Programmable interface for flight control devices

A microcontroller device comprising:

• multiple input pins configured to be coupled to respective output connectors, of multiple physical flight control devices for a particular rotorcraft vehicle, to receive one or more control signals from the flight control devices at respective input pins;
• an Ethernet port;
• and
• a controller configured to:
• attribute particular control signals received at a particular input pin of the multiple input pins to a specific flight control device of the flight control devices;
• generate output signals including one or more sets of information associated with the one or more control signals, the one or more sets of information including, for the particular control signals associated with the specific flight control device:
• header information indicating the specific flight control device;
• and
• flight control data corresponding to a particular control signal received at the particular input pin, of the multiple input pins, that is associated with the specific flight control device;
• and
• output the output signals via the Ethernet port.

A method of using a rotorcraft flight simulator system, comprising:

• receiving, at multiple input pins of a microcontroller device that are coupled to respective output connectors of multiple physical flight control devices for a particular rotorcraft vehicle, one or more control signals from the flight control devices;
• attributing, at the microcontroller device, a particular control signal received at a particular input pin of the multiple input pins to a specific flight control device of the flight control devices;
• generating output signals including one or more sets of information associated with the one or more control signals, the one or more sets of information including, for the particular control signal associated with the specific flight control device:
• header information indicating the specific flight control device;
• and
• flight control data corresponding to the particular control signal received at the particular input pin associated with the specific flight control device;
• and
• sending the output signals, via an Ethernet port of the microcontroller device, to a flight simulator computer.