Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] trackball on the cheap?

How about just getting an older mouse with an actual ball, and mounting
that in the panel, upside down? You can connect panel-mounted switches
to the board as well.

Incidentally, mounting an optical mouse in the panel can act as a cursor
as well - they'll detect hand/finger motion in front of the sensor just
fine. (though it would take some getting used to, I think)

- Steve

Graham Stabler wrote:

>Trackballs seem very popular on homemade Mach panels etc for obvious
>reasons of compactness. I was messing around with something last night
>an a large ball bearing I had dropped into a counter bored hole in a
>plate of steel. I was sat there rolling it around under my fingers
>and it moved rather nicely, it could have been a tad bigger perhaps
>but it was pretty slinky.
>
>So here is my idea, stick a ball bearing in a hole, underneath mount a
>cheap optical mouse that looks at the ball and you have a cheap,
>cleanable, robust optical rollerball.
>
>Problems:
>
>* need to reverse mouse, I think that should be possible
>* need a texture of some sort on the ball for the optical mouse to see.
>
>Just an idea.
>
>Cheers,
>
>Graham
>
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