Always Wear Protection... And Other Stuff

Once I was almost finished building my Quad I started to think about all the dangers that might happen to it.  Like a scared parent I started imagining the dangers to my sweet little Quad that might be lurking just outside the door.  Um...  the most likely danger (other than being carried off by a big bird) is a crash.  The most likely cause of that crash would likely be Me.  Especially while I am trying to tune it and also learning to fly.

I was resigned to the fact my little guy was likely to crash and at my own hand.  Toward that end I had previously purchased some extra parts, just in case I "happened" to break them.  So, I had extra props and frame arms.  I thought about getting an extra motor and ESC but I assumed they would likely survive a crash.  So I though I was covered....  or was I? 

More specifically, was the most critical component on the Quad, the KK2 board safe from a crash?
I didn't have a spare and they are sometimes hard to get, due to backorders. Also, assuming they were in stock, I would have several weeks to wait until a new one was delivered.

So, the solution seemed to be.... Protection !!!   You should always wear...  I mean, "have" protection.
That was the thing I needed, some form of protection for the KK2.  If the Quad crashed on it's side or the bottom, the KK2 was pretty well protected, but if the Quad landed on it's top, the KK2 was a goner, most likely.

So, the solution was some kind of protection over the KK2 board, but what kind?  I have seen lots of people using Tupperware-like plastic bowls to cover their boards, but that limits access to the buttons on the KK2.  And since the mostly like time for a crash was during testing and turning, and me being lazy, I would likely leave the Tupperware cover off while testing.  Not a good thing.

Here were the criteria I came up with for protection for the KK2.

• The protection should always remain in place
• The protection should provide easy access to the buttons on the KK2
• The protection should allow the LCD screen and LED lights to be visible at all time
• The protection should absorb some of the shock of a top crash, not just pass it along to the Quad
• The protection should not weigh much or add a lot of wind resistance

Based on these criteria I came up with a very simple and cheap solution.  A kind of helmet to protect the KK2.  But the helmet that was completely open, made out of some kind of bars or rods.

When visiting my local hobby store I happened to see a cup by the cash register filled with plastic rods that were about 2 feet long and about an 1/8 inch in diameter.  They were flexible but strong enough to bend without kinking.  I asked the clerk what they were and how much they cost.  He said they were antenna tubes and they were $1 each.  Perfect...  I bought four of them.

In the photo below you can see my KK2 protective "helmet".

I doubled up two rods, taped their ends together and used zip ties to connect them to the frame arms, between the body and the ESCs. 

They had a nice bend and fit pretty well. 

Where the two rod components crossed above the KK2 I used two crossed zip ties to keep them in place. 

The whole thing weighs next to nothing, provides good protection, absorbs the shock of a crash and adds very little wind resistance.

Mission accomplished....

Next post: Putting a camera on the Quad...  Jello anyone???

Gonna Fly Now... Maiden Flight of my SK450 Quadcopter

The day has finally arrived.  I have been waiting a long time for this moment.  Time to turn on the transmitter, plug in the battery and let my Quad take wings....   um... props  and fly.
I have tested, retested and tested again every possible thing I could test, check and confirm but now is the moment of truth.

The truth is, I think I am a little scared...  Scared for several reasons.  Will it actually fly?  Did I make some fatal mistake in the construction?  Was I wrong about the parts?  Would there be enough thrust to lift off?  Would there be too much thrust and the dang Quad will rocket off into the sky never to be seen again?  Will I be able to control it, since I have absolutely no Quad flying experience and very little helicopter or even RC plane experience?  All legitimate reasons to we a little nervous - and nervous I was.

So, time to head out to the back yard and give it a shot.  My other concern was my backyard has a bunch of bushes and buildings and trees so the only clear area I have is about 20 feet wide and about 10 feet deep.  Kind of tight for someone with no Quad flying experience.  The only good thing is the wind is very light.

Without further ado, here is the video of the maiden flight of my Quadcopter:

I do have to admit, this video was not the absolute first flight.  I did a number of short hops to check the configuration settings.  What I found out pretty quickly is that I needed to turn on Self Leveling or the Quads days were numbered.  So this video shows the first flight with the Self Leveling turned on.
My total flying time for all the hops was about 10 minutes, which I thought was great.  I had estimated my total flight time on a battery would only be about 6 minutes.

I was ecstatic, the dang thing flew and it actually flew pretty well, once I turned on Self Level.

For those of you that might be interested, my initial flights were using the default tuning values for the KK2 board under firmware version 1.5.

Roll & Pitch: P Gain=50 P Limit=100; I Gain=25 and I Limit=20
Yaw: P Gain=50 P Limit=20; I Gain=50 and I Limit=10
Self Level Settings: P Gain=100 P Limit=20 with ACC Trim Roll and Pitch both at 0

I had a very hard time controlling the Quad with Self Level turned off, it was just all over the place.  I suspect someone with good piloting skills would have had no trouble controlling it.  But with my "limited" Quad skills and my nervousness, I switched on the Self Level and was amazed how much easier it was to control.  I still had to make a lot of corrections with the sticks, but I could keep it in the air and in the same general location pretty easily.

All in all it was a very successful maiden flight.  I confirmed I had the right parts, put together properly so that even with my limited skills, I was able to fly the Quad. 

Next Post: Always Wear Protection (and other stuff).