Hoverfly motors turn on but don't spin up...

workshop

workshop

Member
I'm converting a SkyJib Oct from DJI to HFP... All went fine except when it came time to start the motors.

Advancing throttle makes all motors turn on at a very low RPM but they do not respond the throttle except to turn off at throttle off.

All setting and radio actions are correct in setup. The motors spin up using a servo tester.

The ESCs are ZTW 70A... I am NOT using any BEC... The HFP is powered by a lone 3c lipoly and the radio buss is run off a CCBEC set to 6v...

Any help would be MUCH help... Thanks.

Jeff


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Aerovideo

Aerovideo

Member
I know this may sound simple and something you've already tried but I know a lot of my problems have been fixed with throttle calibrations directly through the Rx. Forgive me as I know you're experienced but I thought I would just throw that out there :)
 

workshop

workshop

Member
Forgive you? No ... thank you!!!

I'll give that a try when I go back for round two after dinner and let you know if it helps.

Thanks!!!


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workshop

workshop

Member
OK... Throttle calibration did not solve the problem but did reveal moe data.

Once calibrated, the motors all spun up as before but there was a little bit of throttle response at the low end. I decide to shake the craft to see if the FCB as in the loop and indeed, the motors changed RPM when the craft is moved. I should mention that I have not installed the props yet.

Perhaps what I am seeing is part of (new) code. I am going to add props and test.

Any ideas from the HoverFly team?

Jeff


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workshop

workshop

Member
I added props and tested the Octo and nothing new... the board arms and the props spin up to a low RPM fixed speed and do not respond to throttle or cyclic inputs.

Has anyone seen this symptom? I am resolved to switch out eight 70A speed controls ($$$) but, as a professional customer pushing my company to use HoverFly gear on booked film and television commercials, I would like to hear from the company...

I'm not sure the best route for customer service either. Is this a case for a help desk ticket or should I go back to RCG?

Jeff

Jeff W. Parisse
Technical Director, RadFlight
www.radflight.com
 


workshop

workshop

Member
Yes... Works fine and shows up correctly in Setup...

It HAS to be something between the FCB and ECSs... If I connect a servo tester on any particular ESC, it's corresponding motor spins up and covers the entire RMP range. When that ESC is plugged back into the FCB, it only spins up to a fixed, low rpm with the other motors. Red ESC wires removed. RX powered by CCBEC set to 6V.

All settings and tests available in setup confirm a clean installation and the FCB arms OK. I think I have to replace the eight 70A ($$$) ESCs to get this SkyJib to fly.

HoverFly responded to the content of this post at RCG and said that they do not know what my problem could be.

Still... A real challenge since I can't imagine why the two elements can't talk to each other???

Jeff
 
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workshop

workshop

Member
Al didn't mentioned that but at this point I am willing to try anything short of replacing those ESCs (which I'll have to do if I can't find a fix).

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm off to the electronics store... I imagine any NPN transistor will work

Jeff
 

S

Stacky

Member
Jeff, sorry I dont have any thoughts on what the problem could be, its something I havent hear of before. With respect to getting a response faster from HF it might be best for something urgent or major to do a RMA via their help desk system than rely on the forum response, at least that way they get a direct notification instead of us waiting to see if they spotted the posting. I did see that Al had mentioned he had seen the question but didnt have any answer for you but with the RMA on an urgent issue I think you will possibly get faster assistance or acknowledgement.
 

workshop

workshop

Member
RMA, RCG, MRF...??? Where is a user to turn?

I like the public forums despite the occasional troll like behavior that seems to be common to most of them. The public forum allows the user base to jump in and help hopefully relieving pressure on the vendor. I see the RMA process for something that is wrong with the purchased product. In my case the HFP is working and so are the ESCs but the two do not communicate: a problem that fits into a grey area.

I think having two public forums is confusing and HFT should pick one IMO. I got frustrated because Al made it clear that he was moving support to MRF. I only got an official company response to my MRF post after I went back to RCG and addressed the problem.

The HFP products are clearly aimed at the professional cinematographer and a single pro user community can really be of use to us all.


Jeff
Technical Director, RadFlight
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S

Stacky

Member
HF only decided to switch to MRF about 2 weeks ago if that. If they shut down RCG right away due to the nature of forums and the users frequency of use there would be a decent sized bunch of users show up and be lost initially as to whats happened. So in the interim they need to leave both running, thats just simple common sense and seriously, how hard is it to check 2 forums?. Its just 2 mouse clicks, it takes only a few seconds, its not in even the most liberal sense of the word confusing.
If you want an "official" response to something use the RMA, relying on forums for answers for something urgent is just foolish. You have been with HF long enough to know that there are times when they are very visible and active on the forums and times when they are hardly on at all for a week or so. And even if you know its not the board but its something urgent the nice thing about HF is they will try and help, a quick response will be the rma. Its really quite easy.

If there is one thing HF should do it would be to put a sticky on RCG saying they have moved their support forum to here but maybe that could cause them problems at RCG?

Its basic simple common sense that they will have to run 2 forums for a while till the majority of users find out where the new home is.
 

workshop

workshop

Member
Stacky???... it is just as easy for HFT to check two forums as it is for me.

The facts show that I was checking two forums more frequently than they were checking two forums. By his own admission, Al wrote that he had read my post, concluded he didn't know of an answer, and did not share his conclusion on either forum. Other than the aforementioned, you have a grasp of the obvious points of this impasse.

This was not urgent in so far as the TV commercial, we filmed it on a WKM equipped machine. I am attempting to convert our entire company to HoverFly products.

Jeff

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Aerovideo

Aerovideo

Member
I'm going to throw out some more dumb stuff but it's all I can think of... Do the ESCs have a governor mode? Is it on or off? Are the ESCs set to a soft start like on a heli? Not sure if either of those would affect what you're seeing but governor mode might. Also, I have no idea what "brake" on an ESC does but is it on or off?

Seems strange that the ESCs work fine with a servo tester so maybe none of the ESC settings matter.

Have you tried unplugging one ESC and trying a different kind/brand?

I vaguely remember someone else having a similar problem on RCGroups but unfortunately I'm old and can't recall the details nor find the thread... hehe :)

Paul
 

workshop

workshop

Member
Paul,

Thanks so much for the constructive troubleshooting help.

I inherited a working SkyJib so the ESCs were programmed already to work with WKM. I have ordered a programming card so I can double check setting but all worked fine with the DJI board so I believe the problem lies elsewhere.

I am gathering parts to make the logic signal booster mentioned earlier in this thread and will report back on my progress.

Jeff


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yeehaanow

yeehaanow

Member
I ran into a problem with incompatible esc's. Spent all day trying to figure out why one motor wouldn't start. I could switch it all around, but it would just be a different motor. After reading their forums I found out they are known not to work.
 

S11D336B

S11D336B

George - Hoverfly
Jeff,
Not really sure why this is happening, but I haven't used your ESCs before. There could be a compatibility issue there. If they work fine from the RX, they should work ok from the HoverflyPro. I think signal conditioners is a good place to start.
These may work
http://hobby-miracle.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1511

workshop said:
Paul,

Thanks so much for the constructive troubleshooting help.

I inherited a working SkyJib so the ESCs were programmed already to work with WKM. I have ordered a programming card so I can double check setting but all worked fine with the DJI board so I believe the problem lies elsewhere.

I am gathering parts to make the logic signal booster mentioned earlier in this thread and will report back on my progress.

Jeff


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Click to expand...
 

workshop

workshop

Member
I attempted the circuit shown earlier in this thread and it inverts the signal. I tried it anyway and it did not work. I then sat down an whipped up a two transistor (2N2222) non-inverting signal amplifier and tested it out on the bench; 3V logic in and 5V logic out. However, it did not solve the copter's problem.

The HFP subsystem is working fine. The power subsystem is working fine. The two just do not talk. After arming, the motors spin up to a low RPM when the throttle is advanced. They do not respond to throttle input other than to turn off when the throttle is lowered.

The copter is benched until my boss makes an executive decision on which subsystem to replace. What 70A ESCs carry an official HFP approval?

Thanks for the help BTW.

Jeff


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