From: jlb31348@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Jim Brain) Subject: TECH: U of I Powerglove update 7-1-92 + new command post Date: Wed, 1 Jul 1992 19:55:44 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Ahhh, I have mastered the moment. Last night's programming binge resulted in the foundation for two glove support. Now it looks like tonight or tommorrow night, the two glove support will be a reality. I have added all the necessary commands to operate all the goodies, and I think I have outdone myself. I am still able to change stuff, but additions will be rare from now on unless they are EXTREMELY small. I am almost out a workspace. I have packed SO much functionality into this thing it is UNREAL. All at little cost and NO degradation of performance. I will send out the revised code to all who asked for it, and will post a new set of commands for the software people. I need someone to write a skeleton piece of software for the MAC that will dipslay data from the modem port on the screen at 9600 baud. I have also debugged all of the commands and left very few to combat later. I know the command set post is pretty much a rehash of the older one, but please take a look at the section on new commands. I think you will be happy. Also, let me stress that the commands for the SEGA glasses are for those who do not have access to the RTS/DTR pins through software, or do not want the hassle. I have tested the unit and it is hardware finished. Please email me ASAP on corrections, as the time is growing short. I am trying to get my speed up to 30 frames a second, but 28 is the best I can do at the moment. I KNOW EVERYONE wants 30 frames a second, but it may not be possible. I will look into it some more. I am so happy to have gotten this stuff done. The code is very efficient, but my compiler does not like the BSET,BCLR, BRSET, or BRCLR commands, so: does anyone have a better assembler fro the IBM hat I can borrow? Let me stress also that alow the new commands are available in Menelle emulation mode. The only commands that will change modes are 0x01-0x03, 'C' ,'R', and '?'. Let me know what the synopsis is. Many have asked me how users will be able to hook up the I/O and A/D ports. We can do it, or the manual will show you, the user, how to do it. It is rather painless if you know how to solder. That is a small worry at the moment, considering the larger picture. I am looking for warehouses or stores still carrying the PG or the SEGA glasses. email if you know. here is the command set. Programmers: read this carefully. The PowerGlove Serial Adapter II Command Set: The PGSA II is designed to provide errorless communication with the Mattel PowerGlove. Also, this box was designed to allow users of programs written for either AGE's original PGSA or Ron Minelli's Converter Box ] Project to reuse their software without changes. The emulation mode assumes that the program attempting to use the converter will start execution by putting the box into the appropriate mode (request or continuous) and will set the emulation mode accordingly. I encourage people to write interrupt driven routines for platfroms other than the IBM PC, since I already have a source for that platform. I would also like to gain the privilege of distributing these drivers to people who buy this box for their own use. Minelli Emulation: This emulation mode will enable use of the PGSA II as an equivalent to the project box described by Ron Minelli. The project is described in detail in a file on karazm.math.edu entitled PGHC11. The commands used by this emulation mode are as follows: 'C' this command sent to the PGSA II will enable continuous download mode, where a new packet is sent out right after it is received from the PowerGlove. 'R' This command sent to the PGSA II will enable Request mode, where a new packet is only sent when asked for one. '?' This command will request a packet in request mode. It has no effect in continuous mode. '+' This command will enable the Deglitching filter as written by Dave Stamp. It will deglitch the X and Y coordinates at this point. '-' This command will disable the deglitching filter. The packet sent out in Minelli mode looks like the following: In continuous mode, the packets have the following data in them 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 A0 X Y Z rotation flex switch Where: A0 is the start byte (A0 hex) X is the X coordinate Y is the Y coordinate Z is the Z coordinate rotation gives the angle of rotation divided by 30 degrees flex gives the values for the finger positions switch gives a value for what key is being pressed on the PG keypad Flex is one byte divided as follows: 7:6 5:4 3:2 1:0 Thumb Fore Middle Ring where each finger can have 4 positions: 00b fully extended 01b partially extended 10b partially closed 11b fully closed In request mode, the packet is sent the same way, but the A0 byte is left off. Therefore the packet length is 6 bytes. The commands 'C', 'R', and '?' will put the PGSA II into this emulation mode. The commands '+', and '-' will leave the PGSA II in its current emulation mode. AGE Emulation: The AGE emulation mode will enable use of the PGSA II as the equivalent to the AGE original PGSA. In this mode the following commands apply: 0x01 This command will put the PGSA II in continuous mode. It will send a packet as soon as it is received from the PowerGlove. 0x02 This command will put the PGSA II in request mode AND send out one packet of information. To request another packet, one merely sends another 0x02. 0x04 This command will resend the default initialization template to the glove. This template determines the resolution. 0x07 This command will reset the box to the following defaults: Deglitching: ON Rotation filter: ON Emulation: AGE 0x08 This command will turn on the rotation filter designed to smooth out the inherent twitching of the rotation value. 0x09 This command will turn off the rotation filter The packet sent out in AGE mode looks like the following: In continuous mode, the packets have the following data in them 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 5F 5F X Y Z rotation flex switch GSTAT1 GSTAT2 Receiver values Where: 5F 5F is the start string X is the X coordinate Y is the Y coordinate Z is the Z coordinate rotation gives the angle of rotation divided by 30 degrees flex gives the values for the finger positions switch gives a value for what key is being pressed on the PG keypad GSTAT1 is (was) for future use GSTAT2 is (was) for future use Receiver values gives the status of receivers getting signals Flex is one byte divided as follows: 7:6 5:4 3:2 1:0 Thumb Fore Middle Ring where each finger can have 4 positions: 00b fully extended 01b partially extended 10b partially closed 11b fully closed GSTAT2 is always zero (as far as I can tell), but GSTAT1 takes the value 01h when the glove has not been calibrated (immediately after pwerup or reset, when the fingers still need to be trained) and takes the value 00h otherwise. In request mode, the packet is sent the SAME EXACT WAY, including the two 5fH characters at the beginning. Note this. The commands 0x01 and 0x02 will put the PGSA II in AGE emulation mode. All other commands will leave the PGSA in the same mode. Use of The Box: The PGSA II is designed to allow users of existing programs designed with either the PGSA or the Minelli Project to operate flawlessly. This provides the backward compatibility. However, there are a few guidelines to follow: 1: Programs that put the box in strange modes will work fine, but the box may need to be reset before operating another program. This is only applicable to programs that do not put the PGSA II back into the same state it was in when the program started. Example. Program A puts the PGSA II in request AGE mode and then exits without changing back to continuous mode. Program B starts, expecting to be getting continuous data (because that is the default state for the PGSA) and hangs because the box is inrequest mode. This can be fixed by manually resetting or by sending the continuous command manually. 2: Programs that expect the Box to emulate Minelli's Code immediately after reset will not work, since the PGSA II starts up in AGE emulation and needs a command to know what to switch to. Solution. Manually send the C or R commands. As other potential problems arise, I will solve them. At the moment, the distribution disk will have a little program to send the commands without needing a terminal program. It will also have command switches for the commands on the comand line. AS with most new products building on the laurels of older compatible products, the PGSA II has a few new commands. This is a revised list of the new commands available to the PGSA II user. Here is the list: 0x0A This will turn the first Powerglove on for input. When a packet is requested, the data from the first glove will be displayed. 0x0B This will turn off the first Powerglove for input. When a packet is displayed, the info for the fist glove will not be shown. 0x0C This turns on the second glove. 0x0D This turns off the second glove. 0x0E This turns on the 8 bit digital input readings. When a packet is requested, these 8 bits will be displayed in the packet. 0x0F This turns off the 8 bit digital input readings. 0x10 This command turns on the readings from the first 4 A/D ports. When this command is issued, the packet will contain values form the first 4 Analog to Digital ports. 0x11 This command turns off the readings from the first 4 A/D ports. 0x12 This command turns on the second 4 A/D ports. 0x13 This command turns off the second 4 A/D ports. 0x14 This command turns the left SEGA shutter black. 0x15 This command turns the left SEGA shutter clear. 0x16 This command turns the right SEGA shutter black. 0x17 This command turns the right SEGA shutter clear. 0x18 This command turns both SEGA shutters black. 0x19 This command turns both SEGA shutters clear. 0x1A This command turns the left SEGA shutter black and the right one clear. 0x1B This command turns the right SEGA shutter black and the left one clear. 0x1C This command changes the baud rate rate. The next byte received will be the new baud rate, as follows: On 9600 baud systems: 0x01 9600 bps 0x02 4800 bps 0x03 2400 bps 0x04 1200 bps 0x05 0600 bps 0x06 0300 bps 0x07 0150 bps 0x08 0075 bps On 38400 baud systems: 0x01 38400 bps 0x02 19200 bps 0x03 09600 bps 0x04 04800 bps 0x05 02400 bps 0x06 01200 bps 0x07 00600 bps 0x08 00300 bps The number received is decremented by one and then logically ANDed with 0x07, so any number above 0x08 will be normalized to the range 0x01 to 0x08. I have not decided on the correct way to check that the user has changed to the correct baud rate, but I will think of something. 0x1D This command will change the chopping frequency of the SEGA shutter glasses from 16 Hz to 5 kHz. The range may be decreased, as I want to make sure users cannot damage the SEGA glasses through software. The next word after this command will be used as the new value. 0x1E This command will write data to the output Digital pins. The next byte will be used as the value to place on the output port. THE AMENDED PACKET STRUCTURE: Since this extra information must be presented to the user, I have decided to include all the information from the PGSA II into a single packet. When the PGSA II initially starts, it reads and displays information from the first glove only, unless the first glove is not attached, and then it will display only a nul packet, corresponding to two 0x5F bytes. If the user enables the second glove, its packet, minus the header bytes, will succeed the first glove info if present. This continues on in the same fashion, with a full, complete packet looking like this: 5F 5F PG#1 PG#1 AD1-4 AD5-8 INPUTBYTE (for AGE emulation) or: A0 PG#1 ... (for Menelli continuous) or: PG#1 ... (for Menelli request) (I am thinking of placing delimiters in the packet stream, but am unsure, so email me if you think that is a good idea.) Notice to those who write new programs: New programs written for either of the two boxes we intend to emulate, or the PGSA II, should follow these general rules: 1: Reset the box after finished using it. This can be accomplished by sending the reset command on the PGSA and PGSA II boxes, or by putting the Minelli Box in Continuous mode with deglitching on. 2: Have a menu to let users select which box they own. At least provide command line switches to enable stuff for another box. 3: Write programs that call one function to set the box into the mode you want and one function to get the data back. That way, users can port \ code from platform to another without major headaches. We will be distributing code for many platforms to do this with instructions. (In C and Assembly, of course). 4: If you write your own polling routine, be sure to escape out if you do not receive a valid data string in, say, 5 seconds. This way, your code will not hang if a user forgets to put his box into the port or puts it into the wrong port. 5: And this is a big one. make sure you support all applicable RS-232 ports. I hate to grope around the back of my machine to rearrange cables, and I hate to have two versions of the same program just to use either port. We will let you specify th com port to use, but it is up to the author of the program to make this switch available to the end user. 6: If you do data cruching or something else like that on the raw data, please make it disableable at the command prompt. Things like extra smoothing of data should be able to be disabled if possible ( This one is not as critical as the other ones 7: This interface is very flexible, so exploit its features in your program. There is not much more I can add. I will try to add MIDI support as an add-on hardware option, and I will make MAC users able to use this, but the code is just about complete, as I have used 1.8 kilobytes of a maximum 2 kilobytes of EEPROM. I hope this makes everyone happy. Jim Brain -- Nothing is better than Eternal Happiness. jlb31348@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu A ham sandwich is better than nothing. Jim Brain Therefore, a ham sandwich is better than eternal happiness.