Possibly the lightest NEX sized camera gimbal you will find on the market. Completely assembled with two brushless motors and control board/IMU, the entire gimbal weighs only 345g.
It's bad enough that you want to lug a weighty camera under your multi-copter, but why triple the weight of the camera with a complex G10 or aluminium brushless motor gimbal?
No compromise in strength was made here - all the interlocking 2 and 2.5mm thick parts could only be broken apart with a hammer or a lot of manual force. Very minimal use of screws also helps to keep the weight down. It's like a cleverly designed "Ikea" flat pack - but without all the screws.
Three small bearings are used - one on the pitch assembly and two to support the roll motor.
The camera platform has two height positions you can choose from to allow for taller cameras. Mix that with the four large 2mm thick carbon fiber washers to aid in finding the vertical balance point and to increase the strength of the connection point on the platform (via the supplied 1/4" camera screw). Fore/aft pitch balance is achieved by moving the connection point of your camera fore/aft on the slotted platform. Roll balance can then be set by simply loosening the screws on the roll motor and sliding the assembly left or right.
A noteworthy feature of this design is that it can be customised to any size in the future. As an example, if you want to customise the gimbal to be wider, we will offer an affordable service to create a camera plate and back plate of any specific width, and you just replace those specific parts without having to buy a completely new gimbal. Same for length - if you have a long camcorder, you just order longer side arms for the roll assembly, and they will fit directly onto your existing gimbal parts. You may also have a very tall camera - once again, you just place an order for taller pitch side supports.
The peg and tab system makes this a cinch. The one gimbal can be reconfigured to specifically suit any number of cameras/camcorders you just so happen to own.
This specific design supports connection to dual 12mm or 10mm diameter rods 59mm apart (X650/Tarot type design and others). Other connection designs are possible - just contact us with your requirement and we can design any connection solution for your particular needs. The benefit of this connection design is that it allows the entire gimbal assembly to be shifted forward or backwards on the overhead dual rails to achieve the perfect balance on your multicopter. Other designs bolt to one spot and rely on pushing the battery way out the back to get the correct balance (not to mention having to play with the battery position when using different sized batteries). We will also be selling universal tall landing gear that can be retro-fitted to practically any multicopter which can open up your payload carrying capabilities, as well as vibration absorbing options between the landing gear and the multicopter.
Carbon fiber is probably the only material mankind has invented that comes close to the weight and strength of the bones in a bird's wing. It should be the material of choice for any aircraft designed in this day and age. Sure, it does cost more to produce than aluminium and wood, but it's growing adoption in today's technology is sure to make that a non-issue in the years to come.
Weight is the big killer of flight time.
Required to complete your gimbal -
1 x Brushless Gimbal Controller (AlexMos, Martinez Open Source)
2 x Brushless Gimbal Motors (LDPower 4008-57 for Roll, iPower GBM4008-150 for Pitch)
Roll motor dimension limit : 40-60mm diameter/any depth.
Pitch motor dimension limit: any diameter/less than 21mm depth.
Suggested Extras -
- 12V 4.5A UBEC to drive the control board (Hobbyking have some affordable ones)
- Medium thread locking compound for motor screws (blue).
- Hot glue gun/Epoxy glue/CA glue.
- Hex screwdrivers.
NOTE: Maximum camera body width is 12.5cm (including any protrusions that may be in the lower 5.5cm of the camera body).
Stock is in now and the price for the basic frame and all fittings is $120USD. Leave me a message or visit the site - www.grousehousetechnologies.com and on Facebook www.facebook.com/GrouseHouseTechnologies
First gimbal from the new stock being constructed -
Some video of the gimbal in action (big thanks to Stano in Slovakia) - YouTube
Replies
Ah sorry for the double post, found this gimbal awhile back for rc airplane for nex7...
http://www.skyviewuav.com/
has anyone made a nex gimbal for an airplane yet?
Hi John,
This looks great - exactly what I've been looking for. Is it possible to configure it so as the camera faces vertically down for aerial mapping purposes?
Thanks
For this month only (September) I am including a 12V 4.5V BEC with each RTF gimbal kit - Link to product
Some aggressive flying to test the gimbal limits from Alek B. One hex motor is a bit dodgy apparently. Can't imagine flying like this myself with a nice NEX sitting on my hexacopter. Very confident flyer.
Special thanks to Stanislav Ružáni for taking this video. Cuts short at about 1:24 for some reason though.
Fully assembled -
This looks super for the price, great work.