3.4.2-rc2 Testing today

ArduCopter Copter 3.4
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Did a flight test this morning of 3.4.rc2, and all went well. Including; Stabilize, Altitude Hold. Loiter, Circle, (also Circle with full YAW command in both directions), Position Hold, and RTL’s by command (channel 7 invoked), and by both Fence Breach (altitude) and battery low point, as set in MP. All landings from all failsafe’s were within 3 feet of takeoff point- Outstanding! I upgraded from RC1 from yesterday.

Only concern was with altitude reported at landing- which has been the case for some time since doing 3.4 testing.- that being when I land, my altitude reported in MP is NEGITIVE - usually minus 3~18 feet.

I normally arm in garage on my bench (wood frame house- asphalt singles, great HDOP {<.9 ), single story house, and my bench altitude is ~+3 AGL), then taken out to driveway- which is TOO close to house and cars and underground power line- but works great!). Always notice that even after all seems OK on bench, good HDOP etc., when I move copter toward door I get a do-be beep from buzzer on way out- then I place down on concrete and arm. What is that beep about?).

Since 3.4 altitudes is always off upon landing. Auto landings (no matter how triggered) work great, but seeing negative MP altitude upon same is concerning.

Flying an “AUAV” PixRacer, V14, board on a cheap F450 frame, with appx 25 flights so far since 3.4 - but always the same deal with the altitude reporting upon landing in MP since 3.4 came out- (including all beta versions). All versions of MP from stable to latest used and report same. Beta MP as of today report same negative altitude variance upon landing. I read something about this in the forums, but it’s odd that we need to report altitude this way- I can’t be the only person who plugs in Battery and arms on an –above ground level - bench. (Hay I am getting old- I minimize bending over! (Been in RC since 1970.)

Older version of SW didn’t work this way. Also with this latest version of Flight software I am NOT seeing high Compass variances in MP in the GPS sub-screen when replaying with EKF and VIB screens open, which is good I think.

Great job on the software!
Thanks,
Joe
2016-11-07 08-30-29.tlog (2.2 MB)

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Here is the other log BiN that didn’t post
JoeUploading…

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Don’t know how to edit but HDOP is GREATER than 9 when powering up in garage.
Joe

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The negative altitude isn’t something to worry about. It’s just barometer drift which can certainly go up and down by a few meters over a few minutes especially if you’re moving from inside to outside. The sensors warming up could also have an impact I think.

The beep as the vehicle moves outside is probably the EKF becoming happy so the arming checks start passing. This is likely because the GPS quality improves as you move outside.

Thanks for testing!