Using USB JoyPad or game device with Mach3?

[area51b]

Is it possible to use a cheap USB game device to control your Mach3 machine?
The answer is yes!

And it is freeware

As a spare time project I wrote a plugin for Mach3 doing exactly that. It has just been updated to version 2 and now supports step jogging as well as continuous jogging with two joysticks.
Buttons can be programmed using a Windows program to predefined functions or you can program them with your own script.

The User manual is well illustrated and will make you up and running in no time...

Read more and download User manual and plugin from MachSupport Forum:

USB JoyPad and game device plugin - New Version 2.0

Hope you find this plugin usefull...

[BerniW1936]

Hi I have a PS3 Controller connected to my PC. I shows up in Control Panel and all the buttons work and the Joysicks move as expected.
I have loaded your plugin and I think configured it correctly and have the continous jogging and stepm jogging working with the AL,Sl AR SR buttons.
BUT I can't make any of the other buttons do anything at all.
What am I missing or is this a bug?

Cheers

Bernie Walker

[keebler303]

I have played around with a game controller and mach. It has been a couple years but I think the controller had its own software in which you could specify which controller action send which command. You could map each button on the controller to a mouse or keyboard key (or key combination). You could setup a profile for each application you wanted to use the controller with and it would react appropriately based on which application was active. It sounds like you have largely repeated existing work. I think there is an existing game controller plugin on the machsupport downloads page as well. That may have been what I used, I really don't remember anymore, I gave it up due to a couple "Oh $h!t" moments when I let go of the button and it continued on with its rapid move.

Matt

[area51b]

Hi Bernie,

Originally Posted by BerniW1936 Hi I have a PS3 Controller connected to my PC. I have loaded your plugin and I think configured it correctly and have the continous jogging and stepm jogging working with the AL,Sl AR SR buttons. BUT I can't make any of the other buttons do anything at all. What am I missing or is this a bug? Bernie Walker

If you just installed the JoyPad.m3p plugin and configured the axes; Continuous and step jogging will work.
Buttons are ignored for safety reasons by default. To activate the buttons you must first select a standard template with JoyPadSetup program and press Save.
Close and reopen Mach3 to let the plugin read the newly saved button template - now buttons is activated as described in the User manual.

Hope this helps.

- Joakim