VSKYLABS RCE CHANNELS ASSIGNMENT LAYER
X-Plane has a powerful and flexible controller assignment system. But out of the box, it is designed for conventional flight simulation. Navigating it as an RC pilot looking to bind throttle, rudder, ailerons, elevator, gear, flaps, brakes, dual rates and expo can be overwhelming.
The VSKYLABS RCE Assignment Layer solves this. It is a dedicated set of RCE-specific commands built into X-Plane's assignment system, organized and labeled so that every relevant RC control is immediately 'findable' in one place.
Every RCE command appears instantly in X-Plane: axes for your sticks, and a full set of switch commands for gear, flaps, brakes, dual rates, expo, speedbrakes, and guns, each available in Hold, ON, OFF, and Toggle modes.
Why Hold, ON, OFF, and Toggle? Keep on reading!
2-position switches:
RC transmitter switches behave differently depending on how the controller is recognized by X-Plane, or how it is wired electronically. Some USB RC joysticks 'report' their switches as axes, while others - as buttons. In some cases, in a given controller, one switch will be reported as an axis while other switch as an axis.
RC transmitter switches behave differently depending on how the controller is recognized by X-Plane, or how it is wired electronically. Some USB RC joysticks 'report' their switches as axes, while others - as buttons. In some cases, in a given controller, one switch will be reported as an axis while other switch as an axis.
The Hold mode is designed specifically to cover all types of switches.
When the switch is reported as an 'axis' - it activates a command while the axis is deflected (switch up, for example), and releases it when the axis is released (switch down, for example), mimicking a physical switch via the axis assignment system.
When the switch is reported as a 'button' - then the Hold command plays an important roll of providing explicit on/off states for the on/off positions of the stick.
3-position switches:
In most cases, the 3-position switch will be recognized as two separate buttons or axes. While the switch is in the center position, it will set the button or axis to the OFF mode, by default (as if it is not pushes, or set). When it is set in the up position it will 'push' a button, and when set to the down position, it will 'release' that button and push another, different button.
Here is an example of how to assign a 3-position switch:
- Up position - flaps up command (or hold).
- Center position - global off.
- Down position - flaps down command (or hold).
Rotatable knobs:
These are usually reported as axes, and can be assigned as an axis, to any X-Plane default axes, or to the dedicated VSKYLABS RCE Channel assignment layer.
Toggle, ON, and OFF modes cover button-type inputs such as Xbox controllers, standard joystick buttons or dedicated/customized switches system.
The VSKYLABS RCE channel assignment layer provides every RCE pilot, regardless of what controller they are using, a clean, flexible, and intuitive binding solution.
HOW TO BIND THE BASIC CONTROL CHANNELS IN X-PLANE 12
To access it, open X-Plane Settings, navigate to the Joystick tab.
On the LH side of the screen - select your USB device, and calibrate it.
On the center area of the screen you will see the AXES assignment bars. Simply wiggle your sticks and bind each stick for its selected axis:
Main Flight Controls 'Channels':
- Use 'Throttle' axis for all-engines throttle control. Do not use Throttle 1,2,3 etc... unless you have dedicate control axis for each throttle in separate.
- Use 'Pitch' axis for elevator control.
- Use 'Yaw' axis for rudder control.
- Use 'Roll' axis for aileron control.
- (Helicopters): Use 'Collective' axis for collective control.
HOW TO ACCESS THE VSKYLABS RCE CHANNEL ASSIGNMENT LAYER
Axes assignments:
The VSKYLABS RC Assignment Layer provides customized 'Channels' which can be used in all possible assignment methods: Axes, Buttons and Keys.
If a 'switch' in your controller is recognized as an 'axis', you can bind it directly to a channel, using the default commands in the axes drop-down. For example: Flaps, Speedbrakes, Wheelbrakes, dual controls, expo and so forth.
For customized RCE channel binding via the AXES system, select your axis, then scroll all the way down in the drop-down window, and select 'Custom command(s)'. Then, click on the 'Edit' button and type 'vsl rce' in the search bar.
For a 2-way switch, axis binding should use the 'Hold' commands.
For example: VSL RCE (controls) Dual Rates Hold.
Assignment of a switch as 'standard' buttons/keys:
On the RH side of the screen, under the 'BUTTONS' title, type in 'vsl rce', and select the desired channel for your button/key. For a two-way switch, use the Hold command. For a 3-way switch, use explicit commands for up and down states. Read additional information in the initial section of this page.
