L7L7BNoo9A[/youtube]

[caver01]

Ginsu Victim asked a question on another thread:
 "Where are the fans in that cocktail cab?"

It's a good question!
There are 2 answers:
1. There is a fan in the Micro-ATX power supply that draws air from over the mobo and pushes it out the back.
2. There is a 10x40mm fan on the northbridge on the mobo.

The real mystery I think, that Ginsu Victim was trying to resolve is 'where are the OTHER fans,' or 'why don't you have any OTHER fans?'. Well, hopefully, I won't need them. I guess time will tell, but the motherboard I am using is the Intel D945GCLF2 mini-ITX board. This board was designed as a low-power consumption and that results in low-heat generation. However, Intel has taken criticism in reviews of this board for their chipset selection. Using the GMA950 leaves video a bit on the short end and gives you a northbridge that runs pretty hot.

Ironically, the CPU does not even have a fan, but the northbridge does. I understand this fan is pretty crappy as it comes from the factory, so I immediately removed it and put on a Scythe. I read reviews from people who claimed that their factory fan was noisy and that it stopped running very quickly.

The way my screen closes over the top of my control panels leaves about a 1/8" gap all the way around. I decided not to seal the gap at this time because that is where my outside airflow goes into the cabinet. I suppose it's not ideal if the cab gets used at a party or by kids with crumbs on their hands (crumbs will fall on the CP and get drawn onto the electronics!). I suppose I could put a little rim around the CPs under the screen to catch dust and food, but we will see how this works for now. So far, it's not overheating!

[Ginsu Victim]

I thought that might be the reason I didn't see any fans in that video. Thanks for that.

One thing I was curious about was the inclusion of a DVD drive. These days, USB thumb drives can hold more and cost less. Seems to me you could've used less space by just putting a USB port on the back. Thoughts?

[EwJ]

Awesome!

Nice portable design with some bonus details like lit pushbuttons and wifi.

A few questions:
The main question i had was on heat dissipation - already answered.
Any further details on the latching mechanisms?
What make/model of wireless keyboard/mouse are you using?

Ahh, the AppleII - many good memories  
What emulator have you found to be best for this?

[caver01]

One thing I was curious about was the inclusion of a DVD drive. These days, USB thumb drives can hold more and cost less. Seems to me you could've used less space by just putting a USB port on the back. Thoughts?

Yep. Great feedback. USB ports on the back WILL HAPPEN, I just could not easily find a double port slot-cover cabled for the header pins (well, they exist, I know, but I was unable to get the item at my local micro center). Eventually, I will just grab one on my next newegg order or something. I have plenty of room on my copper backplate for this and I planned for it anyway.

As for the DVD drive--the internal sizing was completely based on the LCD framing I constructed. In fact, everything was in pieces until I had the screen mounted and I could start measuring everything based on that. The result, as I expected, left me with plenty of internal real estate to throw in the DVD burner. That thing was so cheap anyway, it allowed me to easily install my OS, and I figured, a DVD burner in a PC running XP might come in handy once in a while since I am basically a Mac household. SO, three answers--software (OS) load simplicity, plenty of room for it, and CHEAP part! At this point now, it will probably go unused for a long time since I pretty much do everything over WiFi. I even configure my FE now using VNC because I have my mouse cursor hidden. All file manipulation happens remotely as well.

A few questions:
Any further details on the latching mechanisms?
What make/model of wireless keyboard/mouse are you using?

Ahh, the AppleII - many good memories  
What emulator have you found to be best for this?

I guess I am not surprised you are asking about the latch mechanisms. It's probably the one detail in the design that cost me the most time both from a planning perspective and execution. The answer is surprisingly simple. I ended up using 6 spring latches (I will post images in a few minutes) as follows: One latch holds the left vertical panel (P3), another for the right (P4), two more for the horizontal panel (P1, P2), and the last two hold the screen. It's setup in a kind of 'cascade' of doors. As you can see in the video, you have to open the screen first, since it sits on top of the CPs with rubber feet (this is where the gap is that I described above). The screen serves as the lid for the computer framing and gets you access to the latches for the vertical panels and finally the horizontal. Hopefully the images will show you. I must say that the screen latch mechanism is pretty ingenious ;-)

The wireless keyboard/mouse is a BTC model 9116URF. I spotted this some time ago, but it's a discontinued model. That makes it REALLY scarce these days, however, you might still be able to get one where I did at partspc.com. That outfit gets really mixed reviews, but for $30 and free shipping, I couldn't go wrong. It arrived within days and I really think it's perfect for this. It would have been cool to find a bluetooth one, but this thing is just what I wanted--small, cheap, and has the mouse-stick. Of course, I took the receiver apart and just wrapped it with it's own cord and bolted it onto my HDD. Getting the plastic bits off of it saved a little room inside. So far, reception is great, no interference with WiFi or anything else that I can tell, and the range is several meters. I like the keyboard--too bad it won't get used much! Oh, and a function key switches the mouse to joystick mode--probably analog. I don't use it that way.

I am using MESS to emulate the Apple //e Enhanced (apple2ee). This is the computer I grew up with and seems to work fine so far. I have not had to do anything fancy YET. One issue I am running into with MESS is that the key mapping is specific to each MACHINE, not to each software file. In other words, if I map keys for Lode Runner for instance, the whole machine changes and now Crisis Mountain does not work right. I posted a question on the MESS forum, but so far the answer is to add a ctrlr file to my FE comand line. I might have to do that for each game. There are hundreds, but I will probably only setup a handful when it's all said and done. Some of the Apple II stuff we played was only because we didn't have an arcade machine!

[caver01]

Ok, the question has come up: How does the latching work?
I am using this part which I picked up at Menards for a few dollars:


In my cab, I use six of them. The first two hold the screen, but since they are not accessible from the OUTSIDE, I rigged an ingenious lever mechanism using small sheet copper, some copper wire and a few screws:


It's hard to tell what you are looking at, but basically, the elbow latches are spring loaded, and where you wouldnormall push down with your thumb to retract the tooth/catch, I drilled a little hole. Through this hole is a bent piece of copper wire. That goes down through a hole in a piece of flat copper. The copper is like a teeter-totter, mounted on a screw in the middle. This serves to REVERSE the direction of the latch. The OTHER end of that teeter-totter is attached to another piece of copper sheet running vertically down to the bottom of the cabinet where it bends at 90 degrees and covers a hole in the plywood (on the bottom of my cab). The whole rig is duplicated on the opposite side with another teeter-totter mechanism attached to another elbow latch. This holds the screen on both sides. Anyway, both of these mechanisms are rigged to the same vertical piece that covers the hole in the bottom of the cab, and when you push UP on the vertical piece using a pen or pencil (through the hole in the plywood) you slide the vertical copper piece UP. That lifts the teeter-totters which pivot on their mounting screw and they each PULL DOWN on the thumb latches--popping the monitor cover open!

I know, it's confusing as hell, but I could not think of another way to release the latches that are inside FROM THE OUTSIDE. In retrospect, I probably should have just used a barrel lock!

In the image above, the screen latch is not latched even though it looks like it is holding something. Basically, the screen is up and out of the way, and the latch is just there mounted very close (flat against) the edge of the horizontal control panel. When the screen closes over all of this, the little angled catch spring-locks into the tooth.

Here's an image of the latch on one of the side panels as well as part of the screen latch's left side (image taken from the back right corner of the cab looking toward the front-left corner). You can see the angled catch down inside the side panel compartment. I this case the spring latch is mounted upside down under the panel face and the catch part is stationary insde the panel. The perspective is hard to see, but the upside down latch is pointed AWAY from the camera:

[IG-88]

  Very nice! Did you say that you made the back panel out of copper? Where the serial port is. How did that go?

[caver01]

Very nice! Did you say that you made the back panel out of copper? Where the serial port is. How did that go?

Yeah, the back panel is copper. I do a lot of antique restoration, stained glass and lamp building, so I have copper around! Actually, this was leftover from a bookend project I did for my wife on our 7th wedding anniversary (copper anniversary). The gauge was too thin for that project, but it was perfect for this. I guess I could have used galvanized sheet metal, but I like the look of copper a lot! On it's own, it may have been a little flimsy even for this project, but once I had the screws into the wood back panel and the screws holding the PSU, it got pretty rigid. One thing I did like about using copper is that it drills VERY easily and since I will be adding USB ports soon, it will be pretty easy to file little rectangles like I did for the serial and ethernet ports.

That serial port is really only going to get used to program my URC home theater remote (has nothing to do with the arcade stuff at all!).

[EwJ]

You put a lot of work into those latches.

I have a similar keyboard/mouse (BTC 9019URF) but it doesn't look as compact as the 9116 you have there - good find.

Have you tried out Gauntlet or other 4 player games yet?  How did they work out?
It seems player 3 and 4 would be at a bit of a disadvantage being 90 degrees to the screen, (of course any design other than full size would have compromises)  but was it fully playable?

I had an Apple clone many years ago - they were abundant back then; It was an AppleII+ clone IIRC. A couple of years ago, I tried out Applewin briefly - I'll have to give MESS a try. 

[caver01]

I played gauntlet TODAY actually, and sitting at the player 3 (left side vertical end). There's no disadvantage whatsoever. Here's why: You map the controls as if you are facing the screen from the horizontal end--up (toward the screen) is RIGHT, right is mapped to DOWN, and so on. In other words, the directions are totally intuitive. For gauntlet, since it's top-down, it makes more sense to move the stick in the direction you want your character to run than it does to be oriented to the screen properly. This works great!

I also thought about it and wondered if the side players would get disoriented--and then I thought of the remapping in this manner and the result is so intuitive during play that you would not even THINK to do it any other way.

I have yet to experiment with other 4-player games, but this option may still apply and will probably require some experimentation. I wonder what others have done. Honestly, I can't think of more 4-player games (although I did setup a 4-player favorites list automatically with my FE). I will have to go through the list and try some of them!