V
FUTABA 9Z
THE UNOFFICIAL WORKSHOP MANUAL
WARNING:
THE INFORMATION IN THIS MANUAL IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND MAY BE INCORRECT, CAUSE DAMAGE
TO YOUR RADIO OR INJURY TO YOURSELF AND OTHERS. IF YOU USE THIS MANUAL YOU DO SO SOLEY AT YOUR OWN RISK.
www.jamesandtracy.co.uk
Copyright 2012 jamesandtracy.co.uk
Page 73 of 84
6. THE FUTABA SERVICE AND TEST MENU
6.1. Overview
Many Futaba Radios have a hidden test and service software built into the firmware by
Futaba. Accessing these Test and Service Menus usually requires some simple
hardware based procedure rather than a key press. However, do not be put off by this,
these menus are very useful and being able to regularly calibrate your own transmitter
will really improve your flying experience as hardware settings drift as your set ages.
6.2. How to Access and Use these Menus on the 9Z
The 9Z’s Service and Test Menus can be accessed by connecting 3 pins on the
CAMPAC port. You have two options to do this:
1.
Connect CAMPAC Pins numbers 3, 2 and 7 together manually with wire (see
APPENDICIES for CAMPAC Pin-Out numbering)
2.
Build my (Almost) Universal Service Menu Enabler shown in APPENDIX A.
3.
Buy a ready made Service Menu Enabler like the UltraPac.
I would really recommend you choose option 2 and build the enabler; it’s easy, cheap,
quick and safer than option 1. If you do decide to choose option 1 make sure you have a
good connection on the CAMPAC Pins. Intermittent or bad connections have been
known (rarely) to brick the 9Z. Option 3 is only a cost effective choice if you already have
a need for a new CAMPAC, as a Service Menu Enabler is very easy and cheap to make.
Whichever option you’ve chosen, the following procedure will access the Service and
Test Menu:
1.
Turn off the 9Z transmitter
2.
Connect the CAMPAC Pins with the Enabler, UltraPac or manually
3.
Double check everything is connected the right way
4.
Turn on the 9Z transmitter and the first service menu item (Main Menu) is displayed
on the LCD (see Figure 75)
5.
You can now cycle through the Menus using the “NXT” and “PRE” soft-keys.
The Service and Test Menus for the 9Z can be split into 3 main groups:
1.
The Service Menus – for calibrating your 9Z’s controls and functions
2.
The Test Menus – for fault finding and checking calibration of controls and functions
3.
The Upgrade Menus – for changing and viewing your 9Z’s system settings
The overall flowchart for cycling through the menus is shown in Figure 75. Note that you
will have to choose between the Service and Test Menu loop and the Upgrade Menu
loop at the Main Menu. Once you have chosen you’ll need to power off the transmitter if
you wish to enter the other menu loop as there is no way to return to the Main Menu
screen.
The Service and Upgrade Menu Loop is described in Section 6.3 with details on utilising
the various calibration and upgrade functions. The Test Menu loop is described in