One or Two Drivers??

[jijiglobe]

Originally Posted by Ryan_Todd

[*]I don't care how much of a hardcore gamer you may be; a thumb stick on a hand-held game pad will never offer the kind of fine-grained control that you want for an FRC drivetrain, period.

When you say it like that, I almost feel like I have no choice but to argue the contrary, and I will. I have found that with a little bit of practice on fine control (literally just holding a controller and practicing tiny movements) I have been able to achieve a high level of control ability with gamepad thumbsticks.

I have almost never used full-size control sticks to drive, but I will say what I think the pros of gamepads are (for driver):

1) Their intuitive. The gaming industry has invested a ridiculous amount of money into making controllers that are ergonomic and intuitive to use. Students that are used to gamepads will be able to reach a high level of proficiency fairly quickly (though, I admit, this is significantly mitigated by the fact that fine-grained control practice may be necessary). I think it's similar to how many teams opt to use a steering wheel to drive their robot. Students in areas where driving is a necessity may be very accustomed to this type of controller. Here in New York City, the driving age is 18 so that kind of controller is out of the question.

2) This one might seem a little crazy but does anyone else here get jittery on the field before a big match? Can't testify that this isn't just me but when I'm feeling jittery my arms and legs might shake, but my thumbs don't.

3) You can get gamepads that rumble... Could be useful for conveying sensor data... Just an idea we've been toying around with on 694...

4) Gamepads are convenient. Our entire driver station fits inside a small Pelican case (which I take great joy in kicking, throwing, and otherwise manhandling). Obviously not a huge issue, but still, I like convenience

I'm not saying that full-sized joysticks aren't viable (because they are) but I'm also definitely willing to argue that gamepads are just as viable.