Water flow measurements... With a mouse?

WireX · 04-12-2002, 07:47 AM

I just popped open a crappy old mousball mouse, 1 because I needed the cable, and 2 I never did figure out how the mouseball was tracked. As some of you may know, it is tracked by some sort of led (prolly ir) and a sensor. and inbetween their is a wheel with a buch of tiny holes. Now think about this... we have an already made system, tried and true, and I am sure someone out their can write a driver to read the mouses location, but not sent the signal to the mouse (or even a second mouse... ooo, have two sensors, so when it is on, the mouse will want to pull down, but the sensor will tell it to go up, you could can visually check it)

Anyway, I'd like your thoughts, because this would be fully do-able as long as we could find a driver writer... or even the hardware could be adapted to your own project (the sensor, reciever, and the wheel with the tiny holes).

-WireX

ambient · 04-12-2002, 10:52 AM

one way that sounds easy to me, is to just use one of the mouse's axis's (the little rod that the ball moves against) and add a prop to it some how. make a little box to put it in with barbs on either side, pop it inline. then you would just have to get someone to write a driver and software to calculate how fast the prop spins translated in to gph or gpm..

DigitalChaos · 04-12-2002, 11:15 AM

yup.. use an old serial mouse too... might be even easier!

MeltMan · 04-12-2002, 10:05 PM

this is a damn good idea methinks... I had a similar idea to use a small fan's rpm sensor to do the same thing...

I cant wait for my duron

lil off subject, but hey!

WireX · 04-12-2002, 11:14 PM

wow, I can spot 6 spelling errors and counting, but anyway, I am currently on a budget (upgrading my system to a maze3, prolly heater core, and and ehiem with homemade res, among other things (new moniter, is up their)...

so I will porlly not make one, but anyone that wants to try it, you will have my backing 100%

-WireX

Marco · 04-13-2002, 09:25 PM

You'd be looking at having a shaft coming out of the water, which imho is a bad idea and a leak waiting to happen.

Two ways you could go around this:
(somehow) build a large prop encased in thin acrylic and use the sensor across this. Might give issues with reflections and refractions.

use the fan sensor. IMHO this is probably the best way to go about a DIY flow meter. This is finding a good sturdy working Hall Effect Sensor circuit from a fan and getting it to work a larger distance from the magnet.

DigitalChaos · 04-14-2002, 12:37 PM

how about just having the shaft go in through the top?... or having the mouse IN the res.. but water tight

04-12-2002, 07:47 AM	#1
WireX Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Winnipeg Manitoba Canada Posts: 68	Water flow measurements... With a mouse? I just popped open a crappy old mousball mouse, 1 because I needed the cable, and 2 I never did figure out how the mouseball was tracked. As some of you may know, it is tracked by some sort of led (prolly ir) and a sensor. and inbetween their is a wheel with a buch of tiny holes. Now think about this... we have an already made system, tried and true, and I am sure someone out their can write a driver to read the mouses location, but not sent the signal to the mouse (or even a second mouse... ooo, have two sensors, so when it is on, the mouse will want to pull down, but the sensor will tell it to go up, you could can visually check it) Anyway, I'd like your thoughts, because this would be fully do-able as long as we could find a driver writer... or even the hardware could be adapted to your own project (the sensor, reciever, and the wheel with the tiny holes). -WireX __________________ I am a Canadian Cooler and proud of it If at first you don't succeed, Skydiving isn't for you - Me The world is run by the internet The internet is run by computers Nerds run those computers I'm one of those nerds Last edited by WireX; 04-12-2002 at 11:16 PM.

04-12-2002, 10:52 AM	#2
ambient Cooling Savant Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Planet Earth Posts: 312	one way that sounds easy to me, is to just use one of the mouse's axis's (the little rod that the ball moves against) and add a prop to it some how. make a little box to put it in with barbs on either side, pop it inline. then you would just have to get someone to write a driver and software to calculate how fast the prop spins translated in to gph or gpm.. __________________ water cooled 1.4 tbird @ 1580 143x11 vcore 1.88 vio 3.55

04-12-2002, 10:05 PM	#4
MeltMan Cooling Savant Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: KS Posts: 374	this is a damn good idea methinks... I had a similar idea to use a small fan's rpm sensor to do the same thing... I cant wait for my duron lil off subject, but hey! __________________ MeltMan Lurker Supreme!

04-12-2002, 11:14 PM	#5
WireX Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Winnipeg Manitoba Canada Posts: 68	wow, I can spot 6 spelling errors and counting, but anyway, I am currently on a budget (upgrading my system to a maze3, prolly heater core, and and ehiem with homemade res, among other things (new moniter, is up their)... so I will porlly not make one, but anyone that wants to try it, you will have my backing 100% -WireX __________________ I am a Canadian Cooler and proud of it If at first you don't succeed, Skydiving isn't for you - Me The world is run by the internet The internet is run by computers Nerds run those computers I'm one of those nerds

04-12-2002, 11:15 AM	#3
DigitalChaos Cooling Savant Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Waukesha, Wi Posts: 698	yup.. use an old serial mouse too... might be even easier!

04-13-2002, 09:25 PM	#6
Marco Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 79	You'd be looking at having a shaft coming out of the water, which imho is a bad idea and a leak waiting to happen. Two ways you could go around this: (somehow) build a large prop encased in thin acrylic and use the sensor across this. Might give issues with reflections and refractions. use the fan sensor. IMHO this is probably the best way to go about a DIY flow meter. This is finding a good sturdy working Hall Effect Sensor circuit from a fan and getting it to work a larger distance from the magnet.

04-14-2002, 12:37 PM	#7
DigitalChaos Cooling Savant Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Waukesha, Wi Posts: 698	how about just having the shaft go in through the top?... or having the mouse IN the res.. but water tight

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