PPM Sum from Remote Control

I found this circuit diagram (link below) that adds all the PWM signals from the remote control receiver into one signal so that all you need is one "Input Capture" pin to receive all (N-1 channels actually) channels. This simplifies my flight controller board design.

http://www.hobbytronics.co.uk/tutorials-code/tutorials-radio-control/decode-rc-control-ppm

Gotta Love China

I recently found this PCB fabrication site:  http://imall.iteadstudio.com/open-pcb/pcb-prototyping.html. For $13 (shipping included) you get a "5cm x 5cm" board with two layers. I recently made my first PCB for my flight controller and it took two weeks to deliver.

I used "Eagle PCB Software" to design my flight controller. The free version restricts the board size to "10cm x 8cm", which is more than enough for me. I followed this tutorial on "sparkfun" to learn Eagle: https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/how-to-install-and-setup-eagle

SimonK Firmware for ESC

The two ESC's I listed in the previous posts are compatible with a custom firmware called SimonK. The firmware makes the ESC's perform a lot better. This involves using a programmer called USBasp (link in previous post) and a flashing tool called "KKMulticopter Flashtool." There are many tutorials online for this. You can refer to this speedsheet to check for compatible ESC and which firmware version to use:  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AhR02IDNb7_MdEhfVjk3MkRHVzhKdjU1YzdBQkZZRlE#gid=0

Here is a good starting point:  http://oddcopter.com/2012/04/03/flashing-my-escs-with-simonk-code/

Building a Quadcopter

For the past couple of months I have been building my own Quadcopter with parts from www.hobbyking.com, ebay, and several other RC online stores. I am developing the flight controller using a PIC32 as the microcontroller and a MPU6050 for the IMU. Below I will list the parts I bought to build the Quadcopter:

Frame:

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__49725__Q450_V3_Glass_Fiber_Quadcopter_Frame_450mm_Integrated_PCB_Version.html

ESC (x4):  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__40685__Hobby_King_30A_ESC_3A_UBEC_USA_warehouse_.html

or

http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__46306__Turnigy_Multistar_30_Amp_Multi_rotor_Brushless_ESC_2_4S_USA_Warehouse_.html

ESC Connectors:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=42536

Motors (x4):  http://www.buddyrc.com/sunnysky-x2212-13-980kv-ii.html

Props:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=38917
            http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=38918
            http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=38919
 http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__36715__Slow_Fly_Electric_Prop_9047SF_4_pc_USA_Warehouse_.html


Remote Control:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__19673__Turnigy_9X_9Ch_Transmitter_w_Module_8ch_Receiver_Mode_2_v2_Firmware_USA_Warehouse_.html

Remote Control Battery:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=17825

Thread Locker:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__16433__HK_171_Thread_Locker_Sealant_Medium_Strength_Blue_USA_Warehouse_.html

MPU6050:  http://www.ebay.com/itm/6DOF-MPU-6050-Module-3-Axis-Gyroscope-Accelerometer-Module-for-Arduino-MPU-6050-/200955428622?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2ec9e07f0e

Usbasp:  http://www.ebay.com/itm/USBasp-USBISP-AVR-10-Pin-USB-Programmer-3-3V-5V-51-ATMEGA8-w-Downloader-Cable-/161128775429?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item258405ff05

Battery:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=14960

Battery Monitor:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=33291

Power Supply:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=19680

Lipo Charger:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=18066

Lipo Charge Bag:  http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=37572

Battery Straps:  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=271334649648

Let the Journey Begin!!!

I created this blog so I can log random tech notes related to:

• Linux
• Programming
• Electronics
• Embedded
• Other Nerdy Things...

I hope these notes are helpful to others someday.