FSUIPC adjustments

[CBris]

Is there a way to type in joystick "in" and "out" values direct?

I have browsed the manual, but I must admit to not having read it fully. The bit about the joyustick, though, just refers to using the joystick.

I'm a twitchy heli flier who likes a tight stick that responds fast, but 0 is tooo fast and +-512 is a bit Bell 47ish (which had a notorious Sloppy Link) (that was the real world name for it by the way)

I can get "similar" values but to get, say, exactly 300 each way is not really easy with the stick.

[Pete Dowson]

Is there a way to type in joystick "in" and "out" values direct?

No. what would that mean, exactly?

I'm a twitchy heli flier who likes a tight stick that responds fast, but 0 is tooo fast and +-512 is a bit Bell 47ish (which had a notorious Sloppy Link) (that was the real world name for it by the way)

I can get "similar" values but to get, say, exactly 300 each way is not really easy with the stick.

Sorry, I'm not understanding much of that if any. What are those numbers --- how are 0 and 512 related to speed of stick? What numbers are those and what is meant by a "tight stick" and a fast or slow one?

Regards,

Pete

[Frank.O]

CBris,

you mean when you calibrate the stick on the joystick page of FSUIPC you want to enter the values for the dead zone and the extremes manually? That is not possible but you may have a look at the FSUIPC.ini . All calibration values are recorded there and with a little bit of trial and error you might be able to achieve what you want by editing the ini file.

Regards,

Frank

[CBris]

Thanks for the tip!

Makes sense...

[CBris]

Is there a way to type in joystick "in" and "out" values direct?

No. what would that mean, exactly?

I'm a twitchy heli flier who likes a tight stick that responds fast, but 0 is tooo fast and +-512 is a bit Bell 47ish (which had a notorious Sloppy Link) (that was the real world name for it by the way)

I can get "similar" values but to get, say, exactly 300 each way is not really easy with the stick.

Sorry, I'm not understanding much of that if any. What are those numbers --- how are 0 and 512 related to speed of stick? What numbers are those and what is meant by a "tight stick" and a fast or slow one?

Regards,

Pete

The "numbers" are those in the "joysticks" panel in FSUIPC

Re the "twitchy" bit... I want to reduce the dead (or null) -zone to equal amounts less than the default values that appear when you click "set" in FSUIPC. But I don't want total zero values. I can get approximate values by moving the stick, but getting absolutely equal values would be easier if you could type in, for example, 250 in each box.

OK, I am using my own vocabulary - by tight I mean a stick that has very little "dead" movement before the input is sensed and passed on to the controls. On the real world Bell 47 it is quite big (different pilots had different vernacular, which I can't repeat here) - around an inch of movement at the joystick grip with no response at the rotor disc - which is fairly normal because the input link at the servo (the famous sloppy link) has an elongated hole so that the jacks don't stall and lock up. The real world Gazelle has a much "tighter" stick, i.e. the rotor disc responds to stick movement a lot more crisply.

In other words a Gazelle will respond to stick input faster (or sooner) than a Bell 47, so the null zones need to be adaptable between different aircraft. A type in possibility in the "in and out values" in the joystick options pane would be a good addition.

The suggestion from FRankO is where I am headed for. A way to accurately calibrate the stick null zone.

Ta for the responses

[Pete Dowson]

I want to reduce the dead (or null) -zone to equal amounts less than the default values that appear when you click "set" in FSUIPC. But I don't want total zero values. I can get approximate values by moving the stick, but getting absolutely equal values would be easier if you could type in, for example, 250 in each box.

I'm not sure why you would be worried so much about "absolute" values -- your joystick will be using a potentiometer or a rotary encoder or something which effectively generates arbitrary values. The incoming numbers themselves do not matter at all, they are completely irrelevant. It is the sole purpose of calibration to take the stupid input numbers and manipulate them to produce sensible and well-behaved output numbers. It is the latter which are used, not the former.

That is why this (and almost every other) calibration system is based on real PHYSICAL positions -- you move your joystick to the spots where you want the entremes and the centre zone limits. You shouldn't care what the numbers are!

The suggestion from FRankO is where I am headed for. A way to accurately calibrate the stick null zone.

You can edit the INI file and put arbitrary or artificial figures in there, but I honestly do not see the point. The whole reason for calibration is to convert chaotic real world values into usable internal values. By assuming specific numbers will work well you are assuming the stick is producing well-ordered outputs in the first place -- for instance, that its centre is exact and always produces zero.

Also, instead of an extra wide, or narrow, or (in your words) "accurate" (?) centre dead zone, why don't you try applying one of the slopes provided which flatten the response near the centre, reducing its over-sensitivity without losing range?

Regards

Pete

[CBris]

I see...

and will work on it...

Many thanks all!

Chris