Old 3dConnexion SpacePilot and assignable buttons

[stringwringler]

Hi,

I've bought a used 3dConnexion SpacePilot (yes, the old one with b/w display) which is quite helpful when working in Fusion360. I have found that when opening the button assignment panel, in the drop-down list, there are 30 entries named like "Button nn". Some of these buttons appear to control Fusion in different ways (like view front, top and so on) but I cannot find any information what Fusion command function lies behind these generic names. The product is discontinued at 3dConnexion since a couple of years back and so are the support for it.

Can someone help me to sort this out? Thanks in advance.

/Thom

[paul.clauss]

Hi @stringwringler

Thanks for posting! It looks like you have some questions about assignable buttons on an older 3D Connexion SpacePilot. 

Are the buttons shown as they are in this instructional forum thread? That dialogue appears to show the Fusion commands next to the Spacemouse buttons. Are you only seeing the generic names?

3D Connexion does not officially support Fusion 360, which means that problems and unexpected behavior do sometimes occur. I'm not sure how old your hardware is, but are you certain you are using the most recent available driver for your mouse? 

• Current 3D Connexion drivers
• Archived 3D Connexion drivers

Hopefully this helps! Please let me know if you have any questions. Because your hardware is no longer supported by 3D Connexion, unfortunately I cannot provide much detail on how to work around this problem, if your dialogues appear differently than as pictured in my first link. I would recommend creating a post on the 3D Connexion forums - it is possible that someone over there is using the same older hardware.

[stringwringler]

Hi and thanks for quick reply. The drivers and software are legacy by now but I have the latest version that works with the legacy SpacePilot. This was a quite expensive piece of equipment at the time of its release. The newer SpacePilot Pro has little in common with the old one. The latest driver package (V 10) does not work with my device.

When I call upo the config panel, I select the Button configuration tab. Each physical button can be assigned any of the listed entries in the drop-down list. The "secret" assignable buttons 1 to 29 is what this is all about:

This is what I fount out so far:

For the physical view keys seen in the lower right corner of the device, I have found that if I assign the "Button 7" to the physical T-key (TOP), Fusion will set the view to TOP. The same applies to the next three physical buttons L(left), R(Right) and F (Front) which have been assigned the generic buttons 10, 9 and 8. Fusion seems to interpret some of these generic buttons as commands. The task at hand is to find out what command's 'hiding' behind these generic buttons.

Clearly, the device works fine with Fusion360. I just wonder if it's the Fusion team or 3dConnexion who has this information? I could take a look at the other forum as well.

Best regards /Thom

[paul.clauss]

Hi @stringwringler

Thanks for the response and attaching the screenshots! It certainly does look difficult to determine what the "Button N" listings are referring to. As I have been unable to find any information on this, I would recommend reaching out on the 3D Connexion forums - there may be some folks over there who have used the older hardware/drivers/programs and can provide more insight. I apologize that I can not be of more help at this time - I will keep this thread posted with any new information I can find.

[stringwringler]

Thanks, meanwhile I'll trawl the other forum. /T

[stringwringler · Accepted solution]

I have been i contact with the guys over at 3Dconnexion and the solution is in this thread. A much later driver exists albeit the old SpacePilot it is unofficially supported and won't show up if you select SpacePilot and Windows 10 on the archive driver page.

/Thom

[Anonymous]

Stringwringler,

I just wanted to let you know that finding your questions here was a big help to me. I was entertaining purchasing a used SpacePilot to use with Fusion 360 but was concerned it would not be compatible since it is an older unit.  After seeing your conversation here I was confident if I got one it most likely would work for me.  Well, I did order one and it works well.  There are some glitches here and there, but for the most part, it works ok to be useful.

I had another product of theirs many years ago.  It is just like being home again.

[stringwringler]

Great! It works like a charm for me. In some rare instances it gets stuck but that's not really a problem considering the value it adds to the system.

[Anonymous]

I know this is an old post, but I just got a new computer at work with Windows 10 and cannot get my spacepilot to work with Inventor 2020.  I downloaded version 10.4.1 from 3dconnexion website but I can't get Inventor to work.  So far the only thing I've discovered it works on is Google Chrome and AutoCAD.

I can't even get to the 3dConnexion properties tab where you can assign all your buttons for a certain program.

Any input is appreciated!

[Anonymous]

Hello, I have the same issue. Did you get it to work in Inventor?

[Anonymous]

ello, I have the same issue. Did you get it to work in Inventor?