Watch a Steam Controller Skitter Itself to Its Charge Puck
A hacker modified a Steam Controller to autonomously navigate to its charging puck. By adding motors, a camera, and custom software, the controller can now skitter across a desk and dock itself for charging when its battery runs low.
Background
- The Steam Controller was a gamepad sold by Valve (the company behind Steam, the dominant PC gaming store) from 2015 to 2019. It was known for its unusual dual-trackpad design and deep customizability, but was discontinued due to lackluster sales and is now a cult item among enthusiasts.
- This project is a homemade modification: someone fitted a Steam Controller with motors, sensors, and a microcontroller so it can drive itself across a desk and dock onto its charging cradle ("charge puck") autonomously — a "return-to-home" behavior reminiscent of a Roomba vacuum.
- The article is a short, fun demo of a hardware hack; there is no broader news event behind it. The interest lies in the technical challenge of making a small, irregularly shaped object navigate and dock precisely.