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Simple Power Glove hack

Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2017 4:42 pm
by localgrr
Hi there,

I just bought a Famicom Power Glove and I wanted to do a simple no VR sensor hack for it so I can use just the buttons in a retro comedy show I do (just to look cool) most of the games we play are NES & SNES.

I was a bit taken aback by how complicated all the power glove hacks seem to be. I've never seen a hack that just takes the 9 pin connector and converts it to USB, there seems to be a lot more electronics than I was expecting. I'm not an electronics expert, you might have gathered.

I was hoping just to be able to take the pins and map them on to a USB arcade controller I have then use it to control the emulator in RasperryPi - I assume now this won't work. Why is that, is there a voltage difference? I can't seem to find any schematics just for the 9 Pin plug.

Sorry if this is way off topic but I've been Googling all night and a few threads lead me to this board.

Thanks very much,

Cliff

Re: Simple Power Glove hack

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 4:33 am
by lidnariq
By default, the power glove can behave like an ordinary NES controller, but that's not the same trivial protocol as is used in the controllers from contemporary and older consoles where each button connects the pin to ground.

Instead, the NES controller looks like a simple clocked serial device. You can use the raspberry pi's "gamecon_gpio_rpi" module to interface to it without needing a USB thing.

Re: Simple Power Glove hack

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 4:36 am
by localgrr
that is terrific news, thankyou!

Re: Simple Power Glove hack

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 6:24 am
by localgrr
lidnariq wrote:You can use the raspberry pi's "gamecon_gpio_rpi" module to interface to it without needing a USB thing.
If I am using the DB9 plug of the glove and bypassing the receiver, then wouldn't I use "db9_gpio_rpi" module

Thanks!

Re: Simple Power Glove hack

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 7:40 am
by lidnariq
No, because the DB9 connector on the glove is still not the same as one of the old digital controllers like on the Atari 2600 or Sega's Master System.

Re: Simple Power Glove hack

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 7:53 am
by tepples
Would this work?
  1. Solder up an extension cord with a DA15 receptacle (male) and an NES 7-pin plug. Connect power, ground, clock, and out0 straight through, and connect D1 on the DA15 to D0 on the 7-pin.
  2. Plug the Power Glove into its receiver.
  3. Plug the receiver into the extension cord.
  4. Plug the extension cord into a RetroPort adapter.
  5. Plug the RetroPort into your computer.