This has been through more iterations than I could have ever expected, but I think I am finally nearing a finished product. Eventually I would like to make a few minor design changes, then have the frame CNC cut out of carbon plate, add a front mounted 2 axis gimbal, and use Tarot style folding carbon tube arms.
Until then, this is my current build. It flies very precisely, and when vibrations aren't shaking the bejeebus out of the Pixhawk (working on that), it can take extremely smooth video. The arms are very easy to replace if broken, and have proven to take the shock out of some very nasty crashes and only walk away with a cracked wood boom (cheap and available at my local hardware store).
The GoPro is mounted on weatherstripping foam that does an adequate job of removing jello, but could use improvement.
Under the main plate of wood is a mess of wiring. A minimosd and telemetry radio sends data back to base, and a Teensy board converts the mavlink telemetry to Frsky telemetry for my Taranis to display.
The Pixhawk is mounted on anti-vibration gel, but I am replacing it with an Omnimac anti-vibration mount that I hope will solve my problems.
In the bigger picture, this build has followed me through high school, evolving as I worked on it. It helped me use my Solidworks experience, and familiarize myself with laser cutters. I learned just as much making this quadcopter as I did in most of my high school classes. The build is coming to an end, but I am happy to see how far it has come!
Photos
Part List
ESCs |
4 x Afro 30A Muti-Rotor ESC (SimonK Firmware)
Hobbyking.com
|
$57.72 |
Motors |
4x SunnySky X2212 Brushless Motor KV980 For RC Airplane Multicopter Quadcopte
Ebay.com
|
$38.88 |
Propellers |
NEW APC 10x4.5 Multi Rotor Set (4) LP10045MR-B4
Ebay.com
|
$8.29 |
Propellers |
APC 10x4.5 Multi-Rotor Pusher Propeller LP10045MRP 691204039912
Ebay.com
|
$2.59 |
Guides & Reviews
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With the release of the DJI FPV Drone cinematic FPV has become a lot more accessible, but you certainly don't want to crash a $750 drone! The QAV-CINE Freybott is a compact, lightweight cinematic FPV drone that can take a hit and keep going. It's a lot safer to fly indoors and around people. With a naked GoPro or the SMO 4k you can capture some great stabilized footage. In this guide I'll show you..
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Nice looking rig! Did you cut the wood frame yourself or is that a kit? I don't see it on your parts list. Also, it seems you only listed 1 ESC, so that'll throw your overall price off.
I cut it myself on a lasercutter. Thanks for catching the quantity mistake, still getting used to this site.
Awesome! I'm sure that makes for a very lightweight rig. My main concern would be vibrations passing through the frame to the camera.
Yes, the vibrations are my main issue right now. It took a while to get jello free video even with balanced props and hubs, but the vibrations still plague the Pixhawk. I am hoping a proper anti-vibration mount will solve that, waiting on that to be shipped to try it out.
If your video is okay then that might just do the trick to reduce IMU vibrations. Is it affecting the steadiness of your flights?
It is causing some twitchiness in loiter, but acro and stabilize are fairly smooth. The logs show that the vibrations are borderline too much, and I tried the newest beta arducopter firmware and the accelerometer clipping shows that something isn't right.
I found some great foam weatherstripping that works perfect for the camera, but I want to try the proper mount before using that for the flight controller. The foam is a bit soft and squishy so I am worried it would dampen the controller too much and cause more problems than it solves.
Have you considered Zeal? That's what I use and it works great. I'm getting plus or minus 0.8 on my AccX and AccY vibrations. My spikes don't exceed 2 very often.
That's what i have it mounted on currently :/
Hmm, I wonder if the wood is passing the vibrations then. I think you might want to pursue your idea to cut carbon fiber plates.
Yup, that's what I'm thinking too. The issue is I was using a solidworks license from my high school, but that has expired now. I have to wait until I get to my college (in a week) and hope that I can acquire a site license without actually being in a CAD-related class.
And even after that, I will either have to hope that they have a CNC machine that I can use for personal projects, or find a reasonably priced CNC service to outsource the cutting, like cutfromcad.com
Or, ya know, just bite the bullet and buy the hobbyking alien frame. But that kinda ruins the point of the project for me.
Or how about the S500 frame? Those are pretty nice.
I need the folding aspect, I travel with it quite a lot and it makes it extremely convenient. Fits in a backpack or a normal sized suitcase quite nicely. I also want to keep it my design, and continue it as a project to learn from.
Very good! It is a very nice design. I think carbon fiber is the way to go then.
Any updates on your frame? Did you get the carbon fiber plates?
Haha I wish i had them. I ship out to my first year of college tomorrow, and I have yet to acquire a license for solidworks so it will be a while. The good news is i was able to fit both my 500 and my 250 in my luggage!
Thanks so much for your interest, I love this site and appreciate the work you have put into it! I will make as much effort as I can to pop over here and check out all the new builds people post!
Wow, that must be some large luggage! I use a big plastic bin for my F450. Thank you for your support! I hope this can be a useful tool for many hobbyists.