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Helicopter Controller

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Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Thu Jan 27, 2022 8:57 pm

I have a controller that I don't know what company manufactured it. I am having trouble setting it up to work correctly. If anyone knows what setting I should use I would welcome help with it. It is for a helicopter, it has the cyclic, throttle. collective, and tail rotter peddles. I am going to try to copy a picture of the control on here. I am new to this forum and am not sure I know how. I am using windows 10 on computer. I have flightgear 2020
Last edited by Brantly on Thu Jan 27, 2022 11:50 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby wkitty42 » Thu Jan 27, 2022 10:00 pm

you upload the image to a hosting site or place it on a web server you manage or upload it to your cloud storage site like dropbox... then you link it here using the forum's img tags that you can see when you use the full editor to write posts here...

as for your device, what OS are you on? this will determine what we can do to find its name in some device list somewhere on your system...
"You get more air close to the ground," said Angalo. "I read that in a book. You get lots of air low down, and not much when you go up."
"Why not?" said Gurder.
"Dunno. It's frightened of heights, I guess."
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Thu Jan 27, 2022 10:23 pm

I put the picture on flightgear facebook. I am new to all this so I need to learn a lot. I am using edge in microsoft 10. Thanks for the info.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Thu Jan 27, 2022 11:36 pm

I have no idea who made that controller you have.
Does the Joystick configuration tool in FG not detect it at all ??
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Thu Jan 27, 2022 11:43 pm

After a bit of searching. Your one looks like an older version of this :-

http://www.simulationdevices.com/1seath ... lator.html
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Fri Jan 28, 2022 12:10 am

Yes that looks like it, I would like to find someone that is using it and can share screenshots of settings. Thanks for your help I contacted the manufacture so maybe they can help me. FG show a joystick but it does not recognize this one.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Fri Jan 28, 2022 9:24 am

Ok, so you might have to make a profile xml for it manually. Not impossible but it will take time.
Check it hasnt created a profile, which may just be empty.
Look in
C:\Users\YOUR PROFILENAME\AppData\Roaming\flightgear.org\Input\Joysticks

if not, create a new one ( use an existing one as a template )
Start the xml nice and simple, and build the axis list one at a time like this :-

<PropertyList>
<name type="string">USB Joystick</name>
<axis n="0">
<desc type="string">Aileron</desc>
<binding>
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/flight/aileron</property>
<factor type="double">1</factor>
<offset type="double">0</offset>
</binding>
</axis>
</PropertyList>

Load a fixed wing aircraft ( because its easier to see whats moving ) and move each axis on your sticks and watch is the Ailerons move.
If nothing moves, the change the line <axis n="0"> to <axis n="1"> and repeat. Keep repeating until you get a hit and note down the active axis numbers for your sticks.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Fri Jan 28, 2022 2:34 pm

I set the cyclic to the ailerons and it did move but not centered and I tried a few times bur did not get the movement I needed. I am new at this and not used to writing programs.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Fri Jan 28, 2022 3:55 pm

dont worry. First job is finding which axis relates to what part of your sticks. Find all those first and write down the axis number in relation to which physical axis on your setup is moving. Make a list and then we will sort out the basic xml
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Fri Jan 28, 2022 5:32 pm

Trying the controls cyclic movement has movement but is erratic and would not take it right and left as it should that is in the 0 setting. Elevator is also controlled by the cyclic but only goes nose up in the # 2 axis. Rudder only shows full 1.00 or -1.00 not in increments that is in the # 2 axis. Throttle is in the #3 axis, it is either wide open or closed all the way . The # 4 axis is the collective but also operates the throttle it seems to work in increments. I haven't got as far as starter and other button assignments. I have 4 buttons on the controller that I can use.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Fri Jan 28, 2022 7:07 pm

Make sure your sticks are fully calibrated in the normal windows Calibration tool
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Mon Jan 31, 2022 6:53 pm

Thanks for all the help you provided, but I don't have the skills needed to get this controller to work as it should. I have a helicopter and wanted to work with a simulator in my spare time. The helicopter I have is a Bantly made in the 50s. I was wanting to use a simulation of a Robinson 22 as that is the closest thing I could find to it.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Mon Jan 31, 2022 8:06 pm

Ok, so did you calibrate your sticks with Windows ? Or do you not know how to do that ?

here are the properties for the Axis. change the number to suit the axis numbers you discovered. Insert this in the xml file you were using.:-

<!-- Cyclic axis -->
<axis>
<desc type="string">Aileron</desc>
<binding>
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/flight/aileron</property>
<factor type="double">1</factor> <!-- Change this ether to a negative value or vice versa to reverse the input -->
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<power type="double">1.8</power><!-- Adjust this line to change sensitivity -->
<dead-band type="double">0</dead-band>
</binding>
</axis>
<axis n="1">
<desc type="string">Elevator</desc>
<binding>
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/flight/elevator</property>
<factor type="double">-1</factor> <!-- Change this ether to a negative value or vice versa to reverse the input -->
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<power type="double">1.8</power><!-- Adjust this line to change sensitivity -->
<dead-band type="double">0</dead-band>
</binding>
</axis>

<!-- Collective axis -->

<axis n="2">
<desc type="string">Collective / Throttle All Engines</desc>
<binding>
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/engines/throttle-all</property>
<factor type="double">-1</factor> <!-- Change this ether to a negative value or vice versa to reverse the input -->
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<power type="double">1</power><!-- Adjust this line to change sensitivity -->
</binding>
</axis>
<axis n="3">
<desc type="string">Heli Engine power</desc>
<binding>
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/engines/engine/power</property>
<factor type="double">-1</factor> <!-- Change this ether to a negative value or vice versa to reverse the input -->
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<setting type="double">0</setting>
<power type="double">1.1</power>
</binding>
<binding n="1">
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/engines/engine[1]/power</property>
<factor type="double">-1</factor> <!-- Change this ether to a negative value or vice versa to reverse the input -->
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<setting type="double">0</setting>
<power type="double">1.1</power>
</binding>
<binding n="2">
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/engines/engine[2]/power</property>
<factor type="double">-1</factor>
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<setting type="double">0</setting>
<power type="double">1.1</power>
</binding>


</axis>

<!-- Pedals axis -->

<axis n="4">
<desc type="string">Anti Torque/Rudder</desc>
<binding>
<command type="string">property-scale</command>
<property type="string">/controls/flight/rudder</property>
<factor type="double">1</factor> <!-- Change this ether to a negative value or vice versa to reverse the input -->
<offset type="double">0</offset>
<power type="double">1</power><!-- Adjust this line to change sensitivity -->
</binding>
</axis>



Those are all the Axis functions for you.
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby Brantly » Tue Feb 01, 2022 12:38 am

Thanks for trying and for this information but the more I really don't even know how to get to the xml files. I also never figured out how to calibrate. I went back to Microsoft flight simulator X deluxe and calibrated the controls there. I realize that is probably no good in FG2020. The reason I decided to try out fg2020 as the microsoft program I have will not work in 10 and I have tried to run it in their compatible parts of 10 but I haven't been successful with that either. I do want to thank you for trying to help me. I looked at this but still don't understand https://wiki.flightgear.org/FlightGear_ ... on_via_XML
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Re: Helicopter Controller

Postby StuartC » Tue Feb 01, 2022 9:22 am

Ok, to get to the XML files, use the file browser on your PC and go to:-
C:\Users\YOUR PROFILENAME\AppData\Roaming\flightgear.org\Input\Joysticks
You will see all the stock XML Files.
No set of sticks will work correctly in FlightGear in Windows unless you run the native windows joystick calibration tool first.
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