Multi channel trans/Recver, Steering, Throttel, Gear change, 4WSteering etc.

[romac]

Hi Guys
I am busy planning an independent 4 wheel drive, 4 wheel Steering, 2 speed mechanical gearbox plus any extras that may come to mind while I work on it.
See 'Programmable ESC's' elswhere in these posts on my 4 wheel drive idea.

I will need a multi channel Transmitter & reciever controls to manage this. With all this crammed onto an RC car it can only be a Crawler which is normaly slow moving or I would have a hard time controling such a thing at speed. A normal multi channel Transmitter / Reciever used in planes is not what I want, well not unless I modify it.

Does anyone know of a radio system that could what I want without serious modifications,

[Docwolf]

gt3b, one i am about to order can go up to 8Channel with the 25 dollar mod kit, receivers are very affordable too.

[romac]

Hi Docwolf
all of the info I read on the GT3B is it is a 3 channel system, where can I find out what you seem to know about it.

[heyok]

Lots of great info on the GT3B and its mods here:
GT3B Hack Question and Answer Thread

[romac]

Thanks heyok
I found 'Pete's Overkillrc Hacked GT3B review, with programming write up' . I would like to have 4WS an adjustable pot rather than full CW or CCW, from my quick look I saw only 2 vairable channels. I had thought of using a 6 channel plane ratio and seperate the 4 channels (2 levers) into 2 levers and 2 pot, 1 pot for 4WS and the other to adjust suspention hight. The radio would look like it had been mauled by a lion after I was finished, not what I would like.

[SMR 510RR]

Do you want it to mix the steering for your or just turn the pot to adjust the rear steering? A hacked GT3B will mix the channel and I believe you can set it to any percentage but I could be wrong.

LosiKid is the guy to talk to about the GT3B to see if it is what you are looking for.

[romac]

thanks SMR
I am glad to see there are many guys who like to fiddle their rigs, I hope that LosiKid has seen this post and can give me some advice.

[Docwolf]

you can get full channel mix from what i have read.

or pick up one of heyok's adapters ;)

[romac]

Hey guys
It seems that I realy live in the dark out here, I think I need to do some serious reading up on what can and cannot be done with 2.4Gig radios and how the mixing etc works. My business is 'Industrial Automation & Industrial Electronic Repairs' so I just need to find out how things work and then I can adapt things as needed.

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by romac

Hey guys
It seems that I really live in the dark out here, I think I need to do some serious reading up on what can and cannot be done with 2.4Gig radios and how the mixing etc works. My business is 'Industrial Automation & Industrial Electronic Repairs' so I just need to find out how things work and then I can adapt things as needed.

It's not so much a "2.4ghz radio" thing as it is "how many of what kind of channels do you have to work with"?!

"Stock" GT3B or GT3C are 3 channel radios.
"Hacked" GT3B or GT3C are up to 8 channels, most channels have lots of options. Individual EPA's & mixing are among the options which is part of what you're looking for.

LosiKid does great support for the hacked GT3B/C radios as well as quite a few others on this site.

[zuki_dan]

I have to agree with the above comments. I have bought a hacked and modded GT3B from LosiKid and it is great!

On my wraith I use it as 6 channel with dual esc dig mix for the winch and drive esc's. Another channel for use with the shifting servo for the 2 speed trans. I have one of Heyok's light controllers controlled from transmitter. This radio is cheap and with it hacked it can do pretty much anything you could want in a radio. plus the receivers are like $9 & multiple model memory.

[losikid]

Ok, so i'll give you the quick and dirty info on the hacked gt3b/c system, as i'm only going to skim the features you mention

So, it can be adjusted so it has 2-8 channels. Each channel can control one function (steering, throttle, winch, rear stear, etc). More channels means a slower response time, but were talking a millisecond or two of difference between 2 and 8 channels(.001 seconds). Believe or not, pro drivers (in the go fast crowd), can easily notice this lag. Hence the adjustment.

Channel 1 and channel two are dedicated to the steering and throttle functions, but there is still 6 other channels for auxiliary functions

The GT3B/C comes with "4" trim/switches(they have a forward/backward operation). These can be setup in a magnitude of ways. You can do a momentary 3 position, so you have to hold the switch one way or another to be at the endpoints, and when you let off it returns to center. You can also do a non-momentary action so each time you click the switch, it'll change a certain (settable) percentage in the direction of the click. For controlling channels, a 100% step is most common as its 3 positions (between -100 to 0 to 100). But for independent rear steer you can choose something like a 20% step, so you can change the rear servo position in 20% increments. Or do a 1% step and choose the auto repeat function, so you click and hold till the desired position.

Then there are 2-8 programmable keys(simple push button). Now i say 2-8 because there are two always, but you can separate the trims/switches into two keys. So a max of 8 is possible. Now a key can also off great functionality. Most commonly they are used as on/off buttons or reset to center buttons. However, they can be quite powerful as well with use of Multi-Position

Multi-Postition, is where you can 2-8 arbitrary positions, and cycle through them in the order you want. With a switch, you can cycle through them fwd/backwards. A key simply does a big loop in one direction.

LMK, if you have any other questions.

[romac]

Thanks for the responce guys
Losikid what I have in mind is a 4W indipendent drive with 4WS, adjustable suspention hight and dig function, and maybe I will think up something else before the project is complete. I am building a very different suspention system that will make this possible. Actually I have just added another idea and that is independantly adjustable suspention hight and even auto leveling. To achieve this I will have to have a centeral processor between the reviever and motors ESC's, servo's, relays and possible solinoids.
1. normal throttel for all 4 drive motor ESC's from 'central processor'
2. 2 steering controlls mounted one just behine each other, center spring loaded as normal.
3. Suspention hight, manual/independant wheel manual. this could be via switches int the transmittter and relays in the car. In manual control the 'hight' will stay where put until adjusted.
4. Suspention hight, Auto mode would have a helicopter gyro linked to the 'centeral processor' to maintain or rather try to maintain a level car body in an attempt to keep the center of gravity as low as possoble.
5. Dig function this could be 'front', 'normal' and 'rear'.
The 'Centeral Processor' could be a Micro Processor or a mini PLC. We already monitor the PWM of each channel for indicators, reverse lights and adjust the PWM to the tail lights to create brake lights for stopping. The programming of the 'centeral processor' is not a problem as this is part of what my business is about.
I believe I need 3 channels for 4WS and Throttel, the rest could just be on/off contitions, 8 or 9 on the transmitter and recievers to suit. Could the hacked GT3B achieve this and if so where could I get one.

[losikid]

Wow, how about you send me an email, losikid@overkillrc.com , as there may me another option depending on your budget, time, and small details.

In general, from your description, i think the gt3b/c can do this, but i'm not sure