Motor Failure on First Flight

I was hoping this first flight post was going to be something to celebrate after many weeks of testing to ensure I had all the calibration and IMU feedbacks correct.  However as I hope you can see in the video I lost the right motor which caused my quadcopter to flip and land smack on my expensive UBlox GPS. Ouch!  At least the new high rise legs from Jani look pretty nice against the blue sky.

 

I have checked the logs but cannot see anything which would suggest an APM issue.   This unfortunately was an expensive crash, destroying several motors, props, the frame arms and too many components to list.  A tip for the new guys like me into this great project, don't fly over a concrete driveway :-)

 

I am still puzzled at the crash and this is the second motor failure in the past 2 weeks.   I am using the 880KV with 12x45 props, 30A ESC's  I have found the motors are not very durable and wonder if there is a better alternative.  In the post crash testing I  checked the motor which stopped abruptly during the maiden flight and it is cutting out when I move the motor around.  Yet all the others do not demonstrate this behavior on the same ESC and wiring point on the power distribution board.  

 

For my Quad design I had in mind to get a little more pay load hence the larger 880Kv motor and 12 x45 props.   The arducopter is built from parts I source from the arducopter suppliers.

 

I have also noticed some tolerance variability in the prop mount hardware so I have to be careful when tightening the propellers to make sure the props run true.

 

Any suggestions on higher quality / more reliable motor alternatives which have been tested on the ARDUcopter frame would be appreciated.  I just want to focus now on building more reliability into the design.

 

First_Flight.MOV

Views: 1628

Attachments:

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by charlie Soppelsa on September 3, 2011 at 5:17am

Hi Greg

I've always used AXI motors they are the best but expensive, they are well made, reliable and efficient. However, I have recently switched over to Pulso motors, they are AXI rip-offs , they are equally well made and work exactly the same. They cost half as much as AXI.

Permalink Reply by Greg on September 3, 2011 at 5:25am

Charlie thanks for the reply.  Were you able to view the video by any chance.  Was not sure the best format to upload.  I will have a look at both your motor suggestions.  Might be a good way for me to eliminate one variable from the equation.  I am also hunting some good BEC's as I do not like using the onboard ESC BEC.

 

Permalink Reply by charlie Soppelsa on September 3, 2011 at 7:29am

Yes saw the Video, nasty, do it over grass next time. I just use a simple linear regulator for my 5 volt supply. L78S05 which is a 2 amp part. 3 legs, V in (upto 24v), Ground, V out 5 volt. Google it.

Permalink Reply by Greg on September 3, 2011 at 3:09pm
Charlie, nice and simple 5v solution. I like it :-) Yes lesson learned and every time I play that video the smacking sound at the end makes me cringe.
Permalink Reply by Greg on September 4, 2011 at 2:36am

Charlie what specific AXI motors have you used or Pulso equivalent.  I need something close to the jdrones 880Kv which I use a 12 x 4.5 prop with?

Permalink Reply by charlie Soppelsa on September 4, 2011 at 2:56am

I use the AXI 2217/20 840kv with the 12x4.5. I've also used the equivalent Pulso with out any problems, it has the same part number. Heads up re the props, I don't know if you use the same manufacturer of the 12x4.5 props, but the ones I get are rubbish, the leading edge profile is wrong. If you sand the leading edge from the bottom to a sharp leading edge you will get 20% more thrust for the same power. The 10x4.5 are fine.

Permalink Reply by Greg on September 4, 2011 at 3:12am

Charlie thanks.  I currently use the EPP 12x4.5 ones from jdrones. I have had a look at both the Pulso and AXI and I see you end up with the shaft sticking out the back of the motor.  Be great if you had a photo of one of these mounted with the prop assembly you use? I am currently using the arducopter frame so does the AXI adapt easily to this? I see what you mean by price the Pulso looks a good choice.

Permalink Reply by charlie Soppelsa on September 4, 2011 at 3:16am

With the AXI and Pulso you get a prop adaptor that bolts on the back of the motor it has a 5mm shaft, so the prop goes on easy. This is the way I use the motors. The adaptor comes free with the pulso, it's an extra with the AXI.

Permalink Reply by Greg on September 6, 2011 at 4:31am

Charlie I did some checking on the AXI 2217/20 and found there is a short shaft version.  Do you use this type?  If so do these have different windings to the standard long shaft version?  I also noticed that whilst the 2217/20 is 840Kv the recommended prop is 9-12" So do you have any issues on this smaller motor compared with the 2814/22 running a 12 x 4.5 prop?  I am basically trying to get an AXI equivalent to the 880Kv and 12x 4.5 prop combination from jdrones without having to alter the PID values too much.

 

I am trying to decide between the two AXI models.  Another interesting metric, I see the 2814/22 (short shaft) is 765Kv but the longer shaft 2814/20 is also 840Kv.  Whilst the 2814/22 has a lower KV (765) it can support 8-13" props. This makes me think the 2814/22 is a better choice to turn the 12x 4.5 EPP props I have.

I have some time to decide at the moment as I cannot find anyone who has AXI stock at the moment in the short shaft series (2217/20 or 2814/22).

Permalink Reply by charlie Soppelsa on September 6, 2011 at 10:32am

Greg, I have one 2217/20 short shaft, it's the same as the long shaft version. Re the AXI 2814/22, this would be a better motor it has more torque so you should get better stability, but note that it is 106grms so it's heavier than the 2217/20. If I could afford six I would go for the 2814/22.

Permalink Reply by Greg on September 6, 2011 at 3:13pm
Well thats good to know. There are some specs on the motors which vary suggesting different wiring for the short shaft versions. Good data point that you use both types. Lucky I have a quad so maybe I can stretch to get 4 2814/22's. I first have ti find someone who has stock of the 2814/22.
Permalink Reply by Balloon on September 3, 2011 at 10:20am

where are you use voltage 5 v connect to on APM? (you're use on ESC's motor failure or UBEC)

RSS

Social Networking

Top Content 

1 Mapping Mission Ride Along

Mapping Mission Ride Along
2 Alt_hold and loiter acting crazy

Alt_hold and loiter acting crazy
3 ArduPlane 2.73 released

ArduPlane 2.73 released
4 APM 2.5 from hobbyking

APM 2.5 from hobbyking
5 ArduVTOL - Wingcopter - Flight Report Nr.1

ArduVTOL - Wingcopter - Flight Report Nr.1
6 Mechanical Hands From A MakerBot: The Magic Of Robohand (From Makerbot blog news)

Mechanical Hands From A MakerBot: The Magic Of Robohand (From Makerbot blog news)
7 3 axis Camera Gimble connections.

3 axis Camera Gimble connections.
8 Looking for best laptop screen to see in the sun

Looking for best laptop screen to see in the sun
9 New micro-cameras emulate insects' compound eyes

New micro-cameras emulate insects' compound eyes
10 Thirty Days (#13): Y6 in-flight motor failure tests

Thirty Days (#13): Y6 in-flight motor failure tests

Contests

Season Two of the Trust Time Trial (T3) Contest has now begun. The fourth round is an accuracy round for multicopters, which requires contestants to fly a cube. The deadline is April 14th.

A list of all T3 contests is here. 

Groups

Advertisement

© 2013   Created by Chris Anderson.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service