3D Robotics X8-M User Manual

X8-M

Operation Manual

Thank you for purchasing an X8-M! This manual contains important information about your aerial mapping platform. Please read these instructions before your first flight.

1 Plan 1

2 Fly 19

3 Process 30

Appendix 34

Online information portal: 3DR.com/X8-M 3DR support: help@3DR.com Terms and conditions: 3DR.com/terms Pix4D instructions: support.Pix4D.com

V.1 2014

DCT006

1 Plan

Parts 2

Flight Battery 3

Charging 3 Safety 3 Powering the X8 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 18

Parts

ground station radio

micro-USB cable

batteries (2)

RC controller and

accessories

charger and accessories

Android adapter cable

battery guard bag

Pixhawk micro-SD card adapter

hex keys

propeller wrench

SF propellers

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 X8’s accessories. See page 27 for parts and instructions.

SFP propellers

spare UV filter

spare mounting nut

Flight Battery

The X8 is powered by a rechargeable lithium polymer (LiPo) battery. Charge the battery before your ﬁrst ﬂight.

Charging Safety

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

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

Set the charger to LiPo and 3A.

LiPo

Charger settings

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

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.

Flight battery charging wiring Charging in process

Charging

Complete

Powering the X8

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

Attach the battery to the underside of the copter using the velcro straps, and join the yellow connectors.

It is important to establish communication before powering on the X8. Always turn on the controller before connecting the battery. When powering off the X8, disconnect the battery before turning off the controller.

Camera Setup

The X8 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 36.

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

Mounting

When the camera is ready to start the mission, open the latch, and insert the camera into the mount. Close the latch, and rotate the mount so the camera faces down. Connect the mini-USB cable to the camera.

mounting plate

latch

mini-USB cable

The camera mount includes a cap to protect the UV filter during travel. Before you fly, remove the cap, and check that the filter contains no dirt particles or scratches that could affect image quality. If you notice any damage to the filter that could affect image quality, screw off the filter and replace with the extra filter provided with the X8.

UV filter

Camera enclosure with cap Camera enclosure with cap removed

Camera (side)

Connect mini-USB cable here.

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 X8 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 X8 to Mission Planner, connect the ground station radio to the laptop, and power the X8.

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 X8.

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

Mission Planning

Operating Parameters

The X8 is a complete solution for creating high-resolution visual-spectrum aerial maps.

Operating Parameters

Canon SX260

Pixhawk autopilot

system

3DR EAI

Pix4Dmapper

LT 3DR Edition

To create a map, the X8 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 X8’s operating parameters with the environmental factors at the survey site.

Camera Canon SX260

Camera Orientation Landscape (top facing forward)

Operating Altitude 50-120 m

Default Altitude 60 m

Low-Wind Conditions 0-6 m/s

High-Wind Conditions 7-10 m/s

Maximum Wind Conditions 10 m/s

Operating Speed 1-17 m/s

Default Speed 5 m/s

Estimated Maximum Flight Time 14 min

Estimated Ground Resolution 2 cm/pixel

Estimated Maximum Survey Area .1 km

Minimum Photo Interval 2 seconds

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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/X8-M for updates.

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 Mission Planner Flight Plan tab: open Survey tool

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

Conﬁgure Survey: Set Default Parameters

Mission Planner: Survey Tool

Set Camera

Canon SX260-SX280

Set Camera Orientation

Check the option for Camera top facing forward.

Set Default Speed

5 m/s

Apply Survey Speed

Check the option for Use speed for this mission. If unchecked, the mission will use the X8’s default speed of 5 m/s regardless of the speed selected in the Survey Tool.

Conﬁgure Survey: Set Angle

Mission Planner: Survey Tool

wind

Set Angle

Wind Direction

In environments with winds of less than 6 m/s, set the angle so that the X8 ﬂies into the wind. In winds from 7-10 m/s, conﬁgure the ﬂight path to travel perpendicular to the wind so the X8 ﬂies cross-wind.

No. of Strips

Adjust the angle so that the X8 makes as few turns as possible to complete its course. The No. of Strips parameter shows how many passes the X8 will make as you adjust the angle.

Adjust Polygon

Click and drag the red polygon points to adjust the size and shape of the polygon from the Survey Tool.

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.

wind

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.

Angle in low winds (1-6 m/s)

Angle in high winds (7-10 m/s)

Conﬁgure Survey: Set Altitude

Mission Planner: Survey Tool

Set Altitude

Recommended altitude: 60 m Operating altitude: 50-100 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 14 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 14 min for a fully charged X8 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.

In this example, we increased speed to 8 m/s to keep ﬂight time below 14 min while allowing for moderate wind conditions. When increasing speed, keep in mind that the increased power required to travel faster will impact ﬂight time.

Conﬁgure Survey: Check Photo Interval

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.

Conﬁgure Survey: Set Takeoff and Landing

Mission Planner: Survey Tool

Takeoff and Land WP’s

For automatic takeoff and landing (recommended)

Check the Add Takeoff and Land WP’s option. Check the Use RTL option.

After initiating the mission, the X8 will automatically take off, climb to the survey altitude, and begin the mission. At the end of the mission, the X8 will automatically return to the launch point and land.

For manual takeoff and automatic landing

Uncheck the Add Takeoff and Land WP’s option. Check the Use RTL option.

Take off manually, and initiate the mission in ﬂight. To end the mission, the X8 will land automatically at the launch point.

Conﬁgure Survey: Advanced Options

Mission Planner: Survey Tool

Check Advanced Options

to view the Survey Tool’s advanced conﬁguration options.

Survey Tool: Grid Options (Advanced)

Camera Conﬁg

The options under the Camera Conﬁg tab allow you to conﬁgure a camera other than the SX260 and won’t be used for operating the X8.

Select Grid Options

Adjust StartFrom

During the mission, you will maintain contact with the X8 through the RC controller and ground station signals. If these signals are lost during ﬂight, the X8 will respond with the assigned failsafe behaviors. See page 29. If your mission is likely to experience a loss of signal, it is best practice to start from the corner of the mission farthest from the launch point.

Adjust Overlap and Sidelap

Overlap and sidelap are set to 50% and 60%, respectively, by default. See page 35 for an in-depth discussion of these parameters.

Conﬁgure Survey: Accept Survey

Before accepting the survey, check that the mission complies with the X8’s operating parameters. Once you accept the survey, you will not be able to edit it directly by re-opening the Survey Tool. If you need to adjust the survey, clear the mission (right click, select Clear Mission), and repeat the survey conﬁguration process.

Operating Parameters

Camera

Canon SX260-SX280

Altitude

50-100 m

Camera top facing forward

checked

Flying speed

1-17 m/s

Use speed for this mission

checked (optional if speed set to default speed of 5 m/s)

Photo Every

greater than 2 s

Flight time

under 14 min depending on environmental conditions

Select Accept to save the mission.

If Mission Planner prompts you for a home altitude, enter the altitude that you speciﬁed in the Survey Tool.

Do not accept the mission if any of the parameters exceed the X8’s operating limits.

Save and Write Mission

On the Flight Plan screen, save the waypoint ﬁle to your computer and write the mission to the X8.

Select Save WP File

to save the mission ﬁle to your computer. To repeat this mapping mission, load the saved WP ﬁle from your computer.

Select Write WPs

to save the mission to the X8.

2 Fly

Safety 20

Aircraft Operation 21

Components 21 Assembly 22 Controls 23 Modes 24 Preflight Checks 25 LED Indicators and Tones 25 GPS Lock 25 Arming and Disarming 26 FPV System Operation 27

Flying Mapping Missions 28

Takeoff Checklist 28 Initiating 28 Monitoring 28 Failsafes 29

visual line of sight

400 ft

(120 m)

5 miles (8 km)

400 ft

(120 m)

Safety

To ensure safe and successful ﬂying, familiarize yourself with the safety information on this page. Always ﬂy in accordance with your location regulations and these best operating practices.

Before you ﬂy, determine the boundaries of your safe ﬂying area. If the X8 moves outside the designated area or exhibits instability in ﬂight, switch to altitude hold mode and land the copter manually.

The X8 will not avoid obstacles on its own, including during missions. As the operator, it’s your job to recognize and avoid obstructions while ﬂying. Always be ready to regain manual control of the copter in the event of an unsafe situation.

Location

Always ﬂy below 400 ft (120 m) and within your visual line of sight. Don’t let the X8 get too far away from you; make sure you can always see

visual line of sight

400 ft

(120 m)

its orientation. Don’t ﬂy in low light, heavy wind, rain, or other conditions that might impede visibility.

Propeller

Spinning propellers can cause serious injury. The safety button indicates the status of the motors to help you prevent hazardous contact with the X8’s high-speed propellers.

• When the X8 is powered on, the safety button will blink red, indicating that the motors are inactive and the propellers are safe to handle.

• When you’re ready to ﬂy, press and hold the safety button until it shows solid red. This

indicates that the motors are active and the propellers can spin if armed. To make the propellers safe to handle again, press and hold the safety button until it blinks red.

You can ﬁnd more safety tips throughout these instructions where you see this yellow box.

5 miles (8 km)

100 ft (30 m)

Always ﬂy at least 5 miles (8 km) away from airports and other areas where pilots operate manned aircraft.

Always ﬂy at least 100 feet (30 m) away from people, vehicles, and buildings. Make the safety of people and property your ﬁrst priority!

Aircraft Operation

Components

camera integration

cable

rear arms

Pixhawk autopilot

front arms

camera mount

safety button

status LED

Assembly

The X8 arrives in travel conﬁguration. Complete these steps to prepare the copter for ﬂight.

Arms

Remove the bolt and nut outside each arm. Rotate the arm into position, insert the bolt through the plates and the arm, and secure the arm in place with the nut.

secure with bolt

remove

slide each arm into position

travel position

Propellers Remove the nuts and washers from the motors. Add SFP propellers and SF propellers as marked below with the writing on the propellers facing towards the sky. This will be a tight ﬁt; apply pressure and twist the propeller onto the shaft.

Top motor: SFP

Bottom motor: SF

Top motor: SF

Bottom motor: SFP

Ensure writing on all propellers faces the sky.

Top motor: SF

Bottom motor: SFP

Top motor: SFP

Bottom motor: SF

ﬂight position

Place the washer over the propeller, and secure the nut tightly on top using the propeller wrench.

Controls

yaw left

Fly the X8 manually using the RC controller.

throttle

yaw

Throttle: Move the left stick forward and backward to control altitude and acceleration.

Yaw: Move the left stick horizontally to rotate and control orientation.

Navigate by orienting the X8 with the blue arms facing forward.

Pitch: Move the right stick vertically to fly forward and backward.

Roll: Move the right stick horizontally to fly to the left and to the right.

throttle up

pitch

roll

Increase speed and altitude.

yaw right

roll left

roll right

roll and pitch center

Rotate counterclockwise.

Rotate clockwise.

Fly to the left.

Fly to the right.

Automatically level.

throttle down

throttle fully down

Decrease speed and altitude.

Land.

pitch up

Fly forward.

pitch down

Fly backward.

Modes

Auto - ﬂy a mission Fly an autonomous mission. This is the mode that the X8 will use to create the map.

Altitude hold - assisted manual control Altitude hold mode provides manual control of roll, pitch, and yaw, while allowing the autopilot to maintain the current altitude automatically. Set the left stick to center, and the copter will automatically maintain the current altitude. Raise the throttle stick above center to increase altitude (and to take off), and lower the throttle stick below center to decrease altitude. Adjust altitude and orientation with the left stick, and navigate with the right stick.

Loiter - hover With automatic autopilot control of altitude, position, and orientation, loiter is the easiest way to ﬂy. Just release the sticks and the copter will hover in place.

Return to launch (RTL) - recall and land Activate RTL during the mission to end your ﬂight automatically. RTL commands the X8 to achieve a minimum altitude of 15 meters, return to the launch point, hover for ﬁve seconds, and land. Use the right stick to adjust the position of the X8 during landing,

To select a ﬂight mode:

First, set the GEAR/MIX switch to select a set of modes. Then use the FLAP/GYRO switch to 0, 1, or 2 to select a speciﬁc mode.

With GEAR/MIX set to GEAR,

set FLAP/GYRO to: 0 for Stabilize 1 for Loiter 2 for Auto

With GEAR/MIX set to MIX,

set FLAP/GYRO to: 0 for Stabilize 1 for Altitude hold 2 for RTL

GEAR/MIX selects the set of modes.

Stabilize - full manual control Stabilize allows full manual control of altitude, position, and orientation without autopilot assistance.

FLAP/GYRO selects the speciﬁc mode, either 0, 1, or 2.

RC controller (top)

Pre-ﬂight Checks

Visual Check

Before ﬂying, examine the X8 to verify the following:

» All propellers are tightly attached in the correct order with the writing

on each propeller facing the sky.

» All propellers can spin without obstruction.

» The antenna is oriented vertically.

LED Indicators

Initializing, please wait

Acquiring GPS, please wait

Autopilot ready, GPS locked

Armed

Test Flight

Before ﬂying the mission, ﬂy a brief test ﬂight to verify that the X8:

» Responds to controls correctly in stabilize mode.

» Holds position in loiter mode.

» Correctly executes a return-to-launch command.

GPS Lock

Auto, RTL, and loiter modes requires GPS lock. When powered, the autopilot will automatically search for GPS lock. If you plan to use auto, RTL, or loiter modes during your ﬂight, ensure that the autopilot acquires GPS lock before takeoff, indicated by a blinking green status LED.

Loss of RC signal, automatic landing

Low battery, automatic landing

Loss of GPS signal, automatic landing

System error, see troubleshooting guide

Tones

Visit 3DR.com/X8-M to listen to Pixhawk’s status tones.

Arming and Disarming

Arming and disarming are important steps that must be completed before takeoff and after landing. There are two steps to arming the X8: the safety button and the throttle stick.

Before arming, check the status LED. Before you fly, wait for the autopilot to acquire GPS lock. The LED will flash blue while the X8 acquires GPS; this can take a few minutes. Once you see the flashing green LED, the autopilot has acquired GPS lock.

Initializing, please wait.

Autopilot ready, no GPS

Autopilot ready, GPS locked

Pre-arm check failure, see page 39.

Arming 1

When you’re ready to fly, place the copter at a clear launch point, with the blue arms facing away from you.

Press and hold the safety button until it displays solid red. This indicates that the X8 is now active. Stand back!

Motors inactive, safe to handle

Motors active, deactivate before handling

The arming and disarming procedures ensure that you can safety start and stop motors without risk of injury.

The X8’s motors will spin when armed! Make sure the propellers are clear of any obstructions, including your hands, before arming.

Do not handle the propellers or pick up the copter while the safety button is active (solid red).

Disarming 1

To disarm the motors, hold the left stick down/left until the motors stop.

To arm the motors, hold the left stick down/right until the motors spin.

Press and hold the safety button until it blinks red. The motors are now inactive, and the X8 is safe to handle.

FPV System Operation

If you selected to receive an optional FPV/OSD system, the components are pre-installed into the X8 to transmit on-board video.

Parts

Transmitter

AV receiver

Antenna

Receiver cables

Batteries (1 plus 1 spare)

1 Charge battery

Charge both batteries before your ﬁrst ﬂight. Set the charger to LiPo and 1A. Connect the white battery connector to the 3S port, and connect the XT60-JST charger adapter to the red battery connector and yellow charger connector.

Camera

2 Wire and power receiver

Attach an antenna to the receiver. Connect the AV output cable to either receiver AV OUT port. Connect the RC power cable to the receiver DC IN port, and attach a battery to the red connector.

3 Remove lens cap

The video transmitter is powered by the main ﬂight battery and will automatically turn on when the X8 is powered. To turn off the transmitter, disconnect the red JST connector. Remove the lens cap from the camera before takeoff.

Remove lens cap!

LiPo

3S port

4 Viewing video

When using a 3DR Black Pearl Monitor to view your video, set the mode to DIV (M button changes modes), the channel to 8 (+ and - buttons), and the band to E (press the power button to access the menu).

For more information about conﬁguring the FPV/OSD system, visit 3DR.com/X8-M.

Flying Mapping Missions

Takeoff Checklist

Before ﬂying the mission, check the following:

» Camera is on with mission script ready and is secured into the

mount with the mini-USB cable connected and the cap removed.

» X8 is powered and connected to the ground station with all pre-ﬂight

checks passed.

» The survey mission has been adjusted to account for present

environmental conditions and saved to the X8.

Monitoring

Monitor the X8 closely during the mission using your line of sight and the Mission Planner Flight Data screen.

Mission Planner Flight Data: Attitude

Status

Initiating

For automatic takeoff, arm the X8 in stabilize mode. Switch to auto mode, and raise the throttle to initiate the mission.

For manual takeoff, initiate the mission in ﬂight by switching to auto mode.

Actions

1 Change waypoints or restart a mission 2 Change modes 3 Change altitude

1 Heading direction 2 Bank angle 3 Altitude* (black) and rate of climb (blue bar) 4 Ground speed

*Failsafe behavior enabled

1 Ground station signal* 2 GPS time 3 Currently

enabled mode

3 4 5

4 Distance to current waypoint >

current waypoint number

5 GPS status* 6 Battery status*

Full battery: 16.8 V Low battery failsafe: 14 V

End your ﬂight at 14.1 V!

Flight Map

1 Current heading 2 Direct path to current waypoint 3 GPS-reported direction of travel

2 3 4

4 Actual ﬂight path 5 Latitude, longitude 6 Altitude

400 ft

(120 m)

Failsafes

The X8 is programmed with a set of failsafe behaviors to prevent a crash in the event of a loss of one of the data or communication channels required for autonomous ﬂight. Although certain failsafes have assigned LED indicators and tones, it is unlikely that you will be able to see these at a distance. Monitor the Flight Data screen for failsafe indications. If a failsafe is triggered, the assigned behavior will activate. To override the failsafe behavior (RTL in most cases), use the controller to regain manual control.

Regaining Manual Control

To regain manual control during the mission, switch to altitude hold mode using the controller. If you’re a conﬁdent operator, switch to stabilize mode for full manual control. If you observe instability in the X8’s ﬂight behavior or it the aircraft moves outside your designated safe ﬂying area, switch to RTL. Turning off the controller will automatically trigger an RTL and can be used in an emergency situation as a hard recall command.

Ground Station Signal Failsfe

Physical obstructions and interference from nearby wireless signals can affect the X8’s connection with the ground station. Use the Mission Planner Flight Data display to monitor the ground station connection strength during ﬂight.

If the X8 loses contact with the ground station for over ﬁve seconds, it will automatically return to the launch point and land.

Low Battery Failsafe

Environmental conditions can affect power consumption. Use the Mission Planner Flight Data display to monitor the voltage of the battery during ﬂight.

If the battery reaches 14 V, the X8 will land automatically at the current position, indicated by a blinking yellow status LED and a quick repeating tone.

GPS Failsafe

Enclosed areas, physical obstructions, and lack of available satellites can affect GPS strength. Use the Mission Planner Flight Data display to monitor the GPS during ﬂight.

If the X8 loses GPS lock for over ﬁve seconds, it will land automatically at the current position.

RC Controller Signal Failsafe

Physical obstructions and interference from nearby wireless signals can affect the X8’s connection with the RC controller.

If the X8 loses contact with the RC controller, it will return to the launch point automatically and land, indicated by a blinking yellow status LED.

Altitude Failsafe

The X8 has a 120 m altitude geofence enabled by default. If the geofence is breached, the X8 will automatically RTL.

400 ft

(120 m)

3 Process

On-Site Quality Check 31

Spot Check 31 Download Images 31 Download Log File 32 Pix4D Rapid Check 33

Full Processing 33

On-Site Quality Check

Before leaving the survey site, check the images using Pix4D to ensure sufﬁcient quality for mapping by downloading the images from the SD card, downloading the log ﬁle from the X8, and completing Rapid Check Initial Processing in Pix4D.

If you observe poor image quality or the quality report returns errors, see the Image Quality Troubleshooting section on page 38 and repeat the mission.

Spot Check (Optional)

The quickest way to see the images after a ﬂight is to unlock the SD card and restart the camera. The camera will load the default Canon programming and you can select the playback bottom to review the images.

playback button

Download Images

Unlock the SD card and load into your ground station. Select the DCIM folder and locate the folder for your ﬂight. Copy the ﬁles into a project folder on the ground station and delete them from the SD card.

SD card file structure: Download images

Download Log File

Pix4D uses the GPS data from the X8’s log ﬁle to georeference the images. To download the X8’s dataﬂash log, power the X8 and connect to Mission Planner. The download process will be faster if you connect the micro-USB cable directly to Pixhawk’s micro-USB port instead of connecting using the ground station radio. (When connecting directly to the X8, set the rate to 115200.)

On the Flight Plan screen, select the DataFlash Logs tab under the heads-up display, and select Download DataFlash Log over Mavlink.

Mission Planner: Flight Data heads-up display

The Log window shows the X8’s recent ﬂights. Select the ﬂight for your mission, and select Download These Logs. This will save the log ﬁle to your computer in the location displayed under the list of ﬂights.

To retrieve the log ﬁle, access your computer’s ﬁle structure under Program Files/ Mission Planner/logs/OCTOROTOR, and select the .log ﬁle for the date of your ﬂight.

Mission Planner: Download Logs Program Files: Retrieve log file

Pix4Dmapper Rapid Check: Create Project

1 Open Pix4D Mapper, and create a new project.

2 Select Aerial Nadir as the project type.

Pix4Dmapper Rapid Check: Initial Processing

After creating the project, select the Local Processing screen (Process menu). Check the option for Initial Processing and Rapid Check. Uncheck all other local processing options, and select Start.

After adding the images, select From File to add the geolocation data from the X8’s log ﬁle. In the pop-up window, select 3D Robotics Flight Log as the ﬁle format, and upload the dataﬂash log ﬁle downloaded from Mission Planner.

Pix4D will generate a Quality Report that will indicate if the images are of sufﬁcient quality to create a map.

Full Processing

To complete full processing for the map, visit support.pix4d.com for instructions.

Appendix

Aerial Imaging Concepts 35 3DR EAI 36 Image Quality Troubleshooting 38 Operational Troubleshooting 39

Aerial Imaging Concepts

Understanding key concepts in aerial images can help you understand the mission planning process and create better maps.

Distance-Based Imaging

By default, the X8 captures only the images required to create the map. The autopilot monitors the distance traveled by the X8 and sends a command to the camera to capture an image at the distance interval speciﬁed by the camera trigger distance parameter (CAM_TRIGG_DIST). This parameter is set by the Mission Planner Survey Tool during survey conﬁguration by calculating the minimum distance between images based on the parameters speciﬁed for the survey (altitude, overlap, sidelap). This distance-based imaging allows for more precise data collection, resulting in less images and data storage cost.

Once conﬁgured, the Survey Tool creates an event at the start of the mission script (after takeoff) to set the camera trigger distance to the speciﬁed interval and an event at the end of the mission (before landing) to reset the camera trigger distance to 0. Therefore, while on the ground and during landing, the camera captures no images because the camera trigger distance is set to 0 m.

Time-Based Imaging

The X8 is also equipped to capture images at a consistent time interval instead of using distance. This function can be useful if you want to capture images over an area without planning a mission. This time-based imaging results in more images per area, and therefore more processing time and storage cost. See the intervalometer option on page 36 to enable time-based imaging.

In the Survey Tool, Distance between Images shows the speciﬁed camera trigger distance that will be assigned to the mission. You can also see the projected image footprint size and the total number of images to be captured.

Overlap and Sidelap

To capture images for the map, the X8 ﬂies a lawnmower-like pattern in strips across the survey site. The frontto-back overlap between sequential images is called overlap; the side overlaps of adjacent pictures in different strips is called sidelap. The overlap and sidelap parameters in the Survey Tool (see Advanced Options page

16) determine the distance between images and the number of images to be captured based on the projected ground area that each image will cover, called a footprint. The Survey Tool uses a default overlap of 50% and a default sidelap of 60%. Increasing overlap and sidelap improves the accuracy of the map while increasing ﬂight time and processing time.

Default overlap: 50% Default sidelap: 60%

3DR EAI

3DR EAI is based on KAP UAV Exposure Control Script v3.1: a great opensource project for kite and UAV aerial photography.

Start and Stop Script

Ensure the camera is set to P (program) mode before powering the camera. Upon startup, 3DR EAI starts automatically and listens for commands from the autopilot, indicated by waiting for USB signal. To stop (and re-start) the script, press the shutter button. The script will display INTERRUPTED when stopped.

Script start: waiting on USB signal

Script stopped: INTERRUPTED FINISHED

CHDK Menu

The CHDK menu contains all the standard options provided with CHDK. To access the CHDK menu, stop the script and select the MENU button.

Script Menu

The script menu allows you to change the parameters associated with the script itself, including changing the trigger mode and adjusting exposure. To open the script menu, stop the script and select the FUNC. SET button. These parameters are conﬁgured for the X8 and SX260 and do not require adjustment as part of standard operation.

Script menu

Trigger Type

This parameter allows you to control how the camera captures images. Trigger type defaults to USB for distance-based imaging during mapping missions. For time-based imaging, select Interval and specify the length in the

Shot Interval parameter.

Trigger Type default: USB (mapping)

Variable intervalometer: Interval (default to 2 seconds, speciﬁed by Shot Interval)

CHDK menu

Script menu: Trigger Type

Updating the Script

3DR EAI is an open-source project and continuously improving. To download the latest script, visit 3DR.com/X8-M and select 3DR EAI Source. You will be redirected to the GitHubt repository where you can right-click on Raw and select Save Link to download the latest script labeled 3DR_EAI_SX260.lua.

Download latest script from GitHub

Memory Reset

If the battery is left out of the camera for too long, the camera will reset its memory. To re-conﬁgure the camera in this case, visit 3DR.com/X8-M for instructions.

New script ﬁle

To update the script on the SD card, unlock the SD card and open it on your computer. Navigate to CHDK/Scripts and replace the existing 3DR_EAI_ SX260.lua ﬁle with the updated script ﬁle from GitHub.

Resources

Visit 3DR.com/X8-M for links to resources.

3DR EAI GitHub Repository: github.com/diydrones/ardupilot/tree/master/Tools/CHDK-Scripts KAP UAV Exposure Control Script v3.1: chdk.wikia.com/wiki/KAP_UAV_Exposure_Control_Script CHDK v1.3: chdk.wikia.com/wiki/CHDK_1.3.0_User_Manual

Script ﬁle on SD card

Image Quality Troubleshooting

If you observe poor image quality during the spot check or if you receive error messages during processing, use the settings below to troubleshoot the image quality.

Blurry Images

To correct motion blur, adjust the shutter speed using the Target Tv parameter in the script menu.

Target Tv (shutter speed) default: 1/1250 To correct moderate motion blur: Set to 1/1600. To correct severe motion blur: Set to 1/2000.

Overexposure

If the images are overexposed but do not show any motion blur, it can be due to ﬂying in extremely bright conditions. To correct this, set the Allow use of ND ﬁlter parameter to YES in the script menu.

Allow use of ND ﬁlter default: No To correct overexposure: Set to Yes.

Example image: motion blur Script menu: Target Tv

Example image: overexposure

Script menu: ND ﬁlter

Processing Errors

If you receive errors from Pix4Dmapper during processing, increase the overlap and sidelap during survey conﬁguration to improve the quality of the image set.

Overlap default: 50% Sidelap default: 60% To improve processing: Set overlap to 60% and sidelap to 70%.

Operational Troubleshooting

No Images Captured

1 If the camera did not capture any images during the mission, ﬁrst perform a physical inspection on the X8.

Is the mini-USB cable connected to the camera’s USB port?

Are the AUX OUT 6 pins connected on Pixhawk?

AUX OUT 6: black (-), red (+), white (s)

Is the camera battery charged? Unlock the SD card to view the Canon’s battery level indicator.

2 Take a distance-triggered test image on the ground by manually setting the camera trigger distance parameter to 1 m.

Power the X8 and connect to Mission Planner. Select Conﬁg/Tuning and Full

Parameter List. Change the CAM_TRIGG_DIST parameter to 1, and select Write Params. Disconnect the X8 from Mission Planner, and carry for a few meters

to see if the autopilot triggers the camera.

Mission Planner Full Parameter List: Set CAM_TRIGG_DIST to 1.

LED Error Indicator

If the status LED displays blinking yellow, the X8 is failing one the pre-arm safety checks. To determine the speciﬁc failure, check the heads-up display on the Mission Planner Flight Data screen. There will be an error message specifying the failed check.

Radio Calibration Failure: Perform Radio Calibration in Mission Planner or RC controller re-binding Accelerometer Calibration Failure: Perform Accelerometer Calibration in Mission Planner Compass Calibration Failure: Perform Compass Calibration in Mission Planner GPS Failure: Wait for improved GPS signal or move to a more open area

3D Robotics X8-M User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual