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The third part is how to actually built it, including the enclosure, the electronics, etc. The goal is to be able to draw a rough schematic of the controller you want by the end of this part. The second part is about the content of the controller: what kind of switches to use for specific inputs, what it can display, and various tips and tricks for designing. It ends with a guide for an optional step, where you can use some basic electronics supplies to build a first proof of concept of a controller. The first part of this guide is about high level choices to guide the initial design of your controller (some examples of what you can do with a controller, what library and what board to use). But mostly because it is freaking cool!.Because there is nothing like launching a kerbal into space by pressing a big red button.Because you want to learn new skills, mostly related to electronics or laser cutting/3D printing.There are several reasons to make a controller: This guide is not about using a pre-built off the shelf controller for KSP, but about designing your own custom controller.
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The whole controller is enclosed in a case that holds everything together. The controller is usually controlled by an Arduino that is connected to the computer on one side and to a bunch of electronics devices on the other side (switches, potentiometers, LEDs, etc.). The basic architecture consists of a computer running KSP as well as a controller that can send inputs to KSP (to launch the rocket, increase the throttle, retract the landing gear, etc.) and receive information from KSP to be displayed (speed, altitude, etc.). A thread on the KSP forum listing several controllers.Here is a list of controllers for KSP if you want some examples: If you don't know it, you may want to go look it up before continuing here. Kerbal Space Program is a game where you build rockets and they fly them. For several subjects, this tutorial will only provide pointers to other resources dedicated to each topic (especially Sparkfun tutorials as I find them quite complete).
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The idea is to guide you to make your own controller rather than showing you how to make one without explaining the 'why' behind it. The goal of this tutorial is not to show how to build a specific KSP controller, but to show many of the common design choices and their pros and cons.
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