Replacement Membranes for Creativision controllers

[Mobsie]

Hi,
you all want the Joystick design like now? What you think about the Nintendo NES Style? I have bought some clones for Atari connector and I like I a lot.

[Scouter3d]

Hi Mobsie,

does NES style joysticks have 16 directions?

Cheers, TOM:0)

[Mobsie]

Hi,

no that's true

[cheshirenoir]

Hi,

yesterday i found, that PCBWAY (or maybe other producers also) can produce also very thin PCBs (like 0.6mm or 0.8mm)...

one possibility could be to produce such a thin Dual layer PCB where every "key" consists of a Contact, where all 3 necessary signals are present "entangled" like the 2 on the original Keyboard PCB (only all 3 of them) plus small round "gold" Stickers to add under the keys to close the 3 signals together...

such a PCB would costs under 2 Euros to produce (plus Gold-Contact points or even thin Graphite ones or cut aluminium foil (or even one big piece of aluminium foil).

Same for the Firebuttons (they allready have a contact PAD)

"Only" the joystick would be the tricky part ;0)

Cheers, TOM:0)

Yeah JLCPCB do Flex PCBs that should do as replacements for the joystick part. That's where I suspect the expen$ive trial and error will come in. If I could work out how to do the buttons using standard SPST momentary switches, possibly in conjunction with a diode or two, I reckon I'd be able to do a slimline board that would fit under the overlays using buttons like the ones here: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001629354273.html

Fire buttons are easy as they're already SPST.

I've disassembled and scanned in the membranes from my controllers to make reverse engineering the joysticks easier.

Cheers!

Chesh.

[Scouter3d]

Hi Chesh,

be very carefull with the joystickports! I burned quite a few of the Creativision I/O Chips while creating the PS/2 keyboardinterface...

Good luck!

TOM:0)

[cheshirenoir]

Does anyone know if I can use a SPST switch, with two diodes instead of having to use DPST switches?
I think it'd work but...

If no one else has, I'll try it on the weekend I guess

Chesh

[Scouter3d]

Hi Chesh, can you please explain what you mean with switch with two diodes exactly...

a small schematic drawing would be very helpfull :0)

The Keyboard ports are a bit "fiddly" as they allready have diodes and resistors attached... IIRC i tried adding a "safety" diode on one of the lines to prevent burning the I/O chip but that altered the signal-level too much to be recognized...

Cheers, TOM:0)

[cheshirenoir]

So what I'm doing here is effectively "emulating" what the motherboard already does, just closer to the actual switches.

diodeswitch.jpg

If I'm reading the schematic right, this should fix the issue. Of course it means 2 diodes for every switch. I'm thinking of going SMD for these on the "underside", but it does mean we should be able to make a keyboard you can slide overlays over.

Cheers!

Chesh

[Scouter3d]

Hi Chesh,

Thx for the drawing!
I think i know would you mean... :0)

Maybe Shottky diodes will work? (low forward voltage drop)

Cheers, TOM:0)

[Scouter3d]

Hi,

i just found this link... https://www.instructables.com/DIY-Flexi ... -Circuits/

Maybe we can create replacement foils on our own ;0) (maybe at least for the joystick part?)

Online i found 15x15cm sheets of the flex material for 11Euros

Cheers, TOM:0)