LibrePilot Forum

General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: burtlo on January 06, 2017, 09:41:25 am

Title: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 06, 2017, 09:41:25 am
PRESCRIPT: After all this below, I'm now unable to boot my CC3D. I only get a single yellow light, blinking slowly until becoming solid. I'm guessing I need to recover my board like this (https://librepilot.atlassian.net/wiki/display/LPDOC/Recover+board+using+ST-Link)?

So I bought stuff for a Flamewheel clone (didn't realize the pedigree when I bought the stuff). The OpenPilot looked geeky, so I got that, and I got my very first standalone transmitter, [this Spektrum unit](http://www.banggood.com/2_4G-6CH-S603-Receiver-Supported-JR-Spektrun-DSM-X-DSM2-Transmitter-p-961733.html).

I'm poking around with things, stuck a bit because I don't have power leads (d'oh!), but I'm working on configuration with the LibrePilot software. It gave me this, after going through the setup wizard (a cool experience in itself):
(https://cdn-standard.discourse.org/uploads/micro_motor_warehouse/original/2X/0/077516f5332107bf890c05d1fb037083a6d172e1.jpg)

I see the pinouts for the CC3D board here:
(https://cdn-standard.discourse.org/uploads/micro_motor_warehouse/original/2X/0/05aa3f1c2da7b95657525bbdaf5908188a996e10.jpg)

Here are the pinouts for the TX:
(https://cdn-standard.discourse.org/uploads/micro_motor_warehouse/original/2X/e/eaa80c6ddb14d4784dc0dc32f902dc904869af4e.jpg)
According to the first diagram, I should use the left Flexiport, though according to the docs (https://librepilot.atlassian.net/wiki/display/LPDOC/CC+Hardware+Configuration), it really doesn't matter which port I use.

So, I basically have three questions now:

1. Do the four wires from my Flexiport all go into the S603 TX, and if so, how?
2. What powers the CC3D?
3. The terms TX and RX are somewhat interchangeable, right? Depending on how they're being used? e.g. this S603 is a TX, and my TBS Tango controller is also a TX, but mostly a Receiver...?

Btw, I have my motors in place, ESCs connected to motors, ESCs connected to PDB (bottom plate of the frame), and ESCs connected to the CC3D. All that is pretty clear so far. Besides the questions above, I have to provide power to the PDB, and I should be all wired up, right?

NOTE: Cross-posted here (https://community.micro-motor-warehouse.com/t/openpilot-cc3d-s603-tx/3480), as I was active in the MMW forums recently, and just discovered these forums for LibrePilot.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: TheOtherCliff on January 06, 2017, 04:52:33 pm
Some quick notes.

You need firmware and GCS to match.  When you change firmware you should erase settings and do configuration wizard from the beginning.

Chinese salesmen often call a Revo a "Revo".  That is a Revo, not a CC3D.  Make sure that you have a CC3D before doing anything more.  It will say what it is on the board itself.

You should be able to flash and run the bu_coptercontrol.opfw file with just the rescue procedure.  Firmware page disconnect USB.  Press Rescue.  Plug in USB.  Open and navigate to the opfw file.  Flash it.  Boot it and let it run for 20 seconds.  Now you have a known correct bootloader.  Use same procedure to flash fw_coptercontrol.opfw  Search forum or wiki for more about rescue if you need to.

If you are using just a Spektrum Sat Rx, realize that it must be bound using the full receiver before it will work.  More importantly, realize that it needs 3.3v and if you connect it like that picture (direct to CC3D without a voltage regulator), you may burn it out.  There are CC3D "EVO" boards that have more ports that have 3.3v power... but normal boards put out 5v on all ports (they actually just put out what they are given by the ESCs).

It's not clear which receiver you are using.  (and receiver is usually abbreviated RX, not TX ... TX is for transmitter).

Search the wiki for DSM and you should find some receiver connection instructions.

Flight battery connects to ESC.  ESCs usually have a BEC "step down to 5v" inside and that 5v comes out of the small 3 wire connector.  That connects to the CC3D and powers the CC3D.  The CC3D powers the receiver because all the ports and ESC connector power connections are connected internally in the CC3D.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: hwh on January 06, 2017, 05:19:04 pm
..., [this Spektrum unit](http://www.banggood.com/2_4G-6CH-S603-Receiver-Supported-JR-Spektrun-DSM-X-DSM2-Transmitter-p-961733.html).

I'm poking around with things, stuck a bit because I don't have power leads (d'oh!), but I'm working on configuration with the LibrePilot software. It gave me this, after going through the setup wizard (a cool experience in itself)...

Once you get it connecting to LP again you need to re-run the wizard and tell it what receiver you have. If it gave you that diagram then you made a mistake and told it you have a Satellite receiver, the one you linked to isn't a Satellite receiver.  It could be hooked up PWM or PPM.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 06, 2017, 05:44:27 pm
@TheOtherCliff, thanks for all that info. My board _does_ say "CC3D". Here's what I bought: http://www.banggood.com/OpenPilot-CC3D-Flight-Controller-STM32-32-bit-Flexiport-p-937044.html

The Receiver I bought is this: http://www.banggood.com/2_4G-6CH-S603-Receiver-Supported-JR-Spektrun-DSM-X-DSM2-Transmitter-p-961733.html

I'm having a serious power problem, though. I had previously connected it to LibrePilot, and run the wizard, which had me do an upgrade of firmware to match versions.

Towards the end, as I documented above, I was recommended to connect the CC3D to the RX, which puzzled me, so I did nothing but write some posts for help. In the meantime, though, I lost connection with the CC3D, to the point that it doesn't get recognized on USB by Windows, nor by LibrePilot.

When I try your suggestion of using the Rescue feature, LibrePilot times out.

Now, just trying one last time, I get zero lights from the board via USB. I'm writing for replacement at this point.

@hwh, thanks, I _did_ select the DSM Satellite option, only because it said DSM. I'll try the others when I can.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: hwh on January 06, 2017, 11:59:28 pm
...Now, just trying one last time, I get zero lights from the board via USB. I'm writing for replacement at this point. ...

Zero lights is either a bad board or sometimes a bad USB cable or port.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 07, 2017, 12:08:32 am
For once, I actually remembered to review the easy possibilities, and tried at least three cables. I'm pretty convinced, though I will still maintain an open mind. :-)
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: manikmodder01 on January 07, 2017, 01:32:57 am
I have bought 4 f3 flight controllers 1 naze32 ver5 2 cc3d and all of them had issues usually about a week in with no crashes

Sent from my LGMS330 using Tapatalk

Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: manikmodder01 on January 07, 2017, 01:34:32 am
Srry forgot to mention all were purchsed from banggood i do not shop with them anymore i buy local or from a manufacturer that support the software

Sent from my LGMS330 using Tapatalk

Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 07, 2017, 06:29:17 am
That's becoming the more obviously prudent choice, @manikmodder01! I have been waiting on the RotorX Atom V2 after contributing to their Indiegogo campaign, and have been overly budget-minded in the meantime. I'm coming to my senses, though, seeing how the mass production still has too high a failure rate than I would hope.

Supporting local is good business, too, but the local shops around me seem slow to get into this level of the hobby. I'm surprised at that, but I'm seeing signs from some that they're interested in getting more committed.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: manikmodder01 on January 07, 2017, 07:02:01 am
Just started picking up around here theres spme local guys trying to get an old warehouse or something so we ha e a race track its kinda nicr

Sent from my LGMS330 using Tapatalk

Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 07, 2017, 07:07:49 am
Awesome! Whereabouts do you live? North of San Diego, CA, here.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: hwh on January 07, 2017, 07:43:21 pm
Srry forgot to mention all were purchsed from banggood i do not shop with them anymore i buy local or from a manufacturer that support the software...

Everyone's experience varies, I've purchased probably ten assorted FC from BG over the last year or so.  F1, F3, and F4 based.  I've never had a problem with any of them.  Some people (like you apparently  :( ) have bad luck and get ones with problems.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 11, 2017, 09:24:12 am
So I got wondering about things again, and I pulled my seemingly dead CC3D out of the drawer. I tried again on my normal USB ports, and nothing at all. Then, I tried on my USB charging hub, which has both 1A and 4A output. I connected to the 4A output, and the lights seem to have gone through the normal boot procedure!

Unfortunately, I'm not seeing a change in connecting via USB. I did try the FTDI interface, but I was a bit rushed and I'm either not doing it properly, or there's still more in the way.

Interesting note, to me, that increased current seems to have helped the board.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: TheOtherCliff on January 11, 2017, 08:37:33 pm
Does anything on the board get uncomfortably hot after say 5 minutes?  That would imply there is a problem.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 11, 2017, 10:09:32 pm
No, even without cooling, it's a steady slightly warm temperature.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: TheOtherCliff on January 12, 2017, 06:28:02 am
The 4A is probably just better power.  It certainly doesn't even need 1A to run.  The fact that it isn't hot says it's not using even 1A.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 12, 2017, 10:47:54 pm
Someone wondered if this git issue was related. I've asked: https://github.com/betaflight/betaflight/issues/2036#issuecomment-272294020
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: hwh on January 13, 2017, 02:35:18 am
I'm lost.   Does the board have LibrePilot or BetaFlight on it?  That thread seems to be talking about a problem with the OPBL version of BF.  I didn't know they even supported flashing through OP/LP any more.  I thought they discontinued that a few releases ago.

I downloaded the BF 3.1 release from their github a few days ago and flashed it's cc3d target onto one of my spare cc3ds.   It works fine.   I flashed it with a STLinkV2 instead of one of the serial things.  Considering the clones of them are less than $10 I don't know why more people don't flash with them.  No jumpering, no problems with timing, it just works.  :)

# version
# Betaflight / CC3D 3.1.0 Jan  6 2017 / 00:15:02 (f0fc42b)
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 13, 2017, 03:38:52 pm
My board had LibrePilot on it before it stopped responding properly. Someone else suggested that github issue, but you're right... if that's simply a Betaflight issue, then it's not involved.

Btw, I bought another CC3D from a different vendor, and it set itself up quite nicely. I've still gotta connect the receiver and complete the setup, but I think I'm cookin' with gas now.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 14, 2017, 03:02:33 pm
On it goes... stuck with an oddity, here's where I'm at:

CC3D using LibrePilot 16.09. I've run through the Vehicle Setup Wizard, and flashed the latest.

I have a Spektrum-compatible S603 receiver, and I've set that up with PWM through the Main Receiver Port.

I'm trying to run through the Transmitter Wizard, but I'm having inconsistent results. I _have_ gotten to this point, though, which illustrates my singular problem at the moment.

I'm unable to get a signal from my right stick horizontal movement. This works on another quad, but almost every instance, I get "No activity" from the Receiver Activity section of the Input console. Thus, it seems my transmitter is configured, all except for my Roll control.

Any suggestions?
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: TheOtherCliff on January 14, 2017, 04:40:41 pm
Assuming the transmitter isn't set up strangely (roll stick not sending), since you are using PWM and each channel has it's own wire, it seems likely that the #1 channel wire is not working.

You could try to just configure it manually.  Just set roll to channel #1, give it min, neutral, max and click Save.  You may have to set the Reverse if it is backwards.

Oh, it looks like you are trying to set up a one rotor heli with both collective and throttle channels.  If you are trying to fly a multicopter (e.g. quad), the transmitter should be configured as if you were flying an airplane (no collective channel).

If you actually intend to fly a one rotor heli, make sure your transmitter is actually sending both throttle and collective channels (must be configured as heli) and you don't have something stopping throttle from working (heli transmitters have a throttle hold switch).  Plug a servo into throttle and collective on the receiver and make sure that both are changing when you move the throttle stick.  Test the roll channel this way too.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 15, 2017, 01:09:54 pm
Thanks for sticking with me, TheOtherCliff.

I'm still mystified. To be clear, I'm configuring a quad, not a one rotor heli.

I confirmed on a different quad in CleanFlight that my transmitter's right-horizontal stick movement works in that it distinctly responds in the CleanFlight Receiver configuration. This was to rule out transmitter hardware failure.

Yet, in LibrePilot, still no go. I tried a second cable from the ReceiverPort, with the same PWM pin arrangements, no change. In PWM, that right-horizontal stick movement translates to Channel 3.

I tried PPM_NoOneShot with the same cable, from ReceiverPort with first three pins connected to the PPM pins on my receiver. All channels respond, but no response on Channel 3.

Then, I tried something different by selecting PPM_PIN8+OneShot. I moved pin 8 to the signal of pin 1, and inserted the plug onto my receiver's PPM pins. Still no go for Roll, on Channel 3.

So, as far as I can tell, I've tried PWM and PPM. Of note to me is that with PWM, the channel arrangements seem to be xETR (with "x" being the missing Aileron), but with PPM, the channel arrangements seem to be ETxR.

Any other ideas?

Attached is a screenshot of how far I got with the PPM config.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 15, 2017, 01:45:16 pm
I intend on trying the other ports, besides the ReceiverPort, as well as trying to use a Satellite Rx instead of my current receiver.

Also, I just realized that I have a "Reworked" CC3D, per https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showpost.php?p=33136714. I came to realize this when I saw a plug that matched my Lemon Rx Satellite on the bottom of the CC3D, underneath the ReceiverPort.

Lastly, I might try CleanFlight since things _are_ working on my other quad there.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: TheOtherCliff on January 15, 2017, 03:11:27 pm
Power it up, connect it to GCS.  Go to the input page.

Does the transmitter roll stick perhaps move the collective slider?  Try to reconfigure it there in the way that you know it needs to work.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 15, 2017, 04:12:19 pm
I tried as you suggested with PPM, but I'm not getting any response from other channels besides 1, 2, 4, 5, 6.

I tried as you suggested with PPM, but I'm not getting any response from other channels besides 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

I've attached the Input configuration for PPM, and then for PWM along with my wire connections.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: TheOtherCliff on January 15, 2017, 07:35:11 pm
try to narrow it down.  plug a servo into each receiver PWM output, and make sure it does what it is supposed to.  then test the channel 1 wire for continuity.  then try plugging that wire into a different Revo PWM input to see if you can get that working.
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 18, 2017, 12:08:41 pm
My receiver issues were due a hardware problem in the receiver. I tried a Lemon Rx that I just received, and everything went smoothly.

Thanks for all your support! My CC3D quad now has all working parts assembled!
Title: Re: Newbie questions
Post by: burtlo on January 18, 2017, 10:39:16 pm
I successfully maidened my quad, and no crashes! I've got some adjustments to do, but it performed pretty much as I expected. I'm very satisfied!

This was my first brushless ever, and a DIY on top of that! Thanks for all the help in making this happen.