Overview
The hovercraft controller was designed with four modes of input to control speed, direction, bot number, and team color. The controller used a rotary switch to allow the user to select which of the 4 hovercrafts to pair with. A steering wheel was coupled to a potentiometer for direction control. A toggle switch was used to choose team color. An accelerometer was mounted to a pirate hook and was used to control speed.
Speed Control and Pairing
An accelerometer was used to control the speed of the hovercraft. The accelerometer was mounted to a pirate hook. Pointing the hook forward caused the hovercraft to move forward, and increasing the angle caused it to speed up. Similarly, pointing the hook backwards caused the hovercraft to move backwards. Shaking the hook caused the controller to pair with the hovercraft.
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Direction Control
The steering wheel was coupled to a potentiometer and read as analog input to control direction. Since the potentiometer could not rotate a full 360 degrees, a pirate was mounted on the wheel to restrict its movement to only around 120 degrees.
Bot Number Selection
The bot number was selected by a four-way 360-degree rotary switch that was mounted on the left side of the controller. It was mounted in a compass where the directions north, east, south, and west represented bot 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively. Once the bot was selected, shaking the hook caused the controller to pair with the hovercraft.
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Team Color Selection
General Dimensions
The controller was just under 20 inches wide, and a little over 8 inches tall.