Developer

ArduCopter 2.6 released!

Version 2.6 of the ArduCopter code is now available in the AP Mission Planner and in the downloads area!

 

Updates to MavLink 1.0 means you will need to use "ArdupilotMegaPlanner10.exe" to connect.  If you've updated your mission planner recently you should find this executable in the directory where the mission planner is installed.

 

The above video is done using a prototype 3dr ublox GPS which seems to have better accuracy than the standard mediatek.

 

Improvements over 2.5.5 include:
     - MavLink 1.0 support (use with ArdupilotMegaPlanner10.exe) [Tridge, Craig]

     - Stability improvements especially during level hover [Jason]

     - throttle range improvement (higher min and max) [Jason]

     - improved standard Loiter PIDs [Alan, Heino, Jason, Angel]

     - dataflash erase speed up ('+' messages removed but it only takes 6 seconds now) [Tridge]

     - Copter LEDs [Robert Lefebvre]

     - RTL loiter stage target set to home to improve final landing position [Jason]

     - flip & acro improvements [Jason]

     - circle mode target improvement for ground station [Jason]

     - Auto Approach [Adam Rivera / Marco]

 

Bug fixes include:

     - UBLOX driver fixes (lock should now be more reliable) [Tridge]

     - enable mavlink messages during dataflash erase which resolves issue in which new APMs fresh from the factory appeared unresponsive [Tridge]

     - proper printing of lat/lon values in dataflash logs [Randy]

     - removed duplicate GPS reads [Jason]

     - resolve flooding of telemetry link with low-battery warnings [Tridge]

     - RTL bug would land if rtl_approach_alt was more than 1 [Jason]

     - WP Radius could not be set larger than 1.3m [Jason/Randy]

 

Tuning:
PIDs are optimised for the 3DR/Jdrones quad with 850 motors and 10" props.  If you're using more powerful motors/props and are seeing bad flight behaviour in stabilize, start by turning down Rate Roll P in 25% steps.

This time we spent some time optimising the loiter PIDs.  Tuning loiter can be tricky so please refer to the discussions which will appear below for more community feedback on what parameters work best.
 
All feedback welcome below.  Enhancement requests and bug reports can be put into 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 2.6 but tell us anyway!).

 

Happy flying!

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Replies

  • Hi, i have a question. Normally if i just connect the ESC outputs to RC receiver, we're able to fully control the UAV. When we want the rotor to start spinning we can simply push the throttle. Here comes the question. Now if i connect the ESC directly to APM 2.0 Board, and also connect Receiver Channel inputs to APM board, the thing works differently. The ESC starts up the moment we connect the battery source to it which is not the outcome i want. So how can i do to resolve this issue? Please help me guys I need it!!

  • Developer

    ArduCopter 2.7 final is in the download area and in the planner, we continue the discussion in this thread.

    Bests,
    Marco

  • Moderator

    Flew v2.7RC this morning, very nice. Auto, Loiter, RTL work very well. In Loiter there are some medium frequency oscillations which don't seem to affect the Loiter but would definately upset any aerial video takers. Otherwise great job devs, looking for to v2.7 final!

  • I have a query regarding arducopter 2.6:

    For 880 Kv motors, value of Rate Roll P should be 0.09-0.1 (as stated in wiki) or 0.110 (as mentioned in mission planner Med P = 0.110) ?

  • I have updated MP to 1.1.99 mav 1.0. When entering APM setup window on Parameters List page I can see only selected value, all others are white (background and text font of each cell).

    Is that only matter of setup? If yes, then where I can set it to previous colors?

    3692472648?profile=original

  • Tried 2.7 today, and saw a clear improvement over previous loads in the loiter, waypoint, and RTL performance (stabilize was fine in  2.6 for me.)

    1. I am using a standard 3DR quad with the small motors, 10x4.7 props, 3300mAh 3S battery.

    2. Did a full reset so that all PID gains were reset to defaults.

    3. Loaded my previous RC channel limits and basic H/W configuration parameters (editing a .param file and keeping only the lines with basic setup parameters is a great way of being able to get the system running again with new firmware).

    4. Flew five batteries worth of basic stabilized flight, alt_hold, loiter, RTL and waypoint missions.

    a. Bumped up my altitude hold thrust rate P gain by 0.2 to 0.5, and lowered the rate P gain to 0.15 from 0.18. No other PID changes.

    b. Loiter was holding within 2-3m in winds of 15-20 km/h

    c. RTL brought it back reliably down to the ground (with the APPROACH_ALT at 0). I have a tight cleared area, so had to give it a bid of a nudge right before touchdown a couple of times, but pretty good considering the wind.

    d. Waypoint navigation wasn't tight, particularly when making 90 degree corners but, again, the wind may have been a factor. However, it did work each time, and did hit all of the waypoints.

    I am still using a code mod that adjusts the compass offsets as a function of motor current. I found that necessary in earlier loads to avoid divergent circling loiters (never seemed to get a good dynamic calibration with the standard approach), but will try without next time.

    The impressive thing with 2.7 was the minimal PID tuning required to get good performance. I haven't seen that in previous loads. Thank you to the developers.


    Andrew

  • Maybe this is not the right place, but discussion "2.7 released" is not started yet:

    I downloaded ACM v2.7 and tried to compile in arduine and got this error:

    C:\APM\ArduCopter-2.7\libraries\AP_Baro\AP_Baro.cpp: In member function 'float AP_Baro::get_altitude()':
    C:\APM\ArduCopter-2.7\libraries\AP_Baro\AP_Baro.cpp:91: error: 'log' was not declared in this scope

    Can somebody help me to get it compileable?

  • Moderator

    When I set modes on v2.7 RC they don't save: see below

    Loiter Mode is activated by the switch (indicated by the green background) but Current Mode shows Stabilize?


    3692472604?profile=original

  • Developer

    ArduCopter V2.7 release candidate in the download area:


    Features and Improvements:

    Better loiter, especially with the new 3DR uBlox GPS. Check out the video from Marco here!
    Better yaw control
    Better DCM implementation, resulting in noticeably smoother flight
    Better camera control, including improved setup in the Mission Planner
    AP_Limits library: Altitude limits and geofencing
    Better altitude control in ALT_HOLD and better altitude transitions
    Better "flip" code

    Etc  Bugfixes:
    Fix to dataflash erasing, which should resolve an issue some users were having
    Fix some MAVLink commands
    Fix Circle command
    Fix some units
    Etc


    Bests, Marco

  • Hi,

    i need help to know what to do to resolve this problem... See this video:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XfARq98-jk

    what could be? hear the motors spin up sometimes.. (at 0:49 sec)

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