My brushless gimbal result

[SamaraMedia]

Hey Heli, what's the difference between the 4006 150 you have available and the 4006 130 listed in the gimbal kit? They both seem to be able to carry the same load.

Thanks,

John

 

[r0beert0]

Just got a chance to play around with this gimbal... on 3s it gets a pretty good case of the shakes/oscillation even after adjusting PID (maybe I just need to spend more time playing with the settings) though when I go 2s it behaves as expected and very stable. Did balance (gopro3) on the gimbal roll and pitch, looks like it will have no problem with the GP3 on 2s so I'm gonna get ready to mount on the Hex tomorrow evening.

 

[RTRyder]

Just got a chance to play around with this gimbal... on 3s it gets a pretty good case of the shakes/oscillation even after adjusting PID (maybe I just need to spend more time playing with the settings) though when I go 2s it behaves as expected and very stable. Did balance (gopro3) on the gimbal roll and pitch, looks like it will have no problem with the GP3 on 2s so I'm gonna get ready to mount on the Hex tomorrow evening.

As the weight on the platform gets lighter you need to reduce the motor power, ( power setting in the GUI ) that will eliminate the shakes on 3S. I found changing from the 18 - 55 lens on the Nex to the 16mm wide angle required substantial reduction in power to eliminate shakes with the camera tilted. Bottom line is you will have to find the right settings for each camera and camera/lens combination that will be used, but we already knew that from the Zenmuse experience.

There is also a narrow window of PID settings that work well with any given setup. Going too high or too low on any of the PID settings can produce jitter or random movement, the IMU is VERY sensitive it appears which is a good thing. You must also eliminate as much vibration as possible not only from the reaching the gimbal but also in the airframe itself, the smoother the multi flys the better the overall result will be with this type of gimbal.

I also suggest doing a thorough accelerometer calibration once you have it setup on the multi, failure to do so will result in horizon drift on lateral movement. Use a bubble level and take your time, this is probably the most critical adjustment on the gimbal, make 100% certain it is level horizontally before you start and take whatever action necessary to make sure it doesn't move in the horizontal (roll) plane while doing the calibration. PID settings are almost irrelevant if the accelerometer calibration isn't right.

Looks like I may get a chance for a quick test flight or two before I have to leave so stay tuned...

Ken

 

[RTRyder]

pg 14 of this thread I threw up a gh2 pict with ruler.
Anybody know if the gimble that RTRyder shows will carry the gh2 or does it need a new frame.

Weight of camera is around 640g with light lens.

The Nex 5 fairly well fills the frame, I would not attempt to put anything bigger or heavier than a Nex on it, it's not designed or calibrated for any more weight than a 5N plus 18-55mm lens. Keep in mind that the only thing moving the camera platform is electromagnetic force between the magnets and windings of the brushless motors, there is no direct connection between the camera platform and the drive system other than the axle (shaft) of the motors. Put too much weight on it and the motors won't be able to move it, plus there's the potential to pop a motor driver chip on the control board if you let it continue to try for too long.

Eventually there will brushless gimbals that will be able to handle the larger SLR type cameras but it's going to take bigger motors, bigger frames, and a revised control board that can handle more sustained current to drive the motors. Right now a Nex is about the limit that the system can safely handle, this is all still very much a beta version technology with all that implies...

Ken

 

[RTRyder]

The $550 Zenmuse

Ok, finally got a chance for a quick test flight with the brushless gimbal. I put the 16mm wide angle lens on the Nex5 to capture the front boom in the frame from time to time so you can see exactly how much the Cinestar frame is moving in relation to the gimbal. It's a LOT, and the camera stays put, appears that for $550 I can duplicate the performance of a $3500 Zenmuse and it doesn't require a Wookong-M to use it although that is what is flying the Cinestar the gimbal is currently on.

So here it is, a quick bench setup and I totally guessed on the PID setup for the lighter lens, I can see a couple things that need tweaking but for a shot in the dark this surpasses anything I was able to do with the AV130/RSGS after ridiculous amounts of time spent on setup and tweaking of both the 130 and RSGS firmware...

As you can hear in the video it was windy, perfect conditions for a gimbal stability test, this one passed with flying colors, pun intended. I wasn't being particularly gentle with the sticks either, watch for the front boom as it dips in and out of the frame. I wish I had more time to play but that's all the time I have until I get back from this business trip, can't wait until I have an opportunity to really dial this setup in and go get some real video.

And by the way, the video is straight off the memory card, didn't even open it with an editor, as raw as it gets...

Ken

 

[r0beert0]

There is also a narrow window of PID settings that work well with any given setup. Going too high or too low on any of the PID settings can produce jitter or random movement, the IMU is VERY sensitive it appears which is a good thing.

I also suggest doing a thorough accelerometer calibration once you have it setup on the multi, failure to do so will result in horizon drift on lateral movement.

Looks like I may get a chance for a quick test flight or two before I have to leave so stay tuned...

Ken

Ken,thanks for your reply... Very informative!!! So true about the narrow PID window settings that work for a particular setup. The motor power settings where the only ones I left as is, makes total sence now as weight was reduced.

Should I stick with 2s for the GoPro3 or make it all work on the recommended 3s? What are the pros and cons between operating on 7.4 to 11.1V?

Good luck on your test flight, looking forward to seeing the results.

-Roberto

 

[kloner]

the playing field certainly has been leveled

 

[Benjamin Rowland]

Impressed. Very impressed.

 

[RTRyder]

Ken,thanks for your reply... Very informative!!! So true about the narrow PID window settings that work for a particular setup. The motor power settings where the only ones I left as is, makes total sence now as weight was reduced.

Should I stick with 2s for the GoPro3 or make it all work on the recommended 3s? What are the pros and cons between operating on 7.4 to 11.1V?

Good luck on your test flight, looking forward to seeing the results.

-Roberto

If you're planning on using anything heavier than the GoPro you should probably set it up for 3S then find the right power settings for each camera and record them for future reference. It would be nice if you could save the settings in the GUI as you can for the Multiwii boards, then all you would need to do is load the appropriate configuration file for the camera setup you want to use and you're ready to go. See my post above with link to the test flight video, this gimbal ROCKS! Actually it doesn't, it's rock steady, the frame is what's rockin...

Ken

 

[GotHeliRC]

Hey Ken, so are you going to send me the other half of the balance of the Zemuse when you get back? j/k...

How about a over all video or a tuning video once you get it down?

I do apologize for the lack of instruction and manual, but I simply have no time, I hope you all can understand. This building gimbal thing has put a lot of stress on me (and my friend) who had help me power coat, tapping all the part and putting it together). Due to the fact everything was rushed, we had to do a lot of extra work. Soon realize it was a challenge.

Those who got your gimbal to work nicely, all I ask is a video and your camera/PID setting so other can get some guideline.


As for the board/big motor. Alex and I both agree that the board can handle the 4006 and 4008 no problem. I think it's even possible to run 5200 motor IF you add a heat sink to the chip. But not yet tested.

 

[RTRyder]

Impressed. Very impressed.

Yeah, me too! This is certainly a game changer far more than the Zenmuse is/was, this is an affordable gimbal that does exactly what you want or expect a gimbal to do.

The traditional gimbal may not be dead yet, but it's terminal I think, no way can servos, gears, and belts with pulleys compete with this technology.

DA*N I wish I didn't have to leave town, I just want to charge up a bunch of batteries, tweak this thing a bit more, and go record some video...

Ken

 

[RTRyder]

Hey Ken, so are you going to send me the other half of the balance of the Zemuse when you get back? j/k...

How about a over all video or a tuning video once you get it down?

I do apologize for the lack of instruction and manual, but I simply have no time, I hope you all can understand. This building gimbal thing has put a lot of stress on me (and my friend) who had help me power coat, tapping all the part and putting it together). Due to the fact everything was rushed, we had to do a lot of extra work. Soon realize it was a challenge.

Those who got your gimbal to work nicely, all I ask is a video and your camera/PID setting so other can get some guideline.


As for the board/big motor. Alex and I both agree that the board can handle the 4006 and 4008 no problem. I think it's even possible to run 5200 motor IF you add a heat sink to the chip. But not yet tested.

V, ask Alex if he can add a feature to the GUI to save the setup like the standard Multiwii GUI does, that would be key for swapping cameras on this setup.

The overall setup is very simple once you understand what the parameters do, Alex did a great job on this and future firmware upgrades should only make things better. When I have some spare time I'll do a basic setup guide/video but that won't be for while with everything I've got on the to-do list at the moment. In the meantime I can answer questions people have here on the forum to help them get a working setup.

I hope you're geared up to make a lot of these, I think there's going to be a BIG demand

I've attached a copy of the setup guide I have, not the latest but close enough to get things going for those folks that are just getting their gimbals.

Ken

View attachment 10586

 

[GotHeliRC]

V, ask Alex if he can add a feature to the GUI to save the setup like the standard Multiwii GUI does, that would be key for swapping cameras on this setup.

It has already been done.... v 2.0 is coming.

This is why I decided to stay with Alex board because he's trying to be ahead of all competitor and clones.

 

[Simon Templar]

Very impressive!!! Where do I sign up for one?? (never mind....finally found it)


By the way....a few pages back, you asked what lens most use on NEX-5's. I and a number of others I know use the Sigma 19mm f/2.8 prime.



....sT

 

[ovdt]

Impressive results Ken.

I'm still wondering how to pre-order this gimbal. I think I will have to give up contacting GotHeliRc for this matter.

 

[GotHeliRC]

Impressive results Ken.

I'm still wondering how to pre-order this gimbal. I think I will have to give up contacting GotHeliRc for this matter.

I am sorry, we are getting slam with about 20 emails a day just asking about this gimbal. Unfortunately I have other customers order/issue that need to be taken care first. Not to mention a bunch of gimbal un finish that customer already paid for. But currently the gimbal is not available and I am not taken any more pre-order.


We just got in some Hyper Thin mini hdmi to hdmi cable, this is a MUST for brushless gimbal. So get it, work without modification with 18-55mm lens. In order to work with 16mm lens, it need some surgery.

http://gothelirc.com/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=201&cat=Brushless+Gimbal

 

[Quad Head]

I can tell you that this setup is awesome! Build quality is awesome! Although I had a little trouble with setting things up out of the gate. I 'm past all of that now with the quick response from GH to my frantic emails. (Sorry) Man I'm an idiot! ALWAYS WRITE YOUR SETTINGS DOWN FIRST - TWEAK AFTER THAT! GH got me back going and I'm very happy they were there helping me right away.

I am so busy with work right now I can't give it the full attention I need / want to. As soon as I get some breathing room I will pass all of my settings on. Between work and family it's past brutal having this BG sitting there just waiting for me. I hooked it up to a 3S and an iFlight LG I got with the order and ran around the house with it rock solid. I'm sure I looked like an idiot but it was late and dark out.

I'm planning first flight Saturday - - weather will be better than the 8-14" of snow we got over the weekend!

 

[rwskier]

Here is the first video from the gimbal that Gothelirc.com supplied to me. I received it today and installed it on the Hex right away. this is the Video without even setting any parameters. thanks for the help from the guys at
gothelirc.com for getting this thing up and running.

I am so impressed with the quality of this unit and the result of the video.

 

[Efliernz]

Very nice. well done

Pete

 

[DennyR]

View attachment 10602 Here's a 3 axis one I made for the 550D. The lens is a Tilt and Shift 24mm. If you are working for an architect, the worst thing you can show him is bent verticals. It is an exceptional lens but a little pricey.

I have come up with a solution for cogging artifacts. Do away with the iron stator segments and cogging does not exist. I have started on a flat motor that looks like two small CD's on top of each other. The windings create the magnetic field ( cast in resin) so in a flat motor the magnets are also arranged in a flat orientation. It also helps with the hollow shaft for the wires. :tennis: