Anyone Thought about RC Controls for BB-8?

[kresty]

I see a few motions, making BB-8 a hair trickier to map to an RC controller.

I was thinking of using the right stick for motion, that's what I do for R2 now.... Just moving it around moves the ball in that direction.

Then using the left stick for the head.  I use that for L3-G0's head, so it should help a bit in my brain.  Trick is that the head seems to have 3 dimensions.  It can move up/down the body (when parked), left/right, and rotate.

Eg: imagine a stick going down from the head.  He can rotate his head at least a little around the axis of the stick, and the stick can move up/down along the sphere, and also circle around it.  (Eg: It's like each of those axis would correlate to a latitude or longitude line).

I was thinking of having the computer ensure that his head stayed with the body motion/position, but then use the left stick to "deform" that.  Catch is that left stick is 2 axis, but there seems to be a third rotation axis involved.

Has anyone else given any thought to controls?

[kresty]

So a dozen people looked and had no opinions Cool!

I was now kinda wondering about a Bluetooth/Applet type solution.

[Spurgco]

While it may not be fully up to the task, The PADAWAN system has 2 analog sticks to control an astro. Padawan 360 controllers also have 2 sticks. I was leaning towards that system unless something else presented. I have had great success with the PADAWAN on my R2. Just a thought.

[pakrat77]

I can't find one right now, but I seem to remember seeing aircraft style RC controllers where you can twist the sticks. You could probably use that for turning the head if they still make them.

[kresty]

That's an interesting idea.  I vaguely remember something like that too. 

[Dagroid]

Here's what I am thinking for simple control on a two stick RC controller where one stick doesn't return to center...

Stick one: traditional tank style drive
Stick two: left/right for head rotation, up/down (no return center) controls head tilt position forward and back.

To rotate the head around the body when tilted front or back, turn the interior drive wheels with the left/right on the other stick.

[kresty]

Here's what I am thinking for simple control on a two stick RC controller where one stick doesn't return to center...

Stick one:  traditional tank style drive
Stick two: left/right for head rotation, up/down (no return center) controls head tilt position forward and back.  

To rotate the head around the body when tilted front or back, turn the interior drive wheels with the left/right on the other stick.

Pretty similar.  I should mention that I was thinking of adding the spring to my controller so that both sticks centered...   Dunno how easy that might be.