I've just about gotten this Arducopter setup figured out and finished but I am having an issue with the throttle. When I first setup my APM 2.6 and calibrated my ESC's I was able to give the motor throttle and it would act like a normal motor. There was a low end and progressively build in speed to a high end. Once I got it all finished, when I arm the Arducopter, the throttle is only low or high but no in between speed. I have seen videos on YouTube showing the same problem but have not found out how it was fixed. Does anyone have an idea of what I might be missing?
I've recalibrated my radio and tried recalibrating the ESC's but for some reason All-In-One Calibration isn't working for me again.
Here is a link to the video I'm talking about. His APM version and firmware is older than mine but the throttle problem is the same.
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I could be wrong, (and frequently am) I heard something about a 50% throttle issue, and it was discussed in the Crash Cast Multi-rotor Quest issue a couple months ago. I could be way off base here but it seemed like there was a setting that mimicked the DJI Phantom function of the heli just hovers and moving the stick down allows decent and up allows a climb but chopping the throttle does not translate into falling from the sky like most MR's. Not sure, I am a total noob to APM but since I just heard that it might be something to look into. Also I heard using the wrong GUI with your Firmware can cause a corrupted version of the FW since features and settings are added that have no reference in the old FW. Just a thought....
If I am way off base please let me know, but try not to flame me... I am sensitive that way.......
In that video it's possible to see around 4:26 that although motor #1 is very high (about 1914), motor #2 is at minimum (1115). So what's going on there is just that some motors are hitting their max and some their minimum because it's trying very hard to correct it's attitude (but can't because it's on the ground). If it was free to move then the motors would even out I think.
My issue is that when giving throttle there is no in between. Its either low or high and high is not very fast at all compared to the other motors. In elevator, aileron, and rudder given any input the motors react as one would expect. If I don't receive an answer through tonight I'll try to make a video of what I'm talking about and post it tomorrow. I wonder why I can't calibrate the ESC's using the All-At-Once method again? I did it that way once and now it won't do it again.
After doing some digging via Google, YouTube, and Arducopter Forum, I was able to find a solution to my problem. For some reason, when I installed the firmware onto my APM 2.6, it had set MAX_THR to 80 when it should have been 1000. I changed that and the throttle now has a more full range and rate of change. It now matches the throttle response and input of the other axis. Time now to set my final flight mode selections, balance the propellers, and take her up for a test flight.
I want to thank Randy, Johann, and Bill for taking the time to answer my questions and provide assistance. It is very much appreciated.
Peter