fangin.com RC, photos & tech

6Jul/141

Character Set Update – MinimOSD

The problem:

The on screen display (OSD) characters from the Hobbyking Minim OSD v1.1 appear garbled.

video and at seven minutes in he explains that both sides of the board need to be powered for the character update to work. I was thinking "what the hell, how is this not stated on the instructions page!"  Actually it is, right here in black and white. The point is, if your Minim OSD lights don't look like the picture below, the character set update probably ain't going to work.

minim OSD ready for character set update

minim OSD ready for character set update

 

 

 

25Jul/130

2.1mm F:2.0 Turnigy Micro FPV Camera Lens

This image shows the view from the default lens that comes with the 1/3-inch SONY CCD Video Camera (PAL) on the left and from the same camera but with the lens swapped for a 2.1mm F:2.0 Turnigy Micro FPV Camera Lens. On the right I've drawn a green box to show the area of the original lens overlaid on the view from the replacement lens. The original lens has quite a smaller Field of View in comparison.

While the new lens has a much wider FOV, objects appear smaller overall. Compare the size of the fridge in the middle of the frame. I'm going to try the wider FOV lens for now as it should be better in tight spaces.

 

2.1mm F2.0 Turnigy Micro FPV Camera Lense

 


 

1/3-inch SONY CCD Video Camera (PAL)

Greenshot_2013-07-25_21-49-01

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.1mm F:2.0 Turnigy Micro FPV Camera Lens

Greenshot_2013-07-25_21-02-36

30Apr/130

Hemp Proteins

Hemp protein is a powder made from the seeds of the hemp plant. Hemp has numerous benefits. It is very anti-inflammatory, full of vitamins, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids. It's also extremely high in protein. Hemp protein is made into snacks, shakes, and even protein bars. Most Protein powders also have high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, minerals, amino acids, and a wide variety of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. In addition, they also contain fiber, phytochemicals, vitamins, antioxidants, and beta-carotene. Hemp protein is another fantastic source of omega-3 fatty acids, and you can find hemp products like oil or capsules to complement your nutrition needs, you can also get 30% off now with coupon code ADVANTAGE. This is important because there are studies showing a connection between omega-3 fatty acids and an increased risk of heart disease. A diet rich in fish or extra-virgin olive oil, both of which are high in omega-3 fatty acids, can reduce your risk of heart disease. Since hemp protein is high in omega-3 fatty acids, it's also a great source of the important, long-chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. As a result, it's an excellent, cheap source of these beneficial fats.

Can Hemp Protein be Used as an Alternative to Milk?

With all of the positive health effects that are associated with hemp protein, it's no wonder that a number of manufacturers are now incorporating hemp protein into their products. What's more, hemp protein products are available in a variety of forms. Hemp protein powder can be made into a delicious snack, shake, or bars and can even be made into delicious hot chocolate or ice cream. Another exciting development is that hemp protein supplements are becoming easier and easier to find. This is largely because of the growing political resistance to federal farm subsidies in the U.S. This lack of support has forced many companies to look for new ways to make money without government subsidies. Many companies now offer hemp protein products on their own websites, offering hemp protein powders that are fortified with a combination of vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids. They're also a great source of omega-3 fatty acids. Companies have also developed special hemp protein powder bars and healthy-food-beverage products made from hemp flour. Both of these products are made to provide the nutritional benefits of hemp protein powder but with the convenience of a cookie, a shake, or a bar. You can use these products as alternatives to the products that come in packages, or you can try to eat them on their own. These are both great options for getting the nutrition you need without sacrificing quality. In other words, you can eat more of the delicious foods that come in bags, but you can also make them from scratch at home and enjoy them on their own terms.

How Can You Get More Hemp Protein?

Hemp protein has not gained acceptance by the food industry at the same pace as other protein sources. Because it's such a versatile food, there are a variety of options for obtaining a larger quantity of hemp protein. These include soaking, sprouting, and grinding your own hemp seeds. These methods have many advantages over just eating your seeds. These methods also eliminate the hassle of buying bags of hemp protein powder. Another option is to make your own hemp protein bars.

7Apr/130

1.3GHz Low Pass Filter – The Case For

 

Today I flew the PVC quad on another shakedown flight (after fiddling with the configuration via the GCS). I was flying over a fairly large oval, not very high but on the far side from where I was sitting when all motors lost power. I believe failsafe on my Futaba kicked in. You can hear in the video that the motors stop and then just before hitting the ground, they briefly start again. I walk over to the quad from the other side of the oval, perform a quick inspection to make sure nothings broken or fallen off and without any other changes or resets, power up the OP CC3D by holding yaw right and away I go.

 
 
 
 
I've used this Futaba Tx and Rx pair in nitro fixed wing models at much further range and never had an issue. The main difference is now I have a 150mW 1.3GHz video transmitter (http://www.readymaderc.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=11_30_38&products_id=1018) about 20cm away from my 7 channel 2.4GHz receiver. I've read about guys using low pass filters on the vTx so I thought it might be worth checking the interaction between the 1.3Ghz vTx and the 2.4GHz Rx. Fortunately a guy from work that came out to watch carries a spectrum analyser around in his car so we set about looking at how "dirty" is the 1.3GHz vTx.
 
The screenshots of the specan show a 2GHz wide band centred at 2GHz (so it's showing from 1 - 3 GHz). The first screenshot is using the "Max Hold" function on the specan which is effectively a cumulative trace that shows the max detected levels across the band and holds it. This screenshot shows my 2.4GHz Tx as well as the in building wifi and a few other small peaks. At this point, my video transmitter is powered down.
 
 
The second screenshot on the same scale (1 to 3GHz) after the vTx has been powered up for a few seconds. You can see a peak at 1280MHz (vTx frequency) but disturbingly, across the whole band are is a whole lot of noise coming from the vTx. The second harmonic at 2560MHz appears to be right where we see the Futaba Tx.
 
 
The effect of this noisy little transmitter means it's desensitising my 2.4GHz receiver. It's like someone talking really loud (1.3GHzvTx) standing right next to you (2.4GHz Rx) when you're trying to listen to instructions from someone talking in a normal voice on the other side of the room (the 2.4GHz Tx). 
 
To address the problem a 1.3GHz low pass filter can be fitted in-line on the vTx between the output and the antenna. The low pass filter allows the video signal to be transmitted down in the 1.3GHz band but anything above roughly that frequency is heavily attenuated. The noise coming from the vTx is no longer shouting in the ear of the 2.4GHz receiver so I can hear the instructions from the transmitter much easier and at a further distance. I've ordered this low pass filter (http://www.foxtechfpv.com/1400mhz-low-pass-filter-p-439.html) from foxtechfpv to hopefully solve the problem.
 
I forgot to mention why 1.3Ghz and 2.4GHz interfere with each other - harmonics. Check it out on wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmonic
 
What I found most useful today was being able to see the problem right there on the spectrum analyser. Being able to see the video transmitter peak at 1280MHz and then all the  smaller peaks across the rest of the band including the 2.4GHz area right where my Futaba Tx is.
 
What will be interesting to look at next is after I fit the low pass filter, how does it look on the spectrum analyser. I expect it should look much cleaner. Something else I also want to look at on the specan is the 1 watt 1.3GHz vTx  fitted to my DJI F450. I've flown that at much further range without issue. Is the vTx a much better one where it transmits only on the frequency its supposed to? I'll hook it up and find out.
 
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Without the "Max Hold" function on the specan, this is how it looks.;
 
First with the 1.3GHz vTx off
 
Then with the vTx on
Filed under: CC3D, FPV, RC No Comments
8Aug/120

Flips & Rolls with the Naza F450 Quad

This video shows my first loops and rolls with the DJI Naza F450 Quad. I did at least one in every direction (left, right, forwards and backwards). The entire flight was flown via FPV which I found much easier for these moves. Flying line of sight at this height and distance makes it hard to maintain orientation.

A guy that started flying the F450 about the same time as me told me how he tried to roll it, it got half way and dived into the ground. Broke an arm or two and some props. Thanks to the well thought out F450 frame, he was back up and running in no time but after hearing such a tale I was a bit apprehensive to try it myself..... until now. With my FPV gear up and running it's much easier to gain a lot of height and maintain orientation. 

The setup is a stock F450 quad with 8" props and 4S battery (4000mAh on this flight). Other than the gain settings as described here (http://fangin.com/blog/2012/08/07/dji-naza-f450-gain-settings-flips-and-rolls/), there's not much to it. Gain plenty of height and bang the stick over. I can see how if the gains were set too low, the roll rate might not be quick enough to complete the roll without losing too much height.