FlightSim Studios 727 - Spoiler Axis

[xkoote]

Hello,

for some reason, even though I can map ALL the airplane's axes, it will not accept the spoiler axis. I have tried the FSUIPC axis and the 2 possible "Direct to Sim" axes. The spoiler handle does not move. I know it is probably an FSS coding problem and not an FSUIPC problem. But I thought I would ask anyway to see if you might have a workaround to try or test.

A fellow user mentioned that he used SPAD to "make a custom axis pointed at the 727 spoiler handle position LVAR". Assuming I can find that LVAR name, can I do that in FSUIPC too. Can you maybe tell me how that is done or point me to the correct portion in the manuals?

Thanks,

Xander

[xkoote]

So a good mate sent me a message saying that he got it to work by assigning the axis to "EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1" which seems to be an event ID. I can't see a way to do this in FSUIPC. 

[John Dowson]

2 hours ago, xkoote said:

Can you maybe tell me how that is done or point me to the correct portion in the manuals?

I have just created a FAQ entry for assigning an axis to an lvar - see 

 

29 minutes ago, xkoote said:

So a good mate sent me a message saying that he got it to work by assigning the axis to "EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1" which seems to be an event ID.

That is NOT a standard FS control/event. It may be a custom event, or possibly an Input Event or lvar. You can list the lvars and Input Events to see if it exists there,
Does the aircraft come with an SDK, or with any documentation on custom events? If so, please check that. Also, do you know the range of values that this takes?
You can use custom events/controls in several ways with FSUIPC7:
    - using a <custom control> number
    - by defining a preset
    - by using an event file (*.evt). For this, you would need to know what the event prefix group is

John

 

[xkoote]

Thanks John. I will read up

[John Dowson]

3 hours ago, xkoote said:

So a good mate sent me a message saying that he got it to work by assigning the axis to "EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1" which seems to be an event ID.

Maybe ask your mate for further details on this control: what is he using to assign to this, and can he show the code for this assignment (or for that event)?

Also, try listing the Input Events and lvars to see if any of those look like they apply to the spoiler lever/position.

[xkoote]

Hey John,

it seems that he simply did it in axis and oh's where he could simply map this to an axis. But I will first read up on how to do it here, get it done, then find out again how he did it.

Thanks.

[John Dowson]

@xkoote Did you manage to get this working yet using FSUIPC7?

Also, do you know how to assign for the fuel cut-off levers in the B727?

[xkoote]

Hello John,

I have had a few tough days at work. I have just opened this post again to see if I can map the spoiler. With regards to the fuel levers, I have edited my "MyEvents.txt" with the following;

B727 Fuel Control 1 Run#1 (>L:FSS_B727_PDSTL_FUEL_CUT_OFF_1,number)
B727 Fuel Control 1 Cutoff#0 (>L:FSS_B727_PDSTL_FUEL_CUT_OFF_1,number)
B727 Fuel Control 2 Run#1 (>L:FSS_B727_PDSTL_FUEL_CUT_OFF_2,number)
B727 Fuel Control 2 Cutoff#0 (>L:FSS_B727_PDSTL_FUEL_CUT_OFF_2,number)
B727 Fuel Control 3 Run#1 (>L:FSS_B727_PDSTL_FUEL_CUT_OFF_3,number)
B727 Fuel Control 3 Cutoff#0 (>L:FSS_B727_PDSTL_FUEL_CUT_OFF_3,number)

I then mapped these to the appropriate buttons using the Preset function.

[xkoote]

John,

I followed your instructions to a tee. I searched the Lvar, and found it using the Developer Mode. I noted its name and also its value (0-100). With that I had the 3 requirements to build the preset. Now to be honest, I have a difficult time remembering all the help I get from this forum as I only need to apply the recommendation once, and it will work forever ;-). So, some parts of the description went over my head. 🫳😮‍💨 But I did notice that the example had the same values I had. And so, I copied the ...$Param... part and created the following in the MyEvents.txt 

B727 Spoiler Axis#$Param 16384 + 327.68 / 0 max 100 min (>L:FSS_B727_SPOILER_LEVER_STATE, Number)

I then reloaded the presets and assigned it to the axis I wanted. WORKS LIKE A CHARM !!!

Cheers and thank you!

[John Dowson]

Great! - thanks for the update.

John

[John Dowson]

On 8/15/2024 at 10:53 AM, xkoote said:

So a good mate sent me a message saying that he got it to work by assigning the axis to "EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1" which seems to be an event ID. I can't see a way to do this in FSUIPC. 

I have this aircraft now. EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1 is an Input Event - there are several input events for the spoilers:

EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_2<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_INC<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_DEC<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_ON<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_OFF<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
 

It is relatively straight-forward to assign buttons/switches (or axis ranges) to Input Events, by checking the Select for Input Event checkbox and then selecting the Input Event, but assigning to an axis is more complicated. Direct assignment if an input event to an axis is not currently provided, as you would need to calibrate the axis value range to the Input Event range, To do this, you have to assign the axis to a spare/free FSUIPC offset (Send to FSUIPC Offset), and then monitor the offset for value changes in a lua script, and then calibrate the axis value to an input event value and then send the input event with this value.

However, as there is also an lvar to control this, it is easier to use the lvar via a preset, as you have done.

Just FYI.

John

 

[xkoote]

Noted John. Thanks!

[xkoote]

On 8/26/2024 at 7:32 PM, John Dowson said:

I have this aircraft now. EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1 is an Input Event - there are several input events for the spoilers:

EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_1<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_2<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_INC<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_DEC<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_ON<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
EVT_LEVER_SPOILER_OFF<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
 

It is relatively straight-forward to assign buttons/switches (or axis ranges) to Input Events, by checking the Select for Input Event checkbox and then selecting the Input Event, but assigning to an axis is more complicated. Direct assignment if an input event to an axis is not currently provided, as you would need to calibrate the axis value range to the Input Event range, To do this, you have to assign the axis to a spare/free FSUIPC offset (Send to FSUIPC Offset), and then monitor the offset for value changes in a lua script, and then calibrate the axis value to an input event value and then send the input event with this value.

However, as there is also an lvar to control this, it is easier to use the lvar via a preset, as you have done.

Just FYI.

John

 

Hey John, seeing that you now have the 727. Did you maybe map the autopilot controls already? If so, can you share the presets? e.g. Autopilot On/Off, turn knob inc/dec, VS inc/dec etc etc.. If not no big whoop, I'll get around to it.

[John Dowson]

On 9/1/2024 at 11:59 AM, xkoote said:

seeing that you now have the 727. Did you maybe map the autopilot controls already? If so, can you share the presets?

No - I don't have anything configured/assigned for this aircraft. For aircraft that I have for support purposes, I only look into assignments on request (and when I have time!). This looks like quite a complicated aircraft and I would need to spend quite a bit of time to learn how to control this. For example, I don't know how to activate the Autopilot in the cockpit - I can't seem to move the AP engage switch in the VC, but I suspect this is something to do with the state of the aircraft (I can see/read that it needs turn knob in detent and one yaw damper powered, as well as main/essential power on - I would need to read/investigate on how to do this...!).

However, there do seem to be quite a few lvars as well as input events available for the auto-pilot:
   Input Events:
        AUTOPILOT_PITCH_SELECTOR<>=2.000000
        AUTOPILOT_KNOB_VERTICAL_SPEED<>=0.000000
        AUTOPILOT_TURN_KNOB<>=50.000000
        AUTOPILOT_HDG_SEL<>=0.000000
        AUTOPILOT_ALT_SEL<>=0.000000
        AUTOPILOT_ENGAGE_SWITCH<;FLOAT64>=0.000000
        AUTOPILOT_NAV_SELECTOR<>=0.000000
  Lvars:
   417188   [INFO]:     ID=529 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_HDG_ENG_SW_IsDown = 0.000000
   417188   [INFO]:     ID=530 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_HDG_ENG_SW_MinReleaseTime = 0.000000
   417188   [INFO]:     ID=531 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ARM_SW_IsDown = 0.000000
   417188   [INFO]:     ID=532 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ARM_SW_MinReleaseTime = 0.000000
   417188   [INFO]:     ID=533 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ENG_SW_IsDown = 0.000000
   417188   [INFO]:     ID=534 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ENG_SW_MinReleaseTime = 0.000000
   417344   [INFO]:     ID=1130 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_HDG_ENG_SW = 0.000000
   417359   [INFO]:     ID=1131 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ARM_SW = 0.000000
   417359   [INFO]:     ID=1132 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ENG_SW = 0.000000
   417406   [INFO]:     ID=1322 FSS_B727_WASM_SET_AUTOPILOT_HEADING_LOCK_DIR = -999999.000000
   417469   [INFO]:     ID=1573 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_HDG_ENG = 0.000000
   417469   [INFO]:     ID=1574 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ARM = 0.000000
   417469   [INFO]:     ID=1575 FSS_B727_PDSTL_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ENG = 0.000000
   417609   [INFO]:     ID=2044 PMS50_AUTOPILOT_INSTALLED = 1.000000
   417609   [INFO]:     ID=2045 PMS50_AUTOPILOT_VERSION = 3.000000
   417609   [INFO]:     ID=2046 PMS50_AUTOPILOT_TOGA_ACTIVE = 0.000000
   417609   [INFO]:     ID=2047 PMS50_AUTOPILOT_MANAGE_MANUAL_ARMING = 1.000000
   417609   [INFO]:     ID=2071 PMS50_AUTOPILOT_ALT_ARMING = 1.000000
   417609   [INFO]:     ID=2085 PMS50_AUTOPILOT_CAPTURED_ALTITUDE = 0.000000
   417625   [INFO]:     ID=2142 FSS_B727_AUDIO:autopilot_disconnect = 0.000000
 

 So you should try those - you can see what values are needed by activating in the Virtual cockpit then re-listing the lvar/input event values and see how they change.
If there are both input events and lvars available for a button/switch, I would try the input events first, although an lvar update may be sufficient.

Let me know how you get on - any issues let me know and I can investigate further.

John

[xkoote]

Yes, i noticed. You will actually have to start her up and depart. It is the only way to actually test the LVAR's. Thanks John.