Smart Yaw modes explained (SimTools driver from v. 0.4)

Two special "smart modes" for the Yaw axis affect the behaviour of the seat in order to unlock new features that weren't available until now:


Smart (Game provides Force):

Some games produce Force or speed data (= zero when you are not turning). Among these games are Aerofly FS2, Elite Dangerous and Star Wars Squadrons, and probably other games that are unofficially supported by memory hooks.

Benefits of this smart mode:

  • When you stop turning in game (value returning to zero) you will no longer return to center which produces an unnatural feeling and possibly motion sickness in VR. You will... stop turning.
  • If your yaw is unlimited: it allows full unlimited 360° rotation which was not possible before.
  • If your yaw is limited: if you go beyond the limit the seat will no longer move, but it will go back as soon as you turn to the other direction. If you enable the "washout" option, the seat will however slowly return to the center if you are not moving (see washout option below for details).

How to use: just like in normal mode, you can regulate the force (which has an impact on the sensitivity and the speed of rotation) by adjusting and the the Yaw % in for Axis1a. And something is wrong (much too reactivity or almost no reactivity) you can also review the min/max value in the Tuning Center panel.


Smart (Game provides Heading):

Other games produce Heading data (= a certain value in degrees, wether you are turning or not). Among these games are IL-2 Sturmovik, Project Cars 2 and probably other flight sims that have an official telemetry output.

Benefits of this smart mode:

  • If your yaw is unlimited: it also allows full unlimited 360° rotation like the normal mode, but you can change the speed of rotation if you wish (in VR a 1:1 rotation is not particularly necessary, it's the given feeling that is important).
  • If your yaw is limited: if you go beyond the limit the seat will simply no longer move and will go back as soon as you turn to the other direction: it will no longer jump to the other side when you make a full turn, neither will it not react as long as you are in the "dark zone". If you enable the "washout" option, the seat will however slowly return to the center if you are not moving (see washout option below for details). This way you can enjoy feeling the effect of your rudders when landing even if you have a limited yaw.

How to use: in this mode Axis1a must always be given a 100% Yaw so that the max/min game data can be interpreted as a full turn. If something is wrong, check if the min/max values in the Tuning Center panel, they should be -180 / + 180, or 0 / 360. If values are totally different, it's likely your game is providing Force data. As you can't adjust the turning speed in the Axis Assignments, you can adjust it with the Speed slider on the interface window. Begin by setting it to zero and adjust 1 by 1 in the desired direction and try at each step (steps are big, be careful!).


Washout option:

This checkbox makes sense and therefore is active only when the Yaw axis is limited, but washout can be activated for both smart modes above (it's not active in normal mode). Washout means the seat will slowly come back towards the center when you're not moving in-game. This is particularly useful for games providing Heading data: you can feel the movements initated by your rudders when landing.

Unlike the Simtool's washout function in the Axis Assignments options, the washout applied here takes the movement of the seat into account. At first, it will gradually increase the force on the wheels until the seats begins to move, and then the force is released and maintained as needed to slowly move the bowl. When approaching center, it will also decrease the speed. It is still noticeable in-game, but it shouldn't disturb nor produce motion sickness. Well, for me it works but maybe not for me, this function is to be considered as beta.

How to use: just tick the checkbox... but to have the smoothest movement you may have to tune with the washout slider. Point zero is ok for me, that is for a Yaw Pro (120W motors) at 60% power and my 80 kg.


Although it took me several nights of coding and testing with different games and settings, I cannot guarantee that these three new functions will work nicely for you. Please report your experience and I will tried to make it better.

Comments

  • Just found this today! Great additiin will test ASAP.

    Thanks for your work.

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