D4E1 - Mounting Surface for Accessible Gaming Controls

This project involved designing a mounting surface for the Pretorian OPTIMA Joystick as well as buttons from the Logitech Accessible Gaming Kit - a product that could serve as the basis of a gaming setup for individuals with motor limitations. The primary focuses were the positional stability of the various controls as well as adjustability, while aiming to create a result that could be 100% lasercut.

This kit includes a base plate, casings for the controls, ramp pieces for said casings, and spacer pieces.

This project was undertaken as a college assignment for Howest University of Applied Sciences in collaboration with Dominiek Savio, an institution dedicated to supporting individuals with disabilities (https://www.dominieksavio.be/).

The People involved in this project were:

Bibars Rustambek (bibars.rustambek@icloud.com) - Product Designer

Jasha Vandemaele (jasha.vandemaele@student.howest.be) - Occupational Therapist

Yoran Vansteelandt (yoran.vansteelandt@student.howest.be) - Occupational Therapist

Nicolàs Vivanco (vivanico23@gmail.com) -Product Designer

Vik Vranken (vik.vranken@student.howest.be) - Product Designer

In short, this challenge was about making comfortable and stable gaming setups more accessible for cognitively impaired individuals.

Required Tools

1. Laser Cutter

Materials

1. MDF boards
2. 8mm thickness.
3. Primary material in the board.
4. Can be substituted with plywood.
5. Wood Glue
6. A Substantial amount.
7. Used to stick all pieces together.
8. Rubber Feet
9. Stuck underneath the base plate to prevent slipping.
10. Can be substituted with various tapes, mats, etc. (anything that provides friction)
11. (Reccomended) Self-Adhesive Velcro
12. Used to attatch joystick and buttons to casings. Can be sourced from various sites, including https://wildvanstof.be/.
13. (Reccomended) Small Storage Box
14. Used to store pieces when they aren't being used.
15. Minimum dimensions (LxWxH):
16. Rag
17. Used to clean pieces after lasercutting.

Required Files (Adobe Illustrator)

You will need the following Adobe Illustrator files for laser-cutting the necessary components:

1. Base Plate: Base Plate.ai
2. Control Casings: Casings.ai
3. Ramp Pieces: Ramps.ai
4. Spacers: Spacers.ai

1. File: Base Plate.ai
2. Material: 8mm MDF / Plywood
3. Post-Processing: Dust can build up from laser cutting. It's recomended to wipe the edges of the pieces with a slightly damp cloth.

Use wood glue to stick the edge pieces around the plate as shown. Leave to dry for 2 hours.

Reccomended - leave a weight on top of the pieces to apply pressure.

1. File: Casings.ai
2. Material: 8mm MDF / Plywood
3. Reccomended: Wipe the edges of the pieces with a slightly damp cloth.

Use wood glue to stick the outline pieces onto the correct bases as shown. Leave them to dry for 2 hours.

Reccomended - leave a weight on top of the pieces to apply pressure.

1. File: Ramps.ai
2. Material: 8mm MDF / Plywood
3. Reccomended: Wipe the edges of the pieces with a slightly damp cloth.

Apply wood glue to the PIECES WITHOUT TONGS / STUDS, and stick onto the corresponding pieces with them as shown. Leave them to dry for 2 hours.

Reccomended - leave a weight on top of the pieces to apply pressure.

1. File: Spacers.ai
2. Material: 8mm MDF / Plywood
3. Reccomended: Wipe the edges of each piece with a slightly damp cloth.

Once the base plate is completely dry, flip upside down and stick on an array of friction-providing feet.

Various mats, tapes, etc. can serve as suitable alternatives - anything that provides friction.

Stick a strip of adhesive velcro into the casings where a joystick / button would be placed.

If another strip is added to the bottom of the controls, the velcro will provide extra security when they are placed.

The mounting board is now complete!

Place the used buttons into their casings and place them wherever you want on the board. Additionally, ramps can be inserted into the button casings to create an angle of either 15 or 30 degrees. Then, fill the rest of the space on the board using the spacer pieces!