2 Place Collimated Display

[castle]

Most of the 737 sim shells truncate the nose section at the apex of the windscreen plus about a foot for one additonal rib for structual stiffness. From pilot's eyepoint to the front is around 6 to 7 feet.

The width at the forward windscreen (corner to corner) is 5.5 feet at the base and 7.5 feet at the rear of the side windows. allowing for a little bit of fuselage bulge below the windows might add about a foot. So the shell exterior is around 9 feet, maybe a little more or less. So the lower boundary is 15Xcos(40) = 11.5 feet. and you need some room, so maybe a 15' diameter mirror is right-sized.

Looking forward to the final set of plans you provide.

Jack

[JTRACKER]

Gene, I didn't see any mention of the release date of the CD.

It would be nice to get this job scheduled in before more gardening chores get me too exhausted to play

Definitely put me down for one if those CD's as well.

Glad to see you're back in action !

[geneb]

I didn't mention a date because there isn't one.

It will get done when it gets done - I'm not going to do a rush job just to get it out the door.

Last week I junked the screen design because I had a few errors in it and I didn't like the overall structure. It's been redesigned at 210 degrees and is a bit more stout.

g.

[castle]

[QUOTE=geneb;131038]I started working on the new collimated display design yesterday after our resident Mathgician worked his magic. (*waves at Wayne*)

Hi Gene,

when you have a sec how about a short progress report on the larger mirror system. And the smaller unit for that matter.

Thanks
Jack

[geneb]

Sure!

The larger unit doesn't exist yet. The current design is for the Cessna 182 "sized" display.

As of Friday, the mirror cell design is completed with the exception of the "ears". (I'll get into that in a moment) I've also started on the support structure for the screen. I suspect I'll have this mostly completed by Wednesday night barring any interruptions.

The plan is to get this model completed and then begin design work on the 737ish sized model, followed by the "tiny" model that is the same size of the unit that Wayne & I built. The 737ish and tiny model designs should go a LOT faster as I will have solved all the integration issues with this first design.

After the tiny design is done, I'm going to build that and use it to write the assembly guide for the other two display designs. One manual will cover all three because while the size & geometry will be different for each of the three, the displays will all use the same shape & number of components.

After the new tiny model is built, I'll start looking for a guinea pig to build the Cessna 182 sized display. Jack, you're already my test victim for the 737ish unit.

When the test builders are done and happy with the results, I'll begin selling drawings and router templates.

I will warn you right now - if you don't own or have ready access to a good router, a full sized band saw and (likely) a table saw, you will NOT be able to build this display. If (and only if) demand is great enough, I may offer a "short" kit that would contain all the mirror cell ribs, screen shape ribs and other parts. I will be including the items necessary for a builder to have the parts CNC cut with as little hassle as possible. (Pre-nested parts layout on a 4x8 sheet, etc. I'll also include Vectric VCarve Pro and Aspire design files so you can just hand those off to a fabber and they can run them will little hassle.)

Also note that for the Cessna 182 and 737ish designs, the foam used for the screens will likely exceed the material costs for the rest of the display. The screens are *HUGE* and will eat up a ton of foam to create the shape. This is one of the reasons I'm using test-builders - I simply can't afford the material cost to build something I'll never use. (They're just too big and I'm getting space-constrained in the shop as it is).

Now, as to the "ears"...

Here's the deal - I'm not going to provide design drawings for the end extensions for the display. After thinking about it a great deal and watching Apple go batsh*t crazy and sue Samsung over a rectangle with rounded corners, I'm not up for exposing myself to a suit if Rockwell-Collins decides I need to be made an example of.

That being said, what I will do is provide the builder with enough clues so they can figure it out. I'll post a ton of pictures of how I did it as well as point out the patent so folks can understand the science behind it. Hopefully the "beta" builders would be willing to share their experiences with it as well.

g.

[JTRACKER]

Hi G,

I'm sure looking forward to completion and finally being on your customer list

JT

[Robjw]

Any updates on the CD? Put me down for one.

[OmniAtlas]

Would this work for a FDS Jetmax style cockpit?

[castle]

Starting down the road to insanity!

First a world of thanks and shout-outs to Gene and Wayne for their time and dedication in completing the design and review of the 737 mirror system. Their efforts and talents represent everything that is right with the world and serve as an inspiration to all hobbyists and DIY simmers.

The drawings and cut files have been sent to the CNC woodshop that will produce the various pieces for assembling the mirror system and will be delivered in two weeks. Then the fun begins in putting it all together....

A couple of preliminary thoughts and observations...

You ABSOLUTELY need a CNC router. The structure uses over thirty 4x8 foot sheets of plywood and hardboard of varying thickness from 3/4" to 1/8". Initially, I considered using a hand router but the amount of cutting and precision required quickly squelched that approach. Either you have a CNC router or access to one.

As to space and size, it is a large structure. The room where I'll house the sim is 16x22x11 feet. You might be able to get by with less floor space but you need the height (perhaps a min of 10 feet ) to hold the projection screen and if your sim sits on a platform above the ground floor you need to account for that as well.

Some of the parts you will have to build yourself, so some woodworking tools and a modicum of skills are required.

And, again, remember how the optics work. The mirror creates a virtual image focused at infinity, not an image projected onto a cylindrical or spherical surface. With a simple projection sysem you can "get away" with some imperfections, inaccuracies, and misalignment of the surface; with the collimated display that is not the case. Misalign, twist, malform the mirror and it will not work. accuracy and precision is the watchword!

Hopefully, will find the time to post updates, pics, and videos of the progress. as well as notes and tips on construction and assembly.

Cheers
JW

[fsaviator]

Outstanding news, John. Looking forward to watching this come together. Keep us posted!

Warren