Playstation Tank Controller

October 12, 2008 by Eliot 6 Comments

[stuart] wanted a more intuitive way to control his rover platform than the software solution he had been using. He settled on using a Playstation controller with an AVR to operate the rover wirelessly. He found a couple references for talking to the controller using SPI on a PIC and adapted that for his ATMega88. The code is available on his site. He removed the rumble motors from the controller and stuffed the chip plus the transmitter package inside. The Linx TX/RX pair are mounted to pluggable boards so he can use them on other projects. A video of the tank in motion is after the jump. Continue reading “Playstation Tank Controller” →

Pedal Powered Panzer Tank Built For Crashing Parties

July 8, 2008 by Juan Aguilar 6 Comments

A group from Philadelphia PA calling themselves Team pzkpfw decided to recreate a Panzerkampfwagen III, but not entirely according to the original specs. Instead of treads and an engine, they used a system of pedals, gears and chains powered by up to six riders. The team of roughly nine men spent eleven days welding beams and plates, drilling and shaping sprockets, and painting the tank a fearsome pink camouflage. They were planning on crashing the 2nd annual Kensington Kinetic Sculpture Derby with it, which they crashed last year in a pirate ship, but they ended up being too tired from their tooling around to actually do it. There’s always next year. Get a look at their promotional video after the break, or if you’ll be in the Philly area soon, “visit the tank on Frankford Ave, just north of Norris St in Philadelphia.”