Lonely rolling ball: Kellbot's Katamari Damacy trackball controller mod

NYC Resistor collaborator Kelly Farrell shows off her latest project: a gazing-ball trackball controller that plays Katamari Damacy the way we should have realized it was meant to be played all along.

How does it work? Kelly explains:

It uses an optical mouse to track the ball. I gathered up some cheap PS2 controllers, ripped out the potentiometers on the analog sticks, and replaced it with a digital potentiometer and an arduino. The arduino takes signals from a PS/2 mouse and adjusts the potentiometer accordingly...
Originally I wanted to use one of those giant yoga balls, to really get the scale. But it turns out those don't roll very well on ball bearings. Luckily Adam had one of those mirror balls folks put in their gardens. Or at least I assume they do, no one I know has a big enough yard to put lawn ornaments in.

Life-Size Katamari Lives [Kellbot]

Previously:

10 Comments

A New Challenger

#1 – 8:53 PM May 25, 2009

I hope they implement this in Tomorrow Land at Disneyland with that big ball that floats on a water fountain.v Then you could have a whole group of people pushing this giant ball trying to play Katamari.

Anonymous Anonymous

#2 – 4:25 AM May 26, 2009

OMG GIRL!

Junon

#3 – 8:36 AM May 26, 2009

What is that music?

feedingfashionistas

#4 – 9:55 AM May 26, 2009

ACK.. As a certified trackball fiend, I'm having a really, really hard time not wanting to send meek nerdy love notes to Kellbot.

In other news, the mouse-on-slightly-visually-textured ball thing is such a brilliantly simple idea, it makes me want to get with a friend with a 3d printer and finally create the custom-molded trackball of my dreams.

Anonymous Anonymous

#5 – 10:35 AM May 26, 2009

I agree. This is AWESOME, and what is that music? I want both! :)

Junon

#6 – 12:22 PM May 26, 2009

Original blog comments had a link to the music (+ a bit more)

http://glitchnyc.com/music/

Junon

#7 – 12:23 PM May 26, 2009

Get the music here:

http://glitchnyc.com/music/

(thanks to kellbot for providing the link in her comments section!)