Motion Simulator Using "NASCAR Heat"

Just wanted to keep this group informed on our progress for those interested... As you may have seen in our previous posts here, our goal has been to use off-the-shelf games (in this case we're using NASCAR Heat) to drive a motion simulator using the game's telemetry data. By *intercepting* the pitch, roll, and g-force data, we could possibly use any game to drive a motion simulator. Our critics said we couldn't do it, but our test trials last week using NASCAR Heat were a success! We are now working on perfecting the movement to feel accurate, but we have now proven that the concept works. Our company, InMotion Simulators, is trying to make motion simulators affordable to home entertainment and small business markets. We're a small start-up company here in Houston and we would appreciate your comments, suggestions, questions, etc, concerning our project. We would really like to hear from you and we have forums on our web site at if you wish to post there: http://www.inmotionsimulators.com We don't have any photos or videos on our site as of yet because we are still in R&D mode. But we will put some up some very soon to show you what our simulator cockpits will look like. Here are some specs on our simulators: the footprint will be around 4' W x 6' L x 6' H (can fit into almost any home office or game room in your house), uses a 29" monitor, has 45 degrees in pitch and roll, uses a real racing seat with a 5 pt harness (and you will need it), and it will be portable. And of course, if the game supports LAN and Internet play, then you could connect as many of our motion sims together as you want, either locally or around the world. Our plan is to have an arcade of our simulators in Houston very soon. And based on our trial runs, our simulator will definitely kick you around. If you get into an accident, you will feel some g-forces! In fact, it's almost too realistic. We plan on offering free demo rides in Houston very soon. And we plan on traveling around the country this summer and fall. We're also doing a Reno Air Racing simulator and we plan on being at the Reno Air Races to demo our sims. We'll post our travel schedule on our web site soon. Again, please post your comments on our web site (or in this newsgroup). Thanks for your time! PS - you can email me directly from our web site Mark

Cool "Mark" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:3b02b1b1$[email hidden]...

You sound like a professional reviewer. :) Aitch <[email hidden]> schreef in berichtnieuws ikzM6.4124$[email hidden]... > Cool

Just for the record: I'm interested. I'll bet Doug Milliken (co-author with father Bill of "Vehicle Dynamics," the bible of the way cars handle...and an interested party in the now-departed Silicon Racetrack shake 'n bake NASCAR simulators) would be too. --Steve Smith (author of "Four-Wheel Drift," the strategy guide that shipped with GPL) "Mark" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:3b02b1b1$[email hidden]... > Just wanted to keep this group informed on our progress for those > interested... > > As you may have seen in our previous posts here, our goal has been to use > off-the-shelf games (in this case we're using NASCAR Heat) to drive amotion > simulator using the game's telemetry data. By *intercepting* the pitch, > roll, and g-force data, we could possibly use any game to drive a motion > simulator. Our critics said we couldn't do it, but our test trials lastweek > using NASCAR Heat were a success! We are now working on perfecting the > movement to feel accurate, but we have now proven that the concept works. > > Our company, InMotion Simulators, is trying to make motion simulators > affordable to home entertainment and small business markets. We're asmall

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> start-up company here in Houston and we would appreciate your comments, > suggestions, questions, etc, concerning our project. We would really like > to hear from you and we have forums on our web site at if you wish to post > there: > > http://www.inmotionsimulators.com > > We don't have any photos or videos on our site as of yet because we are > still in R&D mode. But we will put some up some very soon to show you

what

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> our simulator cockpits will look like. > > Here are some specs on our simulators: the footprint will be around 4' W x > 6' L x 6' H (can fit into almost any home office or game room in your > house), uses a 29" monitor, has 45 degrees in pitch and roll, uses a real > racing seat with a 5 pt harness (and you will need it), and it will be > portable. And of course, if the game supports LAN and Internet play, then > you could connect as many of our motion sims together as you want, either > locally or around the world. Our plan is to have an arcade of our > simulators in Houston very soon. And based on our trial runs, our

simulator > will definitely kick you around. If you get into an accident, you willfeel > some g-forces! In fact, it's almost too realistic. We plan on offering > free demo rides in Houston very soon. And we plan on traveling around the > country this summer and fall. We're also doing a Reno Air Racingsimulator > and we plan on being at the Reno Air Races to demo our sims. We'll postour

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> travel schedule on our web site soon. > > Again, please post your comments on our web site (or in this newsgroup). > Thanks for your time! > > PS - you can email me directly from our web site > > Mark > > >

On Thu, 17 May 2001 11:11:05 GMT, "Stephen Smith" <[email hidden]> wrote:

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>Just for the record: I'm interested. I'll bet Doug Milliken (co-author with >father Bill of "Vehicle Dynamics," the bible of the way cars handle...and an >interested party in the now-departed Silicon Racetrack shake 'n bake NASCAR >simulators) would be too. > >--Steve Smith (author of "Four-Wheel Drift," the strategy guide that shipped >with GPL)

Hey that sig is a good idea Steve, saves us from the daily 'are you the same Steve Smith who wrote..' question :) Andre

"Stephen Smith" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:dlOM6.94717$%[email hidden]... > Just for the record: I'm interested. I'll bet Doug Milliken (co-authorwith > father Bill of "Vehicle Dynamics," the bible of the way cars handle...andan > interested party in the now-departed Silicon Racetrack shake 'n bakeNASCAR > simulators) would be too. > > --Steve Smith (author of "Four-Wheel Drift," the strategy guide thatshipped > with GPL) > I wonder how much of SMS's income went to insurance because of the "shake 'n bake".

On Thu, 17 May 2001, Mike White wrote:

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> "Stephen Smith" <[email hidden]> wrote in message > news:dlOM6.94717$%[email hidden]... > > Just for the record: I'm interested. I'll bet Doug Milliken (co-author with > > father Bill of "Vehicle Dynamics," the bible of the way cars handle...and an > > interested party in the now-departed Silicon Racetrack shake 'n bake NASCAR > > simulators) would be too. > I wonder how much of SMS's income went to insurance because of the "shake 'n > bake".

Don't have a $$ number on the insurance (probably not a major expense). The SMS cars were designed with a lot of safety interlocks, and a strong interest in safety overall. Afaik, no one was really hurt in any of them (bad business to hurt your customers!), of course there were some customers that did experience motion sickness, but I think (again, don't know for sure) that this was a small minority. The development crew was headed by some folks with a lot of experience in building things for use by the general public, including Atari Hard Drivin' (with strong motor on the FF steering wheel). Just back from 4 days at the Formula SAE competition in Detroit -- what an amazing event. Check the website under students at <http://www.sae.org>, I heard (but haven't downloaded yet) that there is a sound clip from the Western Washington Univ engine -- they made a V-8 engine that looks (and sounds) a lot like a baby Cosworth DFV from the 1960's. Yes, made a V-8 engine (mostly CNC machined), uses heads and pistons from a motorcycle engine, otherwise they made all the parts - crankcase, cylinders, crankshaft, etc. -- Doug Douglas Milliken Milliken Research Assoc. Inc.