LCD and joystick for input
undermutt
Posts: 22
My idea is this...
I would like to use a joystick (2-Axis Joystick) and LCD to allow alphanumeric input.
The idea is to use the joystick to scroll through the alphabet and numbers displayed on the lcd and select the letters/numbers as needed. Once the string is complete I would then process the input.
Is there an existing object in the object exchange that does this or something similar or am I on my own?
I've searched the obex but haven't quite found the search term that will find this for me.
Thanks for any suggestions.
Rick.
I would like to use a joystick (2-Axis Joystick) and LCD to allow alphanumeric input.
The idea is to use the joystick to scroll through the alphabet and numbers displayed on the lcd and select the letters/numbers as needed. Once the string is complete I would then process the input.
Is there an existing object in the object exchange that does this or something similar or am I on my own?
I've searched the obex but haven't quite found the search term that will find this for me.
Thanks for any suggestions.
Rick.
Comments
What joystick do you plan to use?
It might make your project go faster if you used a Wii Nunchuck as the input device. You could use the accelerometer to jump to different sections of the alphabet and use the joystick to fine tune the selection.
I personally hate having to scroll through the alphabet to enter data. It would be nice if you included a few buttons to make jumping ahead faster.
If you tell us more about your end goal we might be able to offer other suggestions.
Ken Gracey
Is that a trick question?
Yes.
I'm very interested. I haven't looked real hard but it seems like that style of joystick is hard to find to purchase without it being in some sort of controller.
How soon can I buy one?
Edit: Can one axis be modified to act as a throttle?
Nice Ken. Looks like a good R/C style replacement. Analog output?
Jim
Duane:
As in detents?
I'm sure it's analog output. There is a blue and a yellow wire going to the Activity Boards ADC.
I'm pretty sure the wires connect to the center tap of each of the two pots.
As in the stick will hold a position when placed there. This involves removing springs and adding some sort of extra resistance to movement in the desired direction.
I don't' like detents on my throttles. Detents make flying a helicopter or quadcopter harder since the throttle setting often needs to be set between detents.
The LCD touch screens are super easy to setup ....
http://www.parallax.com/news/2013-11-18/helpful-downloads-two-popular-color-displays
Looks like you workin on a new enclosure?
Any chance Matt G could whip out a new top design to fit two of those atop a [FONT=Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, Tahoma, Segoe, Segoe UI, Verdana, sans-serif]721-32212 enclosure and sell then separately for our existing Multi Board Enclosures.?[/FONT]
Jim
Dual potentiometer output.
We have 500 in stock. How many do you need?
From the Hitec Aurora R/C system. And these are not surplus parts - we can reorder as many as we need.
We're waiting to get the little connectors in for the adapter board, and then you can buy them. These connectors should arrive any minute.
How much will you pay for a joystick and adapter board? Come on, tell me the truth. What's your expectation? Funny question, but I still want an answer.
Ken Gracey
Dual Pot Assembly with termination: $ 7.95
Mating connector board with .100" pins $2.95
My best guess since I could not find replacement Hitec pots for sale after a quick search.
Jim
Now we have TOTALLY hijacked this thread . I'll have to tell a Moderator.
What is the resistor rating on the Joystick pots?
This will be part of the project I am working on to turn the propeller into a telescope control system. The 2x16 LCD/joystick combo will be a part of the control panel that will be used at the telescope to input object designations for lookup or object coordinates directly, and menu selections. The alphanumerics will be a limited set of characters, probably something like NGC, M, HER, (maybe a couple more), and the digits 0 - 9.
This is kind of tough to answer. A lot would depend on the quality of the mechanics. I've had a joystick break on me because the one of the axles was made from thin plastic (It was from a RealFlight simulator).
We can purchase a complete RC system for less than $30 which includes two joysticks. I think $15 would be my top price (unless the quality was exceptional). I'd hope the price was closer to $10.
The adapter board is convenient but not really worth much to me. I don't mind cutting off a connector to instal my own.
One thing I've been itching to try is to replace the pots in a joystick like this with magnetic encoders. Pots wear out magnetic encoders don't (not that I've ever worn the pots out on a joystick). The pots on these look like they would be easy to access (and replace).
@Rick, can you tell us more about what you're doing? Someone might have suggestions for input devices which may be a better fit for your application (like Beau's touchscreen idea).
Another option would some navigation buttons. A small trackball or an optical finger navigation module may be worth considering.
If you use a sensor with proportional output (I think all those listed above except the buttons provide proportional output), you would have the advantage of being able to increase the scroll speed proportional to the input. This would allow the letters to be entered faster than if you used non-proportional input (like buttons).
How big is the LCD? How many letters will be displayed at once. Do you have a price range in mind? How much will it be used? In what sort of environment will it be used?
Edit: Sorry Rick, I hadn't seen post #13 before making this post. I think you answered most of the questions before I asked them. Sounds like a very cool project.
I'll probably be using the 2-axis joystick sold by Parallax, mostly because I need to be mindful of the pins I have remaining on the prop boe. I can use the 2 dedicated a/d pins there instead of the two remaining open pins I have left. I also like the 2 - axis js because it has a large stick, something that will be useful when its very cold out and I have gloves on.
For my proof of concept I'm using the 2x16 lcd but the final design will be using the 4x20 lcd.