MultiWii 2.3 with Companion9x Configuration Questions

[StonedLlama]

Hey all,

I have just flown my maiden flight of my F450 MultiWii quad, and I am hooked! Despite the wind, it was a good test flight, but it left me with a lot of additional questions about my flight mode configuration and stick inputs. To save myself a lot of typing, I'll copy my questions over from my build thread: http://www.multirotorforums.com/showthread.php?18782-Llama-s-Night-Ninja/page2

I found that my propeller nuts on my CCW motors wanted to loosen quite easily. Can anyone tell me if there are supposed to be CCW adapters for 2 of my motors, or if I just need to tighten the top nuts a little more on those motors?

Second question: If I wanted to increase a rate, for let's say my rudder, and I want it to apply to every mode and channel, what would be the best way to do that? I have been messing around in the Companion9x mixes, and have only found ways to decrease the weight of throws, not add over 100%. I am sure I am making it more difficult than it needs to be.

It would be a huge help if someone who has MultiWii 2.3 and Companion9x running on quadcopter could share their eeprom with me, or let me see their mixes page so I will have a better idea of how to program all my desired modes. I would also really love to see someone's MultiWii 2.3 GUI with their flight mode setup, for comparison.

I will give a brief description of how I want my setup to be ultimately, maybe someone with more experience could guide me in C9X to make this happen:
Flight mode switch (SG 3 pos): Low - Attitude auto level / Mid - Acro / High - Horizon *If possible, I'd like just Attitude mode to have dumbed down stick inputs, like a beginner mode for the most stable flights. (75% weights?)
Second Flight mode switch (SE 3 pos): Low - Nothing (just mag I suppose?) / Mid - Headfree (for giggles) / High - GPS ALT Hold
Return to Home / Failsafe (SF 2 pos): Low - Nothing / High - Return to Home (Launch)

I would also like RTH to be activated if my Transmitter is powered off.

Here is a screen capture of my current MultiWii 2.3 setup. Channel 6 did not want to play nice for me, so I used 7 and 8 for modes. Sats connected right after I took the screen cap


Thank you for the feedback and support!

 

[SoCal Blur]

Depending on your motors manufacturer, you can buy prop adapters made for the CCW direction but it's much easier and cheaper to use lock nuts. I wouldn't fly it again without one or the other as eventually, your props will come off in flight on those two CCW motors.

In the main model set up page in the Taranis radio and Companion9X there is a box you can check called "Extend Limits" or something like that (doing this from memory). That will let you push the limits past 100%

Can't help you with the Eprom - I fly an Octo.

As far as setting up your flight modes, you first need to set up your AUX switches in the radio or Companion. You are basically telling the radio which channel will control which switch. I recommend you search Youtube for videos by Scott Page on using companion and setting up the Taranis. It would be much better than trying to have someone explain how to use it.

After your switches are set up, then you tell them what to do in the Multiwii Gui. You can set them up anyway you like.

As far as dumbing down Attitude mode (called Angle in Multiwii), there is a good video by Scott Page on setting up "curves" (also known as Expo).

In the Radio you can set up what loss of signal will do. It defaults to Hold but you can set it up to activate your RTH switch. Just be sure you have RTH set up properly in the Multiwii firmware. This includes how high you what it to rise to first before coming home and what throttle % it needs to be to land properly.

 

[StonedLlama]

Thanks for the reply!

I have seen most all of Scott's videos multiple times, and that has helped me formulate my questions but since he talks planes and servos mostly, I can't get everything I need about mixes for quads from his videos.

There aren't many companion videos out there for quad setups it seems, but I will stick with it.

Thanks for the info about the prop nuts, I will look into that immediately!

Oh, I also have all my AUX channel set up, and working off my desired switches with modes in the MultiWii GUI, I just don't have the knowledge for the fine tuning of the expos and mixes behind the scenes.

 

[SoCal Blur]

The Scott Page video on Curves actually mentions MRs and setting up a curves for hovering. For the other, Pitch, Roll, Yaw - airplane settings should be very similar to what you need for MR.

 

[Motopreserve]

All of SoCal's suggestions are on the money (what else is new!). The lock nuts are sometimes called Nyloc - they are the nuts with nylon inside that grips to the threads. Works great and cheaper (and easier) than sourcing the prop adapters with reverse threads.

If you have all your aux's setup - what exactly are you looking to change? Or more specifically, what are you trying to achieve?

You can change the expo right in companion 9x. In the software, if you open up the model, and then go to the Sticks tab, you can double click on the stick you want to adjust expo on. When it opens up - you'll see the expo setting. You can also see a visual of what this does in the Tx itself.

As far as the fail safe, I set mine up to mimic the RTH (GPS home) feature which is on a 2-way switch. Then it needs to be bound in that configuration with the transmitter.

Looking forward to seeing how you make out.

 

[StonedLlama]

As far as the fail safe, I set mine up to mimic the RTH (GPS home) feature which is on a 2-way switch. Then it needs to be bound in that configuration with the transmitter.

This is exactly what I would like as well, on switch SF. Can you tell me how this was done with a mix, or in C9X? I have GPS Home set to SF already, I just want failsafe to mimic that switch function, when the transmitter is turned off.

 

[StonedLlama]

I think I have got it now...

I have failsafe set to throw switch SF, which is my GPS Home toggle (working in MultiWii GUI but not tested on the field yet).

I also followed along as best I could with Scott, and I think I have set up some simple expo curves for throttle and rudder. I just wanted them to be more responsive at the outer limits of my sticks, so I set the symmetrical expo curves at 45, and bound them to a spare toggle switch so I can go back and forth to the default settings as well.

I'll head out to get some Nyloc nuts, and do some more testing this afternoon!

Thanks Blur and Moto!

 

[Motopreserve]

I don't know that I can tell you from memory... Double check this with the fail safe procedure in the manual.

Basically you turn on Tx (but not RX), put the SF (and the rest of the radio - but I think the RTH should override everything else) switch to the position RTF "on," and then power the RX and hit the fail safe button on the X8R. It will blink to tell you it took. Then power down.

The X8R manual tells you what color LED to look for. It takes a second to do.

What that does is tell the RX to swap to that position of switches/sticks in the event of a loss of signal.

 

[StonedLlama]

I don't know that I can tell you from memory... Double check this with the fail safe procedure in the manual.

Basically you turn on Tx (but not RX), put the SF (and the rest of the radio - but I think the RTH should override everything else) switch to the position RTF "on," and then power the RX and hit the fail safe button on the X8R. It will blink to tell you it took. Then power down.

The X8R manual tells you what color LED to look for. It takes a second to do.

What that does is tell the RX to swap to that position of switches/sticks in the event of a loss of signal.

That doesn't sound too difficult, and I remember reading about it somewhere, but not with reference to setting a RTH switch, so thank you very much! I will give that a crack next flight.

Do the failsafe settings save in the Rx once locked in, for future flights?

 

[Motopreserve]

Yep. Just need to do it that once. Unless you decide you want it to do something different. It basically saves that Tx stick/switch position (so in out case - flipping the SF switch on) for the event of a list communication with the radio.

i had mine programmed to lower the throttle to about 35%, rest of sticks center, horizon mode only and softly land. That was never needed - so "soft" may have been wishful thinking