[comp.sys.amiga.hardware] Hacking a Microsoft mouse for the Amiga

easton@edmund.cs.andrews.edu (Jeff Easton) (02/27/91)

  Well, I've succeeded in hacking up my Microsoft serial mouse (the
white dove bar one) to work on my Amiga.  It appears to need the following
to get it to talk to the Amiga;

	1> removal of the uP in the Mouse
	2> Add a limiting resistor for the LED's
	3> Change a resistor for the Comparator's voltage divider
	4> A new cord w/9 wires + shield.  (salvagable from Amiga Mouse?)

  If there is interest I'll post the details in a few days.  I need to
find a couple of surface mount resistors to replace the 1/4w tacked on
ones currently hanging off the board.

  This hack is not for the faint at heart.  It requires desoldering IC's
and surface mount parts.  Take apart the mouse and look at the bottom of
board for an idea of whats involved.


-- 
	Jeff Easton			Zenith Data Systems
	Systems Engineer		OEM Engineering
	easton@andrews.edu

david@kessner.denver.co.us (David Kessner) (02/27/91)

In article <667620358wkn28203@edmund.cs.andrews.edu> easton@edmund.cs.andrews.edu (Jeff Easton) writes:
>
>  Well, I've succeeded in hacking up my Microsoft serial mouse (the
>white dove bar one) to work on my Amiga.  It appears to need the following
>to get it to talk to the Amiga;
>
>	1> removal of the uP in the Mouse

Can I cringe now?

>	2> Add a limiting resistor for the LED's

LED's?  Mouse?

>	3> Change a resistor for the Comparator's voltage divider
>	4> A new cord w/9 wires + shield.  (salvagable from Amiga Mouse?)
>
>  This hack is not for the faint at heart.  It requires desoldering IC's
>and surface mount parts.  Take apart the mouse and look at the bottom of
>board for an idea of whats involved.
>
>	Jeff Easton			Zenith Data Systems
>	easton@andrews.edu

Jeff...  Did you know that the PC bus mice can be hooked up to an Amiga with
nothing more than a 9 pin mini-din to a DB-9 connector?  No modifications to
the mouse are needed, and will work with most bus-mice rather than just the 
microsoft mouse.  

I forgot the exact wiring for the connector (since I do not own an Amiga-- I
gave a friend my old bus-mouse).  Here is the pin-outs for the mini-din, you
can probably figure out the rest from there-- otherwise leave me mail:

	1 -	+5v
	2 -	X quadrature A
	3 -	X quad B
	4 -	Y quad A
	5 -	Y quad B
	6 -	Button 1
	7 -	Button 2
	8 -	Button 3
	9 -	Ground
	E -	Chassis Ground

Using this arrangement makes chances of the modification working MUCH better
since there is no internal changes that need to be done.  If a company would
ever catch wind of this, they would make a small adapter to do this and sell it
for $5...

					- David K

-- 
David Kessner - david@kessner.denver.co.us            | do {
1135 Fairfax, Denver CO  80220  (303) 377-1801 (p.m.) |    . . .
This is my system so I can say any damn thing I want! |    } while( jones);

easton@andrews.edu (Jeff Easton) (02/27/91)

In article <1991Feb27.061859.2533@kessner.denver.co.us> david@kessner.UUCP (David D. Kessner) writes:
>In article <667620358wkn28203@edmund.cs.andrews.edu> easton@edmund.cs.andrews.edu (Jeff Easton) writes:

>>  Well, I've succeeded in hacking up my Microsoft serial mouse (the
>>white dove bar one) to work on my Amiga.  It appears to need the following
>>to get it to talk to the Amiga;
>>
>>	1> removal of the uP in the Mouse
>
>Can I cringe now?

  Yes, see below.

>>	2> Add a limiting resistor for the LED's
>
>LED's?  Mouse?

  The ball touches two roller shafts for the X and Y direction.  These
shafts turn two slotted disks.  A LED emitter/detector pair read the
slots rotating by their "window".

>>  This hack is not for the faint at heart.  It requires desoldering IC's
>>and surface mount parts.  Take apart the mouse and look at the bottom of
>>board for an idea of whats involved.

>Jeff...  Did you know that the PC bus mice can be hooked up to an Amiga with
>nothing more than a 9 pin mini-din to a DB-9 connector?  No modifications to
>the mouse are needed, and will work with most bus-mice rather than just the 
>microsoft mouse.  
>
>I forgot the exact wiring for the connector (since I do not own an Amiga-- I
>gave a friend my old bus-mouse).  Here is the pin-outs for the mini-din, you
>can probably figure out the rest from there-- otherwise leave me mail:
>
>	1 -	+5v
>	2 -	X quadrature A
>	3 -	X quad B
>	4 -	Y quad A
>	5 -	Y quad B
>	6 -	Button 1
>	7 -	Button 2
>	8 -	Button 3
>	9 -	Ground
>	E -	Chassis Ground
>
>Using this arrangement makes chances of the modification working MUCH better
>since there is no internal changes that need to be done.  If a company would
>ever catch wind of this, they would make a small adapter to do this and sell it
>for $5...

  Hmmm.  3 buttons.  This wouldnt be one of the older Logitech mice,
would it?

  Your pinout looks like it has all the correct info, the Amiga needs
the XY quadrature pairs.  The only info I have is for the  Microsoft
serial mouse and I have seen the pinout for the PS/2 style mouse.  Both
of these mice have a on board microprocessor due to the "weird" interface
to the computer.  Does anybody have the pinout for the Microsoft bus
mouse?  If it puts out the quadrature pairs it would be easy.

  The serial mouse is the only one I had to play with.  My changes
basically take out the back end uP and convert it to run at 5V again.

  I'll post the details of the hack when I get a chance to write it up.


>David Kessner - david@kessner.denver.co.us            | do {



-- 
	Jeff Easton			Zenith Data Systems
	Systems Engineer		OEM Engineering
	easton@andrews.edu

david@kessner.denver.co.us (David Kessner) (03/01/91)

In article <667662804wkn399@edmund.cs.andrews.edu> easton@edmund.cs.andrews.edu.UUCP (Jeff Easton) writes:
>In article <1991Feb27.061859.2533@kessner.denver.co.us> david@kessner.UUCP (David D. Kessner) writes:
>>LED's?  Mouse?
>
>  The ball touches two roller shafts for the X and Y direction.  These
>shafts turn two slotted disks.  A LED emitter/detector pair read the
>slots rotating by their "window".

Oh.  Brain Damage.

>  Hmmm.  3 buttons.  This wouldnt be one of the older Logitech mice,
>would it?

More than half of the mice available for PC's have three buttons.  I have
a newer Logitech (not the wedge), that has 3.  The only mouse that has
two buttons and is worthwhile is the Microsoft Mouse (one of the few things
they did right, IMHO).

To the mest of my knoledge, all PC Bus Mice have the same pinouts.
Oh.  The test mouse was from an ATI VGA Wonder board.  For some stupid reason
they include a bus mouse with the board, and I already had the Logitech.

>  Your pinout looks like it has all the correct info, the Amiga needs
>the XY quadrature pairs.  The only info I have is for the  Microsoft
>serial mouse and I have seen the pinout for the PS/2 style mouse.  Both
>of these mice have a on board microprocessor due to the "weird" interface
>to the computer.  Does anybody have the pinout for the Microsoft bus
>mouse?  If it puts out the quadrature pairs it would be easy.
>
>  The serial mouse is the only one I had to play with.  My changes
>basically take out the back end uP and convert it to run at 5V again.
>
The bus mice have almost no logic in them.  All they do is read the slotted 
disks (and buffer/condition the outout).  The signals are then sent to the PC
where there is a board that deals with the signals.  This is an ideal situation
since it allows us to hack at it without having to figure out the 
microprocessor and voltage regulator.  It is also standard from mouse to mouse.

It's always fun to hack at hardware-- but hacking a serial mouse with surface 
mounted components is not for everyone in Netland.  A better approach would be
to hook it up into the serial port and re-write the mouse driver.  But then
a bus mouse is fully software compatable with the existing system.

					- David K
-- 
David Kessner - david@kessner.denver.co.us            | do {
1135 Fairfax, Denver CO  80220  (303) 377-1801 (p.m.) |    . . .
This is my system so I can say any damn thing I want! |    } while( jones);

easton@andrews.edu (Jeff Easton) (03/01/91)

In article <1991Feb28.234935.8920@kessner.denver.co.us> david@kessner.denver.co.us (David D. Kessner) writes:
>In article <667662804wkn399@edmund.cs.andrews.edu> easton@edmund.cs.andrews.edu.UUCP (Jeff Easton) writes:
>>In article <1991Feb27.061859.2533@kessner.denver.co.us> david@kessner.UUCP (David D. Kessner) writes:

[...]

>To the mest of my knoledge, all PC Bus Mice have the same pinouts.
>Oh.  The test mouse was from an ATI VGA Wonder board.  For some stupid reason

[...]
>>
>The bus mice have almost no logic in them.  All they do is read the slotted 
>disks (and buffer/condition the outout).  The signals are then sent to the PC
>where there is a board that deals with the signals.  This is an ideal situation
>since it allows us to hack at it without having to figure out the 
>microprocessor and voltage regulator.  It is also standard from mouse to mouse.
>
>It's always fun to hack at hardware-- but hacking a serial mouse with surface 
>mounted components is not for everyone in Netland.  A better approach would be
>to hook it up into the serial port and re-write the mouse driver.  But then
>a bus mouse is fully software compatable with the existing system.

  Except that it is a waste of money to buy a bus mouse and throw away
the bus interface board.

>David Kessner - david@kessner.denver.co.us            | do {

-- 
	Jeff Easton			Zenith Data Systems
	Systems Engineer		OEM Engineering
	easton@andrews.edu
	I break for Otters

david@kessner.denver.co.us (David Kessner) (03/02/91)

In article <667838213wkn17880@edmund.cs.andrews.edu> easton@edmund.cs.andrews.edu.UUCP (Jeff Easton) writes:
>>The bus mice have almost no logic in them.  All they do is read the slotted 
>>disks (and buffer/condition the outout).  The signals are then sent to the PC
>>where there is a board that deals with the signals.  This is an ideal situation
>>since it allows us to hack at it without having to figure out the 
>>microprocessor and voltage regulator.  It is also standard from mouse to mouse.
>
>  Except that it is a waste of money to buy a bus mouse and throw away
>the bus interface board.
>
>	Jeff Easton			Zenith Data Systems
>	easton@andrews.edu

Well.  Yes.  You do have to pay about $15 extra for the interface board that is
useless on an Amiga.  If you can hack a serial mouse to work on an Amiga more
power to you, but it is beyond most of us.  I have designed/prototyped/made 
computers based on the 6502 and think that I am well versed on computer logic
but I would rather pay $15 and risk loosing a mouse while rewiring the guts.

The other option would be to find that driver that someone mentioned that 
allows you to use a standard serial mouse on an Amiga.  This gives you the best
of two worlds: a cheap mouse and a minimum (none) of hacking.

				- David K

-- 
David Kessner - david@kessner.denver.co.us            | do {
1135 Fairfax, Denver CO  80220  (303) 377-1801 (p.m.) |    . . .
This is my system so I can say any damn thing I want! |    } while( jones);

m0154@tnc.UUCP (GUY GARNETT) (03/05/91)

I just gave up on hacking meeses for the Amiga.  Aamiga Warehouse has
the Golden Image mouse for about $40.  I got one last week, and
installed it right away.  No problems, smooth,  hi-res optomechanical
mouse (290ppi).  Nice.

Wildstar