I doubt the info the Wii controllers send out is as slow as what you see here, both of these examples are laptops running high-end 3D software (that is, if you consider 3DsMAX "high end"). Regardless, they are running heavy 3D software which is receiving and filtering a bluetooth signal then sending the isolated, filtered motion channels to parameters driving the 3D geometry.

I'm sure the Wii hardware/software is more streamlined when it comes to picking up info from the Wii controllers and translating into game play.

dna

The response is horrible. Too slow. The fault of the interface or the device? I never noticed such poor response on the Wii itself.

JEmlay

@nEmmY: That's just about where the Windows key would be on a PC keyboard...ironic wouldn't you say?

yougottabekidding

he has a broken key on his macbook =(

nEmmY

SideFX Houdini software is even better, you can take any input MAX can and use it to drive any parameter in the software. You can even filter the signal real-time to get rid of excess jitter or to add lag if you wanted to for some reason.

Here's an example of someone using the Wii remote to control a little car in Houdini:

+ Watch video

dna

In 3dsmax you can use any midi device, mouse, joystick or keyboard, as motion capture input.

James

Why the hell would he ever run 3D software on a MACBOOK? It has integrated graphics!

He's using Windows on it to compensate. I remember running Maya on my OS X. It hardly loaded any shaders and stuff. Once I hit it up on the Windows side via Bootcamp, it worked decent. It was slow occasionally, and the framerate took a hit. Hell, Maya even lapsed out and forced a few reboots during some animation sessions.

A MBP is what he needs for 3D needs.

Yes, very very nice dildo.

CutePuppyz

Couldn't you use the accelerometer in the iPhone to do the same thing?

Joseph

@Mark Wilson:
"Platonic sidekick"? Really? Because unless you've got a wireless one, the nunchuck pretty much Fs the Wiimote in the A whenever they get together.

crapcakes

Thanks Giz
More infos on my blog : [play-collective.net]

The aim of this experiment wasn't to use the WiiChuck itself, but to be able to send datas from the Arduino to 3D Studio Max. I could have used a potentiometer but, hey, isn't it cooler like that ? ^^
Now that I know it works, I know I can go much further... Still have to find a use for it, though ^^

@James : yep, I used the MIDI type for this, as it's almost impossible to have a HID-looking device from the arduino (at the time being)

@nEmmY : yep, the alt key, too bad... but well, 2 years of intensive use ^^

@JEmlay & dnA : In fact, it can be a loot faster, but I have to do a lot of conversions between different softwares (more details on the link above). The day I shot the video, my computer was doing a background rendering, so it slowed the process a bit, but I was able to have it almost realtime.

melka

It's not properly a mod... pretty neat though.
You see, WiiMote software and stuff for the PC are already in a pretty advanced stage.

I don't have a Wii, but I ended up buying a WiiMote just to make some experiments with it.

Here, for those who want to mess with it:
[xspblog.com]

It's not very difficult, but you might have to spend some time on it depending on your setup.

Bokusatsu_Tenshi

Is someone actually doing 3d animation in windows. And here everyone's been telling me you can't be an artist without OSX.

Goooman

why does it look fake?

bobbiac

For anyone interested, here's a similar project but for controlling Maya's camera. It also includes the source code and instructions on setting it up.

[www.parismav.com]

sliponmonster

@malka
You just broke your alt key to prove how much you use Max. :D

im.thatoneguy