This Bike Plays Video Games - [Arduino Project Tutorial]
From Nathan Ryan
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For this project, I modified a bike with an Arduino and an Xbox controller to play Grand Theft Auto 5.
Discord server: https://discord.gg/TxmNzGn
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/insertcontrollerhere
YouTube Channel Membership: https://www.youtube.com/InsertControllerHere
***** Social Media *****
https://twitter.com/ControllerHere
https://www.instagram.com/insertcontr...
https://www.twitch.tv/insertcontrolle...
DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links which helps support this channel and the production of content. Thank you for your continued support.
VIDEO CONTENT: Insert Controller Here is a DIY channel that creates custom video game controllers. The use of arduino microcontrollers allows for unique gameplay experiences in a variety of games and platforms. These platforms include PC, Xbox, Playstation, Switch, and many other retro consoles produced by Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony. Videos provide engaging entertainment, but can also teach or inspire viewers to create their own controllers and learn new engineering skills. Additional instruction can be found on my website: https://insertcontrollerhere.com.
0:00 - Controller Build
4:18 - Gameplay
In this video I’m going to show you how I wired an Xbox controller to a stationary bike to create the ultimate workout controller.
Let’s start this project by looking at the in-game bike controls.
I need to press the A button to start pedaling the bike.
Tapping the A button repeatedly pedals faster in game, so I’ll need to have a way to track how fast I’m pedaling on the bike.
Pressing the left trigger causes your character to bike in reverse, so the bike also needs to track which direction you are pedaling.
That gives me some basic ideas, so now let’s take a look at the hardware I plan to use for this project.
First off, I’ll be using this third-party Xbox controller because there’s no need to be using an expensive official controller for this.
As always, the brains of this project will be the Arduino micro.
It will act as the middleman that will read sensor data from the bike and send inputs to the controller.
The final piece to this puzzle are these magnetic switches. They act the same as a regular button press, but instead of being physically operated, they are controlled by magnetic fields.
The switch on the left contains two wires with a strip of metal between them.
The part in my right hand contains a magnet.
When the two components come near each other, the magnet field closes the contacts in the switch and completes the electrical circuit.
My plan is to place switches on the bike frame and the magnet on the wheel.
As the wheel spins, the switches will detect the presence of the magnet.
I can use these button pulses to determine the speed and direction of the wheel.
Step one is to take the controller apart and see what I’m working with.
The method I’m using for this project is called pad hacking. This is where you solder wires directly to the pcb in order to control it.
You can see small metal pads all across the board. These are used in the fabrication process for debugging. The
You can see that several of them are labeled to indicate which button they correspond to.
And over in the corner I see that this one is labeled as A.
So I know if I solder a wire to it, I can control the A button.
I’ll also add hot glue to secure the wire as these pads are brittle and can break off with minimal force.
The triggers on the Xbox one analog input, so instead of a single button, they are controlled by a potentiometer.
I don’t see anything labeled for the left trigger, so I need to take the controller apart further to find the pin.
Potentiometers have 3 pins in total, one for power, ground, and output respectively.
I need to use a multimeter to identify each pin.
Turns out on this controller the middle pin is the output. So I’ll solder on another wire and glue it down.
I need a way to access the wires outside of the controller, so it’s time to break out the drill and do a little modification to the shell.
Now I just need to pull my wires through the hole and make sure that all the buttons are still pressable.
Discord server: https://discord.gg/TxmNzGn
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/insertcontrollerhere
YouTube Channel Membership: https://www.youtube.com/InsertControllerHere
***** Social Media *****
https://twitter.com/ControllerHere
https://www.instagram.com/insertcontr...
https://www.twitch.tv/insertcontrolle...
DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links which helps support this channel and the production of content. Thank you for your continued support.
VIDEO CONTENT: Insert Controller Here is a DIY channel that creates custom video game controllers. The use of arduino microcontrollers allows for unique gameplay experiences in a variety of games and platforms. These platforms include PC, Xbox, Playstation, Switch, and many other retro consoles produced by Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony. Videos provide engaging entertainment, but can also teach or inspire viewers to create their own controllers and learn new engineering skills. Additional instruction can be found on my website: https://insertcontrollerhere.com.
0:00 - Controller Build
4:18 - Gameplay
In this video I’m going to show you how I wired an Xbox controller to a stationary bike to create the ultimate workout controller.
Let’s start this project by looking at the in-game bike controls.
I need to press the A button to start pedaling the bike.
Tapping the A button repeatedly pedals faster in game, so I’ll need to have a way to track how fast I’m pedaling on the bike.
Pressing the left trigger causes your character to bike in reverse, so the bike also needs to track which direction you are pedaling.
That gives me some basic ideas, so now let’s take a look at the hardware I plan to use for this project.
First off, I’ll be using this third-party Xbox controller because there’s no need to be using an expensive official controller for this.
As always, the brains of this project will be the Arduino micro.
It will act as the middleman that will read sensor data from the bike and send inputs to the controller.
The final piece to this puzzle are these magnetic switches. They act the same as a regular button press, but instead of being physically operated, they are controlled by magnetic fields.
The switch on the left contains two wires with a strip of metal between them.
The part in my right hand contains a magnet.
When the two components come near each other, the magnet field closes the contacts in the switch and completes the electrical circuit.
My plan is to place switches on the bike frame and the magnet on the wheel.
As the wheel spins, the switches will detect the presence of the magnet.
I can use these button pulses to determine the speed and direction of the wheel.
Step one is to take the controller apart and see what I’m working with.
The method I’m using for this project is called pad hacking. This is where you solder wires directly to the pcb in order to control it.
You can see small metal pads all across the board. These are used in the fabrication process for debugging. The
You can see that several of them are labeled to indicate which button they correspond to.
And over in the corner I see that this one is labeled as A.
So I know if I solder a wire to it, I can control the A button.
I’ll also add hot glue to secure the wire as these pads are brittle and can break off with minimal force.
The triggers on the Xbox one analog input, so instead of a single button, they are controlled by a potentiometer.
I don’t see anything labeled for the left trigger, so I need to take the controller apart further to find the pin.
Potentiometers have 3 pins in total, one for power, ground, and output respectively.
I need to use a multimeter to identify each pin.
Turns out on this controller the middle pin is the output. So I’ll solder on another wire and glue it down.
I need a way to access the wires outside of the controller, so it’s time to break out the drill and do a little modification to the shell.
Now I just need to pull my wires through the hole and make sure that all the buttons are still pressable.
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