UK OpenLRS Guide and Future Development

[simondale]

Do you use Sander style antennas on your Tx and Rx?  Any chance of a photo please?

I was thinking about removing the antenna from my Turnigy 9x and mounting an SMA connector where the antenna used to be, soldered to the 6th pin of the module connector (where the 35MHz antenna clearly used to go on the verson 1).

Then opening up the OpenLRS and soldering the coax from the antenna pad (where it is now) to the ANT pin on the module connector (Pin 6).  Is that a silly idea I wonder? 

[Devonian]

As requested

Tx






Rx




I use SMA connector for CLF200 size coax as you can then use the inner part of a servo push rod tube to snug inside the connector (ignore the red bit of tube, it's just to show the pushrod tubing idea) and the antenna cable fits inside that and the pushrod tube stops the centre pin pushing back, pic should explain it but if you need more, ask away.




I have no experience of the Turnigy, but it sounds very logical.

Nigel

[simondale]

Thanks to Devonian and Thundead I now have 459MHz antennas and the 459MHz firmware flashed on!

One thing that confused me for a while when doing the flashing was that the pin order on the Tx is different to the Rx (the Tx and Rx pins are reversed).  So for ages I was trying to update the Tx firmware with the cable I had made (which was wrong).  All is well now though.  I know this is clear if you look at the diagram, or in fact exercise proper caution and look at the board (which is obscured by the case on the Tx) but if they're anything like me people might assume that the cable is the same for both ends.  Perhaps it would be worth mentioning that in the guide?

Also, Thundead, the (excellent) guide says "now repeat this with the Tx".  It would be clearer if it said that you need to load the OpenLRS_TX.pde for the Tx side. I can see people trying to put OpenLRS_RX.pde on the Tx.

Time for a range check and hopefully a fly!  Fingers crossed not a crash.

Thank you both for all of your help

All the best

Simon

[Devonian]

I've updated my original post regarding the 2 different pinouts on the Tx and Rx boards (only required for programming).
http://www.fpvuk.org/forum/index.php?topic=2551

If you look at my Tx & Rx modules, you can just about make out where I made a cutout to align with the programming pins.
No need to dismantle anything now for firmware changes (and I made a few in the beginning!).

Nigel.

[thundead]

I updated the guide with the missing bits on TX programming and Pin layouts.

Sorry took me this long but for some reason I got unsubscribed from the thread.

Cheers,
Mihai.

Thanks to Devonian and Thundead I now have 459MHz antennas and the 459MHz firmware flashed on!

One thing that confused me for a while when doing the flashing was that the pin order on the Tx is different to the Rx (the Tx and Rx pins are reversed).  So for ages I was trying to update the Tx firmware with the cable I had made (which was wrong).  All is well now though.  I know this is clear if you look at the diagram, or in fact exercise proper caution and look at the board (which is obscured by the case on the Tx) but if they're anything like me people might assume that the cable is the same for both ends.  Perhaps it would be worth mentioning that in the guide?

Also, Thundead, the (excellent) guide says "now repeat this with the Tx".  It would be clearer if it said that you need to load the OpenLRS_TX.pde for the Tx side. I can see people trying to put OpenLRS_RX.pde on the Tx.

Time for a range check and hopefully a fly!  Fingers crossed not a crash.

Thank you both for all of your help

All the best

Simon

[Devonian]

I've modified the v1.10 firmware and asked Flytron to post it on the Google download site (should run on v2 hardware - but needs someone to check it out for me/us)
http://code.google.com/p/openlrs/downloads/list

If you want to check it out right now, get it from here
http://forum.flytron.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=4&start=100

I've also modded my 2nd post
http://www.fpvuk.org/forum/index.php?topic=2551.0
so you can easily see the few lines of code that need changing for 459MHz use (highlighted in red so you could simply cut n paste into any firmware version you choose to try).

I haven't any v2 hardware to test it on as yet (Simon ;) )


Nigel.

[thundead]

Hey Nigel,

Had a quick look and seems ok :) You can test it on the v1 hardware by modifying this and should work.

//####### TX BOARD TYPE #######
//We have 2 option for OpenLRS TX, You can use original TX modules or just load the Tx firmware into the RX
// 0 = Original M1 Tx Board
// 1 = OpenLRS Rx Board works as TX, reads your PPM signals from first servo port.
// 2 = Original M2 Tx Board
#define TX_BOARD_TYPE 2

I'm going to give it a shot tomorrow and see if it works ok but on my v1 hardware

Regards,
Mihai.

[mark1975]

Isn't his great we now have a UK legal dedicated RC uhf control..bravo..

[Splashy]

I received my v2 TX and RX and plugged the TX into my 9X. It all works fine. I cannot find any documentation on the V2 RX board at all. There are no markings on the PCB to even say which is - + S. There is also no indication of which channels are for each pin.

I am missing something since I cannot seem to locate this documentation.

[Devonian]

Can you read schematics?
If so,

Tx
http://www.flytron.com/pdf/openlrs-m2-module.pdf

Rx
http://www.flytron.com/pdf/OpenLRS_RX2.pdf

Looking at the pics of the Rx, the Signal pin is nearest the chip (with the inline 1k resistors leading to the Atmega).
http://www.firstpersonview.co.uk/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=349&zenid=0feapkhsdliok08g46ah07j763

On my v1 board, the servo connections are, from left to right, 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 (when viewed as if you were plugging in a servo and the antenna to the top).
It follows that the connections will be like this...
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
S S . . . . . . .
+ + . . . . . . .
- -  . . . . . . .

Please verify this for yourself and not take my guestimate as gospel!!

As this is open source hardware, you are free to programme whatever you want, hence the reason not to mark the board perhaps?

I see from the schematic, that Melih has now made the Tx and Rx programming pinouts the same, so only one programming cable is needed - on v1 boards, they were transposed.

HTH

Nigel.

[Splashy]

Nigel,

Many thanks for your answer and please take this reply in good spirit as it was intended.

The documentation for OpenLRS seems to be totally non-existent. I have a degree in electronics and have been designing stuff for over 20 years. I am also a programmer and consider myself to be very competent. I do not expect anything to be delivered to me with this level of documentation.

The guys at Flytron and the people in the "community" have developed something that is truly groundbreaking. It is a fantastic product .. I used my multimeter to find out what the connections were and just plugged it into my 9X and it worked first time. Leaving 24 Ghz available for FPV is wonderful and I intend to use it. If you do lots of searching and exploring forums you will find that you can force the RX to deliver PPM on a single pin. This connects to a MultiWii installation and provides for a very neat installation.

OpenLRS is fantastic and I cannot believe that there is no "idiots guide". I will be producing this guide and hope that more people will take up this great product.

Sorry if I sound a but uptight about this. I have worked for so many years and have had so many ideas that have been wasted (I invented Cover Flow many, many years ago but did not patent). This project deserves to enter the mainstream and not be just a project that you enter at your own peril. There is some reference made to adding a Wii Motion+ and a Nunchuck thus giving you a complete control system and RX combined. When you add the possibility of 2 way serial communications and the advantages of Open Source the mind really starts to race....

I explored by plugging in servos and stuff according to how I see my receivers 1 - throttle, 2 ailerons etc. I should have thought this out better since I know PWM goes in a different order. By experimenting I have worked it all out.

I will produce the documentation as soon as possible and look forward to working much more with OpenLRS.

[Devonian]

I quite agree that Melih doesn't do enough to sell this great bit of hardware, least of all by not producing any useful and basic documentation.
He is a very clever bloke, but like most clever blokes, he's more interested in the hardware/software than producing decent documentation.

Good to see you are embracing the open source concept and making your contribution by producing some documentation.
Doc's in PDF format would be fantastic.
When you have it done, post it on the Flytron forum as well and it will surely benefit a lot of followers.

As you say, this has the potential to do so much, but only if the end users can follow it without having to be uber geeks !
Just look at how AlexinParis' MultiWii went viral....

Nigel.

[TeeJay]

I know I've mentioned this before but can't recal getting an answer...

What's the point of the 459mh OLRS if it gives no more range than say a Futaba FASST or a 35mhz system ?

Not having a dig, just curious as to what the advantages are

[Devonian]

On page 2, post #22, I mentioned...

Benefits of OLRS for me are:
1)  Much less risk of being shot down by someone (as is possible on 35Mhz).
2)  Gives me more freedom of choice for video link - I now have 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz
3)  OLRS has the possibilty to be programmed to do many things, e.g. built in Rx stabilisation with IMU's, 2 way telemetry, etc.
4)  It's open source as opposed to closed souce, so I have the freedom to add as much as can be developed for the system.
5)  Potential of 'long range' - so far it has gone out to 4km, with probably more to be had with effecient antennas.
6)  It's currently the cheapest and UK legal UHF system on the market.
7)  I enjoy the challenge!

... more to come, I'm sure.

Nigel.

[Splashy]

I would echo all of your points.

I plugged the OpenLRS module into the back of my FF9 (which arrived this morning) and powered up the RX. I twiddled the knobs and the servos moved. I am very impressed that it worked first time and all so simple.

Going to reprogram tonight to 459 and the latest release.