QAV500 FPV quad

[hbj069]

Looking good Jason, might want to do a little more pid tuning to remove the roll oscillations

[JasonInAugusta]

Originally Posted by hbj069

Looking good Jason, might want to do a little more pid tuning to remove the roll oscillations

You talking about that little bit in ground effect on takeoff?

[JasonInAugusta]

Did some more flight testing with the gimbal. Went to Makapu'u. Still not happy with the roll axis on the gimbal, but pitch is awesome. If gain tuning doesn't help I'll try another servo or two. If I can't get an improvement with a servo swap and roll gain tuning I might just ditch the gimbal.

Anyway, some flying at Makapu'u.

from Jason Carter on Vimeo.

[JasonInAugusta]

Starting on a ground station.

Dewalt tool box from Home Depot.


The upper compartment unlocks and can be removed. This lower section will be handy for storing the TX, Li-Pos, and tools.


The upper compartment is where the fun will be.




To start building the ground station I covered the opening of the upper tray with blue tape.


Then cut it out right at the interior lip of the opening.


Now I have a template.


Transfer that template to some wood. In my case, some 1/4" MDF.


Cut it out...


Test fit. Almost like it belongs there.


Pull the template off and set it aside so it can be used later if needed.


I wanted to mount my Eagle Tree Systems Eagle Eyes centered in the tray.


The Eagle Eyes ground station has automatic diversity switching built in, so it will pick the better of the two input signals and route that signal through to the four outputs. For now I will only be using one of the outputs, but later, when I get a set of goggles, I'll run an output to those. The Eagle Eyes also receives telemetry info and will display it on the LCD display that's plugged in to the Eagle Eyes. I have it set to show real-time GPS location of the quad. If Eagle Eyes loses signal with the quad it will display the GPS coordinates of it's last location before connection was lost. It will also drive a pan/tilt antenna mechanism that I'll put to use later. I just need to plug two servos into the Eagle Eyes and it will track the aircraft while in flight.

But it's first job will be signal processing. I picked up a Phillips DVD/game unit at Wal-mart that has 7" master/slave displays.


The 7" slave monitor that I'll be using. This will only receive inputs. The other monitor with the DVD player has no inputs - only sends signal to this one. The kids are having a blast with the primary monitor.


Simple controls. 12V in, A/V in.


A quick test before I start voiding the warranty.


I want to mount the monitor in the lid, something like this.



I don't plan on using the plastic housing, so it was time to start gutting things.


Really simple inside.


It will be much better working with this thin LCD instead of the bulky plastic housing.




So there's the initial bit of work. Lots more to do to this thing.

[D19er]

Nice!!!! Reminds me of the good old days when I would breakdown monitors like that and put them in sunvisors in place of mirrors for audio/video showcars!! Looks like you have a gameplan...Goodjob man

[JasonInAugusta]

Yeah, not the first time I've done stuff like this.

Took this old General Electric console radio...


Gutted it, cut it up...


Put a 400W Klipsch setup in it...


And stuck a 15" touchscreen in it. Touchscreen jukebox.



Working on placement of components and cabling.

[JasonInAugusta]

Got a little done tonight.

Made a new template for the inside of the lid from an Axial box.


Cut it out with the jig saw then laid out the opening for the LCD. Drilled some 3/8 holes at each corner and rough cut the opening with the jig saw.

Grabbed some 1/2" MDF scraps and stuck them down with template tape.


A quick trip with a 3/8" flush trim bit and I was left with a nice, smooth opening for the LCD.


Used masking tape to stick the LCD in place so I can power it up and mark it's final location.


Powered up with the FPV receiver on and no signal applied. Also notice the audio, video, and power cables for the LCD routed through the holes on the left.


Feed from the FPV camera.


Close-up shot of the LCD with FPV camera and OSD on.


The Eagle Tree Eagle Eyes FPV station with their Power Panel LCD display. This would show GPS location normally, but I have the quad powered up in the garage and didn't get GPS signal.


So it's shaping up. There's still plenty more I want to add, just have to find the right stuff. The bottom section will get more work, this is just the rough draft.

[JasonInAugusta]

Just mounted the VRX.

I put this in the lid so the antenna was on top. Initially I thought about putting the VRX in the lower portion of the case, but this worked out better.

Where I wanted it to go.


Cut out some of the X-bracing in the lid.


VRX in place.


Drilled a 1/4" hole in the lid near the lock tab for the box. This gives the SMA connector some protection from getting banged around in transport.


Antenna on. This will be removed from the outside of the case and stored inside until I'm ready to fly.

[D19er]

Great job turning that old console radio into a touchscreen jukebox!!!. It came out sweet! I want one! Where did you the touchscreen from?

[Bigfeet]

So Jason, is there anything that you don't build?

[JasonInAugusta]

Originally Posted by Bigfeet

So Jason, is there anything that you don't build?

I like being able to build anything I want.

[Bigfeet]

I can understand that and I think you are well on your way.

[JasonInAugusta]

New monitor. Much better (and larger) than the old one. Just need to make the new top plate.