dji Zenmuse Z15 User Manual

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 1 |

Zenmuse Z15
User Manual

V2.0

2013.03.27 Revision

www.dji-innovations.com

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 2

Warning & Disclaimer

No adjusting or amending is allowed to Z15.

Z15 is specialized for Camera and Lens before it leaves the factory. Please mount your camera to Z15 when
get it. No adjusting or amending is allowed to Z15. Do not modify or add any other component/device (such
as filter, lens hood, etc.) to the camera; make sure to use the original battery; otherwise it may ends up with
worse performance or even internal malfunction.
Z15 can only work with Autopilot system specified by DJI Innovations (Ace One/ Ace WayPoint/ WooKong

M), so as to ensure the highest stability and precision.Please download the corresponding assistant software

and upgrade the autopilot system MC firmware, otherwise may lead the Z15 work abnormally.

Make sure the Autopilot system operates in the safest manner when the main power battery is connected. We
strongly recommend customers to remove all propellers, use power supply from R/C system or flight pack
battery, and keep children away during gimbal calibration and parameter setup. Please strictly follow these
steps to mount and connect gimbal on your aircraft, as well as to install the assistant software on your
computer. Please respect the AMA’s National Model Aircraft Safety Code.
As DJI Innovations has no control over use, setup, final assembly, modification (including use of non-specified
DJI parts i.e. motors, ESCs, propellers, etc.) or misuse, no liability shall be assumed nor accepted for any
resulting damage or injury. By the act of use, setup or assembly, the user accepts all resulting liability. DJI
assumes no liability for damage(s) or injuries incurred directly or indirectly from the use of this product.
DJI and Zenmuse is registered trademark of DJI Innovations Names of product, brand, etc., appearing in this
manual are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owner companies. This product and
manual are copyrighted by DJI Innovations with all rights reserved. No part of this product or manual shall be
reproduced in any form without the prior written consent or authorization of DJI Innovations. No patent liability
is assumed with respect to the use of the product or information contained herein.

Note1: Upgrade WooKong M firmware to V5.08 or above, ACE ONE firmware to V4.02 or above, or ACE WayPoint firmware
to V4.02 or above.
Note2: Specified Camera and Lens Type list for Z15-N and Z15-G.

(Items in gray italics font are not yet supported at present.)

Z15 Type

Camera Type

Lens Type

Z15-N

Z15-G

SONY

Panasonic

NEX-5N

NEX-7

NEX-5R

GH2

Supported

E 16mm f/2.8(SEL16F28)

Lumix G14 mm/F2.5
Lumix G20 mm/F1.7

Not yet supported

Sonnar T*E 24mm F1.8 ZA

Lumix G 1:2.5 / 14 ASPH

Note3: All diagrams in the manual are for SONY NEX-5N with SEL16F28 unless stated, since different

camera or lens should use special component.

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 3

Product Profile

Z15 is an excellent gimbal designed for AP. The gimbal has built-in slip ring in the mechanical structure,

preventing wire rod from winding up. It also has built-in independent IMU module, special servos drive

module, HDMI- AV module, etc. Excellent job can be done by Z15 in any working mode, including
Orientation-locked control, Non orientation-locked control and FPV Mode (Reset).

Z15 Working Mode

Orientation-locked Mode

Non orientation-locked

Mode

FPV Mode

(Reset)

Gimbal Pointing

Gimbal pointing moves
with aircraft nose direction

Gimbal pointing stays
unchanged when aircraft
nose moves.

Gimbal pointing stays
the same as aircraft
nose direction when
power up

Gimbal and

Aircraft Nose

Relative Angle

Gimbal pointing keeps the
same relative angle with
aircraft nose direction

Relative angle between
gimbal pointing and aircraft
nose direction may change

Zero relative angle
between gimbal pointing
and aircraft nose

TX Control

Controlled

Controlled

Not controlled

Attitude stability

YES

YES

YES

Vibration

Reduction

YES

YES

YES

Stick Meaning

ROLL is locked level in

0~2/3 command stick and

rotate in 2/3 ~endpoint;

command stick stands for

rotation angle limited to

+

45o in PAN; command

stick stands for gimbal

rotation velocity in TILT.

Command stick stands for

gimbal rotation velocity，Stick

center position is for 0，its

endpoint is maximum

velocity.

——

Command

Linearity

YES

YES

——

Note1: Gimbal pointing means gimbal PAN rotation direction.
Note2: Attitude stability means that gimbal’s ROLL/TILT will not follows the aircraft’s ROLL/PITCH.
Note3: Gimbal rotating maximum velocity is corresponding to TX 100%end-point.

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 4

In Box

Gimbal ×1

In the mechanical structure, the gimbal has built-in slip rings,
preventing wire rod from winding up, which also enables free rotations
for the 3 axes rotating rods.
The gimbal has built-in Z15 gimbal special servos drive module,

independent IMU module and HDMI－AV module.

Gimbal Controller Unit (GCU)×1

Connect the gimbal controller to the autopilot system by CAN bus.
The GCU will control the gimbal’s pan, roll and tilt axes rotation.

Lens Retaining Ring×1, L-Connector ×1(Z15-N)

For fixing the camera lens.

(With jackscrew ×2)

Lens Retaining Ring Shim×1(Z15-N)

For fastening the camera lens.

Mounting Bracket ×4

For gimbal and bi-pod connection.

Camera Mount Screw×1

For camera mount.

Lens Retaining Ring Screw×1(Z15-N)

For fixing the lens retaining ring to the gimbal.

Hot Shoe ×1(Z15-G)

For fastening the camera to gimbal.

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 5

Quick Twist Screw for Hot Shoe ×1(Z15-G)

For fixing the hot shoe to camera.

Quick Twist Screw for Camera ×1(Z15-G)

For fixing the camera to gimbal.

Screw×10(Z15-N) or Screw×8(Z15-G)

For mounting gimbal to aircraft (2.5*8 Head-cup screw×8).
(OnlyZ15-N needs)For fixing the lens retaining ring (M2.5*5 Screw×2).

Gimbal Video Power Cable×1

For gimbal controller and Wireless Video Transmission Unit
connecting, transmitting AV signal.

Micro-USB Cable×1

For adjusting parameter and upgrading firmware via PC.

CAN-Bus Cable×1

Use CAN-Bus to power and communicate with the autopilot
system.

DJI

DJI

Spare Package×1

Damping units, Spare Screw, and Mounting Bracket.

Note: there are different between Z15-N and Z15-G.

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 6

Contents

WARNING & DISCLAIMER ............................................................................................... 2

PRODUCT PROFILE .......................................................................................................... 3

IN BOX ............................................................................................................................ 4

CONTENTS ...................................................................................................................... 6

MATTERS NEED ATTENTION ............................................................................................ 7

GIMBAL DESCRIPTION .................................................................................................... 8

CAMERA SETUP ............................................................................................................ 10

MOUNT ........................................................................................................................ 12

CAMERA WIRING/SHUTTER CONTROL ......................................................................... 15

VIDEO SIGNAL TRANSMISSION ..................................................................................... 17

GIMBAL CONTROLLER WIRING ..................................................................................... 18

WORKING MODES/HDMI/AUX2/AUX3 SWITCH SETUP ...................................................... 20

ASSISTANT .................................................................................................................... 22

TEST ............................................................................................................................. 25

APPENDIX ..................................................................................................................... 27

1-PILOT SOLUTION .............................................................................................................. 27

2-PILOT SOLUTION .............................................................................................................. 28

PORT DESCRIPTION .............................................................................................................. 29

GIMBAL LED INDICATOR ....................................................................................................... 30

GIMBAL LABEL DESCRIPTION ................................................................................................. 30

TROUBLE SHOOTING ............................................................................................................ 31

SPECIFICATIONS ................................................................................................................... 32

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 7

Matters Need Attention

For safety reasons, please pay serious attention to all following items:

 Ensure nothing blocks the servo driver module rotation, to avoid motor damage.
 Camera’s HDMI resolution should be set to 1080i.
 Ensure to mount the side of servo driver module1 without ports to the aircraft nose

direction.

 The gimbal center of gravity has been set, whose position directly determine gimbal

performance. Please do not adjust the gimbal center of gravity by yourself.

 The gimbal is a high-precision control device. Do not remove any other screws in the

gimbal, which may result in bad performance or even damage.

 Do not unplug any cable attaching to the gimbal ports, or even change the mechanical

structure.

 Make sure all wiring is correct, otherwise may lead to gimbal abnormal work or even

out of control.

 Make sure to connect Video Transmission Unit to gimbal controller before power on

the system.

 The standard gimbal video power cable is recommended.
 Make sure you solder the gimbal video power cable to the wireless video transmission

unit correctly, to avoid the 12V power burn the gimbal or your own device. And
ensure the cables are insulated, to prevent from short circuit.

 Ensure the 12V power is safe for you own device when other power cable is used.
 Make sure the wireless video transmission module current consumption does not

exceed 1A, to prevent GCU from damage.

 Pay attention to that S800 power supply voltage is within the defined limits (6S), when

using one battery for both S800 and Gimbal power supply.

 Different camera or lens should use special component.
 Prevent the Gimbal from the power cable; otherwise it may lead to the short circuit of

the Gimbal.

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 8

Gimbal Description

Notices:

 Ensure nothing blocks the servo driver module rotation, to avoid motor damage.
 Clear obstacle at once if the rotating gimbal is blocked.

Tips:

 Servo driver module is with two motor command input ports and one encoder private port.
 HDMI-AV module converts HDMI video signal to AV video signal with a cable connecting to camera

HDMI port; also transforms TX signal into shutter control signal with a shutter control module.

 (Z15-N)Shutter control module is for camera shutter control using an infrared signal emission head.
 Please read the related content according to your product (Z15-N or Z15-G).

Z15-N

(To GCU G6)

Damping Unit

(To GCU G8)

Servo Driver Module Port

Encoder Private Port

Motor Command Input Port

Pan

±360° continuous rotation

Servo Driver Module 3

Cameral Mount Position

Camera Mount　Screw-hole

HDMI-AV Port

IMU Module

HDMI-AV Module

Tilt

±360° continuous rotation

±40°　 (±360° mechanic

continuous rotation)

Roll

Servo Driver Module 2

Shutter Control Module

Servo Driver Module 1

Mounting Bracket

Motor Command Input Port

Port of 8-Pin Cable

Gimbal LED Indicator

Lens Retaining Ring

Lens Retaining Ring Shim

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 9

Z15-G

(To GCU G6)

Damping Unit

(To GCU G8)

Servo Driver Module Port

Encoder Private Port

Motor Command Input Port

Pan

±360° continuous rotation

Servo Driver Module 3

Cameral Mount Position

Camera Mount　Screw-hole

HDMI-AV Port

IMU Module

HDMI-AV Module

Tilt

±360° continuous rotation

±40°　 (±360° mechanic

continuous rotation)

Roll

Servo Driver Module 2

Shutter Control Cable

Servo Driver Module 1

Mounting Bracket

Motor Command Input Port

Port of 8-Pin Cable

Gimbal LED Indicator

Hot Shoe

©2012 DJI Innovations. All Rights Reserved. 10

Camera Setup

Configure your camera by following the settings, meeting the requirements of Z15. Please read the related
content according to your product (Z15-N or Z15-G).

Sony NEX-5N /7 /5R

Menu

Shot Mode Camera Image Size

Brightness/

Color

Playback Setup

Shot Mode

Manual Exposure

Camera

Drive Mode

Remote Cdr.

AF/MF Select

MF

Brightness/Color

ISO
White Balance

Not use Auto

Setup

Lens Comp: Shading Off

Off
Off

HDMI Resolution

1080i

Lens Comp: Chro.Aber

Lens Comp: Distortion

1/60 F3.5

M

Shutter
Aperture

Not use Auto

 Please set Shot Mode as Manual Exposure M.
 Shutter: Value 1/15~1/80 is recommended, do not set it bellow 1/80(like 1/120).
 Aperture: According to exposure degree.
 Drive Mode: Set as Remote Cdr., so that camera shutter can be controlled by TX.
 AF/MF Select: Select MF, otherwise output image would be flashing.
 ISO: Please fix a certain value instead of automatically.
 White Balance: Please do not set it to auto white balance mode.
 Lens Comp: Set Shading/Chro.Aber/Distortion Off.
 HDMI Resolution: Should be set to 1080i.

Panasonic GH2

C

3

C

2

C

1

M

S

A

P

SCN

M

iA

MF

AFC

AFS

 Please set Shot Mode as Manual Exposure M.
 MF/AFC/AFS Select: Select MF。
 Using the MOTION PICTURE Mode Menu, set the REC MODE as AVCHD(1080i)。