For the love of Real Racing, I have built a wheel for using an iPhone back cover glued to a Wii Wheel with stand. Preliminary tests are ok. I use Mode B of Real Racing and my thumbs can reach both gas and brake comfortably. But the connection between the cover and the wheel is quite fragile for now. I need plenty of strong glue to enforce it. More to come, photos and video perhaps, later.
Here is a set of photographs taken: http://www.flickr.com/photos/39540847@N02/sets/72157619779268587/ I may add one or two videos later. Note that I have trimmed one side of the cover for easy mount and removal. The wheel is quite unbalanced due to the weight of iPhone and tends to lean towards the user. Moreover, to avoid adding stress to the wheel contact, I would turn of vibration when playing. If it is proved that the glue is not strong enough, I may need consider other reinformcement solution. It is quite experimental, I must stress. So far, it is enjoyable. Since the wheel design allows moving up and down, I would try later to see if I can play some flying games, too. (Just tried X-Plane Racer and Glyder, and both of them work as well). Questions and suggestions are welcomed.
The thought of a stationary wheel on my desk to play iphone racing games is quite cool, movement would be a lot smoother. What would be nice is adding some buttons using OS 3.0 so the screen is left just for viewing the game. Great work though, makes me want to try it.
I don't know the technology of running a Bluetooth-based API in the background and supports other apps through it (e.g. emulating touch screen buttons). I make this because when I am over-excited, playing RR can mean moving the device out of my sight...
In case anyone still interested, I have posted some additional photos and 2 videos, one with Real Racing (which I play really bad) and one with Glyder.
Well, instead of sending out "instructions" individually, I am spilling the whole nine yards here. This "device" is open-sourced (against my wife's wish, cause I tell her anyone can do it), so in case anyone wants to mass-produced this (really?), please make sure you give me a credit along. Parts 1 Wii racing wheel with stand. I like the version I get which has no extra cables and buttons, but with a "slot" to allow the USB cable to pass through (for prolong "potato-couching" my wife notes). Also, you can unlock the axis so that you can use it for bi-axis games too. 2. A iPhone or iPod Touch back cover. Plastic with no imprint and emboss is the best, I think. The choice of colour is a matter of taste. Preparation For the back cover, trim the curved edge for easy mounting and dismounting. Too much trim may cause your device to fall out when you are hot in "action", so for me, I trip the "camera hole" edge just covers the half-way of my device. This also makes it possible to mount it with the Home on the left for games like Galaxy on Fire (who care about the camera anyway). You can refer to the photos on the cuttings made. Another reason to trip one side of the cover, most covers I find are very hard to dismount, so if I leave it as is, it could cause great tear and stress between the connecting surfaces between the cover and the wheel. There is nothing to work on further on the wheel itself -- you may wish to put some counter weight (lead for fishing?) on the other end of the wheel cause when mounted, the wheel has a tendency of leaning on to you. Mounting The most important point, perhaps, is to mount your device as balance as possible so it will not hinder your gaming experience. Both the plate and the wheel must align horizontally together, also the device 's CoG must be neutral so that no tilting when the device is at rest. I mount the back cover onto the outside of the Wii controller stopper. It sounds very natural to me as it is the center of the wheel and it is the only place with the largest surface area to hold the cover. If you have got different models of wheel, you may need to find another spot which works best for you. So before gluing up, mount the back onto your device with USB cable on, and possibly the headphone, and find the best position. Once that location is found, make marks. Apply strong glue onto the wheel where you would mount on cover on. Once fixed, press the cover a little, wait for the glue to dry (that is the hardest part), and start enjoying. I guess there are still rooms for improvement but so far, I am enjoying it. Any questions and comments are welcomed.
