ArduCopter 2.5 released!
Version 2.5 of the ArduCopter code is now available in the AP Mission Planner and in the downloads area!
Enhancements:
- The first ArduCopter code release optimized for the APM 2. Leans and drift should be much reduced or even eliminated for most users. This was accomplished through a number of core improvements to the DCM implementation by Tridge like this one and this one.
- Loiter and waypoint following should be improved due to a D term bug fix, some tuning and the improved DCM performance mentioned above.
- On start-up, the yaw heading is updated with first successful mag read (so you should no longer see the slow rotation from north to your actual heading).
- Increased output rate to ESCs to 490hz. This update rate is also user selectable using the new RC_SPEED parameter.
- hexa copter stability patch bug fix (should resolve slight flattening when pitching forward and accelerating very rapidly).
- improved baro filtering
- fix to dataflash logging of Mag heading
- addition of H1 swash plate type and bug fix for proactive yaw compensation for collective pitch changes for TradHelis.
Tuning:
The default PIDs are optimized for a 3DR/Jdrones quad with 850 motors and 10" props. If you're using more powerful motors/props, start by turning down Rate Roll P in 25% steps.
While some testers have reported very good flights with the default PIDs, some have reported that this release is a little "sharper" due to the DCM improvements and have found they needed to:
reduce stabilize P by 10% (i.e. 4.5 -> 4.2)
reduce stabilize D by 30% (i.e. 0.15 -> 0.10)
increase rate D from 0 to 0.001
Tuning loiter can be tricky. Refer to the discussions which will appear below for more community feedback on what parameters work best.
Please post your feedback in this discussion. For enhancement requests and bug report, please add them to the arducopter issues list. When possible please include logs (tlog and/or dataflash) and tell us whether you're using APM1 or APM2 and what version of the software you're using (presumably 2.5 but tell us anyway!).
Thanks for this release go to the developers (both in the core team but also those who have provided bug fixes through the issues list) and also the community members who participated in the previous release thread and provided some great detailed information in the form of issue reports and logs which allowed us to nail some bugs!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Chris on -
Ok Ok, lets figure out, what we have....
the "old" cell monitoring is gone. the "new" is only monitoring the whole volts of my lipo, ok. thats okay.
so i know the 3,2,1 - blink code and the u4eakes code. both are working with the actual code?
all i need is some switchable led patterns, a lipo warning pattern and, the important thing for me, the gps fix option. but to have the gps led stripe is extra, maybe on top of my copter, so that i see, wich status i have inflight. starts blinking, if the satcount is under 6 maybe ^^
as i know, all of them are in the new code? or what u meaning robert?
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DeveloperPermalink Reply by R_Lefebvre on -
No, 3,2,1 and Show leds are not, and will not be in the main code in the next release.
Currently I'm planning on no patterns. Just full on when motors are armed, and blinking if/when battery voltage is low. And the option for GPS monitoring, but I wasn't planning on looking at Sat count or anything complicated like that.
The thing about the 3,2,1 code, is that it always blinks. There is no battery warning. Do people want LED's that always blink? I could probably do that.
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Permalink Reply by Chris on
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no no
as u said, the full on armed, blinking on lipo alarm, and maybe a third thing to have, if gps fix. i can change the numbers of sats, that the apm knows as fix. so atm is it maybe 4, so i change this to 6. so the gps led of ure code is only on, if have 6 or more sats ^^
thats what i meant.
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DeveloperPermalink Reply by R_Lefebvre on -
At this point, basically, the external GPS LED will come on whenever the little GPS LED on the board is on. Simple as that. I think that's what you want. If you can change the number of sats required for a fix, then that's a seperate issue.
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Permalink Reply by Jason Wise on
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Keen to know when the batterys are getting low, maybe mode change, but not interested in a disco
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Permalink Reply by Chris Barlow on
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Yes, I don't know if you'll agree but i am just grateful for it to work properly.
No need to overcomplicate, on when armed, flashing faster when batt lower.
I use the lights for getting orientation and to allow for some dusk flying but agree that an added feature would be great like driving an LED for GPS lock.
I might also add this code would be able to drive a 12v buzzer through the IC, so you could add a buzzer channel? This opens up beeps for GPS lock, beep on arming, alarm for low batt etc etc....probably shouldnt be over looked if its easy to implement?
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DeveloperPermalink Reply by R_Lefebvre on -
Chris, yes, that would be easy to implement, provided the beeper or buzzer is an internally driven, or "indicator" type. I don't really want to get involved with the APM trying to make sounds by being an external driver. At least not yet. Some piezo beepers will sound if you feed them DC current, so you could easily hook one up in the place of an LED. That is the "indicator" type.
And FYI, there is already a piezo beeper function working in the code. It's just not really documented so I don't think anybody knows about it. But if you hook an internally driven piezo beeper, you'll get beeps on arm and disarm.
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Permalink Reply by Chris Barlow on
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Yes, the first way you described. I'd drive my 12v (indicator type) piezo siren from one of the outputs on the IC.
But to have this work we'd need to make it configurable in the mission planner.
eg this would make sense for my setup:
pin 1 - front white leds, always on when armed
pin 2 - side blue leds, always on when armed
pin 3 - rear red leds, on when armed, flash when low bat, faster when v low
pin 4 - gps lock
pin 5 - flash only when low batt (drive indicator buzzer), always on when very low bat, 2 sec on arming
pin 6 - aux
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DeveloperPermalink Reply by R_Lefebvre on -
Uh, OK, I'll see what I can do. Are you on APM 1 or 2?
The "very low" battery stuff probably won't happen. At least not yet.
I think the piezo probably is already doing what you want if you have APM1. I think... I think... trying to track down Arduino pins is maddening. It seems every pin has 3 numbers, and they're all different. 1 number is the pin number of the Atmega chip. Then there's a second number which is the pin number on an Arduino Mega board. Then there's a third number which is the pin number on the Adrupilot board. Then they also have designations, like ADC5, PF 5, etc... It's crazy.
I don't even know how to tell you where to connect it. According to the comments in the code, it is the pin on the shield, right beside the old CLI switch. The pin closest to the corner of the board, and I think there's a little LED labelled "ON". That pin. If you have a <40mA piezo beeper, try connecting it to that.
It appears the code defaults to use it. It should beep twice on arming, once on disarming, and will come on when the battery voltage is low.
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Permalink Reply by Chris Barlow on
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No worries, I remember a post somewhere on this so I'll take a look.
Generally though would prefer just to be able to assign a pin and drive 12v through the darlington IC, this simplifies everything as its then multi purpose (LED or horn, fireworks, parachute :) etc etc)
as long as you could set 'usually on, or usually off' for the outputs?
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Permalink Reply by Andre Kotze on -
Is anybody else perhaps also having problems uploading the new code with "Arduino 0100-relax"? I can upload the code just fine from within the Mission Planner but as soon as I open Arduino my red and green lights on the APM stops flashing and when I try to upload the code it just times out...
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DeveloperPermalink Reply by Adam Rivera on -
It is working fine for me. Make sure you have the right board type selected, the right port selected and then try again. If that doesn't work, post your APM_Config.h file here and let me know if you have an APM1 or APM2. I might be able to help.
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