Standalone VR Gaming Wheel Support

Industry-First Native USB Force Feedback Wheel Driver for Meta Quest

Overview

Developed the world’s first native USB gaming wheel driver for standalone VR headsets, enabling force feedback steering wheel support on Meta Quest without requiring a PC. This breakthrough eliminated the €1,000+ PC requirement per training station and enabled fully portable VR vehicle simulation setups.

Technical Stack

Android USB Host API, Java Native Interface (JNI), Unity Native Plugins, Python (protocol analysis), Wireshark, USB HID Protocol, Unity Input System

The Challenge

Gaming steering wheels with force feedback had zero support on Android-based systems. Unlike PC platforms with mature driver ecosystems, Android lacked any infrastructure for these devices—not even basic input recognition. No public documentation existed for the proprietary communication protocols used by major wheel manufacturers (Logitech, Thrustmaster), making native Android support seemingly impossible.

Industry Gap: All competing VR training solutions required expensive PCVR setups. No standalone VR application had ever achieved native wheel support.

Technical Approach

Reverse Engineering (2 months)

  • Analyzed 100+ protocol commands across multiple operational modes using Wireshark and custom Python scripts for packet parsing and pattern detection
  • Developed automated filtering system to isolate relevant commands from noise
  • Discovered multi-layer communication protocol with initialization sequences, mode switching, and bidirectional data flow
  • Created standalone Android debugging utility to rapidly test protocol hypotheses in a similar OS environment

Driver Implementation

  • Built complete Java-based driver emulation as Android Native Plugin for Unity
  • Implemented full USB HID protocol handling through Android USB Host API
  • Developed comprehensive force feedback support (spring, damper, friction, constant force effects)
  • Designed Unity-facing API to expose wheel as standard Joystick in Unity Input System, enabling seamless integration into any Unity project

Architecture

Business Impact

Industry First: Delivered the market’s only standalone VR application with native USB force feedback wheel support—a capability that remains unavailable in competing solutions.

Business Value

  • Eliminated €1,000+ PC hardware requirement per training station
  • Enabled fully portable demo setups for trade shows and client presentations
  • Increased training immersion through realistic force feedback during vehicle operations
  • Modular architecture allows rapid support for additional wheel models with minimal protocol adaptation

Reception: Industry professionals at aviation trade shows recognized this as a significant breakthrough, particularly valuing the elimination of PC dependency for mobile training deployments.