Hardware
This is the OpenFFBoard hardware wiki page. It provides an overview of already tested hardware.
At the moment the software is far from finished. Features may not work completely or contain errors.
THIS IS STILL IN DEVELOPMENT! NOTHING ON THIS PAGE IS GUARANTEED TO WORK!
| Table of Contents |
|---|
| Disclaimer |
| General |
| Board |
| Motors |
| Motor Driver |
| Encoders |
| Power Supply |
| Steering Wheels |
| Cables |
| Misc |
The OpenFFBoard is an open source force feedback interface with the goal of creating a platform for highly compatible simulation devices. To enjoy it's full potential, you need different bits of hardware. Most notably a controller board aka. the OpenFFBoard, a motordriver, a motor, encoder, cables and a steering wheel. This page should provide you with an overview of tested hardware so you can decide what's useful for your rig. Build instructions can be found here: Setup.
The OpenffBoard is based around a STM32 and serves mainly as USB HID interface to the computer. It's firmware is open source OpenFFBoard-Firmware. Detailed informations can be found on the dedicated OpenFFBoard Wiki page: OpenFFBoard. Currently there is no option to buy the board (yet), but it's layout files and parts list can be found here Hardware-Design. Therefore you are able to make one yourself or you can check the Discord for ongoing groupbuys Discord.
To drive one of the motors listed beneath, you'll need a motor driver board Motordriver.
This project is still in development. Recommended motors are not guaranteed to work but are well established in the simracing community.
| Name | Capabilities | Estimated price | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 130ST-10010 Small Mige |
Rated Power: 1000W Rated Voltage: 220V Rated Speed: 1000rpm Rated Torque: 10Nm Peak Torque: 20Nm Torque coefficient: 2.2Nm/A |
Please contact Mige directly for a quote. The cost for shipping is significant. Taxes and fees have to be paid. |
Search for Mige on Alibaba. It is not recommended to buy 3rd party. |
| 130ST-15015 Big Mige |
Rated Power: 2300W Rated Voltage: 220V Rated Speed: 1500rpm Rated Torque: 15Nm Peak Torque: 30Nm Torque coefficient: 1.58Nm/A |
Please contact Mige directly for a quote. The cost for shipping is significant. Taxes and fees have to be paid. |
Search for Mige on Alibaba. It is not recommended to buy 3rd party. |
| 80ST-M04025 | Rated Power: 1000W Rated Voltage: 220V Rated Speed: 2500rpm Rated Torque: 4Nm Peak Torque: 12Nm Torque coefficient: 0.9Nm/A |
Please contact Mige directly for a quote. The cost for shipping is significant. Taxes and fees have to be paid. |
Search for Mige on Alibaba. It is not recommended to buy 3rd party. |
| SEM HR115C6 | Rated Power: 1800W Rated Voltage: 530V Rated Speed: 6000rpm Rated Torque: 6.8Nm Peak Torque: 20Nm Torque coefficient: 1.1/A |
Used from Ebay | |
| 34HS59-5004D Stepper |
Amps/Phse: 5A Voltage: 5V Holding Torque: 13Nm Step Angle: 1.8° |
stepperonline.com | ~120€ + Shipping (EU) |
How to contact Mige?
-Goto Mige on Alibaba: Alibaba.com/mige
-Login or create an account
-Click on "Contact supplier"
-Type in which servo motor you want, ask for its price including shipping for the motor, cables and the better 10k encoder (if you want the 10k encoder).
Lisa is very helpful and will answer in no time.
The plug and play motordriver board is based around a TMC4671. It's design and firmware is also open-source and can be found here: Hardware-Design.
It's current capabilities and features can be found here: Motordriver-Board.
Encoders that can be used with the current development. Some encoders can only be used as SinCos encoders.
| Name | PPR/CPR | Estimated price | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| CUI AMT103 | Depends on version. Up to 2048ppr or 8192cpr |
Digikey.de | ~20€ + Shipping |
| AMT132 | Depends on version. Up to 4096ppr or 16384cpr |
Digikey.de | ~30€ + Shipping |
| E6B2CWZ6C | up to 2500ppr | Digikey.de | ~400€ |
| AMS5115 | SinCos | -- | -- |
| EQN1325 | 512ppr or 2048cpr (SinCos) | -- | -- |
Different motors need different power supplies. Compare this table from the Simucube deveopment for reference: Power supply table.
Early tests suggest that the TMC-driver board is very efficient. With a Mige 130ST-15015 a 350 watt psu was sufficient even at very high torque settings.
This is intended to be as modular as possible. Therefore no steering wheels are provided. There are 3D-printable designs you can use. For a more sturdy setup, consider using a clamping set.
(e.g. Clamping set -> in case of a Mige servo use 22mm ID.)
Adapters and quick releases can also be bought enabling a fully customisable setup to your liking.
When ordering from Mige there are 3m cables already included. The included cables are shielded and can be used with the OpenFFBoard.
Power cables and the encoder need to be connected to the OpenFFBoard through a connector. Depending on the board design you need to order the correct connector type.
Additional parts needed to build a complete working OpenFFBoard force feedback system.
A braking resistor is necessary to discharge the energy generated by the motor when used in generator mode. Without a braking resistor the generated voltage spikes will damage the power supply and the OpenFFBoard/TMC-Driver.
It is recommended to use at least a 50 watt resistor with a ohms rating of 5 ohms to 15 ohms.
VERY IMPORTANT: If powered by a power supply, always have the resistor connected through the active diode circuit (VM pin). Otherwise you have NO WAY to burn energy and you will kill everything if the board does not detect overvoltage and stop the driver. And even then it might be too late. The resistor is activated in software from the STM (early. depending on difference between internal and external voltage) and as a backup by the TMC (close to overvoltage point). This means if the board is not powered or under reset the resistor won't activate and needs the buffer caps. In the v1.2 TMC-hardware revision two EEU-FS1K681B with 680µF are used as buffer capacitor. So no external caps are needed.
OpenFFBoard project