Discussions

Hi,

Just flight testing my ballistic chute and was wondering if anyone else has done one and has covered the different scenarios?

I'm cutting all the ESC PWM signals and ejecting mine out of the back on the following conditions:

Zero G for 200ms and initial loss of any ESC PWM signal from the AMP25Board.(part or total AMP failure)

A change in angle with corresponding ESC PWM increasing relativly. (Loss of whole prop)

Any sudden drop in altitude combined with large vibration. (Loss of prop blade)

CH Toggle. (User triggered)

Does anyone have experience of what happens to the PWM when something glitchy happens in the Arducopter software, does it go to a default mark to space position or does it stop outputting all together?

I'd like to cover every possible scenario so any information about in-flight failures would be great.

Obviously under 5 meters or so, this system isn't very effective but above that it's peice of mind knowing that I don't have a lethal weapon fallng to the ground which is why I designed it.

This is the test platform, my MK2 Hexcopter.

Ardupilot Mega 2.5

u-Blox GPS

Horizon Hobby HD (tilt/roll mount stabilised)

5.8Ghz AV/TX

MinimOSD

3DR 433 Radio Telemetry

1.2A 12V DC to DC convertor for video and TX/AV

6 x spinny things

Weight: 1.48kg

Static Thurst: 5kg

Chute: 36 inch rip-stop

Custom Board with the following:

70mm x 50mm x 15mm (with battery and GPS antenna)

ADXL322 3 axis accelerometer

USB connectivity

Telit GE863-GPS GPRS/GSM Modem for SMS position and audio modem comms

1000mAh Li-Po

6 x 12V LED output(for the legs)

7 x Servo Inputs (6 x ESC PWM detection, 1 x control

7 x Servo Outputs (6 x ESC, 1 x Chute release)

5 outputs for remote control of Horizon Hobby HD camera menu navigation

Temperature sensor