Re: Vector games on a laser!

On Tue, 24 Oct 2000 16:05:33 -0700 (PDT), "Miranda K. Collins"
<miranda@treyarch.com> wrote:

>http://www.lasershs.com/low_cost_LaserShow_Graphics_Package.htm

Wow! A 30,000 point / sec galvo head for $1045! I've paid more than that for
a single game! (Well, not quite, but damned close!).

For those who didn't go look:

The initial page talks of $4895, but that includes some 32 bit CPU based "laser
show animator". Once you lose the 32 bit processor, all the software, your left
with a galvometer driver that takes 110/220v and +/- 10 volt X/Y signals. For
$1045. Sounds like a big ass vector monitor to me!

For blanking capabilities they're talking $1795. But if you use a laser diode
and the proper driver you might be able to blank the diode itself and get by
with the basic $1045 package! We are talking single color, though using fiber
optics there might be a way of using an external, multiple laser source. (I have
no idea how to do this, just thinking out loud.)

They claim "very good results at 18,000 pps". (Sounds like audio specs: 300watt
pep, or 20watts RMS.)

So I guess the question is, how fast is fast enough for arcade use? I remember
on the Cinematronics platform, the fastest game (vector wise) was Sundance at
400+ vectors being drawn per frame, (most were background stars). I also
noticed that Sundance was one of the games not supported by the MAME laser
experiment.

38 frames per second * 400 = 15,200 vectors per second. Does anyone know how
this relates to "points per second"?

The next one down was Armor Attack (or War of the Worlds?) it was in the 200+
vector range.

-Zonn
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Received on Tue Oct 24 20:10:19 2000