HOWTO : Install a Futaba 14SG TX on your Phantom

[llavalle]

There seems to be interest for this so I'll do a little write-up on how I configured my Futaba 14SG with the included RS7008 SB receiver.

ref : viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3890

This will be a 3 part post.
1.Physical installation of the receiver in the Phantom
2.Transmitter config.
3.NAZA Config

Reasons I choose to install an aftermarket receiver in my Phantom :
1. Better range
2. Better control (using dual rate, channel mixing, etc)
3. Better Gimbal control
4. Telemetry! i.e. sending info from the aircraft back to the controller. This is a feature of the 14SG and 18MZ right now.

Here we go.

1. Remove your propellers. Remember that if you have one of the latest phantom (or you changed your motors), the M2 and M4 motors are left -handed threaded. To remove the nut, you turn clockwise!

2. Turn your phantom over and remove those 4 screws on each arm. The outer one is a phillips #0 and the inner ones are Hex 2.5mm.

3. Turn the phantom over again and remove the top cover

4. Remove the stock transmitter. It's held by 2 screws. The 4 pin connector is glued. Sorry for the mess, I have the GCU, PMUV2 and iOSD Mini in there!

5. Take the RS7008SB Receiver and use this nice video to turn it to Mode 2. Mode 2 turns Channel #8 into a SBUS connector.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDqLrvf6Il4

6. Connect the 3 pin connector that was on the stock RX to the port #8 on the new RX. This will supply regulated voltage to it and allow serial communication between the Naza and the RX. Sorry, no pics

7. Optionnal : connect the external voltage connection of the RX to one of the battery lead on the Phantom. This will give you your battery voltage on the TX LCD during flight. Use any ESC connection point or the AUX power connection (what I did). For this you can either buy the official part from Futaba : "CA-RVIN-700" which is basically a small wire, a 1a inline fuse and heat shrink. You can also buy the connector elsewhere , it's a simple JST 2 pin connector and source an inline fuse. I bought the official part cause at the time I did not know better.

8. Thread the 2 antennas on the outside of the phantom and put them 90deg apart (one going down and one horizontal)

9. Put it in and try to fit everything. With the PMU, the GCU and the iOSD, it's a VERY tight fit. Don't close the cover yet so if something is wrong, you can come back later (not much can go wrong at that point).

That's it! Your

 

[llavalle]

Here is part #2.

1-You need to pair the remote with the receiver. Here's how :
a)Go to the Link menu (double tap on Link) and go to System
b)Hightlight Link and hit "RTN"
c)The TX will start beeping
d)Power on the Phantom
e)The id of the RX will be written over the Link button (P134301195 in my case)

2-Now for the channels. Here's a screenshot of the NAZA Software to help you out :

Make sure to set the receiver type to D-Bus. As you can see from the left part of the image, Chanel 1,2 3 and 4 are, respectively, Aileron, Elevator, Throttle and Rudder. Channel 5 is X1 (Gimbal control for the H3-2D), Channel 6 is X2 (IOC Switch) and Channel 7 is U which is the control mode switch (GPS, ATTI, etc).

3-Channels 1-4 are fine by themselves. Here's how to configure the 3 other channels
-Navigate to the Linkage - Function menu
-Set the following
--5 AUX1 Controlled by LD (that's the left volume button on the remote)
--6 AUX3 Controlled by SB (Big 3 position switch on the left of the controller... front one)
--7 AUX2 Controlled by SC (same as SB but on the right side)
--12 AUX5 Controlled by nothing. Fake channel for dual rate

Note : you don't need to set channel 5 to AUX1.. you can also use the GEAR channel.. it does not matter as you can assign any function to any channel. For simplicity, follow my guide..

4-Setting the limit and travel of SB and SC for the Control mode and IOC. If you don't do that, the switch goes too far away left and right and the GPS mode is not activated.. it goes to failsafe
-Navigate to Linkage - End Point
-Reduce the travel of AUX2 (control mode) from 135 to 78 on the left and right

5-Setting dual rate for slow pans
-Navigate to Model - Dual Rate
-Chose the Rudder
-Go down under the position #2 and select "SF", the big 2 position switch on the left.

• https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/65990978/IMG_0006.JPG

-Switch the SF switch forward to change the mode, you should see the arrow setting to "2" now.
-Change both to values to 50

• https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/65990978/IMG_0007.JPG

-Now switching the position of the switch will affect the curve

6-Single button failsafe
-Navigate to Model - Prog Mix. Prog Mix allows you to combine controls. In that case, we want a switch to ADD a value to the control switch so that is it not on GPS, ATTI or Manual.. it's between those
-Select the first line
-Set the Y value to "+60"

-Change to page 2 and set as the following image :

-Basically you Set AUX5 as master to AUX2. The trigger switch is SH, the momentary switch on the right side of the controller

7-Failsafe configuration
-Navigate to Linkage - Failsafe
-Set the Channel 7 F/S to F/S instead of hold.
-Put the SC Switch on top and Now pull on that last switch (SH). While keeping the SH switch pulled, highlight the POS section and hold RTN, it will save theposition which should be around 31%

8-Remote Telemetry Alarm - If you installed the external voltage
-Click on Home/Exit button to get to the telemetry screen
-Select the EXT-VOLT and hit RTN

-Set the alert to ACT
-The threshold to 10.7 --> this will trigger the alert when the voltage drops BELOW 10.7. I find that 10.6v is a good battery voltage to land.
-Chose your Vibes, I chose TYPE1

9-Auto Timer :
-Highlight the "1" on the left of the top timer
-Set to the desired time, I chose 6min 30sec.
-I chose to reset it using the SE Switch
-Start and stop are controlled by throttle so highlight the Control and select J3... then go to the ON/OFF section
-Set the throttle to the desired position and hit "SET"
-Do the same thing for the STOP. Note that the "ON/OFF" is Reverse for the START and Normal for the Stop
Start :

Stop :

-Go back to the home screen and test the timer. It should start auto when you lift the throttle a bit and stop when lowering it. Adjust the values to suit your needs.

10-Telemetry :
-Navigate to Linkage - telemetry Set
-Set logging to ACT on switch SA
-Select your interval
-Go back to the home screen. When switching the SA switch to the correct position, the controller will BEEP to announce that Telemetry has started.

11-Throttle Curve : I found that using the Phantom in GPS and ATTI mode was a bit tough because the left stick does not auto-centers like with the stock controller. To avoid unwanted altitude change, I changed the throttle curve to create a sort of "dead zone" in the middle.
-Navigate to Model - Throttle curve
-Turn it on
-Those are my settings :

Again, those are my settings, adjust to your needs.

12-Channel reverse
-Go to Link - Reverse and reverche Channel 6 and 7 (aux 3 and 2)

So this is it for Part #2, and onto Part 3!

 

[llavalle]

Here is Part 3 :
-Turn on your controller
-Plug the USB of the Phantom and power on the phantom
-Start NAZA Software assistant

1-Set the Elevator and Throttle channel to REVERSE. (you can also do that on the transmitter but I chose to do it here)

2-First order of business is calibration of the 4 main axis and X1.
-Hit those 2 buttons and go to each end of the control. Make sure the DUAL rate switch (SF) it at NORMAL position.
-Remerber, the X1 channel is mapped to the left volume button on the front of the controller.

3-After calibration, test your sticks :

Basically :
Aileron : right stick = right slider
Rudder : right stick = right slider
Throttle : up stick = right slider
Elevator : up stick = right slider

While you're there, test the dual rate. Flip the SF switch and the rudder should now move at 50%

4-The Control mode switch should work out of the box. Test the 3 positions are make sure the mode switch to GPS, ATTI and Whatever you set in the 3rd more (I prefer Manual or ATTI).

5-Test the forced failsafe switch. the slider should go to failsafe regardless of the position of the top switch. Check at the bottom of the screen for the current active mode

6-Turn off the controller, the NAZA should turn to failsafe mode.

7- Test the IOC in Advanced - IOC

You should be all set!

 

[cptdarel]

would I be correct in saying, just follow the basic steps, and the same can be applied to the Hitec Aurora 9 system ?.

 

[mfbs17]

would I be correct in saying, just follow the basic steps, and the same can be applied to the Hitec Aurora 9 system ?.

I dont think there is any differences in setup procedure but in your case you can follow this video footage.
http://youtu.be/GqccFtFlEnQ
Hope it helps

 

[llavalle]

Part 2 and 3 of the guide posted!

 

[OI Photography]

Very nice, thank you sir!!

Now tell us how you manage to get the lid back on your phantom with all that stuff in there :lol:

 

[llavalle]

Very nice, thank you sir!!

Now tell us how you manage to get the lid back on your phantom with all that stuff in there :lol:

It is a very tight fit. I actually pinched wires 2 times. At one point my 8 pin ribbon cable for the Zenmuze got squeezed and fortunately it only shorted the video wires....

 

[Quattro1]

I have the 2 antenna Stock RX in my phantom(Fasst ready), do you recomend to change it to a futaba RX, or just pair the futaba TX to the fasst ready dji RX?
(my concern is range and reliability)

Have a Futaba FGS8 and R6208 receiver by the way.

 

[llavalle]

I have the 2 antenna Stock RX in my phantom(Fasst ready), do you recomend to change it to a futaba RX, or just pair the futaba TX to the fasst ready dji RX?
(my concern is range and reliability)

Have a Futaba FGS8 and R6208 receiver by the way.

I never tested the 2 antenna RX on the Phantom. Supposedly, it's a lot better than the stock one. If you have the R6208 on hand, just install it and you'll have peace of mind.

 

[Quattro1]

I never tested the 2 antenna RX on the Phantom. Supposedly, it's a lot better than the stock one. If you have the R6208 on hand, just install it and you'll have peace of mind.

Okay, I agree with you, the problem is that the 2 antenna DJI rx actually have 2 wires Connected, both identical going into naza X1 and X2, but i guess I have to use only one wire with the futaba R6206? (dont know why dji are using 2 wires?)

 

[Cor Brink]

I have a question about the failsafe switch; when you want to use f/s, must you keep the switch down all the time because I notice that it goes back to the control mode it is switched to when you let go. Wouldn't a normal switch work better?

 

[llavalle]

I have a question about the failsafe switch; when you want to use f/s, must you keep the switch down all the time because I notice that it goes back to the control mode it is switched to when you let go. Wouldn't a normal switch work better?

Correct. Using this config, you must hold the switch. Its more a matter of preference : I prefer to have to hold the switch in case of emergency and avoid hitting it by error...

You can change it any way you want.

 

[Cor Brink]

I have a question about the failsafe switch; when you want to use f/s, must you keep the switch down all the time because I notice that it goes back to the control mode it is switched to when you let go. Wouldn't a normal switch work better?

Correct. Using this config, you must hold the switch. Its more a matter of preference : I prefer to have to hold the switch in case of emergency and avoid hitting it by error...

You can change it any way you want.

Got it, thanks!

 

[rockandice]

I am hoping you all can help with my issue. I have done the installation and all appears correct. The Naza software show the sticks all work, and all is good to go. I cant get my phantom to start up, using the normal startup. What am I forgetting to do, or is the startup something new. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[llavalle]

Make sure you dont have the dual rate switch on (slow rudder) since that will prevent the axis from going to the full position.

I am hoping you all can help with my issue. I have done the installation and all appears correct. The Naza software show the sticks all work, and all is good to go. I cant get my phantom to start up, using the normal startup. What am I forgetting to do, or is the startup something new. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[FlyingHigh]

I am hoping you all can help with my issue. I have done the installation and all appears correct. The Naza software show the sticks all work, and all is good to go. I cant get my phantom to start up, using the normal startup. What am I forgetting to do, or is the startup something new. Thanks in advance for your help.

I had this problem. For me it turned out to be I needed to reverse my roll/aileron channel in the assistant software. Or in the controller I suppose.

Also, if anyone doesn't already know, you can calk futaba and order a spring kit for your throttle. Which will then make it self centering just like the stock controller. They will send it to you for free.