Multicopter Racer Setup

This page describes how to setup and configure a multicopter racer for optimal performance (in particular for Acro mode).

请注意穿越机是经过特殊设计的动力强劲的快速飞行器。 你应该是有一定经验的使用者，或者让有经验的使用者帮助你。

TIP

Many things described here can also be applied to improve the flight performance of other types of multicopters.

INFO

A racer usually omits some sensors (e.g. GPS). 因此，他的保护性选项有所缺失。

构建选项

穿越机通常会少一些传感器。

最小配置是只使用陀螺仪和加速度计。

INFO

If the board has an internal magnetometer, it should not be used (small racers are particularly prone to strong electromagnetic interference).

穿越机通常没有GPS，因为它会增加重量且再发生撞击时候更容易被损坏（一个GPS+外部磁罗盘需要被放置在GPS杆上来避免大电流对磁罗盘的影响，因此也就意味着它更容易被损坏）。

但是增加GPS也有一些好处，尤其是对于初学者。

• 你可以让飞机进入定位状态，飞行器将会待在一个地方。 当你失去方向或者需要刹车时候，这会是有用的。 它通常也可以被用来安全降落。
• Return mode can be used, either on a switch or as RC loss/low battery failsafe.
• 当发生事故时，你将有飞机最后的位置，方便寻找飞机。
• 飞行记录将包含飞行路线追踪，这意味着你可以进行航行回顾（3D 模式）。 这可以帮助你改善特技飞行技巧。

INFO

During aggressive acrobatic maneuvers the GPS can lose its position fix for a short time. If you switch into position mode during that time, altitude mode will be used instead until the position becomes valid again.

硬件安装

以下各段叙述了在构建穿越机时的几个重要问题。 If you need complete build instructions, you can follow the QAV-R 5" KISS ESC Racer build log.

振动设置

有各种安装方法来减少振动。 For example, the flight controller can be mounted with vibration dampening foam, or using O-rings.

While there is no single best method, you will typically have fewer problems with vibrations if you use high-quality components (frame, motors, props) as for example used in the QAV-R 5" KISS ESC Racer.

Make sure to use balanced props.

重心

确保重心尽可能靠近推力中心。 左右平衡通常不是问题，但前后平衡可能是一个问题。 您可以移动电池直到重心配置正确后再机架上标记它，这样您就可以始终正确放置电池。

INFO

The integral term can account for an imbalanced setup, and a custom mixer can do that even better. 然而，最好还是将不平衡问题在飞行器安装阶段解决掉。

软件设置

After having built the racer, you will need to configure the software.

Go through the Basic Configuration Guide. In particular, set the Airframe that most closely matches your frame (typically you will choose the Generic 250 Racer airframe, which sets some racer-specific parameters by default).

These parameters are important:

• Enable One-Shot or DShot by selecting the protocol for a group of outputs during Actuator Configuration.
• Set the maximum roll-, pitch- and yaw rates for Stabilized mode as desired: MC_ROLLRATE_MAX, MC_PITCHRATE_MAX and MC_YAWRATE_MAX. The maximum tilt angle is configured with MPC_MAN_TILT_MAX.
• The minimum thrust MPC_MANTHR_MIN should be set to 0.

估计器

If you use a GPS you can skip this section and use the default estimator. Otherwise you should switch to the Q attitude estimator, which works without a magnetometer or barometer.

To enable it set ATT_EN = 1, EKF2_EN =0 and LPE_EN = 0 (for more information see Switching State Estimators).

Then change the following parameters:

• Set SYS_HAS_MAG to 0 if the system does not have a magnetometer.
• Set SYS_HAS_BARO to 0 if the system does not have a barometer.
• Configure the Q estimator: set ATT_ACC_COMP to 0, ATT_W_ACC to 0.4 and ATT_W_GYRO_BIAS to 0. 如果您愿意，您可以稍后调整这些。

故障保护

Configure RC loss and low battery failsafe. If you do not use a GPS, set the failsafe to Lockdown, which turns off the motors. Test RC loss on the bench without props attached by turning off the remote when the vehicle is armed.

Make sure to assign a kill switch or an arming switch. Test it and train to use it!

PX4 调试

INFO

Make sure to calibrate the ESCs before doing any tuning.

At this point you should be ready for a first test flight.

Assuming the vehicle is able to fly using the default settings, we then do a first pass of Basic MC PID tuning. The vehicle needs to be undertuned (the P and D gains should be set too low), such that there are no oscillations from the controller that could be interpreted as noise (the default gains might be good enough). This is important for the filter tuning (there will be a second PID tuning round later).

Control Latency

The control latency is the delay from a physical disturbance of the vehicle until the motors react to the change.

TIP

It is crucial to reduce the control latency as much as possible! A lower latency allows you to increase the rate P gains, which means better flight performance. Even one millisecond added to the latency makes a difference.

这些因素影响到延迟：

• A soft airframe or soft vibration mounting increases latency (they act as a filter).
• Low-pass filters in software and on the sensor chip trade off increased latency for improved noise filtering.
• PX4 software internals: the sensor signals need to be read in the driver and then pass through the controller to the output driver.
• The IO chip (MAIN pins) adds about 5.4 ms latency compared to using the AUX pins (this does not apply to a Pixracer or Omnibus F4, but does apply to a Pixhawk). To avoid the IO delay attach the motors to the AUX pins instead.
• PWM output signal: enable Dshot by preference to reduce latency (or One-Shot if DShot is not supported). The protocol is selected for a group of outputs during Actuator Configuration.

Filter Tuning

Filters trade off control latency and noise filtering, both of which impact performance. For information see: Filter/Control Latency Tuning

PID 调整 (第二轮)

Now do a second round of PID tuning, this time as tight as possible, and also tuning the thrust curve.

TIP

You can use the approach described in Basic MC PID tuning to tune the frame, but you will need to use the Advanced Multicopter PID Tuning Guide (Advanced/Detailed) to understand how to tune the thrust curve.

飞行模式

After you have verified that the vehicle flies well at low and high throttle, you can enable airmode with the MC_AIRMODE parameter. This feature makes sure that the vehicle is still controllable and tracks the rate at low throttle.