AerobTec Altis v4
Contents
1. Fig 10 Competition Settings Screen Fig 11 Your Altis v4 has an OLED display There are several screens that can be shown on the display They are described in the Altis v4 screens chapter See page 7 User can choose from several screen types e Standard F5J screen e Data screen with 6 selectable data lines e 2 data screens with 3 selectable data lines which alternate with a selected period e Setting screen a screen with competition settings which is showed for a specified time after initialization screen Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 11 2a Altis v4 SN 75431940 General device infomation Serial Number 75431940 FW Version 1 5 Fimware 0 Memory usage Download data Erase data Download progress Logging Competition Screen COM amp Telemetry Finish F5J Screen Meas Screen Number Number QR 6 Rows C 3 Rows Settings Screen Duration 0 amp ne Fig 11 Screen settings Com A B ports Fig 12 You can assign a function for the selected port Currently there are telemetry keypad or live output options These ports are reserved for other future uses Example of use if user owns RC transmitter with telemetry link Multiplex M LINK and he wants to use Altis v4 as a telemetry sensor he has to select from combo box COM A choice Multiplex_ MSB D Altis v4 SN 75431940 x General device information Serial Number 75431940 FW Version 1 5 Firmware2. Aeroblec Altis v4 Recording Competition Altimeter with Telemetry Manufacturer AerobTec s r o Pionierska 15 831 02 Bratislava www aerobtec com info aerobtec com Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual cAerobTec 1D DS CICA ONS ecaa a E E EEES 3 ZAP OS ON a E E E E E N E ras onere 3 KAON ENO K erari E E E A E ewes 4 AIK Wale CESCHOLOM essiri S EEE A EE aei 4 Connectors of your ANS V ecreis E E ESEE 4 Mounting MIP YY SANE STAI erre AEE REREN 5 Connection for data logging ONIY ccccccceecccseeeceeeeceeeeseeeeseeeeseeeeseeeesaeeseeseeeeees 5 Competition connection with internal BEC cccccceeccseeeeeeeseeeeeteeeeeeeeeaeeeeees 5 Connection with external BEC ccccccccccseeeseeeeeeseeeseeeeeseeeeeeteeteneeeeeseeegeeeeees 6 Connection e ae 219 a eee ee eine meng eee ee ne ne ee 6 Uo B CONME UO eaea tone temeirndend A EEE tacaboraedaues 7 A NVA S 6 2 2 6 en eee ee ee ere eee eee T Hgiitrel 42 Life Sle GMa en ane T BESE 1c c 9 a ee E eee A E E 8 OR Code SCCI nee ee ey ee ee re noe ent ee en eee me eee ee eee 8 CHING SS CRC CMa ances cesescassencesaces E EEEE E E E E E T TT 8 User defined SClECH visciisirinnanvicnenieasaramidvotnedsadndanitnsivnrsabatiequsioinetaieinisiendrnetameanesbanimnennoe 8 PONOrd Connec r S TOC ieee a ne ee ene O eee 9 JoB MOI SCEO eE A EO Demetetanvuntan 9 6 Work with Altis v4 in the Altis Flight MAnagel ccccccseccceecceeeeseeeeeeseesee
3. 0 Memory usage Download data Erase data Download progress in OUT usa me COMA COMB COM B Fig 12 COM A COM B Telemetry Keypad or Live output settings Firmware upgrade When your computer is connected to the Internet and AFM is connected to an Altis v4 AFM compares the firmware version of your Altis v4 with the newest currently available firmware and offers to update the latest firmware for your Altis v4 if necessary To upgrade the firmware folow steps below 1 Click Firmware button 2 Choose the firmware from the list 3 You can choose a different firmware from a file stored in your computer Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 12 cAerobTec 4 After the firmware is selected click the button Upgrade and follow the instructions on the screen They will guide you through the upgrade Firmware from WEB From List AltisV4_Firmware 1_5 fir O File Upgrade Progress 1 5 Firmware source and type selection a Standard fimware which allows userto change whole device settings F5J FAI firmware with competition settings acording to F5J FAI Fig 13 Firmware upgrade window Firmware types Note there are two firmware types One of them is marked F5J This firmware complies exactly with FAI F5J competition rules and no other options are allowed The Firmware marked Standard allows more setting changes including settings for F5J competitions It is recommended to use this
4. the connector wires Mounting in the aircraft Since Altis v4 uses atmospheric pressure for its measurement it has to have open access to the outside atmosphere It must not be completely sealed inside the fuselage or other box As most standard R C aircraft are not fully sealed it is usually not necessary to do any special modifications for installation The Altis v4 can simply be put in a free space inside the fuselage If the unit is mounted outside the aircraft the location must be carefully considered The unit must be mounted away from the airflow caused by the propeller Avoid mounting your Altis v4 on parts of the plane that might become hot during operation Connection for data logging only If the Altis v4 device is used purely as a logging device connect the device to any free receiver channel as shown in Fig 2 The signal polarity must be observed as shown in Table 1 RECEIVER Fig 2 Connection scheme for data logging only FREE free receiver channel Competition connection with internal BEC For competition use like F5J FAI ALES etc the JR input cable has to be connected to the R C receiver and the JR ESC cable has to be connected to the output connector on the main measuring unit board See Fig 3 The signal polarity must be observed as shown in Table 1 Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 5 RECEIVER Fig 3 Connection scheme for competition use ESC electronic speed controller THRO throttle re
5. to your needs This is done by using the settings tabs in the bottom part of the window There are several tabs Logging Settings Fig 9 Here you can set how you wish to store the flight parameters to your device memory The basic parameter Sample time determines how frequently the parameters will be logged You can set which parameters you wish to log You can log altitude temperature of the device note the device is usually several degrees warmer than its environment input throttle PWM signal from the R C system output throttle signal to ESC and the voltage on board the voltage Altis v4 is powered from Note that the more parameters you log or the lower the sample time is the more memory it consumes However there is memory enough to log about 15 hours of data when logging almost all available parameters with a Sample time of 0 1s With different settings you can log up to several days of data You can choose also a trigger type this determines when your device starts logging There are the following options e Always on Data logging begins once the device is initialized e RC trigger When Altis v4 is connected to a receiver channel controlled by a switch on your R C transmitter You will activate the logging manually by turning this channel on Note that this option is not available for some of the competition settings e Altitude trigger The device starts logging when the plane reaches a certain altitud
6. 4 considers the signal to correspond to switched on motor Please check the zero throttle level in your radio system It must be set bellow 1200us 4 When fly with Altis v4 and stop the motor it is not stopped and propeller continues spinning slowly When fly without Altis v4 the motor break runs correctly Try to set fixed endpoints on your ESC 10 Correct disposal of this product This product should not be disposed with other household wastes at the end of its working life To prevent possible harm to the environment or human health from uncontrolled waste disposal please separate this from other types of wastes and recycle it responsibly to promote the sustainable reuse of material resources Household Users should contact either the retailer where they purchased this product or their local government of fice for details of EE where and how they can take this item for environmentally safe recycling Business users should contact their supplier and check the terms and conditions of the purchase contract This product should not be mixed with other commercial wastes for disposal 11 Product Registration If you did not purchase the product directly from AerobTec please mail following information to sales aerobtec com By registering your products you will be informed about updates and notifications Name Address Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 15 cAerobTec Country Phone Email Product Ser
7. Upgradeable firmware gt gt gt AerobTec Altis Flight manager software for Windows 2 Introduction The AerobTec Altis v4 is a barometric altimeter designed especially to record the altitude of R C aircraft during flight with additional competition features with telemetry support The unit has very small dimensions and a low weight The v4 senses barometric pressure variations caused by altitude changes of the aircraft The altitude is then calculated from pressure data and stored in the internal memory of the device The included system allows you to connect to a personal computer with a Windows XP or higher operating system via USB The supplied program will not only read the information from the device and save it to the computer in various formats but it can also display the information in an advanced graph and process the flight information in many other ways This altimeter has functions based on FAI F5J and Altitude limiting competitions ALES rules so it can be used for these competitions The device and the software also provide some other complementary functions such as temperature throttle or voltage measurement and recording AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 3 3 How it works The Altis v4 uses a modern fast digital pressure sensor which allows it to sense very low pressure differences This gives the unit an altitude resolution smaller than 0 5m with sample rates as low as 0 1s Since atmospheric pressur
8. ad is connected Altis v4 detects it automatically and switches to the competition menu mode e Navigate the menu items by the side navigation buttons e Change the values by the middle and buttons e Push and simultaneously on the corresponding menu item if you wish to disable some function for example altitude switch e After you disconnect the KeyPad the settings are automatically stored in Altis v4 e Restart your Altis v4 to use the new settings Fig 14 Altis v4 Keypad cderobTec Altis v4 Recording amp Competition Altimeter www oerobtec com Altis v4 KeyPad 4 O OVO QGAerohTec Fig 15 Connection of Altis v4 KeyPad It is not recommended to supply your whole aircraft via the Altis v4 device however it is possible The best choice is to use an external BEC circuit or separate power supply When manipulating the device and plugging or unplugging the device do not push the display and the area bellow it It is recommended to hold Altis v4 on sides Do not mount the Altis v4 device on aircraft components which might be hot in operation ESC batteries Do not touch the Altis v4 device to a metal surface as this might lead to shorting of the power supply and RC system may fail Do not put the Altis v4 in water fuel or other liquids Before flying with the Altis v4 always perform a range check Do not disconnect the Altis v4 when the Do not disconnect screen See Fig 7 is s
9. alled in your computer to display any stored data and make changes to your settings Fig 6 USB cable connection 5 Altis v4 screens The Altis v4 is equipped with an OLED display with great visibility in sunlight There are several screens displayed when you use the device These screens are shown in Fig 7 Initialization screen When you connect the device to your aircraft the Altis v4 informs you about the 3s initialization phase by displaying the initialization screen This screen also shows the firmware version and the serial number of your device It is not recommended to disconnect the device when you see this screen Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 7 Recording amp Competition Altimeter www_oerobtec com BAerohTec Altis v amp Recording amp Competition Altimeter www _ oerobtec com e Recording amp Competition Altimeter www aerobtec com Altimeter www oerobtec com Recording amp Competition Altimeter www_oerobtec com Q AaerobTec Altis v amp Recording amp Competition Altimeter www oerobtec com BAerohTec Altis v4 Recording amp Competition Altimeter www aerobtec com f g h Fig 7 Various screens a Initialization screen b F5J screen c OR code screen d Settings screen e User defined screen with 6 lines e User defined screen with 3 lines f Do not disconnect screen g USB mode screen F5J screen This screen shows the firmware version and the F5J height as
10. ceiver channel Connection with external BEC lf you use a separate power source for your receiver or a battery eliminator circuit BEC you should make sure to separate your power supply from your ESC and the Altis v4 This is done by disconnecting the red wire from the ESC connector This is not usually necessary for Opto ESCs The disconnected red wire must be insulated to ensure that it does not cause any short circuit or other problems See Fig 4 Disconnect and insulate RECEIVER Fig 4 Connection of Altis v4 with BEC Connection for telemetry Some radio systems provide telemetry functions These functions allow wireless transmission of certain data from the aircraft during the flight and display it on your Tx or monitor screen The Altis v4 has COMA and COM B connectors reserved for this purpose Use a Molex JR telemetry cable sold separately to connect your Altis v4 to the telemetry input of your receiver See Fig 5 Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 6 RECEIVER Telemetry Fig 5 Telemetry connection USB connection When you wish to download your logged data to a computer or change the settings of your Altis v4 connect the Altis v4 using a standard micro USB cable sold separately to a computer with Windows XP or newer operating system See Fig 6 When you connect your Altis v4 for the first time the computer should install the drivers automatically You need to have the Altis Flight Manager program inst
11. e It is possible to set your desired altitude Altis v4 SN 75431940 mx i General device information Serial Number 75431940 FW Version 1 5 Firmware 0 Memory usage Download data Erase data Download progress Pocscceccccccsccecccoees General Trigger Type Always_On y Sample time s 0 1 Trigger Altitude Logged Data Altitude is Throttle Out V Temperature Onboard Voltage V Throttle In Fig 9 Logging settings Competition settings Fig 10 There are several pre programmed standard competitions You can simply choose the one you want from the Competition Type list This choice sets the proper values of all necessary parameters Of course you can customize the parameters according to your needs For example you can set a motor switch at certain altitude or at certain time At the bottom of the Competition Settings tab there are Safety and Training settings Allow Emergency Motor On has the following function In some competitions it is not allowed to switch the motor on again during the flight However you may Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 10 ar want to have the ability to switch the motor on again in an emergency situation The user can choose to enable this or not If enabled when the motor is switched on for an emergency the Altis v4 restarts the recorded F5J height and it is recorded so it can be shown on the flight graph Sometimes during t
12. e USB mode screen 6 Work with Altis v4 in the Altis Flight Manager The AerobTec Flight Manager AFM is a PC application for Windows which allows you to communicate with Altis v4 and other devices made by AerobTec and to display and process the flight data recorded by them Altis Flight Manager can be downloaded from hittp www aerobtec com support download Note There is a separate manual for AFM However the following pages describe how to set up your Altis v4 according to your needs In order to connect to the device click Tools gt Device or Device icon on the toolbar A window will appear See Fig 8 Choose Altis v4 AFM then automatically connects to your Altis v4 If there is more than one Altis v4 connected to your computer you will be asked to choose which one you wish to connect When connected Altis v4 screen window will be displayed Fig 8 Device choosing window Altis v4 window There are two parts of the window The upper part shows general information about the device its firmware version serial number and used memory The bottom part of the window is used for settings Downloading data In order to access the logged data from your Altis v4 use the Download data button Once the data is downloaded you can close the Device window and work with the data Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 9 a Settings There are many possible configurations for the Altis v4 You can set your Altis v4 according
13. e changes over time these changes will affect your measurements For this reason long term measurements may not be precise enough However the altitude for short term flights which are common in R C aircraft can be recorded very precisely The measured altitude is stored in the high capacity internal memory which allows approx 15 hours of recording with the fastest sampling rate 0 1S After the Altis v4 is connected to a power supply it will initialize in the first 3s During initialization the reference altitude and a zero throttle level are measured Note It is necessary to keep the throttle on your R C transmitter turned off during this phase It is recommended to set the initial altitude before each flight by disconnecting and re connecting the power supply 4 Hardware description Connectors of your Altis v4 Your Altis v4 has 5 connectors They are shown in Fig 1 IN input signal from the R C receiver Power to Altis v4 is provided from the receiver via this connector OUT output signal to ESC Electronic Speed Control USB micro Connects the Altis v4 to a computer via USB COM A COM B Molex connectors for connection with telemetry equipped receivers as well as future additional features USB micro ComB ComA Fig 1 Connectors of your Altis v4 Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 4 a Wire color Signal Ground Positive power supply R C signal Table 1 Colors of
14. eeeseeeaeeeseees 9 AU VA WINO ON aE E tact E E E E O 9 DOWNOAdING GAl seee EE eee ee ee 9 SN Ses er a E E E E 10 PI al SU OFAC essri pri eer nna EE E EEEIEE EREE E NS RES 12 FWO TV DCS earn E E S 13 BaCO EN E aa E es itaaeneatieiaeeneneranmansaaieee 13 Working with Altis v4 K CY AG nossa cccnccesanscnsaccnan cence seantvesdamensnamndnonaasanessasenseaanaiaataxnenucasetet 13 VV AIO paeaeetsteeassteta E aaancieeceassascanaentantesnaneesessaeme E 14 9 Frequently asked questions and trouDl SNOOting ccccecceeeseeeeeeceeceeseeseeseeeeeaeeees 15 10 Correct disposal Of this PrOCUC cccccccceeccseecceeeteeeteseeeeeeseeesseeteeeeaeeseeteeetaeeneeaaes 15 Produc REGE TAUON oss aces eat geterssisi EE 15 WZ IN Ol CS araa E E E EE E E A E E EA EE 16 VOUS CV ISION FIS O eaa E E ae 16 AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 2 cAerobTec 1 Specifications A Memory 3 9MB more than 15 hour record with 0 1s sample rate logging altitude voltage temperature throttle in Sample time 0 1 25 5s user selectable in 0 1s steps Dimensions 20 x 33 x 6 5mm Cable length approx 10cm Weight 8g with JR cable Power supply range 4 12 6V Logging o altitude o voltage o temperature o throttle input and output Conforms to all existing competition rules FAI F5J ALES etc Records multiple motor runs per flight OLED display configurable screen Telemetry support for Jeti Duplex EX Multiplex M Link Graupner Hott
15. firmware type during training and ordinary flights However this firmware type is not allowed for use in certain competitions It should be specified by the organizer of the competition which firmware is allowed Backup firmware If the firmware updates fails or if the process is interrupted the device tries to update the firmware again until it is successful Once finished your Altis v4 appears in the computer as a USB removable device again If this does not happen or if the first start of the new firmware is not performed from USB a safety function is activated and backup firmware is written to your Altis v4 Note there is no indication of this state on the screen and the screen is blank In this case follow the firmware update instructions to update a new valid firmware 7 Working with Altis v4 KeyPad Altis v4 KeyPad shown on Fig 14 is an external keyboard for Altis v4 It is used to configure main competition settings of Altis v4 on the airport without a computer Altis Flight Manager version 3 0 5 or newer and firmware version 1 5 or higher are required F5J firmware 5 x does not support the KeyPad In order to use Altis v4 KeyPad do the following e Connect it to COM A port according to Fig 15 e Configure COM A port to KeyPad mode in the corresponding window shown in Fig 12 Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 13 cAerobTec e Turn on Altis v4 it works in a normal way until there is no KeyPad connected e When the KeyP
16. hown on the display It is not recommended to write any of your own files or directories to the Altis v4 when it shows as a removable drive in your computer This might lead to corruption or loss of any data on the device Aerob Tec Altis v4 User Manual 14 9 Frequently asked questions and troubleshooting 1 was updating my Altis v4 and it does not function anymore It was OK before Probably the process of firmware upgrade was not done in the right way Connect your Altis v4 to the computer and wait In 30 150 seconds it should appear on the PC as a disk drive If the display does not show anything probably a backup firmware is active and you should run the firmware update again A new firmware should show its version on the display during its initialization If there is the new version active the update has been finished Otherwise run the update again Please follow the instruction on the screen during update 2 I see the height on the graph increasing to several meters during a test on the ground Is Altis v4 broken No The barometric pressure depends on the weather Sometimes it can change variations of several meters in the measured height Other cause can be a heated Altis v4 Do not put Altis v4 near hot objects in your fuselage 3 My Altis v4 measures F5J height even if do not start the motor After power on the F5J height is discarded This might be caused by too high zero throttle level In such case Altis v
17. ial number of product Date Purchased Where did you purchased your product this information is not obligatory An alternative option is to register at http www aerobtec com support products registration A This manual is based on firmware version 1 7 and Altis Flight manager version 3 1 0 A Note Altis v4 was partially developed using Atollic TrueSTUDIO 13 Revision History Rev 1 0 April 2013 e Initial release Rev 1 1 July 2013 e Update because of new screens e Added frequently asked questions e Added correct waste disposal e Minor changes Rev 1 2 December 2014 e Added Altis v4 KeyPad Rev 1 3 March 2014 A Added antizoom description modified firmware upgrade section and screen types section AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 16
18. raining it is not practical to reset your Altis v4 to start a new flight each time you land and launch again In this case there is the option Allow Competition Restart It makes the device behave as if it has just been initialized only for the competition settings when your plane s altitude drops below 8m If user uses Altitude Switch there is possible to activate Antizoom algorithm Its purpose is to take into account the ascending of the model so the model will fly only to the specified switching altitude after the motor is turned off while ascending The antizoom gain specifies the influence of the vario for the calculation of the moment of motor off The higher the number maximal value is 2 55 the more vario is taken into account If antizoom gain is O the model behaves as with deactivated antizoom algorithm Note there are several types of firmware Some firmware types will not allow certain setting changes Refer to the Firmware types chapter for more information Altis v4 SN 75431940 Ea General device information Serial Number 75431940 FW Version 1 5 Firmware 0 Memory usage Download data Erase data Download progress Logging Competition Screen COM amp Telemetry Finish General Competition type None v _ Altitude switch Altitude Switch Antizoom Enable Antizoom Gain _ Time switch Time Switch F5 FAI Safety Training Emergency Motor ON Automatic competition restart
19. specified by FAI F5J rules The F5J height is indicates by 3 1 digit number If there is no F5J detected or the motor was restarted s shown on the screen instead OR code screen This screen displays F5J height in a form of a QR code This is intended to be read by a third party application to automatically collect the results to the competition IT system Note that this is a feature planed for firmware 1 5 Settings screen This screens shows the basic competition settings right after initialization such as time and altitude switch if the motor or competition restart is enabled and if F5J height is measured User defined screen This screen allows you to choose which information you would like to display on the screen There is a version with 6 and 3 lines respectively AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 8 cAerobTec Do not disconnect screen When logging data there are times when it is dangerous for the device to be disconnected If the Altis v4 is disconnected at these times there is a danger of losing all your data in the device This is indicated by the Do not disconnect screen Do not disconnect the device when you see this screen It is not recommended to disconnect the device during the initialization screen too USB mode screen When you connect your Altis v4 to a computer the device stops its competition and logging functionality and provides its data to the computer This data is indicated by th
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