Need help switching from 1-man to 2-man config with Taranis and Alexmos

[violetwolf]

Thanks for taking the time to type it all out PT. Most appreciated.

For profiles: did you try power cycling the AM board after changing profiles? I don't use AM but I know some other boards require an on/off cycle.

PS: you may have just convinced me to switch from Futaba to my Taranis.. I've got a spare Xjt module so all I need is the second RX and second Taranis.

Which controls on the single-hand are you using for the gimbal? I presume the sliders?

I've always gone dual operator, but my camera op is busy every summer doing weddings (ugh) so this may fill that hole.

 

[ptaylor999]

Thanks for taking the time to type it all out PT. Most appreciated.

For profiles: did you try power cycling the AM board after changing profiles? I don't use AM but I know some other boards require an on/off cycle.

PS: you may have just convinced me to switch from Futaba to my Taranis.. I've got a spare Xjt module so all I need is the second RX and second Taranis.

Which controls on the single-hand are you using for the gimbal? I presume the sliders?

I've always gone dual operator, but my camera op is busy every summer doing weddings (ugh) so this may fill that hole.

Power cycling after the profile switch. .. Brilliant! That may be just the ticket to bring this whole thing home. thanks for that, Wolf.

On my one-man control, I have both the analog pots/dials doing yaw and pitch. I'm doing yaw only because my gimbal is somewhat unstable right now, as far as the yaw axis is concerned, so it's a corrective control. Hopefully I will be able to correct this issue in the GUI through more calibration, etc, and will free up that pot for the roll. Right now I also have the left slider controlling roll. I also have the trigger switch on lower right (sorry, Tx is not near me right now) as a Return to Home control.

I have the same issue - my pilot is often busy with this and that, so I need to fly solo as needed, and I gotta say, being forced to get complicated shots as a one man show Really has improved my flying skills.

 

[violetwolf]

I'm sure you'll find you don't really need roll control except occasionally. For single handing pitch control is the key one, and if your yaw follow mode works well you can pan with the copter on SOME shots.

 

[ptaylor999]

I'm sure you'll find you don't really need roll control except occasionally. For single handing pitch control is the key one, and if your yaw follow mode works well you can pan with the copter on SOME shots.

I agree. You SHOULDN'T need the roll control. But, I have it there as a corrective measure, at least until I get this gimbal dialed in and working dependably.

 

[violetwolf]

Word

 

[violetwolf]

Hey PT can you simply reassign the Cam Op's Taranis sticks to different channels? (So they would match the channels that you're using on the pilots TX) That would be easier, if supported, than switching profiles on the AlexMos..?

I'm seriously considering going this route... I have my finger on the buy button at hobbyking for the second Taranis.

 

[ptaylor999]

But then, when in 1-man mode, wouldn't the sticks be double assigned?

 

[violetwolf]

I should really brush up on my Taranis functions before I make a newb out of myself lol!

But, I'm wondering if the stick assignment is a radio-side function. IE the channels are assigned before they get sent to the modules... In which case my idea could work. BUT I don't even know if its possible to reassign the sticks? Maybe in the mixer...

I've just pulled my Taranis out of storage, updated firmware, and am in the process of learning its menus. Either way I think this is a good solution and will buy a second Taranis when I get home.

Let us know how things are working out for you PT, good or bad, and I'll do the same.

 

[ptaylor999]

Signs of life here. Not animated, happy life, but the heart is beating and I think I saw a finger twitch.

At my partner's suggestion, we decided to replace the hdmi ribbon cable on my Aerialpixels converter with a regular hdmi cable, just for testing. And whadyaknow, this resulted in a live image, which is better than the previous messed up static image. Unfortunately this live image is still pretty screwed up, but at least it's live. So, turns out that, at the very least, the hdmi ribbon cable on this converter is bad.

And then, a bit later, while putting the ribbon cable into the camera, the whole cable just fell out of its housing at the converter end. It wasn't being pulled or tweaked in any way. It just plopped out. So, given the poor quality control and workmanship of this converter, I can't help but think there is something else wrong with it that is causing the poor live image as well. Aerialpixels has offered to let me return it for testing and possible repair, but I really can't wait that long, plus now I don't trust their product. I'm waiting to hear from them tomorrow to see if they will ship another unit out immediately, while I package and return the defective unit. I'll wait to hear, while I decide whether to order a Kopterworx unit instead, which seems to be more popular and dependable, though I can't help but think they are basically the same board with different cables and connectors being soldered on.

I'm in limbo right now and jobs are passing us by while all this is being sorted out. I'd like to give Aerialpixels another chance as I know that mistakes can happen to anyone. But they need to stand by their product and ship a new one right away. I hope they will.

 

[violetwolf]

Damn that's a pain. I'm doing downtime right now too while I get a new gimbal up and running and switch to retract landing gear, so I can relate to the "jobs passing us by" bit.. The phone is ringing and I'm having to make excuses.. not good.. BUT I found some more info for us.. see my next post.

 

[violetwolf]

So I posted this in the Taranis thread over on RcGroups and got some good news... here's my post then the reply:

I'm fairly new to the Taranis so I'd like to bounce an idea off the experts in this thread.

I'm planning to set up a dual operator camera ship using the dual rf modules.. Ptaylor999 was saying that The Taranis has the ability to assign channels to both the internal module and the XJT external module. He binds the internal module to the MultiRotors RX. Then he binds the external XJT module to the gimbal RX.. (he then assigns the MR channels IE 1-4 to the internal and the Gimbal chans say 6-7-8 to the external). He uses this config for single-handing. Then when there's a second operator he simply pulls the XJT module out and puts it in his second Taranis radio for the Cam Op.

Any pitfalls to using both modules simultaneously such as crosstalk etc? I'd hate to risk a ten thousand dollar machine.

Also, when moving the module to the camera op's Taranis the gimbal channels would need to be assigned/mapped differently. For example the pitch control would be on a slider in the pilots radio, but when in the cam op radio we'd want it assigned to the elevator stick. Can we reassign the sticks on that radio to output to the module on different channels?
The other workaround would be to have a separate bank in the phobotic gimbal controller with the channels remapped there.

Any and all suggestions or input welcomed.

And the reply from Noircogi:

There's no issue with any of what you want to do.
The mapping of controls to channels and which channels are sent to which module are both the model config. You'd just use a different config for the pilot vs the camera operator.

So it looks like we're good to go on the reassigning channels on the Cam Op radio

 

[ptaylor999]

Yeah, I'm actually having the landing gear blues as well. My brand new Arris X-3 Lander is now only retracting one strut. Wonderful. Hoping they'll stand by their product as well. But haven't heard anything since sending them an email 2 days ago.

 

[ptaylor999]

So I posted this in the Taranis thread over on RcGroups and got some good news... here's my post then the reply:


And the reply from Noircogi:



So it looks like we're good to go on the reassigning channels on the Cam Op radio

Hmmm. I think you've got something there. I'll start testing .. right after I get my FPV going, and my landing gear fixed.

 

[violetwolf]

Oh great. That's the set that I have and am installing tomorrow! But I can say that I have searched extensively and haven't found anyone complaining about them. I can't say that about Tarot and a few others that are getting a lot of complaints. The only non working report I saw for Arris was a fellow who had a wire break under the heat shrink on one unit.. maybe have a look at that.

 

[ptaylor999]

Looks like I was over thinking this whole thing. Thanks to Wolf for helping free my mind on the matter.

There is no need to switch profiles at all. I simply needed to wrap my head around the fact that the RC section of the BaseCam GUI was only assigning gimbal functions to Tx channels. The actual transmitter controls used for each gimbal function is assigned on the Tx itself, and can be different per Tx. Thus, the 1-man Tx can control Pan via the S1 pot, while the 2-man Tx does it with the rudder stick, etc.

Those designations do not live with the XJT module, but rather with the transmitter.

So, in the end, it truly is as simple as moving the XJT module from one transmitter to another to go from 1-man to 2-man operation.

This has been fully tested and works like a charm.

 

[violetwolf]

That's great news PT. I have my second Taranis now and have switched my machine and gimbal over to X8R's. All tested for range and reliability. Over the next few days I'll get the module in and tackle that programming.

Did you figure out your landing gear issue?

 

[ptaylor999]

That's great news PT. I have my second Taranis now and have switched my machine and gimbal over to X8R's. All tested for range and reliability. Over the next few days I'll get the module in and tackle that programming.

Did you figure out your landing gear issue?

Nope. In fact, now neither strut will move, at all, ever. It's a complete failure of this Arris X-3 Landing gear. I've contacted Arris so will wait to see if they make it right.

 

[violetwolf]

Damn that's disheartening. What Voltage are you running them on? And are you running LED lighting off the controller too?

Mine have been pretty solid so far.. Running off a 12v bec and no LED's connected.

On a positive note I've got my dual radio setup as we discussed above, and its working flawlessly. Pop the module from one to the other and your good to go in seconds

 

[ptaylor999]

Good to hear your transferable setup's working well. Mine is too. My biggest problem is remembering to switch the XJT module from one Tx to the other. Ha!

I need to take a closer look at the power situation with this landing gear.

 

[violetwolf]

Can you test your landing gears' servos to see if they are burnt or if it's the controller that's gone bad? You'll need a 5v power source and perhaps a servo tester and hook it up directly to the servos. At least you'll know if it's the servos or the controller then. I think you can buy the controller separately.

I asked about your power source as the documentation is vague on that. I recall the website erroneously states the power handling as higher than it can handle.. It should be 12v or less.