Serial Cables

[Kilroy0846]

Quick Question:

How do you know which wires (on the non connector side of the cable) correspond to the pins (on the connector side)

I am speaking specifically of the DB15 serial cables that connect to the joystick ports of the OI

I am building the OI next year for our team and ive been doing a little research. I have mostly everything else figured out but how to manage wires coming out of the serial cable.

Tips tricks and suggestions are welcome

[MrForbes]

one way is to use an ohm meter--hold one test lead on one wire, and touch the other lead to each pin until the meter shows continuity. write down which pin it was and what color the wire was. repeat till you get all 15, then maybe go back and double check them all

[Cody Carey]

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/26381


Here is a helpful little chart, It doesn't have the standardized wire colors (yet?). It is a mix of a lot of paint, and OI manual, but it tends to help me think. I have the colors written on a dry-erase board in our robotics room... at least I hope they are still there. I will attempt to revise the chart when/if I find the color chart.

Could you just go to radioshack and buy a standard DB-15 pin connector instead of using a spliced serial?

[Alan Anderson]

Serial cables don't have anything to do with joysticks. With the exception of the CMUCam communication, the serial cables in the IFI control system use 9-pin connectors. If you're talking about the 15-pin connectors on the sides of the OI, they're game port connectors. The definition of the pins is in the OI reference manual.

So what cable are you actually referring to? So far as I know, the only 15-pin connectors in the Kit of Parts are attached to the joysticks. Anything else you might have is going to be something you got on your own, and other people here likely won't know any more about it than you do.

[tseres]

thanks cody for the diagram...next year i want to build custom controls...