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View Full Version : Has anyone considered a vibrating hilt?



bazuka
03-18-2009, 03:23 PM
You know, to go along with the hum - could use a cell phone/pager or game controller vibration module when the saber is lit.

It's been like 2 years since I've posted, but I figured I'd drop a line anyway.

Ideal
03-18-2009, 03:28 PM
seems like some people have talked about using small motors and stuff to get the vibrating. i guess it just isnt that popular an item when building though, as it doesnt come up very often

Rhyen Skytracker
03-18-2009, 03:50 PM
It will also use up some power and make the batteries wear down sooner. You can get a 5 VDC motor at radio shack or any electronics store, and put a weight on one side of the motor shaft. This will make the shaft off balanced and make it vibrate.

xl97
03-18-2009, 04:12 PM
many people have used pager type motors to do this...

they have also controlled the speed of the 'spin' during idle times & clash events..

its space and powering that come into play when deciding on using one..

Madcow
03-18-2009, 04:13 PM
I've done this on 2 sabers.
It is a great effect.

Erv sells the mini rumble motors at Plecter Labs

cardcollector
03-18-2009, 04:40 PM
I wonder if there are other places to get them...
Time to GOOGLE!!:D

swear000
03-18-2009, 05:31 PM
I tried experimenting and hooking one up to a hasbro board. It did not seem to work at all so I am re-thinking the strategy.

Novastar
03-18-2009, 11:02 PM
The Flange III sabers have had motors ever since they had CF v2.61 back in... uh... like 2007 or something.

A few tips on this (since it was asked about):

* Add an on/off switch to your motor line. ESPECIALLY if you are not using CF or the US board (+ tapping into the LED output). You'll thank me later.

* Make certain to affix the motor to the HILT in some fashion. ESPECIALLY if you have motion sensors involved with your saber. Mount it as far away from the electronics board as you can--wherever possible.

* Be careful not to ground the motor, as it is made of metal, and when you mount it to a metal hilt... you get the idea. Make sure it has a rubber shield and that the motor itself stays unobstructed.

* If you're using CF or US... wire up a temporary (or permanent!) POT for the motor. Test the motor WHILE IT IS BOLTED TO THE HILT (not so much "free and jumpin' around like a lima bean on crack")... adjust the POT until the motor is spinning with the "sweet spot" kind of rhythm that you like--preferably one that fluctuates with the current output of the LED on the board.

* If you're using CF or US... DO NOT tap into BOTH the + and - of the LED leads... only vampire it off positive... else you'll be "stealing" current from the line going to the LED itself.

I like 'em. They work pretty well. I wouldn't recommend them with anything else (at present) other than CF because of the way it can be configured to play with the current/brightness of the LED. Also... only certain ways you drive the light will make the motor REALLY act in a cool way.

If you have a "solid blade of light" going on... to me, it's almost pointless and annoying to have a motor in there!

Obi-Ben
03-24-2009, 04:07 PM
I've done this on 2 sabers.
It is a great effect.

Erv sells the mini rumble motors at Plecter Labs

I hope he doesn't mind me taking the liberty to link to his video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7sf4sJyNr8

Kal El Rah
03-24-2009, 06:31 PM
A bunch of us discussed this in the shout box a while ago.. The link to erv is most appreciated.:cool:

Sairon
03-24-2009, 06:50 PM
If you don't want to drain you main batts, just put the motor on a 9v or something and shove it in the hilt, with it's own switch.

Novastar
03-24-2009, 08:56 PM
I've never noticed that a motor takes up much runtime. In fact, most of the tiny vibration motors I've seen are something around 3v @ 60 - 200mAh. 200 would be a lot... like a spike in the current to spin it fast (briefly). Then again, every motor is different.

Again, I don't recommend a vib motor unless you have something that can help it to vary the current and make it more dynamic. Otherwise... it get irritating extremely quickly.

xl97
03-24-2009, 09:00 PM
are there certina 'motors' than can be 'controlled' to make it spin faster/slower..and some that can NOT be?

or would changing the current to any type of motor produce the same effect?

Novastar
03-25-2009, 03:24 AM
Yup, much like an LED having a forward voltage where (as example):

LED @ ~3.0v = lit but kind of dim...
LED @ ~3.5v = lit better... but not at its best
LED @ ~4.0v = wow... now THAT's lit! :)

...a motor can behave the same way. I'm not saying *ALL* motors do... but most of them will, especially if it is a "vibration" one (basically, it's purposely non-symmetrically weighted).

This is (yet AGAIN, for like the 3rd time) why I'm saying that using Crystal Focus with a motor that is wired to "mimic" the main LED (Luxeon) current is a pretty cool way to go. Further--it works REALLY dynamically with sound profiles like Phoenix Sword or Ancient Saber or Nano Deus Tachi.

If you simply feed a motor linear current at a linear voltage... it will work... but it will get irritating (as I've now said like 3 times).

Finally, as I said above... it's a good idea to find out the specifications of the motor you get. As with almost any component. Duh. That way, you can play with some values within spec... and get results without destroying said component. Double duh.

As a suggestion:

Feed motor 1.5v direct--briefly (2 seconds?). Observe.
Feed motor 3.0v direct--briefly (2 seconds?). Observe.

Most motors (even the little guys) can handle that. In fact, most LEDs (even the little guys) can handle that. I personally would never use 4.5v to run a vib motor, but the specs of the ones I have give that range. Wow. Talk about a hoover deluxe on sucking down current... that would be stupid.

Not to mention, it'd be BEYOND irritating if it was spinning that fast.

Since it's somewhat related, I might as well say that I'll see about sharing a video or photos on a cool solution on how to mount a vib motor fairly easily into your hilt in some time... maybe. :)

xl97
03-25-2009, 07:26 AM
thanks..

Ghostbat
03-25-2009, 10:44 AM
Again, I don't recommend a vib motor unless you have something that can help it to vary the current and make it more dynamic. Otherwise... it get irritating extremely quickly.

Having played around with one of the old Hasbro hilts with a motor I can say OH GOD YES!

Having an unvarying buzz happen is worse than the clash sound on MR darkside boards, vaguely interesting for a bit then rapidly maddening.

Novastar
03-25-2009, 11:59 AM
To give another idea--based on what Ghostbat is saying--you could always wire a motor into to a clash sensor's line so that it only "buzzes" when a clash is detected. To me... that would be pretty cool also.

Problem is... without some kind of controlling circuit--the amount of current that can be fed to the motor when a clash is detected... is pretty minimal. Which is why it doesn't work too well if you just do it "straight up" with some kind of spring sensor.

With something like Corbin's boards (v1 or v2), you could certainly get a cool effect. And duh, obviously you could get a cool effect with Crystal Focus (via the momentary button or wiring into the Luxeon current or both).

More on this kind of concept later on... while Gravyen and Do-Clo and I work on MR + flash on clash + lockup... :D