Will WKM MCU accomodate 2 RC systems?

[PeterLester]

New to this situation....... seems to me that the optimal setup is to have one person on the ground to manually fly Hexa or Octo copter and another, i.e., videographer/photographer remotely controlling the gimbal via separate Tx and Rx. This seems to suggest the WooKong M MCU would need to interface via two Receivers which in turn means that one receiver needs to use the Futaba S bus...... in other words, one radio system has to be a Futaba..... Is this correct?

 

[LowFlier]

Why would the photographer's radio need to go through the WooKong?

 

[PeterLester]

Wookong M accomodate 2 RC systems

Why would the photographer's radio need to go through the WooKong?

Thanks.....Good question....which also reveals my oversight! I need to study this more before buying a radio system. Seems Futaba is best way to go with WKM.

 

[remyd]

No the Wookong uses only one radio (tx) bound to a receiver (rx). It does have average gimbal stabilisation and you can control the pitch axis of the gimbal to point the camera up and down built into the control unit. If you have a spare channel on your rx it is also possible to trigger cameras etc using the tx and rx. The reason many go for a second radio and receiver is because they are often using separate gimbal control and stabilisation along with the fact that to do quality video really requires someone concentrating on the filming usually using FPV to see what they are shooting and controlling what the camera is viewing etc.

 

[araines2750]

Just food for thought.
Depending on the application, it may be easier for the pilot to fly via DJI groundstation.
If you are looking at distance, this will allow the pilot to have full instruments & a GPS location on his screen.
This is how i am doing long range video...currently without a video downlink, but once added will be 2 separate screens or PIP.
With 900 Mhz. I can get out a very good distance.

 

[PeterLester]

Thanks Andrew,
Please clarify..... Are you saying that the 900Mhz video downlink can be the only radio control system for the WKM such that a conventional RC radio systems would be redundant?

 

[LowFlier]

You need the conventional TX even when you use a 900mHz system for control. The 900mHz system attaches to the TX and only transmits what the conventional TX provides based on your finger work.

What you need is a decent TX that is compatible with the long range systems. Although a number of brands will work for either, if you want to stay mainstream and get easy compatibility, look at a Futaba TX and either DragonLink or EzUHF for the long range system. I'm not a fanboy for these brands, but in researching what I want for long range FPV, these seem the most compatible and best supported.

If you want to have a photographer that is able to control a camera gimbal separate from the pilot, you will probably want a second TX for him/her. If you need long range, they will need a second long range system for that TX too. On the other hand, if you intend to fly within 100 yards of your position as most commercial operators appear to do, you don't need long range radio at all. Either way, you still need a TX for the pilot and none of this changes what that TX needs to be.

You want 8+ channels for the pilot. Having a knob or two to allow you to adjust gains on the fly will be nice. There are a number of radios that meet this need. I just got a Futaba 8FG Super myself, partly because it has knobs and 3-way switches, partly because it is a Futaba and therefore very compatible, and partly because it supports S-Bus and can handle up to 14 channels (though I'll likely never use more than 8 or so).

As for video, that is a separate TX/RX setup. And if the pilot wants remote video as well as the photographer, that's two video setups. Often in that situation only the photog has the video and the pilot flies LOS, but that's up to you and your needs.

For starters, settle on a TX for the pilot. You can expand the rest later pretty easily.

I'm just a somewhat well-read newbie though. Hopefully someone with actual experience will jump in and provide additional info or corrections to my drivel.

 

[araines2750]

Both the Link & the Traditional TX are required for aircraft control.
Once the Link has connected to the aircraft, motors are spinning & the craft is in the air, the conventional TX is completely locked out and can be turned off. this allows the full range of the 900Mhz. Datalink to control the aircraft.
As with most hobbys & businesses, everyone has different approaches and different needs.
For me, I have the exact opposite approach than that of lowflier.
Since I am a hobbist & want be be able to do both flying & watch/ control the video, I can do this in several ways with my set-up.
1. I can program waypoints & have the aircraft fly an assigned flight path. Using the F-channel control, I can control the gimbal at the Groundstation as I view a second screen.
2. I can fly with click & go, pause at a point of interest and control the gimbal with F-channel control.
3. I can fly entirely with the traditional TX, get telemetry from the GCS is desired & watch the video screen for FPV.
Flying with GCS and gimbal control can be done the the keyboard or a joystick.
My system meets my needs.
I do not need to spend financial resources or aircraft weight on a second traditional TX & RX as they really do not fit my needs.
Your needs may be different.....Thats the geat part of this Forum...Learning for others and sorting through what will be best for you.

 

[mossb]

Why would the photographer's radio need to go through the WooKong?

To control tilt(pitch) and still have stabilization? I assume this is impossible with WKM, or could second RX use X3 if main RX is connected to X2 with S-BUS?

Or should I have dedicated controller with 2D-gimbal (AV200)?

 

[ProPilotWannaBe]

mossb, if you are only using a 2 axis gimbal, there is no need for a separate receiver/transmitter. The WKM already has two outputs you can feed into the roll and pitch inputs of the gimbal.
However, as stated above, if the gimbal has its own stabilization controller, then you will need to wire that directly to a receiver, but you could theoretically still use the same receiver.
As a generality, you would want a second transmitter/receiver combo for the gimbal if it is a three axis because now you are having to worry about many more features and you should have a separate camera operator to handle that.

 

[mossb]

Okay. It would be just nice to let photog control 2D gimbal stabilized by FC and not need to pay for second stabilization system. Maybe DJI could implement this in next update?

 

[ProPilotWannaBe]

Okay. It would be just nice to let photog control 2D gimbal stabilized by FC and not need to pay for second stabilization system. Maybe DJI could implement this in next update?

What exactly do you mean? As stated, the FC of the WKM will control a two axis gimbal and will keep the camera level and tilted,mans allow the pilot tilt control of the gimbal. What more are you asking out of the flight computer?
iI you are wanting an Alexmos type of brushless gimbal controller, well, you'll never get that out of a flight computer. That's why there are dedicated brushless gimbal controllers.