Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

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jwick
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by jwick »

I believe KUKA uses 3Dx industrial devices now. It seems logical since that is the 3Dx booth :)
Tehrasha
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

My bad. I am apparently working from outdated information.

Didnt 3Dx have a similar 'ErgoCommander' years ago?
I remember finding some pictures at one time, but could find very little info.
Spacemice -- Input devices for a 3D world.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by jwick »

Yes. I've seen one kicking around. It was from before the companies merged.
Hypersonic
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Hypersonic »

A 12 DOF ScreenMan would be great for productivity work on the go. Place it on a stand so at times you can free a hand for the touch screen. Instead of switching between controlling the camera and controlling an object you could do both at the same time, which is a feature I plan to add to a program I'm working on. Though this would only make sense if there are multiple objects on the screen at the same time.

Another on the go application would be controlling a drone with one 3DMouse, and an attached swivel camera with optical zoom with another 3DMouse. It takes time to swing the an entire drone around, but a swivel camera can turn very quickly. This would be for a fast drone, just one 3DMouse would do for a slow hovering drone that doesn't really yaw/pitch/roll.

These 7.4 to 11 Newton 3DMice modules definitely interests me https://youtu.be/oIbXW3BVaAI?t=1m11s I'd trade in all my 3DMice for just one of those as it has 2-3 times the spring stiffness (though I believe 20 Newtons would be even better.) It appears that you can screw them on and off. Just need a way to secure them onto a keyboard or a tablet. There are keyboards that have USB hubs to connect to, and the Surface Pro 3 comes with 1 full sized USB port that can be split into multiple using the docking station http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surface_Pro_3#Accessories
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

Another hard to find model checked off the list... Just arrived from the UK.
I think this is only the 2nd Avenger I have seen since I started hunting them 5yrs ago.

Image
click for bigger
Spacemice -- Input devices for a 3D world.
Hypersonic
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Hypersonic »

The SpaceOrb is a definite improvement in button arrangement from the Avenger. The thumb can simultaneously control a pair of buttons, either D&F or C&E. The forefinger can also simultaneously control A&B.

Such as
-just A with the tip of the finger
-just B with the joint of the finger
-both A&B pressing the tip and joint of the finger simultaneously.

Only down side is that the other 3 fingers of the right hand are used to simply steady the controller, making a Space Navigator & keyboard combo a better gaming setup if there are many button actions to perform, assuming you don't mind lugging around a keyboard. I used to use a glove to add grip to the left hand, otherwise strong torque can cause your hand to slip. One can't input high torque on the Space Navigators so no real need for gloves.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by jwick »

I'm surprised you had a hard time finding an Avenger. You are missing a Cyberman 2? They are on eBay quite often. It has a joystick port, not of much use today.

You need to update the link to your wiki. I think the link at the beginning of this topic is broken.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

jwick wrote:I'm surprised you had a hard time finding an Avenger. You are missing a Cyberman 2? They are on eBay quite often. It has a joystick port, not of much use today.

You need to update the link to your wiki. I think the link at the beginning of this topic is broken.
SpaceOrb360s are considerably easier to find than the older Avengers, at least in my experience.
I considered the Cyberman2 a 'joystick' because of its interface, and put it on the 'Not Spacemice' page.
I should get one like I did with the original Cyberman, just to have one. :)

As for the links, yeah, I wish I could edit my posts and fix all those broken links.
Wikidot was injecting too many ads for my taste, so I rolled my own.

The web link under my username is the correct www.spacemice.org
The only remaining page (404) on the old site -should- redirect to the new site though.
Spacemice -- Input devices for a 3D world.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

Quest nearly completed.....

Thanks to the support team here on the forum, my bucket list of spacemouse models which I was missing, has been greatly reduced.
In fact, I thought it was finished, until I did some cleanup on the website, and realized that I had overlooked one of the ancient models.

A LogiCAD press release from Feb. 2000 mentions the existence of a USB Cyberpuck.
I also have a PDF flyer of the 'Puckman' which claims it to have coem in both serial and USB formats.
I have never even seen a picture of one with USB. Do any of the old timers (ie: jwick) remember such a device?

It is the last device on my list of discontinued devices.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by jwick »

I have a USB PID (0xc602) for the CyberPuck, so there must be one in a box somewhere. As I recall, Logitech allowed us to use the name CyberMan for it toward the end of its life. To be completely confused with the Logitech CyberMan "1" and 2. It probably uses the same cap as the CyberMan 2.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

jwick, Do you have historical information on the airbrushed spacemice? Like how many were done, and by whom?
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by jwick »

They were done in Munich--the company has a picture on their website. They were quite expensive to produce, but were a regular catalog item for a while. I assume they were more expensive than the regular device.
There were some done with company logos as well as the "space scenes". I recall a Ferrari logo (presented to Ferrari management), CATIA, Unigraphics, Solidworks, etc.
It was a good promotional idea, IMO.
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

The CATIA, Unigraphics, Solidworks, and a few other branded units show up on ebay quite often, and those all appear to have been done with a screen printing process. The space-scene and Ferrari models on the other hand, are an all over paint job, and must have been quite expensive to do.

I have been trying to determine if the space scenes are all unique, or if there was a set number of patterns that were then mass produced. So far I have collected images of 7 different space scene mice.

Also, one of the Ferrari units made it to eBay a couple years ago, and as I remember the seller was wanting 4 digits for it.
Sadly, I had to pass that one up.
Spacemice -- Input devices for a 3D world.
Tehrasha
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Re: Antique Spacemice Hardware/Software

Post by Tehrasha »

..and things like this pop up. Absolutely no reason want this, other than it exists...

Image

Original, unopened Spaceball drivers on a DEC Ultrix tape. Date Feb. 1991
Spacemice -- Input devices for a 3D world.
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