Copter-3.6.0-rc7 released for beta testing!

Copter-3.6.0-rc7 has just been released for beta testing. If using the Mission Planner, this new version can be loaded by first clicking on the “Beta Firmwares” link on the bottom right corner of the Install Firmware screen.

This is a relatively large update that should resolve a significant number of issues reported so far. Release notes are here and also copied below:

Changes from 3.6.0-rc6

  1. Compass rotation detection during calibration (see COMPASS_AUTO_ROT param)
  2. Tone alarm system consistent on all boards and support for playing tones from GCS
  3. OnBoard OSD improvements including showing dir to home (ChibiOS only)
  4. External compass support and microSD improvements for many ChibiOS-only boards including Kakute F4, Mateksys F405-Wing, Airbot F4, Crazyflie2, MindPXv2, Mini-PIX, Omnibus F7
  5. Bug fixes:
    a) Battery monitor parameter fix to support BLHeli ESCs
    b) Ch12 auxiliary function fixed
    c) compassmot fix
    d) Pixracer external compass fix
    e) Pre-arm failure regarding RCx_TRIM removed for non critical channels
    f) SBUS failsafe fix when receiver configured to "hold"
    g) UART flow control fixes (ChibiOS only)
    h) VL53L0X lidar fix
  6. Minor enhancements:
    a) Compass device IDs (i.e. COMPASS_DEVID) set to zero if no compass detected
    b) Fence action “Always Land” option added
    c) Motor test maximum time extended to 10min
    d) Receiver RSSI pwm input on AUX5,6
    e) USB Serial port protocol default set to Mavlink2
  7. TradHeli fixes:
    a) “Channel already assigned” message fixed
    b) External gyro output method PWM based
    c) Swash servo output properly accounts for servo trim

I think we are still at least 3 weeks away from the official release but we are getting there. Any and all testing and feedback is greatly appreciated!

3 Likes

are there some functions present in the 3.6-dev which have not been (deliberately) merged into 3.6-rc7?

Steve, there are definitely some changes in master that are not in -rc7. This is the normal procedure because ahead of a release we need to “branch” from master so we can keep the to-be-released version stable while letting “master” progress forward. If we don’t branch then it is possible/likely that some bugs will slip in.

1 Like

Randy, thanks for clarification

My 210 PixRacer is back in the air on Chibios! Compass issue resolved as noted and everything I tested was on! All flight modes good (Stabilize,Loiter, PosHold, AltHold, Land) and it ran a short mission perfectly. Thanks for the great work!

1 Like

Tried an upgraded ChibiOS build of 3.6.0 rc-7 on my dead cat Quad with PixHawk FC. All Ok so far with latest build. No issues with Stab, Alt Hold, Loiter, Circle, Poshold, Mission, RTL, Smart RTL.
Will try a complete set up from scratch later along with trying on PixRacer, weather permitting.
Another great job.
Thanks,
Joe

1 Like

it is not listed in the changes - but i noted that somehow ‘autotune’ mode number switched from 17 to 15?
old mode 17 now triggers a complaint upon booting up - ‘Failed to initialise RC function (17)’.
i hope i did not screw up - i tried to get rc7 code, but it is same in the most recent master as well.
also, in the MP - list of modes now trimmed down severely - probably an MP only issue?

kakute f7 hwdef is wrong - RCIN will not work this way - sharing same timer with motor - but i sent message to Andrew about it.

Can confirm commpassmot now working on the revo-mini, I’m getting 100% interference though, too close to the esc i guess and no room to move it, think i will just disable it for the time being.

Thanks for the fix

1 Like

Hi all,

I just did a fresh install of Copter-3.6.0-rc7 on my Omnibus F4 Pro V3 board and can’t get the OSD overlay to work. The screen stays blank. It did work on rc5 and rc6.
Can someone point me in the right direction?

Edit: just to be sure I re installed rc5. Osd overlay works as expected. Then installed rc7 again and osd overlay doesn’t work.

Best regards,

Jan Willem
The Netherlands

1 Like

I mentioned it earlier, but - the BOOST function (SERVOx_OPTION 81) does not work properly. When using rc6 on a Pixhawk 1 set up as
an X quad and I set SERVO5 OPTION to “81” and SERVO_BOOST to “2”, the output does not respond. If I set SERVO OPTION5 to “53”, I get a mirror of input #3. If I then set SERVO OUTPUT5 to “81” without rebooting, I get the expected output on SERVO 5. But the controller “forgets” these settings when the fc is rebooted, even though a parameter dump shows “81” and “2” for these values.

Also, as soon as I WRITE the “81” value into the fc, the props spin at their min values - before the safety switch is pressed.

2 Likes

Charles,

Thanks for the report. This sounds like we’re not enabling the output properly, i’ve added it to our list of things to fix so it shouldn’t be forgotten.

Paul,

This probably came up somewhere else, but the “15” vs “17” confusion comes from the FLTMODEx parameters vs the CH7_OPT, CH8_OPT, etc parameters. So when assigning a flight mode to the flight mode switch, the FLTMODEx parameters are used and the correct number is 15 (as shown in the screen shot above). If assigning AutoTune to an auxiliary switch, “17” is used (and this should also appear correctly in the MP’s list).

AC3.6rcX series firmware I have been following the test, each version has a relatively stable flight performance, should not be far from the official version of 3.6, these days with CAUV V5 with CUAV C-RTK GPS The series test is very good and the flight is stable.

Thanks to the development team, looking forward to the arrival of the 3.6 official version of FW!

5 Likes

@zhangsir,

The tradheli with Pixhack is looking good! really stable position hold.

1 Like

I think this is fixed in the Copter-3.6 branch, ready for the next rc.
Can you check if the ‘latest’ build works for you?
Cheers, Tridge

Hi Tridge,

I can confirm that OSD overlay works on my Omnibus F4 Pro V3 board with the most recent beta build: 2018-08-03-06:08.

Best regards,

Jan Willem

1 Like

Hi,

Using Pixhawk 4 latest fw, flown today in Stabilized and except for my poor flying skills all seemed well.

I want to set ch 7 for Auto Tuning and ch 8 to RTL, however I have an issue with setting channel 7 and 8 in Extended Tuning in MP - both drop down boxes are grayed out (was ok on rc 6 I believe but I didn’t revert).

I have set it manually in parameters list RC7_OPTION and RC8_OPTION but UI still grayed out and doesn’t show the correct parameters.

When switching on radio, MP shows the correct flight mode on flight data view.

Best,
Gal

1 Like

Mission Planner needs to be updated to reflect some changes in Arducopter. I’m sure they’re working on it.

I had the same problem this weekend, but just used the ch5 flight mode switch to do what I needed.

@wicked1 thank you. I guess we are leaving at the edge :slight_smile:.

Best,
Gal