Multi-console gamepad driver for GPIO

[marqs]

Seems like I haven't received notifications from this thread for a while . I probably should put gamecon_gpio_rpi and db9_gpio_rpi driver sources to github if there are people who would be interested continuing development since I haven't touched those in a long time.

@DD-Indeed: You should use 3.3V, otherwise you risk damaging Rpi. Are you using official controller or a 3rd party one?

@darksavior: I'll have to check that, it's probably related to kernel headers installation (I'm afraid there's still no official headers package available for RPi foundation kernels)

@Denisuu: You probably need level shifters, see gamecon_gpio_rpi wikipage for details

[marqs]

Updated packages for gamecon_gpio_rpi (1.3) and db9_gpio_rpi (1.1) have now been released which should fix the build issues. I also put sources and dkms scripts on github (here and here), making it easier for others to make changes in future.

[darksavior]

@marqs thanks. Someone else fixed the issue like last month, but glad to see an official fix.

Not sure if it's possible, but is there a way for analog controls to be registered as digital?
The snes dpad registers as analog and not digital.-1,+1,-0,+0 for up/down/left/right. The reason I want to do this is because the pegasus frontend for retropie only supports digital controls registered as h0up,h0down,h0left,h0right.

[marqs]

The problem is that there are numerous applications that do not support hat axis but require (analog) axis0 and axis1 to be present, even if they are processed as digital axis. A driver configuration option could be considered, but on the other hand it'd make more sense for the frontend to support both.

[Currypaul]

Hi marqs,

I just tried to install the new Version on my Raspi 2 and got some Errors:

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Log started at: Tue 31 Oct 18:18:46 UTC 2017

RetroPie-Setup version: 4.3.3 (16172fc)
System: Linux retropie 4.9.59-v7+ #1047 SMP Sun Oct 29 12:19:23 GMT 2017 armv7l GNU/Linux

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Installing dependencies for 'gamecondriver' : Gamecon & db9 drivers
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =


= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Installing 'gamecondriver' : Gamecon & db9 drivers
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

(Reading database ... 88421 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack gamecon-gpio-rpi-dkms_1.3_all.deb ...

------------------------------
Deleting module version: 1.3
completely from the DKMS tree.
------------------------------
Done.
Unpacking gamecon-gpio-rpi-dkms (1.3) over (1.3) ...
Setting up gamecon-gpio-rpi-dkms (1.3) ...
Loading new gamecon_gpio_rpi-1.3 DKMS files...
First Installation: checking all kernels...
dpkg: warning: version '*-*' has bad syntax: version number does not start with digit
It is likely that 4.9.59-v7+ belongs to a chroot's host
Building for architecture armv7l
Module build for the currently running kernel was skipped since the
kernel source for this kernel does not seem to be installed.
(Reading database ... 88421 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack db9-gpio-rpi-dkms_1.1_all.deb ...

------------------------------
Deleting module version: 1.1
completely from the DKMS tree.
------------------------------
Done.
Unpacking db9-gpio-rpi-dkms (1.1) over (1.1) ...
Setting up db9-gpio-rpi-dkms (1.1) ...
Loading new db9_gpio_rpi-1.1 DKMS files...
First Installation: checking all kernels...
dpkg: warning: version '*-*' has bad syntax: version number does not start with digit
It is likely that 4.9.59-v7+ belongs to a chroot's host
Building for architecture armv7l
Module build for the currently running kernel was skipped since the
kernel source for this kernel does not seem to be installed.
modinfo: ERROR: Module gamecon_gpio_rpi not found.
modinfo: ERROR: Module db9_gpio_rpi not found.
Gamecon GPIO driver installation FAILED
Db9 GPIO driver installation FAILED

Log ended at: Tue 31 Oct 18:19:04 UTC 2017
Total running time: 0 hours, 0 mins, 18 secs

I tried this before, maybe a half year ago and got some other issues with my megadrive controllers and after you driver update I headed back to this topic.
Seems, that the installation cannot figure out my version or got some other issues with my Version.
After looking in the Makefile in your source, I found this: KVERSION := `uname -r`
If i run this on my Pi, it gives me "4.9.59-v7+"
Maybe the problem in the message dpkg: warning: version '*-*' has bad syntax: version number does not start with digit is from the uname -r command. (Output is "4.9.43-v7+") and your installer got some problems with the "-"

Also I'm not sure what this really means:

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Module build for the currently running kernel was skipped since the
kernel source for this kernel does not seem to be installed.

I don't understand much from this, but maybe you can release a shorter fix or give me some instructions how to deal with these troubles?

Thanks in advance,
Currypaul

P.S. My Pi was set up today with an actual Retropie Build. It is nearly untouched, without much configuration etc.

[marqs]

Have you installed kernel headers for 4.9.59-v7? Retropie installation script should install them automatically, but header package for that kernel seems to have been auto-built only yesterday.

[Currypaul]

When trying to install kernel headers, I get a message, that i already have the newest headers.
I tried a downgrade to 4.9.43-v7, because it's just a few days older than your latest release and I get the same error log.

[marqs]

Could you post output of the following commands?

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dpkg -l |grep linux-headers
ls /lib/modules

[Currypaul]

dpkg -l |grep linux-headers
The output is complete empty

ls /lib/modules gives the following line:
4.9.35+ 4.9.35-v7+ 4.9.43+ 4.9.43-v7+ 4.9.59+ 4.9.59-v7+


When trying an adpkg -l | grep headers I get this:

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ii  libdbus-1-dev:armhf                  1.8.22-0+deb8u1                  armhf        simple interprocess messaging system (development headers)
ii  libice-dev:armhf                     2:1.0.9-1                        armhf        X11 Inter-Client Exchange library (development headers)
ii  libpulse-dev:armhf                   5.0-13                           armhf        PulseAudio client development headers and libraries
ii  libraspberrypi-dev                   1.20170703-1                     armhf        EGL/GLES/OpenVG/etc. libraries for the Raspberry Pi's VideoCore IV (headers)
ii  libraspberrypi-doc                   1.20170703-1                     armhf        EGL/GLES/OpenVG/etc. libraries for the Raspberry Pi's VideoCore IV (headers)
ii  libsm-dev:armhf                      2:1.2.2-1                        armhf        X11 Session Management library (development headers)
ii  libx11-dev:armhf                     2:1.6.2-3                        armhf        X11 client-side library (development headers)
ii  libx11-xcb-dev:armhf                 2:1.6.2-3                        armhf        Xlib/XCB interface library (development headers)
ii  libxau-dev:armhf                     1:1.0.8-1                        armhf        X11 authorisation library (development headers)
ii  libxdamage-dev:armhf                 1:1.1.4-2                        armhf        X11 damaged region extension library (development headers)
ii  libxdmcp-dev:armhf                   1:1.1.1-1                        armhf        X11 authorisation library (development headers)
ii  libxext-dev:armhf                    2:1.3.3-1                        armhf        X11 miscellaneous extensions library (development headers)
ii  libxfixes-dev:armhf                  1:5.0.1-2                        armhf        X11 miscellaneous 'fixes' extension library (development headers)
ii  libxxf86vm-dev:armhf                 1:1.1.3-1                        armhf        X11 XFree86 video mode extension library (development headers)
ii  linux-libc-dev:armhf                 3.16.7-ckt11-1+deb8u4+rpi1       armhf        Linux support headers for userspace development
ii  raspberrypi-kernel-headers           1.20170703-1                     armhf        Header files for the Raspberry Pi Linux kernel
ii  x11proto-core-dev                    7.0.31-1                         all          X11 core wire protocol and auxiliary headers

Maybe the second to last line is interesting:

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ii  raspberrypi-kernel-headers           1.20170703-1                     armhf        Header files for the Raspberry Pi Linux kernel

When trying sudo apt-get install linux-headers it gives me some options I'm not sure about:

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Package linux-headers is a virtual package provided by:
  raspberrypi-kernel-headers 1.20170703-1
  linux-headers-3.6-trunk-rpi 3.6.9-1~experimental.1+rpi7
  linux-headers-3.10-3-rpi 3.10.11-1+rpi7
You should explicitly select one to install.

[marqs]

raspberrypi-kernel-headers package (1.20170703-1) seems to install headers for 4.9.35-v7+. If you install the package from stretch repo (1.20171029-1), it installs headers for 4.9.59-v7+.

[Currypaul]

Okay, so I only have to install Linux Headers for Version 59?
i.e.: apt-get install linux-headers 1.20171029-1
I will try this today in the evening and give you some feedback.

[Ti85]

Is there a standalone version of the Db9 driver (not tied to RetroPie) that I can use for another project? If so, how do I setup it up? I have been using the App game kit (AGK) software for a project. I have been using the joystick support for input. With the Db9 driver I would be able to use the GPIOs to emulate joystick command that the AGK software would recognize. I realize the AGK does have some GPIO support; however, I am looking for a more flexible feature through the RPI kernel

[marqs]

Is there a standalone version of the Db9 driver (not tied to RetroPie) that I can use for another project? If so, how do I setup it up? I have been using the App game kit (AGK) software for a project. I have been using the joystick support for input. With the Db9 driver I would be able to use the GPIOs to emulate joystick command that the AGK software would recognize. I realize the AGK does have some GPIO support; however, I am looking for a more flexible feature through the RPI kernel

https://github.com/marqs85/db9_gpio_rpi

[Ti85]

Thank you for the link...noob question....how do you know what kernel header package to use? I have been using a 2016 Jessie OS...so would the most recent kernel header package work?

[marqs]

Thank you for the link...noob question....how do you know what kernel header package to use? I have been using a 2016 Jessie OS...so would the most recent kernel header package work?

You need a header package matching your kernel version. If raspberrypi-kernel-headers package does not provide it, you may try manually downloading and installing one from here.

[Slayvin]

Hello,

I'm new here and actually building a handeld retropie with an old salvaged psx controller, that's why I stumbled accross your library
I added a pHat DAC to my setup, and unfortunately the audio driver is using pin 12 (GPIO 18) as well, and now the PSX controller doesn't work anymore.
I had a quick look to the source code of the gamecon driver, and I was wondering if GC_PSX_CLOCK could use GPIO 17 instead? I mean, GPIO 18 is normally used for PWM0 channel, is that a requirement for the psx controller to work, or any other unused GPIO could do the job?

EDIT: Well, I finally figured it out myself by reading other people's source code.
Here are the changes I've made (v1.3)

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line 654:		#define GC_PSX_CLOCK	(1<<17)		/* Pin #17 */

line 1170:	/* set clk, cmd & sel pins to OUTPUT */
line 1171: 	*(gpio+1) &= ~((7<<12) | (7<<15) | (7<<21));  // Pins #14, #15 and #17
line 1172:	*(gpio+1) |= ((1<<12) | (1<<15) | (1<<21));

For those who are interested to know how to calculate the numbers above, the 'formula' is :

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*(gpio + ((gpio_numb)/10)) &= ~(7<<(((gpio_numb)%10)*3));

So for pin #17 alone, the code would be :

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*(gpio + (17/10) ) &= ~( 7 << ( (17%10) * 3 ) );
or
*(gpio + (1) ) &= ~( 7 << ( (7) * 3 ) );
or
*(gpio + 1) &= ~( 7 << 21 );

[Zerorob]

It looks like the new rendition makes it easy to change what GPIO pin you want to use, But I still cant recompile it, keep getting errors. Brand new fresh RetroPI image, updated everything, then in to edit the code to pick my pins, compile it and install gamecon driver, and it just gives me error 2 and error 5

any suggestions ?

[marqs]

It looks like the new rendition makes it easy to change what GPIO pin you want to use, But I still cant recompile it, keep getting errors. Brand new fresh RetroPI image, updated everything, then in to edit the code to pick my pins, compile it and install gamecon driver, and it just gives me error 2 and error 5

any suggestions ?

Most likely explanation is that your kernel headers don't match the running kernel. Try checking the version of your raspberrypi-kernel-headers package (dpkg-query -L raspberrypi-kernel-headers |grep '/lib/modules') against your kernel (uname -a).

[Zerorob]

Appears to be the same, I must be doing something wrong or missing something somewhere. Haven't looked at it since my last post until now tho. Cant seem to make it work tho.
upon second look, I have 4.9.35 which I don't believe will compile the latest gamecon, However I cant seem to get it to update.

It looks like the new rendition makes it easy to change what GPIO pin you want to use, But I still cant recompile it, keep getting errors. Brand new fresh RetroPI image, updated everything, then in to edit the code to pick my pins, compile it and install gamecon driver, and it just gives me error 2 and error 5

any suggestions ?

Most likely explanation is that your kernel headers don't match the running kernel. Try checking the version of your raspberrypi-kernel-headers package (dpkg-query -L raspberrypi-kernel-headers |grep '/lib/modules') against your kernel (uname -a).

[Zerorob]

make[1] Entering directory '/usr/src/linux-headers-4.14.52-v7+'
make[2] *** No rule to make target 'arch/arm/tools/syscall.tbl', needed by 'arch/arm/include/generated/uapi/asm/unistd-common.h' . Stop.
arch/arm/makefile:319: recipe for target 'archheaders' failed

thats the error I get when I use command 'sudo make' in the /usr/src/gamecon_gpio_rpi-1.3 directory (I have got to be doing something incredibly wrong here)

[marqs]

You'll have to update/downgrade kernel to match raspberrypi-kernel-headers version (4.14.52):

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sudo rpi-update 963a31330613a38e160dc98b708c662dd32631d5

[fasman]

Hi everyone, having a strange problem.

I am connecting a Sega Genesis (6 button) to the Raspberry pi, wired it up and the driver works fine if I type "modprobe --first-time db9_gpio_rpi map=6,0" and the controller jumps to life.

I then edited "/etc/modules" added "db9_gpio_rpi map=6,0"and after a reboot the controller stops working until I run "modprobe --first-time db9_gpio_rpi map=6,0" again...

PS this is what "/etc/modules" looks like

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# /etc/modules: kernel modules to load at boot time.
#
# This file contains the names of kernel modules that should be loaded
# at boot time, one per line. Lines beginning with "#" are ignored.

uinput
gamecon_gpio_rpi
db9_gpio_rpi map=6,0

Any ideas?

[fasman]

Got it working!

Basically the instructions are out of date as Retropi doesnt allow you to load a full driver in /etc/modules

Instead do the following:

1. sudo nano /etc/modules
2. add "db9_gpio_rpi" then save the file
3. sudo nano /etc/modprobe.d/db9.conf
4. add "options db9_gpio_rpi map=x,x" where x is your configuration (ex 6,0 for one 6-button genesis controller)
5. Save a reboot


Can one of the contributors update the readme?

[yukky37x]

Hello. I use RetroPie 4.4 and output video to 15 Khz Arcade Cabinet with VGA 666. I tried changing GPIO pins using the source code previously written in this forum , But it was not able to work with the current version gamecon_gpio_rpi-1.3. I would like to use 3 SNES controllers, and available GPIOs are 22-27.
Please tell me where to modify the current version source?

[marqs]

Hello. I use RetroPie 4.4 and output video to 15 Khz Arcade Cabinet with VGA 666. I tried changing GPIO pins using the source code previously written in this forum , But it was not able to work with the current version gamecon_gpio_rpi-1.3. I would like to use 3 SNES controllers, and available GPIOs are 22-27.
Please tell me where to modify the current version source?

You need to change both common (clk, latch) and pad-specific GPIO assignments. The latter one should be simple, search "enum pad_gpios" from gamecon_gpio_rpi.c. For the former, you'll need to modify GC_NES_CLOCK and GC_NES_LATCH defines to (1<<TARGET_GPIO) and the 2 lines under /* set clk & latch pins to OUTPUT */ comment to match those target gpios. For example, if you reserve GPIO22 for clock and GPIO23 for latch, change them as follows:

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#define GC_NES_CLOCK	(1<<22)
#define GC_NES_LATCH	(1<<23)
...
/* set clk & latch pins to OUTPUT */
*(gpio+2) &= ~0xfc0;
*(gpio+2) |= 0x240;