3DR Pixhawk and Taranis
- Thread starter Chalagi
- Start date
Old Man
Active Member
Every function you choose to use in APM and Pixhawk are very end point specific. As you move through the various flight modes you'll be seeing the importance of how the end points are set for a particular channel. There's quite a bit of mention about that in APM set up instructions, which flow directly into the Pixhawk's operations.
I have not been able to figure out exactly what I did other than move the end points up and down and change the fail safe number a thousand times up and done the scale. But I do remember setting it below the min throttle the last time I entered the number. I also has 3 or 4 not arming messages on the hud that I had to work thru. And calibrating the compass was a pure nite mare. In the instructions on the first window it tells you to calibrate it one way and then the next window its completely different. The mission planner is very vague in its instructions and the auducopter is just as bad.
Old Man
Active Member
Try visiting the arducopter site, select "copter" and "Pixhawk" along with Ublox GPS for very complete calibration and set up instructions. They won't be Taranis specific but some things are not particular to a brand of transmitter. Although Pixhawk is an open source product 3DR provides just about 100% of the support available for it through the Arducopter site.
Keep in mind that instructions for setting up a flight controller are specific to the FC and 3DR posted videos specific to their product for that purpose. Go to the product source info before reviewing instructions that are specific to products unassociated with what you have. Unassociated products may have function requirements that won't work with your components for initial set up.
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Keep in mind that instructions for setting up a flight controller are specific to the FC and 3DR posted videos specific to their product for that purpose. Go to the product source info before reviewing instructions that are specific to products unassociated with what you have. Unassociated products may have function requirements that won't work with your components for initial set up.
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Mactadpole
Member
I just watched the video and that is how I have setup every single Pixhawk copter with a Taranis transmitter. I literally just finished a hexa build last weekend and these are the steps I followed. I did a few things in a different order but that should make no difference. If that methodology does not work then something is wrong. I would suggest you start over with a whole new model on the Taranis and work your way through it from the beginning, starting with the upload of the firmware.
@Old Man - these videos are very recent using the same equipment he has (I don't what his copter is but he's using Pixhawk and Taranis).
I'm using a Tarot 680MM Pro and I already have to pixhawk programmed and ready for the test flight. The link to that video that you gave me is really hard to follow if your not careful. Especially when he does not start at the first but a little after that. You have to find the video before to find out he complete thinking. And my firmware has been uploaded some time now and its not a new Taranis nor a new X8R rx. I"m also not new to helicopter or multirotors.
Mactadpole
Member
Sorry its not helping. Those are the basic steps I have followed for the past 5 multirotor's I've put together using Pixhawk and Taranis. Figured it all out from the wiki and videos like those.
Good luck!
Good luck!
Old Man
Active Member
I've done two using the 3DR produced videos and the Arducopter Wiki directions. My goal previously was an oblique attempt to get Chalagi looking at instructional material specific to Pixhawk and the OS that drives it. If you understand the system operations because you have quality reference material, interfacing with other products becomes easier. But one simply must learn about the equipment they are going to be working with at the individual component level. Buying a bunch of parts and throwing them into a single pot without understanding them brings a lot of frustration and errors with installation and set up issues and often some unpleasant end results. Sort of like the mechanic that sees a car that won't start and starts replacing the ignition switch, battery, battery cables, and starter only to find the original problem was a loose nut on the solenoid.
Putting things together goes pretty quick, it's the research and learning required for each item to understand how they work that eats up a lot of time.
Putting things together goes pretty quick, it's the research and learning required for each item to understand how they work that eats up a lot of time.
Gary Seven
Rocketman
Amen to that, brother.
Well the reference material as you talk about is not quite the (quality) type stuff. Its more understandable as a senior engineer type material and some is kinda vague at best. For instant (For a starting beginner) it talks about switch (Able and Disable) if your disable the switch or procedure then it's (Disabled) but it does not explain the results well "DUH" And it think it's kinda comical when some one does a first post on a forum and gets treated like a kid out of high school with a blank mind. Instead of asking the person are you a beginner and do you have experience with rc models and quad copters. Right off the bat some of the people that try to help a come on like walking websters. I"m not bashing or trying to be rude for your service and I think you comments have been great and also helpful. After my brain farts some time back sometimes my thoughts and reasoning have been kinda like scrambled eggs. As for my back ground I retired from Nasa as an Aeronautical Engineer but the brain farts have slowed me down and that's why I"m retired.
Mactadpole
Member
Sorry to have frustrated you Chalagi, Its just really hard to understand why things aren't working for you. Especially when you say you followed the video from Dennis Baldwin and it did not work. Like I said, I just finished a brand new hexa build with a brand new Taranis and X8R plus Pixhawk and those are pretty much the exact steps I used with just a difference in some of the order. Same steps I have followed for the last several builds in about a year. I figured it was best to tell you to start over and follow the video because I am worried you have setting tweaked in the Taranis and things might not go so well on maiden flight.
No I followed the video of how to calibrated the compass as Dennis showed. And I tried his mother several times without success. I also tried the "First" steps in the instructions but I think at the time I was moving a little too fast for the mission planner to calculate my moves. I know a few times later I slowed the process down really slow and the calibration of the compass took. And the videos links that you posted I programmed them into the Taranis and played around with them some to compare them to the way I had mine setup.
Old Man
Active Member
Sorry you took it harshly Chulagi, it was not meant to be harsh. Oft times the web causes intentions of text to lose the perspective intended to be related to the recipient. Since this is not a "beginners" forum in the typical sense I tend not to address things in a manner appropriate to a beginner, which you are not. As for brain farts, I hear you all the way since I sometimes experience moments of my own
I'm with Mactadpole in thinking somewhere you missed a step, or have something set up incorrectly that is impeding progress. I do agree with you about the Arducopter site being written by engineers that in some places seems to be intended for engineers. A tremendous failure when one is writing instructions for general users. They could make use of a really good tech writer and make the intent of their Wiki soar if they wanted to seriously boost their sales. You do have an advantage though, you are an engineer, I'm just a tech and have to struggle with a lot of that stuff like so many others.
I'm with Mactadpole in thinking somewhere you missed a step, or have something set up incorrectly that is impeding progress. I do agree with you about the Arducopter site being written by engineers that in some places seems to be intended for engineers. A tremendous failure when one is writing instructions for general users. They could make use of a really good tech writer and make the intent of their Wiki soar if they wanted to seriously boost their sales. You do have an advantage though, you are an engineer, I'm just a tech and have to struggle with a lot of that stuff like so many others.
Well I did not intend to sound as if I were mad at anyone which I"m not or am I put out by text translations. My brains farts come a stroke some time back and at times I just loose my thought of just about anything from seconds to minutes. And at some point during my setup I probably did have a goof and that's probably why things went sour lol.
I just had something odd to happen while connecting to the mission planner. I booted up my laptop and connect the ubs to the pixhawk abd started mission planner program and the connected the usb to the pc. Pixhawk went through the start up tones. And then the led light went to solid red and the safety switch will not light up nor will it connect to the mission planner.
Old Man
Active Member
Let's start over with a different sequence after disconnecting everything and exiting Mission Planner. If you have the telemetry radio module plugged into your computer, unplug it and set it aside. Do not connect the flight battery.
Now open Mission Planner and let it fully load on your computer. After that plug the USB into the computer, then into Pixhawk. In the drop down baud rate menu at the top of the page, on the right, click "Auto". Now click "Connect" in the top right corner and see what happens.
Now open Mission Planner and let it fully load on your computer. After that plug the USB into the computer, then into Pixhawk. In the drop down baud rate menu at the top of the page, on the right, click "Auto". Now click "Connect" in the top right corner and see what happens.