3D Robotics Aero-M User Manual

Aero-M

Operation Manual

Thank you for purchasing an Aero-M! This manual contains important information about your
aerial mapping platform. Please read these instructions before your first flight.

1 Plan 1

2 Fly 20

3 Process 37

Appendix 41

Online information portal: 3DR.com/Aero-M
3DR support: [e-mail]
Terms and conditions: 3DR.com/terms
Pix4D instructions: support.Pix4D.com

V.1 2014

©3D Robotics

DCT0010

1 Plan

Parts 2

Flight Battery 3

Charging 3
Safety 3
Powering the Aero 4

Camera Setup 5

3DR EAI 5
Charging 5
Starting a Mission 5
Mounting 6

Ground Station Setup 7

Download Software 7
Connect to Radio 7

Mission Planning 8

Operating Parameters 8
Load Maps 9
Draw Polygon 10
Configure Survey 11
Save and Write Mission 19

1

Parts

RC controller and
accessories

Aero

batteries (2)

camera

wing spar

horizontal stabilizer

wings

ground station radio

micro-USB cable

charger and
accessories

battery guard bag

wing rubber bands
(4 plus 2 spare)

propellers (1
plus 1 spare)

hex keys (?)

registration card and
Pix4D license key

FPV/OSD System

If you selected to receive a FPV/OSD system, those components
will be included with the Aero’s accessories. See page 34 for
parts and instructions.

propeller wrench

spare control horns
(2)

spare servo rods (2)

spare camera
mount filters (2)

Pixhawk micro-SD
card adapter

2

Flight Battery

The Aero is powered by a rechargeable lithium polymer (LiPo) battery.
Charge the battery before your first flight.

Charging Safety

1

Connect the charger to the power adapter cable
and a wall outlet. Connect the red cable to the +
port and the black cable to the - port.

+

–

Charger with power cable and
split-wire charging cable

3

Connect the white connector to the 4S port, and
join the two yellow connectors together.

2

Set the charger to LiPo and 3A.

LiPo

Charger settings

4

Secure the battery inside the guard bag,
and charge until the status indicator
displays green.

3A

!

Flying with a low battery is a safety risk and can render the
battery permanently unusable. Always fly with a fully charged
battery.

Charge the battery using a designated LiPo balance charger
only. Always monitor the battery while charging. Protect the
battery from extreme heat, extreme cold, puncturing, and
flammable surfaces. Always transport, charge, and store the
battery in the guard bag.

Inspect the battery for damage before and after flying. If you
observe any swelling of the package or the battery ceases
to function, do not use the battery; locate your local battery
recycling center, and dispose of the battery. In the US and
Canada, visit call2recycle.org to find a location. Do not
dispose of the battery in the trash.

4S

Flight battery charging wiring Charging in process

Charging

Complete

3

Powering the Aero

1

Turn on the controller. To avoid triggering
the controller’s startup alarm, ensure that
all switches are set back (away from you)
and the throttle stick is set fully down.

Switches

Throttle stick

RC controller

3

Insert a charged battery into the battery slot,
and attach the yellow connectors. This will
power on the Aero.

2

Open the battery compartment by
sliding the knob on the orange switch
forward and lifting out the lid.

Aero: battery compartment lid

!

It is important to establish communication before
powering on the Aero. Always turn on the controller
before connecting the battery. When powering off
the Aero, disconnect the battery before turning off
the controller.

!

Hold the Aero still and level while it powers on.

Attach the velcro above the battery slot to the
velcro on the battery. Close and secure the lid
onto the battery compartment.

battery
connector

battery slot

Aero: battery compartment interior

flight battery

4

Camera Setup

The Aero includes a Canon PowerShot SX260 HS running the 3DR EAI script.

3DR EAI (Exposure-Aperture-ISO)

3DR EAI runs on the Canon Hacker Development Kit (CHDK), a powerful open­source tool that expands the functionality of Canon point-and-shoot cameras. 3DR
EAI optimizes image exposure and integrates with the Pixhawk autopilot to enable
distance-based imaging.

This software is designed to load off the camera’s SD card, leaving the original Canon
programming intact. The yellow switch on the side of the SD card allows you to lock
or unlock the card. Lock the SD card to run 3DR EAI; unlock the SD card to save
images to your ground station or to boot the camera with its original programming.

For more information about 3DR EAI, see page 43.

SD card locked

Load 3DR EAI

» Fly a mapping mission

SD card unlocked

Load default Canon software

» View images on camera
» Save images to ground station
» Update script

Charging

Charge the camera battery before your first flight. Once
fully charged, insert the battery into the camera.

status indicator

Canon battery charger

Starting a Mission

To prepare the camera to fly a mapping mission, ensure
that the mode dial is set to P (program) mode. Power on the
camera using the silver button on the top. 3DR EAI will start
automatically, and you will see the script messages on the
camera display. Check to see that the last line of the script
reads waiting on USB signal. The camera is now ready to map!

Camera running 3DR EAI Camera running Canon software

Power off the camera before removing the SD card.

!

power button

mode dial

Camera ready to map: waiting on USB signal

5

Mounting

The camera mounts to the Aero inside the battery compartment
and connects to the autopilot using the mini-USB cable. When the
camera is ready to start the mission, insert the camera into the
mount inside the battery compartment as shown below, connect
the mini-USB cable to the camera, and secure the camera in place
using the velcro strap.

autopilot integration cable

Aero battery compartment: camera mount

Connect mini-USB cable inside
battery compartment here.

The camera mount includes a lens cap that protects the filter during
travel. Make sure to remove this lens cap before you fly, and check
that the filter contains no foam particles, dirt, or scratches that could
affect image quality.

It is expected that the filter will accumulate scratches after significant
use. If you notice any damage to the filter that could affect image
quality, unscrew the filter and replace with one of the extra filters
provided with the Aero.

UV filter

Camera mount (bottom): cap removed

Camera (side)

The camera mount is fixed to the inside of the battery compartment
and is not intended to be removed from the Aero.

Camera mount (bottom): cap attached

6

Ground Station Setup

Mission Planner allows you to turn a Windows laptop into a full-featured
ground station for configuring and monitoring autonomous missions. You will
need to take this laptop into the field when you fly the mission. As part of the
mission procedure, you will use the Pix4D Rapid Check to verify the quality of
the image set before leaving the field.

Connect to RadioDownload Software

Mission Planner

Mission Planner is a full-featured ground station application for planning
missions and monitoring the Aero in flight. Download Mission Planner
from 3DR.com/download_software.

If you already have Mission Planner installed, make sure you’re running
the most recent version: Select the Help tab and Check for Updates.

Mission Planner: Help tab

Pix4Dmapper LT 3DR Edition

To connect the Aero to Mission Planner, connect the ground station radio
to the laptop, and power the Aero.

1
Connect the ground station radio to your
laptop using the micro-USB cable. Open
Mission Planner.

Ground station laptop with radio connected

3
Select Flight Data to view live data from the Aero.

2
Select 57600 and AUTO, then select CONNECT.
(When connecting directly to Pixhawk’s
micro-USB port, set the rate to 115200.)

Mission Planner Connect tool (top-right corner))

Your license key for Pix4Dmapper can be found on the registration card
inside the documents package.

Visit mapper.pix4d.com/license-redeem to create an account and redeem
your license key; then visit pix4d.com/download to download Pix4Dmapper
Discovery. Pix4D will automatically upgrade from the Discovery edition to
the LT 3DR Edition (or Pro Edition if you selected to upgrade) when you
log in to the program with your Pix4D account information.

Mission Planner Flight Data tab: connected to aircraft

7

Mission Planning

Operating Parameters

The Aero is a complete solution for creating
high-resolution visual-spectrum aerial maps.

Canon SX260

Pixhawk
autopilot

system

Mapping system diagram

To create a map, the Aero flies an autonomous mission over
the survey site, using the integration between the Pixhawk
autopilot and custom-programmed camera to capture images
at a consistent distance interval. Pix4Dmapper then stitches
these images together into a georeferenced, orthorectified
mosaic.

The accuracy of the map depends on the configuration of the
mission. Planning a mission that captures high-quality images
requires balancing the Aero’s operating parameters with the
environmental factors at the survey site.

3DR EAI

Pix4Dmapper

LT 3DR Edition

Operating Parameters

Camera Canon SX260

Camera Orientation Portrait (side facing forward)

Operating Altitude 80-120 m

Standard Operating Altitude 100 m

Low-Wind Conditions 0-6 m/s

High-Wind Conditions 7-10 m/s

Maximum Wind Conditions 10 m/s

Operating Speed 8-20 m/s

Default Speed 15 m/s

Estimated Maximum Flight Time 40 min

Estimated Ground Resolution 5 cm/pixel

Estimated Maximum Survey Area 1 km

2

Minimum Photo Interval 2 seconds

8

Load Maps

Mission Planner allows you to plan the mission away from the mapping location;
however, it is important to assess the environmental conditions on site at the time
of the mission and adjust the flight plan if necessary. Alternatively, you can plan
the entire mission at the mapping location. To create or alter the mission, Mission
Planner requires an Internet connection to access the maps. If you’re unable to
access the Internet on site, follow the instructions below to pre-fetch the maps
within Mission Planner while you have Internet access.

1

Open Mission Planner, select Flight Plan, and
zoom to your flying location.

Mission Planner Flight Plan tab: zoom to mapping location Mission Planner Flight Plan tab: Select Prefetch

3

Mission Planner will attempt to load the map data from the current level of zoom down to the
closest level of zoom available. However, it can take hours to pre-fetch every level of zoom,
and it is unlikely that the closer levels will be useful in planning the mission. To shortcut this
process, check the slider on the right side of the map. The levels of zoom are represented by
this slider from 0 (bottom) to 25 (top). Press the ESC key to skip levels of zoom at a greater
detail than you need for mission planning.

2

Right-click on the map, select Map Tool and
Prefetch, and accept the defaults prompts.

Mission Planner will download the maps
for the selected location to your computer.

9

Draw Polygon

To begin planning the mapping mission, select the area you want to map using
the Polygon tool. You’ll be able to adjust the size and shape of the polygon later in
the mission configuration process.

1

Select Flight Plan, and zoom to your
mapping location.

Mission Planner Flight Plan tab: zoom to mapping location

!

Units

The Survey Tool uses metric units. If your Mission Planner is
set to imperial units, please change the settings to use metric
to plan the mission. Support for imperial units in Mission
Planner is coming soon; check 3DR.com/Aero-M for updates.

2

Right click on the map. Select Draw Polygon and
Add Polygon Point. Click and drag to add points

around the area you want to map.

Mission Planner Flight Plan tab: draw polygon

3

Right click on the polygon. Select Auto WP and
Survey (Grid) to open the Survey Tool.

Mission Planner Flight Plan tab: open Survey tool

10

Configure Survey: Set Default Parameters

The Survey tool allows you to configure a mapping mission according to the
Aero’s operating parameters and the current environmental conditions at the
mapping location. First, set the default values for the Aero.

Set Camera

Canon SX260-SX280

Set Camera Orientation

Uncheck the option for Camera top
facing forward.

Mission Planner Survey tool

Set Default Speed

15 m/s

Apply Survey Speed

Check the option for Use speed for this mission.
If unchecked, the mission will use the Aero’s
default speed of 15 m/s regardless of the
speed selected in the Survey Tool.

11

Configure Survey: Set Angle

Next configure the angle of the flight path for the current wind conditions.

Set Angle

Wind Direction

In environments with winds of less than 6 m/s, set the angle so that
the Aero flies into the wind. In winds from 7-10 m/s, configure the
flight path to travel perpendicular to the wind so the Aero flies cross­wind.

wind

Mission Planner Survey tool

Mission Planner Tip: Adjust Polygon
Click and drag the red polygon points to adjust the size
and shape of the polygon from the Survey Tool.

No. of Strips

Adjust the angle so that the Aero makes as few turns as possible to
complete its course. The No. of Strips parameter shows how many
passes the plane will make as you adjust the angle.

Review Wind Conditions On-Site

Always assess the wind conditions at your survey site at the time of
the mission and adjust the mission accordingly.

Configure the flight path parallel with
the wind in low winds (1-6 m/s).

wind

Configure the flight path perpendicular to the

wind

wind in high winds (7-10 m/s).

Use caution when flying in winds over 10m/s. Mapping results
may degrade as a result of inability to make headway or maintain

!

appropriate groundspeed.

12

Configure Survey: Set Altitude

The survey altitude determines the duration of the mission and the ground
resolution of the final map. Adjust altitude to balance flight time and power
consumption with the current environmental conditions.

Mission Planner Survey tool

Set Altitude

Standard operating altitude: 100 m
Operating altitude range: 80-120 m

Increasing altitude decreases flight time, allowing you to cover more area
per minute. Decreasing altitude improves ground resolution. Set the alti­tude to get the best ground resolution while keeping the flight time under
40 min and the altitude under 120 m.

!

Keep altitude below 120 m, and ensure that the altitude is appropriate for
your flying area and local regulations.

Check Ground Resolution

Ground Resolution is the centimeters per pixel that you will have
in the map and corresponds to the amount of detail that you
will see.

To improve ground resolution by decreasing the number of
centimeters per pixel, decrease altitude.

Check Flight Time

Flight Time estimates the duration of the mission. The total estimated flight
time must be under 40 min for a fully charged Aero battery. To decrease
flight time, increase altitude or speed.

High winds, humidity, high altitude, and extreme heat can affect power
consumption and reduce flight time. Consider the environmental factors at
your site when configuring flight time.

13

Configure Survey: Check Photo Interval

With the basic parameters in place, verify that the photo interval calculated from
the altitude and speed complies with the operating parameters for the camera.

Mission Planner Survey tool

Check Photo Interval

Photo Every must be longer than 2 seconds for the SX260 camera.

Altitude

Increasing altitude increases photo interval.

!

Keep altitude below 120 m, and ensure that the altitude is
appropriate for your flying area and local regulations.

Speed

Decreasing speed increases photo interval.

!

Ensure that the Use speed for this mission option is checked.

14