Ascending Technologies Asctec Falcon 8, Manual

Page 1: ...Ascending Technologies GmbH Konrad Zuse Bogen 4 82152 Krailling Germany T 49 089 89 55 60 79 0 F 49 089 89 55 60 79 19 team asctec de www asctec de Ascending Technologies GmbH...

Page 2: ...be It is extremely easy to operate It is fun to start and improve one s own abilities with each performance It is an investment that is worth it You will be amazed by comfort and usability Neverthele...

Page 3: ...AscTec Trainer 16 4 Operating the system 17 A Safety and warning instructions 17 B Flight modes 17 C Automated start up checks 19 D Emergency Modes 19 E Choose battery type 20 F Setting up the UAV 20...

Page 4: ...the mission 43 A Receive data from the UAV 43 B AscTec Photo tagger software 43 C Batteries 44 D Transport 45 E Changing payloads 46 8 Updates Upgrades 47 A General firmware updates 47 B Optional soft...

Page 5: ...severe effects on the GPS stability and or the magnetic field sensor Therefore a pilot must have the training and ability to fly the system in HEIGHT MODE in any situation It is recommended to avoid...

Page 6: ...nd DOUBLE BEEP Do not move the UAV when calibrating 5 When the acoustic sound is a single BEEP only Calibration is finished and the camera mount stabilization starts working The system is waiting for...

Page 7: ...t consists of 1 Extremely firm and lightweight construction made out of CNC milled carbon fiber 2 Knurled nut for the actively stabilized camera mount 3 Battery connector 4 Motor rail connectors 5 Vib...

Page 8: ...motors are mounted 3 on the Motor clips 4 The landing feet are used to attach the carbon cross to the motor rails of the UAV 5 The data link antennas are attached to the carbon cross close to the mot...

Page 9: ...evant except for the voltage shown in the upper right corner The Status Display and data link are used for communication with the UAV The Remote control contains 1 Zoom Rec switch Enables camera zoom...

Page 10: ...iple AscTec Falcon UAVs you have to change the channel of the diversity video receiver For doing this please follow these steps 1 Switch on the UAV and the camera 2 The video receiver must be off and...

Page 11: ...o Take a photo both cameras 3 View latest pict View latest pict 4 Change color pallete when FLIR is active 5 Tilt Up Down Tilt Up Down Tilt Up Down Tilt Up Down Yaw Gear Left Right 6 Yaw Left Right Ya...

Page 12: ...he camera When changing camera settings make sure to switch off the camera at least 10 seconds before switching off the UAV to save the settings and the pictures We recommend to set the HDMI resolutio...

Page 13: ...on top of the camera to communicate with the camera mount You must NOT use this plug for any other purpose Therefore for downloading your photos please remove the SD card It is located at the bottom...

Page 14: ...a battery level display To check the charging state please press the small button in the left down corner of the BID and control the charging state by the LED Green LED 12 0 V Battery is full and rea...

Page 15: ...r in green E TRANSPORT CASE ASCTEC BACKPACK The transport case consists of a Peli Case with a precisely water jet cut inlay fitting the complete AscTec Falcon 8 system with all its accessories For eas...

Page 16: ...GHT MODE and MANUAL MODE with the same level of support and limitations Complete functionality of the Status Display e g telemetry GOTO HOME Waypoint Navigation and Comfort Package To bind the AscTec...

Page 17: ...s on the ground and the motors are running 10 We strongly recommend a basic training and frequently practicing the HEIGHT MODE B FLIGHT MODES The user can select the flight modes by the two switches o...

Page 18: ...orientation in the air system will be leveled Keep its height within the limits of the height controller approx 1 3 m For safety reasons and to make operation as easy as possible there are some limita...

Page 19: ...g the time of the double beeping the system performs an automated start up check The gyroscopes are checked for drift The current magnetic field is compared to the expected magnetic field The electron...

Page 20: ...V has reached during this flight and then fly back to home position This mode prevents crashing into obstacles but can be critical towards the end of the flight time since ascending drains the battery...

Page 21: ...CAN and search for your AscTec Falcon 8 All available systems are displayed with its serial number which you find on the back of the central unit five numerals e g 30123 Choose your preferred system f...

Page 22: ...T CONTROL STICK completely pulled DOWN DESCENDING while pushing the START STOP switch for at least 1 second Wait till motors run idle 3 Ready for take off Then Keep the RIGHT CONTROL STICK absolutely...

Page 23: ...it is bouncing a little 5 Stop the motors For that keep the LEFT CONTROL STICK completely pulled DOWN DESCENDING while pushing the START STOP SWITCH for at least one second 6 Mission completed LANDIN...

Page 24: ...attery warning when the remaining capacity lasts for max 5 minutes EMPTY BATTERY LAND NOW The remaining capacity lasts for only 90 seconds You have to start landing immediately Battery and UAV could b...

Page 25: ...ently Sometimes reducing height a little is helpful EXCESSIVE WIND LAND NOW Just in case the UAV drifts away more than 10 meters for more than 4 seconds wind conditions are too strong for GPS MODE and...

Page 26: ...extreme situation but not in trouble so far Indeed it is a combination which could lead to a critical situation By way of example Turbulences may occur Close to buildings or other large objects e g tr...

Page 27: ...d in your Status Display Click Right once while not connected Latitude and longitude exact position are displayed See p 27 Your repair usually is done in 3 working days For several outdoor test flight...

Page 28: ...V 3 Switch off the diversity data link and the diversity video receiver of the MGS 4 Unplug and remove the battery from the UAV 5 Unplug the video receiver battery 6 Fold all antennas on the UAV and M...

Page 29: ...UAV manually to connect if the scan failed or Scan the area if the UAV is not automatically connected or Usually in a few seconds the UAV automatically connects View latest position ENT ENT 2 Set an...

Page 30: ...OME MAIN MENU FUNCTIONS MENU GOTO HOME Call back home the UAV The UAV will directly fly back at its current height without descending and wait above the Home position for further input NAVIGATION The...

Page 31: ...and define a new destination Even for GOTO HOME and the EMERGENCY MODE POINT OF INTEREST POI PART OF THE OPTIONAL COMFORT PACKAGE The POI function automatically orientates the camera towards a desired...

Page 32: ...o the desired radius and height and adjust the camera tilt angle 4 Click START Now the UAV will perform a circular flight around the object taking pictures automatically PANORAMA PART OF THE OPTIONAL...

Page 33: ...rolls together with the UAV CableCam Timeout Adjust the time interval after which the camera automatically deactivates the CABLECAM MODE Default 4 seconds Only available functions are displayed CAMER...

Page 34: ...k command will lead to pitching the camera up or down As soon as you release the TRIGGER BUTTON you can control the height with the LEFT CONTROL STICK as usual Example If you climb with 1 m s when you...

Page 35: ...the CABLECAM MODE is activated the AscTec Falcon 8 will lock its current orientation as forward regardless of the orientation of the AscTec Falcon 8 Example If you activate the CABLECAM MODE and give...

Page 36: ...Note Mac users are able to run the software in Windows using Parallels for instance You must use a laptop to keep it connected during a mission So you have the opportunity to adjust coordinates restar...

Page 37: ...h a joystick when you are doing team work Do not forget to dedicate a responsible camera operator Available with JOYSTICK CAMERA CONTROL Please ask for that feature if you are interested CONNECTING UA...

Page 38: ...SATELLITE IMAGE FROM GOOGLE EARTH 1 Adjust the view so that the destination area is completely displayed and centered in the browser frame in maximum size The view must be aligned north up and straig...

Page 39: ...with its current orientation Then you may fly another time and take further pictures from the same position with the same camera orientation 3 Waypoint Properties DESIRED HEADING Heading of the UAV a...

Page 40: ...AMERA ANGLE please see the chart at the top of that page under WAYPOINT PROPERTIES You can always click on DRAW MATRIX to see the result of your current entries then change numbers and control again u...

Page 41: ...es The time it will stay at each of the waypoints is determined by the waypoint itself To continue a mission at a certain waypoint simply enter its number in the field below the MISSION STATUS button...

Page 42: ...42 D CAMERA CONTROL This tool can be used for controlling the camera angles and trigger directly from the PC...

Page 43: ...om the SD card to a computer For every time you switch on the UAV there is a log file folder with a consecutive number starting at 001 ending at 500 The folder with the highest number is the latest on...

Page 44: ...ES To read the data open a CSV file with a text editing software or MS Excel The file name shows the date as well as the time of the end of the flight Moreover it contains following information Filena...

Page 45: ...ra and read the specific safety guidelines given by the battery manufacturer CHARGING For charging Li Po batteries we recommend the usage of a Robbe Power Peak C8 EQ BID 1 Plug the battery charger to...

Page 46: ...the calibration manual REMOVING THE CAMERA MOUNT 1 Unplug the 10 pin cable from the central unit The two clips on the socket have to be pushed aside and the jack will come out 2 Gently pull out the c...

Page 47: ...nect properly follow the steps as described at the bottom of that page Never switch off the AscTec Falcon 8 or the MGS during an update process This can cause an inconsistent state which is hard to re...

Page 48: ...follows these steps 1 Power up your AscTec Falcon 8 and your MGS Make sure all batteries are charged and you have a solid signal connection 2 Plug in the mini USB cable into the link box behind the S...

Page 49: ...pared so that we can help you effectively by having all relevant system information related You find the ID of your AscTec Falcon 8 on the backside oft he flight system above the battery slot It consi...

Page 50: ...the complete motor rail and be up again in minutes To disassemble a motor rail from the UAV follow these steps 1 Unscrew the two screws that hold the motor rail plug in place 2 Carefully remove the mo...

Page 51: ...is required at the safety authorities responsible for flight permissions It contains all basic facts figures and safety features of the AscTec Falcon 8 Download link http www asctec de downloads publ...

Page 52: ...n increase in wind speeds over 10 m s Magnetic fields of intentionally or unintentionally approached current carrying cables Shadowing or disturbance of GPS signals Any possible technical defects on t...

Page 53: ...f soft and hardware relates to the AscTec Falcon 8 2012 and the following and later versions of firmware LowLevel 3 0 HighLevel 3 0 Diversity 1 7 Div LCD 3 0 Earlier versions of firmware might have di...

Page 54: ...4 13 CHANGELOG 2013 08 Version 2 0 New features and functions added 2012 07 2012 update of Status Display included 2012 04 Publication of AscTec Falcon 8 manual 2014 07 Adding new products and feature...

Page 55: ...cerning our UAVs you can contact us at any time Company name Ascending Technologies GmbH Street Konrad Zuse Bogen 4 Zip code city 82152 Krailling Country Germany Telephone 49 089 89 55 60 79 0 Fax 49...