New project, is there any schematic or documentation about vmu or puru puru pack?

Project: wireless controller interface

Hello everyone happy new year!!!! I open this thread to discuss about the beloved last sega console who sadly appear to hide some things ahead of its time.
Things like a more complete unused structure for the controllers (you know double analog, more buttons,more extra devices)
More complex and ironically user friendly internet communication devices...and so on.

Im making a little investigation for pure entertainment and hobby interest on how connecting and make wireless adaptors for the controls and made a concept image of a small version for the same.
This is a picture of the design i want reach in the project ,hope you like it ,and can find some nice help on this forums.



Here are my list of current task to define the proyect:
1- search of useful information about console hardware comunications
2- find the most economic, cheapest and available resources to make the interface
3- start making a simple wireless comunication device, control - console
4- adding compatibility for accesories
5- start prototyping a new console board to allow wireless input
6- program a proper memory card vmu emulator
7- coding usb to dreamcast interface
8- making 2nd simple device usb to dreamcast with vmu emulated.
9- start prototyping 2nd board to allow pure usb input


After viewing the controller board attached on the console i see neat things; the schematic is very simplistic just have four interface ports for the controls, one fuse resistor, one resistor for the battery charging, the power led and the vent connections with a voltage regulator capacitor.

the interesting thing is the maple bus cable, it has 20 (twenty) lines divided as follow from right to left in the solder perspective:

01- VCC 3.3v to power LED anode
02- To battery resistor (R1)
03- Player 1 data 1
04- Player 1 data 5
05- GND
06- Player 2 data 1
07- GND
08- Player 2 data 5
09- Player 3 data 1
10- Player 3 data 5
11- GND
12- Player 4 data 1
13- GND
14- GND
15- Player 4 data 5
16- GND
17- VCC 5v
18- VCC 5v
19- VCC 5v
20- To Vent pin 1 (probably, this ensure its connection to prevent heat and sudden shutdown)

Controller pins are five and:

1- Data 1
2- Vcc 5v
3- GND
4- GND
5- Data 5

R1 is connected to pin 1 and pin 3 in the battery.
LED cathode and battery pin 2 are connected to GND.
Fuse resistor is connected between the 5v line and controllers pin 2.
Capacitor negative is connected to the vent pin 2 and GND.
Capacitor positive is connected to the vent pin 3 and 5v line.


Well, let the real fun begin!

 

Project: wireless controller interface

Ok i'll use this post to organize the found places with useful things, which can help to make this home project.
All posted here is only for reference information.


http://mc.pp.se/dc/
Marcus Comstedt dreamcast programing page
-if you need understand how bits are related on the hardware comunications this is your place-

https://sites.google.com/site/leucemidusdc/documentacion
Andres dreamcast to usb adapter attempt
-well documented information about the console hardware and few maple bus surprises-

http://www.raphnet.net/programmation/dreamcast_usb/index_en.php
Dreamcast controller to usb interface development log from raphnet
-very good for learn how conect a dreamcast controller using an amtel microcontroller-

http://modelrail.otenko.com/arduino/arduino-dreamcast-densha-de-go-controller
Stevenh Densha-De-Go controller to pc
same as above but using arduino for the controller - pc interface

http://code.lardcave.net/entries/2010/10/19/032116/
Nicholas Fitz converter using arduino or atmega 16mhz
-another cool dreamcast to pc proyect, this time include interaction with vmu (not lcd) -

http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=4393.0
severatius (micro) wireless interface for snes ,n64... using 2.4Ghz transceiver NRF24L01+ Semiconductor and of course atmega chips
-this provides some code to controlling the wireless conections betwen the receptor and the transmisor.

http://plainsmanlabs.com/sn64/wireless-controller-its-alive/
Jungerman n64 controller wireless interface using arduino
-Another cool project on how to transmit information via the cheaps NRF24L01+ this allows wireless rumble-


Understanding the mentioned above can be helpful to make wireless adaptors on the well known dreamcast controllers and find ways to develop an upgraded spare controller board for the console, allowing most recent usb or wireless inputs.
2.4Ghz ISM (industrial,scientific and medical) radio band is a widely used spectrum which can be used for this kind of home project, even can be reached for using the xbox360 controllers or many other pc joysticks on the console.


http://www.lxdream.org/wiki/index.php?title=Reference_Documentation
understanding about how dreamcast hardware work and the source code to the lxdream "linux dreamcast emulator"
- Useful for make a vmu emulator who interact with external peripherals (for ex. psp or android like controller)

http://www.deco.franken.de/myfiles/myfiles.html#inst_set
Variety of vmu programing tools and mini games deassembler
- For an accurate emulation with full minigames suport like sonic adventure chao garden -

http://www.goodcowfilms.com/farm/games/news-archive/Sega dreamcast VMU development tools.htm
sega dreamcast vmu development tools , sadly a very old resource page but could help

http://www.megadrive.org/~elbarto/VMU.pdf
Ok for this is like the holy help, is a vmu development manual, how interact, how works, how everything.


I would like some sort of vmu emulation embedded in a spare interface board, if not, how can be possible the use of an alternate controller with no physical ports.


http://devkitpro.org/
something like a opensource devkit software for wii or psp programing
- i want to use the psp to act as a dreamcast wirelles controller vmu included-

http://jjs.at/software/pspdisp.html
pspdisp opensource project, pc display on the psp via usb or wireless, along controlling mouse or emulate a keyboard
-maybe can make a video interface too

The above is just something i want to do, the psp as a pc controller and use the screen to emulate both vmu cards on chankast,nulldc,makaron or demul emulators via plug in.
(in future of course on the dreamcast console itself via usb; has everything needed, buttons included).

 

Project: wireless controller interface

That sound interesting hope too that can be possible, eh assembler congratulations for your work on the forum one more year! Searching in the web already found the most reliable information about the interface bus (added on 2nd post), i only need the chip pinout on the different pcb on the controllers, because in the version that i have there are 80 I/O pins and are a living hell to determinate which is for what and i've seen some pcb's with 60 or 62 pin version.

In other news, already orderer the material needed for the prototyping part and start the real deal; btw anyone remember the bleempad?

jaja hey can i ask you a favor? would you please help me renaming the thread,that would be much appreciated.

 

If you get to make controllers like in the first post I'd like one ;-)

 

hey dakangel, I'm dot-exe from eol. Finally managed to register in this site. ¿how is your project going?

You have a good amount of technical info in your second post, very interesting, will read them all as soon as possible.

In the controller pinout (and the controller board's flex pinout too, if all the signals on the ports go directly to the console motherboard) the pin 4 of each port is actually a "sense" signal. It is connected to GND internally in the controller, but its purpose is to tell the master (port controller on the console) if the game controller is connected. Make sure to short pin 4 with GND if you connect the microcontroller to the console to read the data from the master.