Archived: Troubleshooting¶

Warning

This page has not been reviewed by the wiki approver squad. It appears to incorporate a lot of out of date and unverified material - June 2015.

I tin't get the motors to run and/or tin can't arm the ESCs¶

This tin exist due to a number of mistakes:

  1. Have you lot completed the mandatory hardware configuration steps described here?
  2. Are yous in Acro, Stabilize or Simple mode? As a safety measure, the motors won't arm in other modes.
  3. Are you lot using the APM 2.5 Power Module to ability the APM board, as recommended? If non, and you're using one of your ESCs via the PDB to power the board, make certain the JP1 jumper is on.
  4. Are yous sure yous're arming them correct? When the motors are armed, the arm LED (dark-green on APM1, yellowish on APM 2) on the IMU will turn solid after the IMU calibration flashing (about 5 seconds). Review the arming guide to make sure you're doing it right.
  5. Are your Yaw or Throttle channels reversed on your transmitter? Try moving the Yaw stick to the far left, instead of the right. If that works (green LED tuns solid subsequently the IMU calibration, your Yaw is reversed. If not, try the same with the Throttle aqueduct: push information technology to max and endeavour full right yaw from there. If that works, your Throttle channel is reversed.
  6. Is your RC gear in Mode 2? If non, yous'll need to move the right stick (yaw) to the correct and the left stick (throttle) to the peak. (Or just switch dorsum to Mode 2)
  7. Some ESCs are thrown off by some startup signals in Copter 2.x. Try plugging in a USB cable commencement, to boot the board, and so plug in your LiPo after it's already upwardly, or just ensure that the four-wire cable from your APM board to your power distribution board is disconnected during regular startup. Come across details here.
  8. It's possible you've changed your throttle trim settings since you lot did your initial radio calibration. Trim the throttle downward a few notches and try arming again.
  9. Some ESCs have a minimum low threshold earlier they will arm. If you need to, trim down your radio throttle and redo radio calibration.
  10. Redo your radio scale in the Mission Planner. Brand certain that the throttle channel (Ch 3) is being read properly and the values are effectually 1100 (depression) and 1900 (high), more or less. Remember that your LiPo must be plugged in to power the RC gear.
  11. If y'all've checked the previous things, it may be that y'all need to recalibrate your ESCs. Exercise information technology the manual style (hither to exist sure).

My APM two is locking up¶

The crusade is probably that the dataflash menu not initializing correctly. To verify this is the problem, take information technology out and endeavor to power your apm 2 again.

If this is the example, in that location is an piece of cake set. Put the dataflash dorsum in, and power the lath up while looking at the terminal screen. Information technology will reformat the card (this will accept A WHILE). Go out it plugged in for 2 min. After that you should come across a "prepare to fly" message. You just have to practice this one time.

Copter tilts/flips over or wobbles crazily when I endeavor to accept off.¶

This almost always means that y'all've configured information technology or ready information technology upwards wrong. Check the post-obit:

  1. Is the APM board facing forrad and in the direction of forward motion (towards the forrard arm in + mode and betwixt the arms in x mode)?
  2. Have you set your quad orientation correct in the setup process: + or 10?
  3. Check that all the motors are hooked up right, turning the right mode and the pusher/puller props are on the right motors and oriented the right fashion.
  4. Check the signal wires on the power distribution lath to make sure they are oriented correctly. If y'all've reversed two, it will cause Copter to flip. This should be noticeable by doing the manus examination too. (Information technology should have besides shown up in the Motors test in a higher place)
  5. Check that your props tin't plow on their motor shafts, every bit if they weren't tightened down enough. If one tin can, despite its prop being tightened, that may mean that its motor shaft has been pushed down into the motor too far for the prop mount to get a grip. Have off the prop and and utilise a pocket-sized allen wrench to loosen the little set screw that holds the shaft onto the motor. So with pliers pull the shaft out until it'south the same height as those of the other motors. Then tighten the set screw, and put the prop back and tighten information technology up again.
  6. Was the quad stable and flat for the whole calibration routine at startup? Was information technology stable and flat during the setup process? (If need be, do it again)
  7. Did you lot calibrate your ESCs? They should all get-go together when you advance the throttle. If demand be, do information technology over again manually, as described here.
  8. Did you setup and examination your radio? Run test/radio to see. Pitch, Gyre, Throttle and Yaw should all be 0 or near zero (60 or less). Move the pitch and roll stick to the lower right, y'all should see approximately 4500, 4500 in Channels 1 and 2.
  9. Have you lot checked all your sensors in the Mission Planner to make certain the hardware is working right?

My overpowered copter rockets into the air can't be brought down unless I cut the throttle¶

Very over powered multicopters tin can require then fiddling throttle to hover that even the minimum throttle (xiii%) is plenty for them climb. In addition, the default Rate roll/pitch gains, which are meant for weaker copter, are too high for a powerful copter and can lead to roll/pitch instability. The Copter firmware may endeavor to recoup for this whorl/pitch instability by increasing the overall throttle which can pb to the copter climbing further (Note: in this particular case Copter increasing the overall throttle is counter-productive just in a properly tuned quad it helps in cases where there is a motor failure).

The possible solutions are:

  • add actress weight to your frame to bring the hover throttle closer to mid stick
  • reduce the THR_MIN parameter (default is 130 or 13%) to the lowest value that will still continue all motors spinning reliably
  • set up the rate roll/pitch gains depression (perhaps one/2 the default) during the first flight and increase them from there. Consider using the CH6 tuning feature to let yous to melody your whorl/pitch gains for the get-go few flights.

My copter motors spin but the copter wont take off (or motors may not spin at all)¶

While at that place are a few dissimilar reasons for copters to exist perceived equally underpowered, this status applies to motors that simply aren't spinning fast enough (if at all!) to generate the elevator needed, even though you lot know they tin spin faster. Some instances discovered recently showed someone had accidentally imported the wrong parameter file into their copter from the 3D Robotics Aero, and when they and so loaded the correct parameter file, the THR_MAX parameter was left unchanged.

Bank check the following:

  • Connect to the copter via your GCS
  • Go to Full Parameter List
  • Examine the THR_MAX parameter and brand certain the value is between 800 and thousand. The default is g.
    • FYI: The 3D Robotics Aero preset param file sets this to 80.
  • If the THR_MAX parameter is less than 800 and you don't recall making this change, prepare the parameter to chiliad and Write Params out to the copter

My radio setup isn't reading the RC channels right or hangs¶

Bank check the following:

  1. Click on that Calibrate Radio button. That volition beginning the measurement process.
  2. Are yous certain your receiver is getting power and is paired with your transmitter (it should show a solid dark-green low-cal). Make sure your transmitter is on!
  3. If you lot assembled the lath yourself, double-cheque your soldering! A tiny brusque on the APM board could disable all the channels.
  4. We've had some reports of problems with older FM RC gear and even the occasional digital receiver, for reasons that are not clear (most likely low voltage output). Can you endeavor a different receiver? This at least volition eliminate that possibility.
  5. We've also had reports of people having trouble with Spektrum radios, which accept a funky binding process. This is what works: To demark the receiver and telemetry (TM1000+AR8000 to DX8) module, connect them both together(TM1000 to AR8000). With the transmitter off (DX8 off), printing the tiny push button on the side of the telemetry module (TM1000) and power the receiver (plug the LiPo batteries merely practice not plug the 4-wire connection). Both the receiver and telemetry module will offset to blink (if they do not glimmer TM1000 is no good). When that happens turn on your radio holding the trainer/bind push and it will bind (stay at least 10ft away). Brand sure that when it binds it says something like "binding dsmx —— receiver with telemetry". You may have to practise this twice if information technology doesn't pick upward the telemetry module the start fourth dimension.
  6. Check your cables! The signal wire should exist at the summit, and ground at the lesser.
  7. Finally, if all else fails, try to narrow downwardly the trouble. First, check that the receiver is working right by plugging a servo into the output y'all're testing and making sure that information technology's outputting a good bespeak. Then plug one known-good RC channel into the APM input channels, from 1-7, 1 at a time and encounter if whatever are read. If some channels are read and some are not, you may take a soldering mistake or may have fried one or more inputs.
  8. If you yet can't diagnose the problem, contact the customer back up from the shop you bought it from.

My Copter isn't as stable as I'd like or doesn't Loiter/Hold Altitude/Navigate reliably¶

Every copter is different, and even the official kit can have differences in motor performance or balance depending on how you've put information technology together. So we've made it relatively easy to tweak many of the functioning settings to plow your copter perfectly. That said, tuning is something of an art, so it helps to read a bit more earlier y'all commencement tweaking.

There is a guide to PID tuning here.

My Copter flies okay, only it tends to tilt one style or another¶

Brand certain the CG (middle of gravity) of the copter is dead center. Then run the level command on a flat surface. (hold disarm for ~xv seconds to invoke.) You can also wing in auto-trim manner in a windless (important!) environment–whatever wind volition cause the changes y'all brand to work confronting you lot when the quad rotates 180°. Hold arm for ~ 20 seconds to fly in auto-trim mode for about 45 seconds. Information technology will exit automobile-trim automatically and fly normally. (Don't worry near counting out the fourth dimension, but wait for the flashing lights to enter either way.

You tin can use your radio pitch and roll trims, merely call back to re-center them when you gear up your radio with the config tools. I'm non a fan of trimming the radio for quads, just NEVER, NEVER trim yaw. (Quads are also susceptible to drafts. They will need abiding correction unless you install an optical flow sensor. One day…)

My Copter Moves In a Direction even though the Stick is Centered¶

  1. Information technology is very important that the RC Channel 1 and 2 Trim parameter values (for the Ringlet and Pitch axes) are equal to the PWM value displayed in Mission Planner for the stick in its middle position during Radio Calibration.
    1. To check this Commencement Mission Planner, connect and become to the Advanced Parameter List and write down the parameter for RC Trim PWM (HS1_TRIM) and RC Trim PWM (HS2_TRIM).
    2. Now start up the radio Calibration function in Mission Planner and turn on your RC Transmitter.
    3. With the Roll and Pitch Stick centered, the values of the channel i (whorl) and aqueduct ii (pitch) PWMs should exist the aforementioned as the values for the parameters you wrote down above.
    4. If they are not recalibrate the radio.
    5. The HS1 Trim value must match the Live stick centered Roll value and the HS2 Trim value must friction match the alive stick centered Pitch value or the autopilot volition think your stick is non centered when it is.
  2. Make sure the CG (center of gravity) of the copter is expressionless eye.
  3. Then run the level control on a flat surface. (hold disarm for ~15 seconds to invoke.)
    1. You can besides fly in auto-trim mode in a windless (important!) environment–any wind volition cause the changes y'all make to work against you lot when the quad rotates 180°.
    2. Hold arm for ~ 20 seconds to fly in auto-trim mode for about 45 seconds.
    3. It volition exit auto-trim automatically and fly ordinarily. (Don't worry about counting out the time, just expect for the flashing lights to enter either manner.
  4. Avoid it if possible merely if you have to you can use some radio pitch and roll trims
  5. NEVER use whatever radio trim for Yaw.

The quad always wants to yaw to the right or left when I take off¶

This is normally due to an airframe that it out of tune, either with one motor tilted slightly or the weight balance not centered. Typically, the bad behavior is that the quad will always yaw by a certain amount, typically around 30-45 degrees on takeoff, but will stay in that direction. This is because the mechanical asymmetry of an out-of-melody quad is forcing the yaw, and the limit is only how long it take for the P term in the AC2'south PID equations to grow and stop information technology.

Although you lot can adjust those terms in the Mission Planner'south PID configuration screen, the best solution is to solve it at the source. Eyeball each motor and see if information technology or the arm it is one is slightly tilted, and curve it back to vertical if and then. Also ensure that the battery is centered on the quad and the centre of gravity of the vehicle is as close to the centre of the APM board as possible. It's likewise a cracking thought to redo the ESC scale routine simply in case.

Also make sure that you've got your forward-rotating and counter-rotating props on the right motors, as shown here.

The quad always wants to yaw when I pitch or roll¶

Your compass may need calibrating. AC2 calibrates while flying to take the magnetic fields of your motors into account. You must disarm the motors at the end of your flying to save your calibration to EEPROM. Information technology normally takes 1-two flights before the calibration makes a divergence.

You must use a compass in conjunction with a GPS. If y'all disable your compass, please disconnect your GPS or y'all will have random Yaw concord upshot.

My copter flies well, but then dips a motor arm in a fidgety mode while hovering¶

The about likely cause of this is your bullet connectors. After your initial setup, when you test motor direction and electrical connections, westrongly recommend that you cutting off the bullet connectors and straight solder the motors wires to the ESC wires. That way is vibration-proof and will lead to much more than reliable operation.

If your wires are soldered without bullet connectors and you still see this issue, there are some other things that can cause this problem. Your motor may be going bad: either the bearings are going or your shaft is horribly bent. A motor with bad bearings takes more than power to spin. In that situation, the ESC could be cut out to protect itself. Or it peradventure flying slow enough to stall the motor. Attach a electric current sensor between your battery and the motor and examination the difference between a proficient motor and the bad ane. If yous are seeing higher describe in the bad one, replace or fix information technology.

If you are using a Futaba tx/rx with more than 8 channels and purchased your APM before early on 2013 you should upgrade your PPM encoder following the instructions hither. Beneath is a video pre-upgrade (i.eastward. twitches) and mail (no twitches).

Another possible cause is the THR_MIN parameter's default of 130 is too low for your motors or ESCs. The THR_MIN parameter controls the minimum throttle that volition be sent to the ESCs/motors to ensure they continue spinning while your throttle is to a higher place zero. If this parameter is also low it is possible for your motors to momentarily stop leading to a twitch. Try increasing this parameter to 150. You should be careful non to gear up this parameter too high (i.east. >150 especially on a high powered copter).

../_images/THR_MIN_too_low1-300x97.jpg

One of my motors started shaking and and so burned out!¶

Motors will typically twitch once per second or then (often with a beep) while they're waiting for a signal. That's normal. But sometimes, if you have non followed the warnings and disconnected the iv-wire betoken cable, they may vibrate rapidly when you reset your lath. This is a rare problem that can ingather up with sure ESC types that don't handle out-of-range signals well (it's a problem with the Arduino bootloader during bootup, so there's not much we tin exercise about it). But it can always be avoided by following the advice of this alarm, which is liberally sprinkled throughout the transmission!

The APM board works when it's plugged into the USB, but not when it's powered by the RC rail (ESC/Lipo)¶

APM allows for both RC power or a separate battery run through APM's congenital-in power regulator as described hither. A solder jumper called SJ1 determines which is used. By default from the mill, that jumper should be soldered which means APM volition be powered by the RC runway.

If for some reason, connecting power to the RC rail does not ability your board, check to run across if that jumper is soldered. If information technology isn't, as shown beneath, just solder a blob of solder over the two pads to connect them.

../_images/amonet-31.jpg

In the "raw sensor view" of the Mission Planner, the Z accelerometer reading is always 1000, not 0, when it's on the bench¶

That's normal. The Z accelerometer is showing the force of gravity (which is an acceleration, equally you'll recall from high school physics). If you plow the quad upside down, you'll see that it reverses.

I can't connect with the Mission Planner over Xbee¶

First, remember that y'all cannot use wireless telemetry with APM two while the USB cable is plugged in (they use the same port). Make sure it's unplugged.

Bank check that you've switching the Mission Planner to the COM port assigned to your Xbee that'south connected to your PC and set the baud rate to 57600.

Ensure that you've gone through the full Xbee configuration process described here. Run the examination lawmaking at the bottom of that page to ensure that your Xbees are communicating. Remember that the Xbees must exist programmed in Ten-CTU to run at 57k.

If your Xbees suddenly end working, it could be that a loose cable has led to a point glitch that bricked the airborne i.

I can't connect with the Mission Planner with the 3DR Radios¶

Retrieve that you cannot apply wireless telemetry with APM 2 while the USB cable is plugged in (they utilise the same port). Brand sure it's unplugged.

Check that you've switching the Mission Planner to the COM port assigned to your 3DR radio that'south connected to your PC and ready the baud rate to 57600.

Copter ESCs continue beeping¶

  1. Take you fix upwardly your RC input in the Mission Planner setup procedure?
  2. Check that your RC radio is talking properly to its receiver (typically, that will be shown by a green light on the receiver).
  3. If those ii check out, y'all probably just need to calibrate your ESCs (even if you've done that earlier, if you've erased your EEPROM and done a reset, yous'll need to exercise it over again. It's an easy procedure and the instructions are here.
  4. Check that your radio channels are in right gild (cabling and/or Mode-one, Way-2)
  5. Some ESCs are thrown off past some startup signals in Copter 2.10. Effort plugging in a USB cablevision get-go, to kicking the lath, and then plug in your LiPo afterward it's already upwards, or simply ensure that the iv-wire cable from your APM board to your power distribution board is asunder during regular startup. See details here.

I'm non getting GPS lock at all¶

Starting time, note that you will probably merely get GPS lock outside (if you're very well-nigh a window or are lucky plenty to have stiff GPS betoken and a radio-transparent roof, you may be able to become lock inside). For a cold get-go (power on), it brand accept three minutes or more. If y'all're just hit the reset button afterward lock has been achieved, it should have less than a minute.

If you tin can't get GPS lock outside later on many minutes(the blueish LED on the MediaTek module keeps blinking), you may have a defective module. If the module shows lock, simply the red APM GPS LED is even so blinking, you lot either have a bad cablevision or an older MediaTek module that needs to take its firmware updated.

If you have a uBlox module and APM is not showing lock, you may non have ordered the module preprogrammed for ArduPilot from the DIY Drones store (you had to select that pick). In that case, program it yourself with the instructions here.

I want to load the code in Arduino, but I'm having trouble¶

First, ensure you've downloaded the latest AC2 code and are using the latest Arduino (at least 022).

If you're getting compile errors, that ways that you haven't told Arduino where your libraries are properly.

If you're getting avrdude sync error message in the Arduino status bar), go through all of the tips here.

My Copter only won't ascension/lift off¶

If yous have a issues on getting your Copter up from the ground, check that you lot propellers are mounted correct mode.

Official Copter propellers are non symmetric and they need to exist mounted proper fashion. If you look shut to center mounting hole, in that location are small texts saying 10x45 or 12x45. There texts needs to exist upside.

If text is on downside, your Copter cannot elevator properly.

The props that came with early on version of the 3D Robotics Copter were also of uneven quality and some would flex too much under load, reducing lift. If you accept these (blackness and more flexible than almost props), you should supercede them with APC or equivalent props or contact 3D Robotics for a replacement.

My Copter feels sloppy on coil or pitch axis¶

Both of curl and pitch centrality should give to yous exact or shut to similar response when doing hand tests. If one of the axis does not reply as expected, check your PID settings and you tin try to upload firmware again.

Firmware upload might be successful but due internal timing problems some of the lawmaking is not written properly and this can cause unstableness on your Copter.

I've got a tricopter and I'm having trouble with the yaw¶

Delight see the tips here.

The Mission Planner's HUD display moves around even though my copter is motionless¶

As of ii.9 we've enabled a feature that uses GPS velocities/accelerations to compensate for centrifugal forces. It should not crusade you any issues in flight but you tin disable it by setting the AHRS_GPS_GAIN to 0 through the Mission Planner's Avant-garde Parameters List if it makes yous uncomfortable. Here is a video demonstrating the trouble and the explanation as to why it happens.

My copter's is moving a lot on the Mission Planner map even though it's sitting still in my firm¶

a GPS will rarely requite an accurate position while indoors or near walls due to multipath-ing. If yous become outside y'all should see that it settles down.

../_images/GPSMultiPath1.png

In Alt-Agree or loiter my copter is very bouncy or takes off into the heaven¶

Copter uses the accelerometers heavily for calculating altitude and climb rate. Vibrations from the motors can cause the accelerometer values to get very noisy and throw off the altitude estimates. The solution is to reduce sources of vibration from your frame (bent prop adapters and motor shafts, replace EPP props with APC) and remove hard connections between the frame and APM by using vibration dampening products such as DuBro cream.

Equally of version 2.ix of Copter, inertial navigation is used to maintain altitude and in 2.9.ii horizontal position as well so vibration truly needs to be minimized. A small-scale pad (1/2 to i") of Kyosho Zeal tape under each corner of the autopilot should go vibration low enough.

Or you tin can employ a standoff with an extending screw 1/10" outboard of each corner of the autopilot and suspend it with 4 i/16" O-rings of appropriate diameter such that when folded over through the autopilot they only hold the board without motion, merely also non in much tension.

When a flight log is checked in RAW mode, X,Y and Z hovering ACCELs vibration on a log graph should at least be in the + to - 5 range and either of the above techniques tin go them downwardly to the plus to minus one range if they are just right.

Y'all can graph your Z-centrality vibrations by enabling the "RAW" message type in the dataflash, then take a short flight in Stabilize mode and finally download the logs and graph them with the mission planner. Below is an instance of an extremely badly vibrating copter (tiptop) and a virtually perfectly polish copter (bottom). The Z-centrality vibrations should not motion up and down more than -five to -fifteen or alt hold will not function correctly.

../_images/BadVibrations1.png

There is a adept discussion here re vibration dampening.

My copter slowly rises or descends when I enable Alt-Agree or Loiter¶

The throttle deadband when in alt-hold or loiter mode is from forty% ~ 60% of the throttle. If you have an overpowered or underpowered copter then when in stabilize mode the throttle required to maintain a hover may be exterior this range. Then when you engage alt-concord or loiter your throttle is outside of the deadband and Copter thinks you desire to climb or descend. The simple solution is to move your throttle back to centre equally you lot appoint alt-agree. A permanent solution is to modify the THR_MID parameter through the mission planner's Adv Parameter List screen. If your copter hover at xl% of throttle stick when in stabilize style, make THR_MID = 400. If information technology hovers at 60% of throttle brand the parameter 600, etc.

Mission planner displays enormous "Altitude to Home" or "Dist to WP"¶

The "Dist to WP" (distance to waypoint) default to -1 when you exercise non have a waypoint set. Because of a display issue the mission planner displays this negative number as 65535. Information technology will display a proper number equally soon every bit you lot enter loiter mode, guided more or start a mission. This brandish consequence volition be fixed in a time to come version of Copter.

The "Distance to Domicile" is the distance from the mission planner's home location (which is different from the Copter's home location which is fix when you arm the motors). You can reset the mission planner'southward habitation location to the copter's current location by clicking on the "Home Location" link in the Flight Planner screen. Below is a video explanation and how resolve it.

Mission Planner displays Distance of -21 million or NaN appearing in Advanced Parameter listing¶

You should not attempt to fly your copter in this state because AltHold will not function at all. You lot should instead go into the Mission Planner'southward Last screen and reset your parameters by typing "setup", "reset", "Y" and rebooting your APM.

The crusade is a problems in the two.9.i accelerometer scale routine that can save NaN to the AHRS AHRS Trim parameters if the scale routine fails. This feeds into the inertial navigation routines and results in the bizarre altitude display in the mission planner. Notation: you volition likely take seen "Calibration failed (????)" later on yous attempted to calibrate the accelerometers values.

../_images/AltCrazy1.jpg