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Thread: Freetrack

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    Freetrack

    Anyone here using freetrack? How does it work for you in CoD, and what sort of setup are you using?

    I just had a quick play with a few old led's taped to my headset, but my Logitech webcam will only output 15fps, so the results are mixed. Is it worth me making something more permanent with a low spec webcam, or is the program and using it with IL2 a bit hit and miss at the best of times?

    Cheers

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    Re: Freetrack

    I use Freetrak.

    I bought a used PlayStation Eye and removed the infrared filter. I get around 70fps with it (3 times the fps I get in CLoD :Grin: ).

    I bought 3 IR leds from radioshack and connected them (with resistors) to an old 5V cellphone charger.

    It works like a charm.

    The only downside I have is that it hangs when the game switches graphics modes (i.e. from the menu to the game and back) but I work around it by starting tracking once I'm in the plane.

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    Re: Freetrack

    I have used freetrack for about 4-5 years. I have 3 LEDs on my had with re-chargable batteries that I rotate. Works great when batteries are fresh...looses a bit of accuracy as the batteries die.

    I use the Wii remote with BlueTooth. The resources with the Wii remote are supposed to be minimal. I have never really had any issues with it. Works fine in CloD, though I did make a separate profile just for CloD....needed to add a bit of "friction" so my head movement was slower that in IL-2:1946 UP3.0.

    Just my 2 cents, since you asked.

    Gьnther "Marmus" Von Marmusmann
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    Last edited by Marmus; May-07-2012 at 20:28.

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    Re: Freetrack

    I have been using freetrack for 3 months, at first it was a bit strange and can take some setting up but I cant fly without it now. I use a playstation3 eye camera and a track ir pro clip attached to my head phones.

    I got the PS3 eye from amazon for Ј10 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-Playsta...6439835&sr=8-1 in the UK

    The track ir pro clip cost me Ј20 second hand but can be found at http://www.flightstore.co.uk/simulat...clip-pro-p2504 for Ј35, again in the UK

    I removed the ir filter from the PS3 eye and added a piece of an old floppy disc as a light filter, instructions can be found on the web, I found and followed this clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jJfuP7YgPA

    There is loads of information on the freetrack forums but also on the main flight sim forums including SimHQ, DCS and the main clod forums, I did a fair bit of research on these before deciding what to get.

    Overall I am more than happy with the results, can take a little bit of playing around to get it all how you want it but as I already said I hate flying without it now.

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    Re: Freetrack

    I use FT with a PS3 eyecam, though any decent webcam with easily removable IR filter will do the job. I had a Track IR Ultra 4 with Pro Clip but sold it as I found no advantage in keeping it. FT worked equally as good and had some advantages/features not available with Track IR.

    Freetrack is something you have to assemble and Track IR is a product you use out of the box.

    To get the best out of FT it is advisable to get wide angle IR LED's - e.g, the OSRAM SH485P ( the product code is on the FT website if I have made a mistake) but any wide angle IR LED will perform well.

    The Track IR system drives the LED clip of the USB port and this better than using batteries. You can of course do the same with FT and it is relatively easy to do but, for some people, this is a problem as they are unsure of wether their home made clip could cause damage their PC.

    There is a wealth of info regards assembling an excellent FT set up and plenty of users on this and other forums who will give you all the help you need. In a nutshell - a good quality webcam + IR filter blocking over the lens and the correct IR leds will give you Headtracking that works as well as anything else in Clod, IL1946, etc. Add a USB lead, don't solder the LED's but use LED sockets for easy push in pullout replacement and you have a hassle free, easy maintenance set up to boot!
    Last edited by ATAG_EvangelusE; May-08-2012 at 11:04.

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    Re: Freetrack

    Cool, thanks all for the replies.

    I just bought some IR LED's, so i'll have a try with these, and then maybe get a PS eye cam in the future.

    Is there any preference between making a clip and and gluing LED's to my headset? Does the clip have any advantages with it being vertically arranged?

    Cheers.

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    Re: Freetrack

    I have them in a clip as my camera is not centered on the monitor. So I would say, if your camera is centered, go with the CAP. If the camera is at the right, go with a clip on the right.

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    Re: Freetrack

    A vertical clip is abit more of a challenge to fix to your headset as you need a degree of adjustment (like the Track IR pro clip has).

    The important thing is to space the LED's as close as possible to the dimensions suggested in the FT guide for the 3 point Horizontal or vertical types.

    I use the horizontal 3 point clip dimensions that are normally for a cap but fitted on top of my headphones - this leaves me free of wearing both a cap and headphones and any positional conflicts with the headset Mic.

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    Re: Freetrack

    First impressions, with a low spec webcam and some IR LED's with the tops ground off, is that its an awesome system, and i cant believe i have made a head tracker for next to nothing! I went with sticking the LED's to my headset for now, to save the added complexity of making a clip.

    I've noticed a lot of jumping and juddering, which i assume is down to the low fps on my webcam, so i've borrowed a PS3 Eye cam to try.

    Setting the sensitivity in freetrack seems to be trial and error for me at the moment, but i think i'm getting there.

    Thanks for all the advice!

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    Re: Freetrack

    It took me a LONG time to get the setup curves correct....spread out over years.

    Here is a photo of my hat....used 12 Ga. wire from some Romex to create the LED light supports.



    The guys in my squad always make fun of me...but add some tinfoil and I can contact the "mother ship" while flying.

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    ATAG_Colander's Avatar
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    Re: Freetrack

    This is what I thought of when I saw that pic !!!!!



    :bgsmile:

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    Re: Freetrack

    Carbon Kite Tubes

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    Re: Freetrack

    Don't know if these will be of any use. Mine fixes on top of the headset and is powered by the USB port (5V). The parts are very basic and are actually pens, sheet plastic that can be heated to a curve very easily and LED Clips. The pencil top slip over the body and act as a removable shroud if you need to replace an LED or when fitting them. Bonding is done using a hot melt glue gun - if you want more details happy to provide them.

    Whatever design you use I would advise that you connect the LED's in series usinga single limiting resistor (12 to 22 ohms for a 4.5/5v supply) as shown below.

    This will reduce the current drawn from the USB or your battery pack to around 0.07a compared to 0.2a if the LED's are wired in parallel. Your batteries will last much longer and you are well within the limits of a USB port too.

    Osram SH485P's have a faint glow (similar to the Track IR LED's) making it very easy to see that they are actually working. If using these, the Shorter leg is the positive and not the negative as with conventional LED's. Normal IR LED's do not emit visible light.

    The head set below was exchanged for a better quality one with bigger ear muffs and greater comfort.










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    Re: Freetrack

    Thanks Evangelus. I'll get some wide angle IR Emitters and my own PS3 Cam in the near future i think, and make this properly. My cheap effort has proven this to be a very effective method of head tracking, can't believe i didn't try it sooner!

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    Re: Freetrack

    If using the PS3 eyecam you will need the driver and another file for FT....I will see if I still have the link where you can get all the files in one go.

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    Re: Freetrack

    No worries Evangelus, already got it all up and running Sir.

    Thanks though!

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    Re: Freetrack

    Hey all, anyone got a decent profile for a 3 led clip for freetrack? I've searched forums and found nothing but I know I've seen one somewhere.... I just built one and am struggling with the curves and sensitivities settings and all that jazz. I'm using ps3 eye and FT 2.2.0.279 with pseye patch. Also it seems to crash the game when online (screen goes black) has anyone else had that issue? Is there some sorta important step or tweak that I'm missing? I'd be happy to talk to any freetrack user on TS for help or just some info here is good. Any other info about my setup needed? ANY help or input is greatly appreciated. THX.

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    Supporting Member Falco's Avatar
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    Re: Freetrack

    what CLeye (code laboratories) drivers are you using?

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    Re: Freetrack

    I think your crashes are connected with your camera drivers so someone with PS3eye could help you.

    You can start with this settings.I didn't post profile because of my Global settings may be different then yours.





    Note that I disabled translation but it is working,I'm using it in another profile for 109.

    It wan't be bad to post picture of your clip model,it is very important to make it right.

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    Re: Freetrack

    I use both and have no problems.

    I have the feeling the game crashing has nothing to do with freetrack. Have you tried flying online without FT enabled?

    Colander.

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    Re: Freetrack

    Quote Originally Posted by Freya View Post
    Hey all, anyone got a decent profile for a 3 led clip for freetrack? I've searched forums and found nothing but I know I've seen one somewhere.... I just built one and am struggling with the curves and sensitivities settings and all that jazz. I'm using ps3 eye and FT 2.2.0.279 with pseye patch. Also it seems to crash the game when online (screen goes black) has anyone else had that issue? Is there some sorta important step or tweak that I'm missing? I'd be happy to talk to any freetrack user on TS for help or just some info here is good. Any other info about my setup needed? ANY help or input is greatly appreciated. THX.
    Some more curves:

    Here comes the frustrating part.....tweaking the settings can take a long time....it all depends on the lights you use in your 3-point setup, the wattage, the type of bulb, intensity of bulb, if all three are setup straight to camera, if you measured correctly, etc. My 3-point hat has some things off, so my settings compensate for them. Also, it works best with new batteries running the lights, so I bought 2 sets of rechargeable batteries and switch them out often.

    My advice, tweak each axis separately....I never found a good explanation of what the curves really mean, so it was a lot of playing around.

    I use a Wii remote as my camera.

    01 Camera-Camera Tab


    02 Camera-Orientation Tab


    03 Camera-Calibration Tab


    04 Profile-Profile Tab


    05 Profile-Advanced Tab


    06 Output-Main Tab


    07 Output-Keyboard Tab


    08 Curves-Rotation Tab


    09 Curves-Translation Tab


    10 Controls Tab


    11 Global Tab


    12 Model Tab


    13 Version Tab


    An old video in CloD with my FreeTrack:

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    Re: Freetrack

    @falco - CL-Eye-Driver-5.3.0.0341 seems to work OK.....

    @Colander - I fly online lots without it and only have the prob if freetrack is installed on my machine. It doesn't even have to be running to cause probs....(BTW I forgot to say I'm using WIN 7 64)
    I tried online test last night, had to completely uninstall freetrack then restart computer before it worked as it should. Also I have a TrackIR*32 file running in my services in task manager that I must "end process". Its frustrating, but there must be something causing a conflict. Would a logfile help? I'll get one later today and see what it says than post it here....

    @Marmus and Vranac - Thankyou for advice and screens - I'll start from there if I get the other bug worked out...

    @ ALL - THANKYOU THANKYOU THANKYOU !!!! for quick responses... I'll be spending lots of time this weekend trying to get this going!

    Cheers, Freya

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    Re: Freetrack

    Marmus your settings are bit contraversial.

    First you increased sensitivity through curves big way and that killed it big way through smoothing on 200 (max) in profile and in Global settings.

    If that works good for you then OK but that isn't the best way to do it.I'm sayin this only because it may mislead some of the new FT users.
    You always want smoothing to be low as possible like on your joystick for the example.

    Here you can see how my settings work, fast and precise:


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    Re: Freetrack

    Quote Originally Posted by Freya View Post
    @falco - CL-Eye-Driver-5.3.0.0341 seems to work OK.....

    @Colander - I fly online lots without it and only have the prob if freetrack is installed on my machine. It doesn't even have to be running to cause probs....(BTW I forgot to say I'm using WIN 7 64)
    I tried online test last night, had to completely uninstall freetrack then restart computer before it worked as it should. Also I have a TrackIR*32 file running in my services in task manager that I must "end process". Its frustrating, but there must be something causing a conflict. Would a logfile help? I'll get one later today and see what it says than post it here....

    @Marmus and Vranac - Thankyou for advice and screens - I'll start from there if I get the other bug worked out...

    @ ALL - THANKYOU THANKYOU THANKYOU !!!! for quick responses... I'll be spending lots of time this weekend trying to get this going!

    Cheers, Freya

    RE: crashing

    I recall having issues at first...this was 5 years ago in IL-2:1946 on an XP machine. I seem to recall some key command conflicts that would cause a blue screen of death. Wish I could recall, sorry.

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    Re: Freetrack

    Okay I'm glad to report I got this going after a couple re-installs of both pseye driver and freetrack proggy, and some C-Cleaning. I think the crashes were related to key mapping conflicts (as Marmus pointed out...Thx M8) but I'm still not fully sure about that. ??? Anyway I'm still tweaking curves but all in all this is turning out ok, though I don't wanna speak to soon as its all still a work in progress.... I know its been said a thousand times, but for anyone out there who can't justify the cost of track IR, I think this is well worth a little time and effort to do this (and 20 bucks)....(okay 40 if you need a case of beer to keep your sanity - what's left of it..) P.S. thanks Vranac for the helpful starting pointers..

    Cheers, Freya

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    Re: Freetrack

    Quote Originally Posted by vranac View Post

    I have a strange sensation on "deja vu" on that turn fight











    PS - you are right, almost stalled out

  27. #27
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    Re: Freetrack



    Good fight Loslav.

    ~S!~

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    Re: Freetrack

    Hi everyone,

    I've "stickied" this thread so it won't be in danger of getting lost amongst the other threads. A ton of good info here -- thanks to all for contributing.

    Snapper


    HP Omen Laptop 15, AMD Ryzen 5 5600H 16 GB DDR4 RAM, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU 6 GB VRAM Win 11 64 bit 22H2 (KB5020044), Nvidia GeForce Driver ver 527.56, TrackIR 5, Gear Falcon Trim Box, Gear Falcon Throttle Quadrant, TM16000 joystick, TM Warthog HOTAS, CH Quadrant, Saitek Pro Combat rudder pedals
    VR: None
    Installation path: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\IL-2 Sturmovik Cliffs of Dover Blitz

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    Re: Freetrack

    Quote Originally Posted by vranac View Post
    Marmus your settings are bit contraversial.

    First you increased sensitivity through curves big way and that killed it big way through smoothing on 200 (max) in profile and in Global settings.

    If that works good for you then OK but that isn't the best way to do it.I'm sayin this only because it may mislead some of the new FT users.
    You always want smoothing to be low as possible like on your joystick for the example.

    Here you can see how my settings work, fast and precise:

    vranac,

    I just saw your post, I must have missed it or we posted at the same time....Thanks for the input...I have to admit that I have no clue, but spent lots of time messing with the settings to something that worked for me. I, personally, avoided the quick head movements shown in your video...they gave me headaches and made me nauseous. (I also had a hard time viewing the gauges) That type of movement worked well for me in IL-2:1946, but the quick movements in CloD really bother me, same goes for DCS A-10C.

  30. #30
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    Re: Freetrack

    To anyone who is still using freetrack. I strongly recommend u to switch to FacetracknoIr with new Point tracker plugin.
    Works wonders and after serveral minutes of using it u wouldnt switch back to freetrack
    If u need help with it PM me

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