Hi all, I am running Copter 3.5 rc4. SimpleBGC Extended 2.62b8 with Mavlink.
All works very well, however the gimbal yaw always follows the copter as if it is in follow mode.
I have checked and it is being commanded by mav to do so.
Is there any way to change this as I need the gimbal not to follow the copter’s yaw.
I have checked through all the settings and can’t find any that can control this behavior.
Ideally as the gumbal is not a true 360 yaw we need free yaw until it reaches say +90 -90 degrees then follow the copters yaw.
This can be done without mavlink in the usual way.
Depending on the version of simpleBGC board you have, 1st check if the board version has the latest firmware that supports MAVLINK.
Choose a usart on the simpleBGC, preferably not 0 as this is used for the USB but can be used.
From the simpleBGC USART tx pin connect to pixhawk RX pin 3 of TALEM 1 or 2.
From the simpleBGC USART rx pin connect to pixhawk RX pin 2 of TALEM 1 or 2.
From the simpleBGC USART GND pin connect to pixhawk GND pin 6 of TALEM 1 or 2.
From GCS (mission planner) goto full parameter list, search for MNT_TYPE set to 4. This tells ardupiot you are wishing to use MAVLINK to control the gimbal.
If using talem 1:-
Set> SERIAL1_BAUD =115
SERIAL1_PROTOCOL=1
If using talem 2:-
Set> SERIAL2_BAUD =115
SERIAL2_PROTOCOL =1
Now, what channels from the RC are to be used for control?
12 mount2_pan
13 mount2_tilt
14 mount2_roll
so for example rc10 for pan, rc11 for tit and rc12 for roll:-
RC10_FUNCTION = 12
RC10_FUNCTION = 13
RC10_FUNCTION = 14
Now you can do lots on interesting things within mission Planner
Right click on map select point camera to here, then enter altitude.
The camera will face and ‘lock on’ to that point.
In missions there are do_mount controls
There is also ROI, Region Of Interest
In mission planner, flight data, Actions, the bottom left drop-down changes the gimbal control mode. RC Targeting = manual control.
There are other perams that can be set like:-
MNT_ANGMAX_PAN
MNT_ANGMIN_PAN
MNT_ANGMAX_ROL
MNT_ANGMIN_ROL
MNT_ANGMAX_TIL
MNT_ANGMIN_TIL
There is an issue though, as above in RC Targeting the gimbal always yaws with the copter.
I would like to clarify that ArduPilot has a driver for AlexMos serial and so that is what we wrote in our wiki - it’s not wrong, but the original method. Apparently, and without our knowledge, AlexMos started supporting MAVLink and recommends using the STorM32 MAVLink driver - I would very much like to know why they think this is better (what advantages does it get?) when the STorM32 developer has stopped supporting it in master himself.
Oxinarf,
Didn’t mean ‘its wrong’ as in a mistake in the Wiki or drivers. I meant it’s the wrong setting for Mavlink control. I should have explained this better.
I think the difference is serial is command based, whilst In MavLink config the simpleBGC uses IMU data to infuse into the stability algorithms.
However I have not looked the the serial code so can’t say this is 100% correct, the serial drivers may send IMU data also. (Does it Oxinarf?)
It is possible that with the MAVLink one they are using that information. I think it would have been better to improve the AlexMos serial driver to support that - and other functionalities.
Acpuk, last December I’ve submitted a pull request to ArduPilot that supports injection of autopilots IMU data into the BaseCam mount based on the AlexMoss serial protocol, but I seem to have failed advertaising it well enought. Feel free to have a look at it and comment (link below).
Just FYI - I’m planning to put some work into improving our support for the AlexMos/SimpleBGC support.
It’s great what @lekston did - i’m still struggling a bit to get working hardware and then I’ll review it properly.
I had a chat with the man behind AlexMos/SimpleBGC and I think neither of us minds too much whether we use the serial or MAVLink protocol going forward.
One issue I do find with the SimpleBGC is connecting to MP I often receive a only one heart beat error on connection.
Just have to wait a while then try again. Or start the connection (via radio) first then power up the FC. Can be frustrating at times.
I’ve been in contact with Aleksey from SimpleBGS and Jakub Jakubczyk from HDair (a Polish gimbal manufactorer) to organise a 3axis, continuous rotation mount with encoders as a test platform for you. Aleksey mentioned that you have some specific requirements with respect to your camera form factor. Could you please contact me directly at: plekston@flytechuav.com so that we can specify all requirements for the mentioned test platform?
The simplebgc mavlink documentation is really just a few lines. I wonder whether if a storm32 driver would work with this simplebgc?? I really couldn’t understand how the mavlink driver for ardupilot was developed since I couldn’t find any extensive documentation on mavlink for simplebgc. It only includes the command it takes and sends, and is that enough? If it is so, I will try to develop a MAVROS driver for the gimbal.
hello , I have some dificoulties whit connecting px to infinity mr360 pro … did wireing from telem 2 to aux3 and rc yaw , done all serial port setup in MP, in GUI under chanel1 mavlink chosen UART2 ,… but it seams like there is no conection , AHRS:no , GPS:no , RC:no , Control :no …
are those right pins to put mavlink in on simpleBGC …
Hey Randy
Any update on your progress?
I am sure this is not the highest thing on your list. Just trying to decide to go with Alexmos or Storm on a gimbal build for a DIY flying solo board
I did manage to setup alexmos via mavlink protocol , when doing that keep in mind you will have to chose storm mavlink for serial port you are using … all other parameters you can find in simplebgc manual … encoders are main thing why I went from storm to alexmos…
