Wolfram Computation Meets Knowledge

Consumer Products

Design home appliances and other electronics systems with System Modeler and easily incorporate non-electronic elements, such as mechanical assemblies and temperature control, into the complete design.

Human Interface Device (HID): Design a Joystick

Exploring alternative product designs through modeling and simulation can be faster and cheaper than experimenting on physical prototypes. This model compares three designs for a spring-based recentering mechanism for an analog joystick.

To run this example, you'll need

The latest versions of System Modeler and Mathematica.

Please make a selection:

Get a
free trial
Continue
with download

Hierarchical Modeling

Build up complex models in layers with separately testable and reusable subcomponents.

Automatic 3D Animation

The model is built using components from the mechanical MultiBody library, so 3D visualization of simulation results is automatic.

Watch the Video

Compare joystick response when the user tries to trace out a circular path using a radial force of constant strength.
Return trajectory when the joystick recenters itself after being released by the user
Simultaneous simulation of three-, four-, and six-spring recentering mechanisms under the same test force

Numerical Experimentation

Compare the performance of different designs under test conditions.