PC Free Hardware Interface Software Based On The Official Api (supports English, German, And Chinese)

Sim Workshop console (Beta) V0.0.1 is a tool for Train Sim World 5/6 that lets you map USB device axes and buttons to the game’s writable control interface. It also supports keyboard mapping, control scanning, and profile save/load. The UI is clean and available in Chinese, English, and German, making it easy to build custom hardware control setups quickly.

Special thanks to CobraOne’s “TS World Raildriver And Joystick Interface” for inspiration, and to DTG for the public API. This software is free for all users—we hope every train sim enthusiast can enjoy the same hardware-control experience found in flight sims.

The project is still in beta, so unexpected issues may occur. If you run into any problems, please leave feedback—we’ll fix bugs as quickly as possible.

 

Updated to version 0.0.2.

• Fixed some bugs.
• Added built-in usage guidance.
• Added support for TSW5 andTSW6

 

afraid that my tscx axis are not detected when using the 'listen axis' button - i press the button, then move the lever, but nothing happens

 

Hello,
Very good operation for all GWE locomotives. However, in english, the layout of some words in the application isn't correct (outside the frame)

 

Updated to version 0.0.3.

• Fixed some bugs.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/1yo7...ey=gmkwibpfb41t5ubkddx45hwc9&st=vs0hthgi&dl=0

 

afraid that the bug reported above is still present in 0.0.3

 

I reinstalled version 0.02. On some trains, the controller doesn’t work in version 0.03 (for example the BR423 from the latest update). Also, several features have disappeared between the versions: for example the control mapping — now there is only keyboard mapping — and the ability to choose between toggle, hold, and step.

 

Updated to version 0.0.4.

• Fixed some bugs.
  
  

 

Sim Workshop Console (Beta) V0.0.5 is a small tool for Train Sim World 5/6 that lets you map USB device axes and buttons directly to the game’s writable control interface.

It also supports keyboard mapping, control scanning, and profile save/load, making it easier to build custom hardware setups for train simulation.

The interface is currently available in Chinese, English, and German, and the goal is to make hardware configuration as simple and quick as possible.

Huge thanks to CobraOne for the inspiration from the “TS World Raildriver and Joystick Interface”, and also to DTG for providing the public API that makes projects like this possible.

The software is free for everyone, regardless of whether you own any Sim Workshop hardware or not. Our hope is that train sim players can enjoy the same kind of hardware control experience that flight sim users have had for years.

During development we decided to completely rethink the early versions of the software. Versions v0.0.1 to v0.0.4 were experimental and ended up being too complicated to use.

With V0.0.5, we're aiming for something much more intuitive and straightforward.

The project is still in beta, so you may run into issues. If you do, please let us know — feedback from the community helps us improve the software much faster.

 

The software will first detect the hardware devices connected to your computer, such as TSC-X, flight sticks, throttles, or other USB controllers, and automatically identify how many buttons and axes the device has.

After that, you only need to tell the software what function each button or axis should perform, and the rest of the configuration will be handled automatically by the software.

 

If you're using Sim Workshop Console, here is a quick way to get everything working.
Step 1
Go to your Steam Library, find Train Sim World 5 or 6, right-click it and open Properties.
Under the General tab, add the following to the Launch Options:
-HTTPAPI
Then start TSW5 or TSW6 once. This enables the API interface that our software uses to communicate with the game.
Step 2
Open Sim Workshop Console and select the game you want to use.
If the connection indicator turns green, that means the connection is working correctly.
Step 3
In the Input Devices section, select the hardware device you want to use (for example TSC-X, a joystick, throttle, or any USB controller).
Once selected, the Axis Mapping and Button Mapping panels will automatically show all the axes and buttons detected on that device.
If you move an axis or press a button, you should see the input responding in real time — this is also a good way to quickly check if everything is working properly.
Step 4
Now just assign the functions you want to each axis and button, click Start Mapping, and you're ready to go.
Enjoy your drive

 

The software also includes two small tools: the Axis Config Tool and the Key Library.
The Axis Config Tool is mainly there for trains that we haven't fully configured yet. With it, you can manually assign throttle, brake, AFB, or other axis-based functions, or modify the locomotive configuration files that come with the software.
The idea is fairly simple. Since different trains use different names for their axis controls, we created a separate configuration file for each locomotive. These files are stored in the root directory of the software.
When you open the Axis Config Tool, as long as the software is connected to the game and you are sitting in the driver’s seat, the tool will automatically scan all available controls for the current train and display them in a list.
You can enable any control from the list and assign it as Throttle, Brake, AFB, etc., which then makes it available in the Axis Mapping panel so you can bind it to your hardware device.
So how do you know what a scanned control actually does?
That part is quite simple as well. Just move the validation slider next to the control and watch what happens in the locomotive in-game. In most cases you'll quickly see which function it corresponds to.
(Of course, it would be much easier if DTG provided a consistent naming standard for these controls — we definitely hope that might happen one day.)
The good news is that this only needs to be done once per locomotive.
We are continuing to add support ourselves, but we also wanted to make this tool available so you can get your favorite trains working with your hardware.
The Key Library is even simpler.
The built-in key library works by simulating keyboard output, which means you can add, remove, or modify key bindings freely. As long as you know which keyboard key corresponds to a specific function, you can add it to the library and then assign it to your hardware buttons in the Button Mapping panel.

 

Of course, our resources and ideas are limited. We hope you'll give it a try. If you have any suggestions, ideas for improvement, or if you encounter any bugs, please feel free to leave a comment below. We'd love to work together with the community to keep improving this project.

 

The software is coming along nicely but I still have problems.....
If I take for example the East Coastway Class 377/2, this train has a combined power/brake handle but the software only offers AFB, Throttle, Trainbrake, IndependantBrake and DynamicBrake. I select Throttle but the axis will only control half of the quadant, in this case the brake half (I have axis inverted). How do I make the axis control both throttle & brake.

Regards
Phil

 

Hello Phil,

You are correct — trains such as the Class 377/2 on East Coastway, as well as some German trains, use a combined power/brake handle.

In this case, you only need to use the Axis Configuration Tool included with our software and assign Throttle to the axis for that combined power/brake handle. Once this is done, the software will automatically handle the rest of the logic internally.

In a future version, I will also rename Throttle to “Throttle (Throttle and Brake)” to make this clearer and easier to understand.

Regarding the issue where the axis only controls the brake half of the quadrant, my guess is that the train might not currently be set to Forward traction or Reverse traction. If the reverser is in neutral, the throttle side will not respond.

You may want to try again after setting the train to Forward or Reverse and see if that resolves the issue.

Kind regards.

 

Hi Spark Chen,
I think you have it spot on, I hadn't set the reverser at the time I was testing, I will give it another try when I get the time, also could you get the software to save it's config between sessions, I keep having to set the language everytime I start up
TIA
Regards for now
Phil

 

Hi everyone

The software has now been updated to V0.0.6! This update mainly focuses on improving overall usability and fixing some commonly reported issues:

• Language selection is now saved automatically
  
  
• Axis and button mappings are now saved automatically
  
  
• Renamed Throttle to Throttle (Throttle & Brake) (fully compatible with existing configs)
  
  
• Fixed the save path for axis configuration files (no more missing/lost configs)

This update is mostly about smoothing out the experience and addressing feedback from the community

As always, if you have any ideas, suggestions, or run into any issues, feel free to let us know — we’d love to keep improving this together

Thanks again for all your support ❤️

 

Hi Spark Chen, thanks for the update, one last request (for now) any chance of a dark version, bright white triggers migraines for me.

Regards
Phil

 

The concept of this is wonderful - unfortunately for me at least the current version of the app (0.0.6) doesn't correctly detect my USB devices (Virpil control panel, Virpil Falcon pedals, Virpil WarbirD stick). It lists all of them, but the control mappings are mixed up (it lists the control panel controls as the rudder pedal) and the controller listings themselves are incomplete (the control panel has 51 buttons as configured but only the first 25 are represented in the UI). At least one of the throttle axis inputs on the control panel is not recognized as well. Clearly more work is needed to support controller layouts similar to mine, and I look forward to testing future versions of the software that hopefully will resolve these issues.

 

Hey everyone
V0.0.8 is now live!

This update is mainly about making things smoother and easier to use, plus fixing some of the common issues you guys reported:

• Switch & axis settings now save automatically in real time
  
  
• Added a dark mode UI (finally )
  
  
• Improved UI performance to reduce lag and stuttering
  
  
• Added support for Train Simulator Classic

Still very much a work in progress, and we’ll keep improving it step by step.
If you run into anything weird or have ideas, just drop a comment — really appreciate all the feedback so far .

 

Hi,
Thanks a lot for the detailed feedback — it really helps
We totally understand what you’re describing. Right now our testing setup is still quite limited — we’ve mainly tested with our own hardware and some Thrustmaster devices. We haven’t properly tested Virpil gear yet, so that’s likely why things aren’t behaving correctly on your setup.
We’ve just released v0.0.8, which includes a number of improvements. If you’re up for it, we’d really appreciate it if you could give it a try.
If the issues are still there, it would help us a lot if you could share a screenshot or a short video — that kind of feedback makes it much easier for us to track down and fix problems.
Thanks again for your support — we’re working towards better compatibility with setups like yours

 

Hello everyone, V0.0.9 is now live!
This update adds support for Run 8 and Open Rails.
Download：https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/7gzp...ey=111jzjrxivih4hse0l70m0pr5&st=qfhtm738&dl=0

 

Hi Spark Chen, and thanks very much for your reply. In the spirit of helping to improve SWC, I have taken some screenshots that will hopefully be helpful...

First, the tool correctly lists my attached controllers:

SWC 1 by ddragon#7509 posted Mar 20, 2026 at 6:53 PM

The listing for the Virpil Control Panel appears to show the Axes / button for the Falcon pedals;

SWC 2 by ddragon#7509 posted Mar 20, 2026 at 6:55 PM

The listing for the Virpil WarbirdD stick shows (some of) the axes buttons for the control panel - note that now I see 32 of the panel buttons, though 51 should be avaliable. Also, axis 3 on the control panel does not reflect the axis input (the other 3 appear to work):

SWC 3 by ddragon#7509 posted Mar 20, 2026 at 6:55 PM

And finally the Falcon pedals show what I think is a very incomplete listing of the WarbirdD stick controls (the lone axis does not respond to any to the actual axis inputs on the stick - also, 31 buttons should be available with the stick):

SWC 4 by ddragon#7509 posted Mar 20, 2026 at 6:55 PM

Again, thank you for creating this tool - it has enormous potential, and I am happy to provide feedback in the future based on my setup.