I finally received our shipment of Naze32 flight controller & FrSky Taranis radios for drones and quadcopters. Please follow the links for more info. These items are selling fast:
Frsky Taranis Radios:
FrSky Taranis
D4R-II Receivers
FRsky D4r-II PPM Receiver with antenna
Naze32 Acro flight controllers
Naze 32 Acro
Thanks! -QuadQuestions.com
open gigapan by clicking the Play icon (opens in light box)
A Gigapan is the only way to properly display this beauty!
[pano file=”http://www.gigapan.com/gigapans/168229/”] CLICK PLAY TO SEE THE GIGAPAN!
I found this on the web and just thought that it is the most beautiful representation of the electromagnetic spectrum that I have ever seen.
After digging around and finding out more about the poster, I found an article that talks about how it was made and the man who created it.
The driving force behind its creation in the late 1930s was Dwight Barr, a consultant for the W. M. Welch Scientific Company. He spent two years of his life designing and editing it, with the project at times taking over part of his house. Once published, nearly every major university and scientific institution bought a copy.
Living in the digital world, it is easy to forget about things like this, even though it has everything to do with our hobby. Please take a moment to look at the full resolution image and get an appreciation for the work that went into it. Please leave comments!
If you need to read up on some basic battery theory, read this post first.
C rating is a rating of how quickly energy can be discharged from a battery. The rating is combined with a battery’s capacity to find determine the maximum discharge. This is very important when you consider battery choices for Quadcopters and multi rotors because these machines draw very high amps from the motors and it is easy to choose a battery that can’t handle the currents required by brushless motors and steep-pitched props.
The C rating is important when it comes to choosing a battery for high performance multi rotors because our multi-rotor motors draw high amounts of current (amps) and it is very easy to choose a battery that is not properly rated for our current draw.
The C rating is proportional to the battery’s capacity, so as you move up in capacity, you can move down in C.
When engineering a new quadcopter, we have to consider the amp draw of the motor/prop combination, and the max battery size we can fit on the quad to determine the right battery for the job.
Turnigy 1.3a 4s battery 1300MAH The perfect choice for high performance QAV250 Quadcopters
It is important to calculate what amperage a battery can output when considering it for a quadcopter build. Let’s consider A 20C battery rated at 2000 mAh.
to calculate what this battery can do:
Convert milliamps to amps:
[latex] \displaystyle (2000ma)\frac{1amp}{1000ma} = 2amps. [/latex]
Calculate the amps times the c rating to get the total output current:
[latex] \displaystyle 2A*20C=40A[/latex]
This means that we can discharge 40 amps continuously without damaging the battery.
The typical nanotech battery that I recommend for the QAV250 is a 25c continuous, 50c burst battery.
We can calculate the safe amp output capacity of this battery by the following.
Convert milliamps to amps:
[latex] \displaystyle (1300MA)\frac{1amp}{1000ma} = 1.3A [/latex]
Determine discharge rate by multiplying Amps x C Rating
[latex] \displaystyle 1.3A*25C=32.5 amp discharge. [/latex]
Divide by number of motors:
[latex] \displaystyle \frac{32.5amp}{4motors}=8.13A [/latex]
This means that each motor (if building a quadcopter) shouldn’t draw more than 8.13 amps.
Looking at the graph of the current draw of 2300KV Cobra motors on 3s with 5030 props, we can see that the motor current draw is somewhat linear until about 80% throttle, after which it becomes logarithmic; the efficiency of the motor drops off and the current really rises. Looking at this chart, I would think that it would be ok to use the nanotech battery in this application.
These Nanotechs are rated with a burst capacity of 50C-
Again, Doing the math, but this time for a 50C Discharge rate,
[latex] \displaystyle (1300MA)\frac{1amp}{1000ma} = 1.3A [/latex]
[latex] \displaystyle 1.3A*50C=65 amp discharge. [/latex]
[latex] \displaystyle \frac{65A}{4motors}=16.25A [/latex]
That is 16.25 amps per motor at the burst capacity of the battery.
Burst is usually considered in 15-20 second increments, so in my designs, I like to make sure that I mostly stay within the main C rating.
We should use this battery on a craft that draws no more than 8.13 amps in most circumstances. Acrobatic maneuvers & full throttle pullouts tend to use much more amperage, so you could use this battery on a craft that draws 8a per motor in full throttle, and then know that burst will cover acrobatic maneuvers. The Gemfan 5030 draws about 8.4 amps total with a Cobra 2300kv motor on 3S, so I am within the design limits so long as I am not building this quad to be at full throttle all of the time. The burst C rating should handle any current overages that are incurred.
Battery manufacturers lie. So a good rule of thumb is to
If we decide to go with a steeper pitch prop such as a 5045 or a a larger propeller, then we would need to reconsider this battery as it would not be adequate.
If we decided to go to a 4s battery, we would need to consider that the higher voltage would result in a higher amp draw. The cobra motor draws about 13.3 amps with a gemfan 5030 on 4s.
The 2000v Cobra motor draws about 10.4 amps at full throttle. It is a little bit more efficient at full throttle.
If we use the 2000KV motor for a 4S build (recommended) we can calculate it out:
[latex] \displaystyle 10.4 amps*4=41.6 amps. [/latex]
This means that ideally, we would need a battery capable of a continous current at or near a 40 amp discharge.
We could achieve this by either increasing our battery capacity, or increasing our c rating. So it would make sense to bump up our 1300mah 4s battery to a 35C rating.
25C batteries cost less than higher C rating batteries, but in order to use a 25C 4S battery at with Cobra motors at 10.4 amps, we would need to up the battery capacity to 2000mah or more.
[latex] \displaystyle Capacity=\frac{40A}{25C} [/latex]
[latex] \displaystyle Capacity={1.6A} [/latex]
So we would need a 1.6A (1600MA) or larger 25C battery in order to get the discharge amperage required for these motors.
You can find Amp draws on propeller manufacturers websites. I will be posting real life data to this site soon.
It is also important to consider C-rating when charging batteries. I always stick to the rule of thumb that you should charge your batteries at no more than 1C even if they are rated for a higher Charge c-rating. Zippy compacts are a good example of a battery that will work great until you start charging it at a high C-rating.
Turnigy ACC-6 battery charger
Charging these at a 5C charge rating will rapidly reduce their life because their cells become oxidized. The batteries say on them that they can be charged at a 1-5C rate, but my real life experience says otherwise.
Doing the math for a charging rate of a 1300MA battery, we calculate:
[latex] \displaystyle {capacity in amps}*{charge C rate}={charge rate in amps} [/latex]
[latex] \displaystyle (1.3A)*(1)={1.3amps} [/latex]
[latex] \displaystyle (1.3A) \frac{1}{1000}=1300MA [/latex]
Essentially, charging a battery at a 1C rate means charging at the battery’s capacity. So a 2000MA battery should be charged at 2000MA, a 1.6amp battery should be charged at 1600ma, etc.
Parallel charging board for multiple battery charging.
One way to charge many batteries at once is to use a parallel charging board. These boards work great when charging many of the SAME batteries at once. One thing that you have to realize with these boards is that as you add
batteries in parallel you are tricking your charger into thinking it is charging one large battery. So essentially, connecting 4 3S 1300 MAH batteries to a parallel charging board fools the charger into thinking that you connected one 5200MAH 3S4P to it. So using the logic above, you could charge all four batteries at once at 1C by setting your charger to 5200MA when charging.
Choosing the right battery when building a quadcopter is important! Quadcopters draw large currents, and choosing the incorrect battery for the application could greatly reduce it’s life and reliability.
Make sure to do the engineering before you purchase.
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Lithium with it’s 3 electrons is naturally a very unhappy metal. It is reactive. It really really wants to get rid of it’s electrons to stabilize it’s outer shell. Lithium is not a naturally occurring element, but is always found as a compound in nature due to it’s reactivity. Science and technology has cracked this energy rich, naturally occurring phenomena. We have finally developed amazing batteries, from pure Lithium, which has to be lab created. We have figured out a way to harness the power of this natural, unstable electrical phenomena and make it so that we can derive the power needed to keep a cellphone charged all day, or to fly multi rotor robots.
Turnigy 1.3a 4s battery 1300MAH The perfect choice for high performance QAV250 Quadcopters
Not only is Lithium a very reactive metal, it is also light, allowing us to create batteries that pack a lot of power without a lot of weight.
Our portable energy hungry society has caused battery technology to increase at an exponential rate. Now we have these batteries that can deliver an EXTREME amount of power in a very short time and in a small package. We are getting near the power to weight ratio of gasoline with electricity in batteries such as lithium oxygen batteries, so that might be where the future of lithium technology is heading.
The electrical Power to weight ratio that we are able to achieve with Lithium ion batteries has lead rise to machines like the Telsa, the electric motorcycle and the Quadcopter.
Lithium Ion Batteries are unlocking the power to do things that were only the dreams of our ancestors, and they are making for some amazing technology such as 3d flying, first-person view acrobatic robots. AKA Drones, Quadcopters, QAV250s, ETC.
RTF QAV250 Ultimate quadcopter with FPV, Naze32 and IBcrazy
This machine would not be possible without battery technology. The battery is what makes it work. The exponential development of the battery is why we have seen an explosion of drone technology in the last 5 years. It was simply not possible to harness the power needed to escape gravity in this fashion with prior battery technology. Now, The future is bright.
Especially with batteries such as lithium oxygen approaching the power to weight ratios of gasoline, the future of electric powered flight might look even more promising than it already is.
4S3P 34-50C burst 1600 mAh? What do all of these strange things mean? Where do I start when trying to select the best battery? What should a noob do?
This is confusing!? I don’t know where to begin! Help! Which battery do I need for my QAV250?
Every pilot has been there. The world of batteries can be a very daunting one. Where to start? This post hopes to help.
Qav250 quadcopter Batteries
Turnigy 1.3a 4s battery 1300MAH The perfect choice for high performance QAV250 Quadcopters
So you want to build a 3d flying, first-person view acrobatic robot AKA “DRONE” or “Quadcopter”
Well you need to make sure that you pick the right battery. Lithium with it’s extreme need to loose it’s electron and become stable makes it perfect for batteries. Lithium-ion or lithium-polymer are the only choices for the QAV250, Other batteries are too heavy at the same power output levels.
We have established that we need to use Lithium-ion batteries for our quadcopter.
Lithium batteries consist of cells. Inside each cell there is a cathode, anode, and electrolyte. Without going into too much detail, I will tell you that:
From http://www.epectec.com/batteries/chemistry/
(rotate to view if viewing on iPhone)
| Chemistry | Cell Voltage | Energy Density (MJ/kg) | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| NiCd | 1.2 | 0.14 | Inexpensive. High/low drain, moderate energy density. Can withstand very high discharge rates with virtually no loss of capacity. Moderate rate of self discharge. Reputed to suffer from memory effect (which is alleged to cause early failure). Environmental hazard due to Cadmium – use now virtually prohibited in Europe. |
| Lead Acid | 2.2 | 0.14 | Moderately expensive. Moderate energy density. Moderate rate of self discharge. Higher discharge rates result in considerable loss of capacity. Does not suffer from memory effect. Environmental hazard due to Lead. Common use – Automobile batteries |
| NiMH | 1.2 | 0.36 | Cheap. Not usable in higher drain devices. Traditional chemistry has high energy density, but also a high rate of self-discharge. Newer chemistry has low self-discharge rate, but also a ~25% lower energy density. Very heavy. Used in some cars. |
| Lithium ion | 3.6 | 0.46 | Very expensive. Very high energy density. Not usually available in “common” battery sizes (but see RCR-V3 for a counter-example). Very common in laptop computers, moderate to high-end digital cameras and camcorders, and cellphones. & QUADCOPTERS 😉 Very low rate of self discharge. Volatile: Chance of explosion if short circuited, allowed to overheat, or not manufactured with rigorous quality standards. |
Alkaline vs lithium battery
[wolf_column col=”col-6″ first=”yes”]That Alkaline AA battery in your remote control is 1.5V.[/wolf_column]
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Those little Lithium Ion button watch batteries like the CR2032 are 3.6V!
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This is because of the chemistry that lies within.
Each of these batteries, the AA battery and the CR2032 battery are one cell batteries.
That is a very large voltage difference between those 2 chemical reactions….
It turns out that that Lithium technology packs the most volts per cell of all to the batteries, and it is a secondary battery, which is good news for quadcopter pilots because it is RECHARGEABLE.
We can look at the chart above and know that Lithium Ion has 3.6V per cell.
If I have a 1 cell Lithium Ion battery, I can count on it being around 3.6V. But what if I need more voltage?
Battery series explained. Quadcopter 2S battery voltage explained.
[wolf_column col=”col-6″ first=”yes”]If you connect 2 AA batteries together in series, you end up with 3v[/wolf_column]
[wolf_column col=”col-6″ first=”yes”]If you connect 2 Cr2032 Batteries together in Series you end up with 7.2V. The above picture is representative of 2 cells in series.[/wolf_column]
If you still need more voltage you can keep going like this, and connect 3 Cells in series.
Battery series explained. Quadcopter 3S battery voltage explained.
We could continue in this fashion forever if we wanted to get more voltage. In the following video, a guy connects 244 used 9v batteries together in series to create a 2000v 244S1P battery.
What about the second part of the number? Sure a single cell battery is a 1s1p battery. (1 series 1 parallel) We can connect batteries in parallel to increase the amount of power available. The example below shows batteries wired in a 1s3p configuration (1 cell in series, 3 cells in parallel)
Example of a parallel battery for quadcopter
Why would we want to do this? This configuration allows us to create very high amp ratings. If each cell can output 1 amp, then the packs wired in parallel like this will create a 3 amp output.
Electricity can be doubled in voltage, and halved in amperage, and the power stays the same.
It’s Ohms Law.
Ohms Law Explained for battery selection
OK, so the volt guy is pushing, and the amp guy is getting pushed by the volt guy, and the ohm guy is pulling on the amp guy causing resistance.
THE CURRENT VOLT AND AMP ARE ALL INVERSELY PROPORTIONAL!
To calculate the power of something you have to multiply amps times watts.
This means that I can get the same amount of power from 7.2Volts and 1 amp as I can from 3.6v and 2 amps.
So really powerful batteries will have multiple cells in series such as a 2S3P battery. A 2s3p battery would have 2 cells of 3 batteries in parallel.
An example of a multiple parallel and series battery for quadcopter
This is how we can achieve high voltage, high power lithium batteries.
So when you are buying a 3S battery lithium battery, you can know that the battery is 3 cells and you can calculate the voltage by knowing the chemistry of the cells.
Go to part II of this post:
[su_button url=”http://quadquestions.com/blog/engineering/qav250-c-rating-explained/” style=”flat” background=”#187e19″ wide=”yes” center=”yes” icon=”icon: level-up” desc=”Battery C Rating Explained”]Go to part II of this post [/su_button]
Well, its bad news for drone owners, kids, people having fun, and anyone trying to play horseshoes in Denver.
See section II article 35 FLYING OBJECTS on page 9. As with any law, it is up to you to know it and abide by it…and try to change it.
In a nutshell, the code reads reads:
[wolf_icon name=”file” scale=”2″ type=”round” align=”center” url=”http://quadquestions.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Denver-City-Parks-Code-.pdf” target=”_blank”]
see Section II Article 35 FLYING OBJECTS
The code also states that sledding, rollerblading, playing horseshoes, throwing golf balls and baseballs are prohibited… So make sure that you read up on the code before you head to the park.
OK, so you are ready to take the quadcopter plunge. Where to begin? This hobby can be daunting, but luckily, there are guys like me out there to help! This post is a followup to another post that I did about the basic components of a quadcopter but it is more specific towards a QAV250 or other 250mm quadcopter build.
[su_button url=”http://quadquestions.com/blog/flight-school/components-fpv-quadcopter/” style=”flat” background=”#187e19″ wide=”yes” icon=”icon: info-circle” desc=”Get Familiar with Quadcopter Components”]Read The Previous Post[/su_button]
So. You are thinking about getting started with Quadcopters.
What do you need? What to choose? There are a ton of options out there to choose from.
The first thing that you should tell yourself, the first thing that you should expect is that you are going to crash.
Crashing is part of the fpv drone hobby. It is inevitable. You will crash, you will burn. You will eventually learn that you can crash in a controlled fashion. Some rookie mistakes include crashing to the ground at full throttle, or plowing into the brick wall you were trying to avoid. With practice, you can turn your crashes into hard landings with minimal damage, but the key word here is “PRACTICE”
Crashing is part of flying. Get ready for it!
Kid with Quadcopter
I recommend that you start with a 250mm sized quad such as the Lumenier Qav250. The 250mm sized quad measures 250mm diagonally from motor to motor. These quads are the perfect size to start out with because they are small enough that they don’t completely self destruct on impact, yet large enough to hold all of the professional FPV gear.
A word about professional FPV gear. Strapping a phone to your Phantom tx and using that to fly around is not the FPV that I am talking about. I am talking about full immersion, acrobatic, fast flying FPV with video googles, On screen display, and actually flying like a bird FPV. You just can’t achieve that with a video screen. It is my opinion that video goggles like the Fatshark Attitudes are mandatory for this type of flying.
There are some starter kits out there and some great ready to fly quadcopters such as the Hubsan FPV X4 that have a camera and a screen built into the transmitter but these are not the same as the professional FPV setups that I sell on this site and refer to in my posts.
The things that set those store bought “toys” apart from our quads are:[wolf_col_6 class=”first”]
So these other quads are a good starting point, maybe to see if you like the hobby, but there is a huge difference in performance between the two.
QAV250 vs Hubsan x4
If you are building a 250mm Quadcopter, you will need a good set of tools first and foremost.
Any serious pilot will require a good radio. This is the only thing connecting you to your craft and it is something that you shouldn’t skimp on.
It comes down to pilot preference but a good radio should have the following features:
[/wolf_col_4]The typical naze32 setup uses pitch, roll, yaw, throttle, and 4 switches to control the quad. The 4 switches can be either 2 position or 3 position switches. With three position switches you can program more switch options, but most radios only have one or two 3 position switches. For acrobatic FPV you will not use more than 2 or 3 switch options.
The Taranis X9D Plus is an amazing radio for the price, and it is open source.
You will need a radio receiver that works with your transmitter. The Naze32 will accept either one PPM input or multiple PWM inputs, but for simplicity’s sake, it is better to use a receiver that does PPM such as the Frsky D4R-II. The D4R-II is small, perfect for mini quads and outputs 8 PPM Channels. The X9D and the D4R-II also work well together because they are both Frisky and they can use telemetry.
There are other Long range 933MHz receivers for Long range operation, such as the Open LRS System, But their application is a bit beyond the scope of this article.
Telemetry can send information from your helicopter to your radio through the radio link. This is handy as you can set up your Radio to give you alarms when your battery gets low or when you get close to getting out of range. You will be able to see this information displayed on the radio while you are flying. This is extremely handy for when your video link cuts out, or times when you want to fly line of sight or without an on screen display.
I am a Naze32 guy and that is what I recommend . There is some learning curve with it, but I have found it to fly really well out of the box. I will be posting an in-depth look at the Naze32 soon. If you have any questions about it and want those answered now, please post a question about it here.
when you get your Naze32, you have 2 choices. You can get an acro, or you can get a full featured version.
The full version includes a barometer and a compass, but these features are not needed if first starting out.
The Qav250 comes in 2 different styles, G10 and Carbon Fiber.
G10 is a very strong, Radio Frequency neutral material that is an excellent choice to make quadcopters out of. It is a type of fiberglass.
Carbon fiber is a conductor, and whilst being very strong and light, can cause issues for the first time builder. This issues range from fires, to shorts, to burned out electronics. I recommend carbon fiber (CF) only if you are familiar with electronics and the concept of grounding. Carbon fiber is also not radio frequency neutral and it can cause problems with antennas, effecting their range and direction. Carbon fiber is also very expensive. These reasons alone make carbon fiber a bad choice for FPV quads, but it is still the most popular because of it’s sex appeal.
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I recommend the G10 Carbon fiber frame for the beginner.
Both versions of the QAV250 come with a power distribution board, Leds, and an XT-60 battery connector.
The FPV gear becomes your “eyes” in the sky. When choosing FPV it is best not to skimp.
The Fatshark Attitude has everything you need to get started with FPV.
The kit consists of a 600TVL Cmos camera, 250mw video transmitter, and video goggles.
This kit is a great all in one solution to get started flying. The camera requires a mounting plate to use it on the QAV250, but it is a good starting point to get you going.
For more advanced setups, the camera can be upgraded, but you can use with the goggles and video transmitter with different camera setups.
Motors can be chosen depending on many different factors.
Type of flying, Type of batteries, and Quadcopter type can all effect motor choice.
For the beginner, I recommend 3S batteries and 2300KV motors (KV has to do with rotations per volt. More on that in a later post)
I did a motor comparison here to help you choose.
For a more advanced 4S setup, you can choose either 2300 KV motors or 2000KV motors. 2000KV motors such as the Lumenier 2206 2000KV motors are ideal here.
ELECTRONIC SPEED CONTROLS. Esc are what control the motor. Brushless motors are 3 phase, so you need a controller that can detect the motor’s position and then modulate alternating current across 3 phases to make them work. It is some serious tech, but it is what makes these machines possible.
Escs come in many flavors. Some of the best that I have found are the Red High Voltage N-FET ESC, Compact Simon K blue 12A Escs, and Kiss 18A Escs for expert setups.
You are going to need to select batteries for your build. 1300MAH (milliamp hour) batteries work pretty well on the QAV 250 and other 250mm sized quads.
The Turnigy nanotech 1300MAH battery nets about a 6-7 minute flight. There are many different factors affecting flight times. Pilot style, wind, altitude, hardware configuration, weight, temperature, etc.
I have tried several battery brands and I highly recommend a battery with nano phosphate technology such as the Turnigy Nanotech series of batteries. Turnigy Nanotechs seem to last longer than any other battery in terms of charge cycles and flight time.
As with any battery, the key to keeping them lasting long is treating them right. I will be posting a battery post soon Subscribe to my blog so you know when it goes up.
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Good propellers can make or break a quad copter. I have had good success with GEMFAN nylon 5×3 “5030” propellers.
These propellers are 5″ with a 3″ pitch. They give moderate thrust with good efficiency for mini multi rotors. The props are great or learning on because they are very flexible. They can take a beating and you can still fly with them.
There are some other variations out there such as the 5040 5×4 props (5 inch with 4″ pitch”) These propellers are more aggressive and not recommended for beginners.
Only after you have become an advanced pilot do I recommend stiffer props such as carbon fiber.
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The Prop nut is extremely important. Without the proper nut, you will loose propellers mid flight and crash.
I recommend lock nuts be used on all propellers. If using The prop nuts that come with certain brands of motors, use blue or red locktite on them. This will save you from having terrible crashes.
[su_button url=”http://quadquestions.com/product/qav250-rtf/” style=”flat” background=”#187e19″ wide=”yes” center=”yes” icon=”icon: shopping-cart” desc=”These configurations are available pre-built from my store.”]Buy it now[/su_button]
You are going to have to plan to set some time aside to assemble your quad. Gather all of your parts together (hopefully from me) and subscribe to the blog as I will be posting Part B of the 250 Quad Build manual next week!
Please subscribe to my blog to get the update once it is written!
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I have been working to figure out a fundamental problem with FPV flight on Mini Quads. When you fly these machines, you are limited to seeing what is ahead of you at a fixed angle. That means that if you have your camera working well for hovering and slow flights, as soon as you decide to do fast flights you end up just seeing the ground and not what is in front of you. This is not ideal. It is like looking at your feet while running. There is no way to make good piloting decisions when looking at the ground and not where you are going.
It is like looking at your feet while running.
On the flip side, the pilots that you see in the vids doing amazing fast flying, have their cameras fixed in a position pointing up, which is also not ideal for slow flying, hovering, or landing.
By attaching the FPV camera to a servo, and hinging one side of it to your frame, It is possible to adjust is position according to what type of flying you are doing.
It is possible to do this with the Naze32 if you are using PPM input and only 4 esc outputs.
The mod moves the default esc 1 output to pin 3 of the Naze32. This means that you end up with pin 1 controlling the pan servo and pin 2 controlling a tilt servo, and pin 3 to esc 1, pin 4 to esc2 pin 5 to esc3 and pin6 to esc4.
I used a small 10g micro servo and some stiff wire to make it work. My video details the build in detail.
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The Servo can be controlled automatically by the naze32, thus leveling the camera, or it can be controlled by a switch or other input.
I don’t recommend using the auto gimbal feature while flying as it tends to lead to loosing orientation and it gives me vertigo. I have my camera set to a 3 position switch and I manually adjust it while I am flying. It is possible to setup camstab in the switch settings to enable the auto gimbal while flying. You will have to try it for yourself and see what you think!
Please see the video above for my comparison of the SunnySky Vs Cobra Vs Titan 2204 2300kv motors.
The motors are extremely popular right now but some have serious advantages over others.
My favorite pilot is Charpu. He is a Lumineer team pilot and he takes some serious risks with his quad, but he has better footage than any other pilot out there.
http://www.youtube.com/user/CharpuFPV
Charpu lives somewhere in California… And although active in the forums he is still very mysterious. He was kind enough to let me use some of his footage on the front page of the site, so I felt that I should make a page about him.
Charpu flies a QAV250 on 4s with Kiss secs and 1950KV motors.
You will notice that Charpu runs his Pids way shorter than stock. This is possible because of his KISS ESCs refresh rate and Naze32 loop time. He runs an insane loop time with a Naze32 (1800 MS) and an ESC PWM refresh rate of 400HZ
His latest PIDs that I have been able to dig up (they change all the time) were:
If you are a beginner, stick with the stock PIDS to start. Pids need to be tuned on an individual basis. Charpu’s PIDs run like crap on a zmr-250 at high altitude, and on a QAV250 with a different ESC and motor setup, so they should only be used as a reference and not as a starting point.
[wolf_col_6 class=”first”]I am working on building a tuning PID page, and I will post a link here when that happens. For now, Please subscribe for updates to the blog.[/wolf_col_6]
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