If there’s one factor the Raspberry Pi is nice for, it’s respiration life into outdated {hardware}. Of all of the tasks we’ve lined involving classic {hardware}, we’ve by no means seen one thing fairly like this Raspberry Pi-powered tank simulator that YouTuber Tom Scott had the privilege of demonstrating in his current video. This simulator was initially constructed within the Nineteen Seventies however nonetheless works right this moment due to slightly assist from our favourite SBC.
Based on Scott, that is the final Nineteen Seventies tank-driving simulator left on the planet. The unit incorporates a field wherein customers can sit with reasonable controls that may be discovered contained in the cockpit of an precise tank. The display screen reveals them what’s in entrance of the tank whereas the field is rigged to tilt and transfer in real-time to simulate the consequences of driving a tank in the true world.
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Most simulators right this moment contain digital worlds rendered with 3D belongings, however that type of expertise did not exist within the Nineteen Seventies.
As an alternative, this simulator makes use of a mannequin panorama — an precise, bodily mannequin panorama, positioned exterior of the management field. The simulator controls a digital camera that strikes by means of the mannequin panorama, which is made up of roads, bushes, and buildings. The terrain is much from easy, and causes the field to shift round as obstacles are pushed “over.”
What’s spectacular about this simulator is how a lot of the unique {hardware} has been retained. The whole lot from the mannequin, cockpit controls, and digital camera rig has been built-in into the restoration. The largest change was the pc which has been changed with a Raspberry Pi.
The Swiss Army Museum defined that sourcing parts for the restoration made the method particularly tough. The Pi is ready to deal with capabilities that have been beforehand carried out by boards which can be now not out there or are in any other case extraordinarily tough to acquire. The Pi is liable for sending enter to the digital camera automobile contained in the mannequin and registering responses for the management field.
If you wish to get a better take a look at this Raspberry Pi undertaking, try the unique video shared to YouTube and see what it seems to be like in motion.
