Instruction manual International edition Rev 1.
Table of Contents Table of Contents Living Manual Thank You! Getting Started, ARF Version The Anatomy of a Vortex Connectors and Switches Folding Arm Assembly Camera Mounting Plate Flight Camera HD Camera (GoPro/Mobius) The On Screen Display (OSD) The Welcome Screen The Main Menu The LED Setup Menu The Flight Controller Menus The Video Tx Menu Flight Controller R/C Transmitter Control Modes Flight Modes Cleanflight / Baseflight / Multiwii / Open-Source Cleanflight Configurator Connection Flight Controller S
RotorSENSE Pro-Tuning Gaming (Beta) The Birth of a Gaming Mode - The History How Does It Work? Enabling Gaming Mode Race Guidelines - Flying with Friends Firmware Upgrades OSD Firmware Upgrades Flight Controller Firmware Upgrades Appendix A: EzUHF Configuration Appendix B: The Wizard - What else does it setup? Appendix C: Video Tx - Staying Legal ITU Region 2: Americas, Greenland, eastern Pacific Islands ITU Region 1: Europe, Africa, Middle East, Iraq, Soviet Union ITU Region 1: Europe, Africa, Middle East,
Warranty Social Networks Like Us Living Manual Note that this manual is a ‘living manual’. Instead of downloading a static PDF file, the manual is an online document which reflects edits, additions, and corrections as they happen. The Living Manual also allows readers to add their comments, which editors can use to refine the documentation. Confused by part of the manual? Wishing for a better explanation for part of the setup? Leave a note and the editors will listen.
WARNING To use dogs as a good analogy, if the DJI Phantom™ is a white fluffy Poodle , the Vortex is a Pitt Bull , bred for fighting, and ready to bite you at any minute :-) This is a race quad. It does not come with GPS hold (infact, it has no GPS at all), and it does require a fair amount of skill to pilot it. Pitt Bulls are a lot of fun, start slowly, get to know your quad before slamming it into a wall at race-speeds.
Getting Started, ARF Version The separate Getting Started guide should be used when setting up your Vortex for the first time. It includes sections on choosing an appropriate battery, and R/C receiver, and also the operation of the setup wizard.
The Anatomy of a Vortex Connectors and Switches 1) USB connector , used to configure the flight controller and upgrade the Vortex firmware. Note that to use the USB connector, a battery must be connected also. The Vortex cannot be powered through the USB connector. Please be careful not to put too much strain on this connector. It is a lightweight surface-mount part, and if the quad is dragged around by the USB cord it may not survive.
3) Fusion FC/OSD button , used to enter firmware update mode. See the Firmware Upgrades chapter for more details. 4) Socketed Video Tx Module A 350mW 5.8GHz Custom NexWaveRF module on the first Vortex shipments. 25mW version 5.8GHz module to be available summer 2015. Note that the module is restrained using a stainless-steel spring.
5) Flight Camera Video/Power Connector The flight camera video and power connector is a 3-pin Picoblade connector located behind the left side plate. Accessing the connector is easiest by just removing the side plate, without the need to remove the top plate. The connector has the following pinout, starting from the front of the quad: 1. Video 2. Gnd 3. +5v 6) GoPro Power Connector The GoPro power connector is a 2 pin Picoblade, also accessible through the left side plate.
1. +5V 2. Gnd ~1A Maximum Current NOTE: Certain GoPro models will not power up without a battery installed, a little research may be required to identify which ones . 7) Receiver PPM Connector The receiver PPM connector is a 3-pin JST-PH connector, with the following pinout, looking from right to left in the below image: 1. Gnd 2. +5V 3. PPM Power to the receiver 3.3v, or 5v logic levels Note: To interface to S-Bus, or Spektrum Satellite receivers, an optional cable is required.
Also Note: When unplugging the battery, especially one with a new, and rather tight connector, take care to hold the cables, and avoid unnecessary strain on the Vortex PDB. Pulling these cables too hard may pull the traces off of the PCB.
Folding Arm Assembly The folding arm assembly consists of both injected plastic, and Carbon Fiber parts. The tiny EzESC is located inside the tube. The pivot point is a critical structural element of the Vortex arm. These plastic parts are clamped, and keyed, onto the carbon fiber tube. In a serious crash, this pivot point acts as a ‘fuse’, and should be checked for damage, and replaced if necessary.
When changing the arm, a soldering iron is required, to remove the ESC + and - battery cables. Note: The choice of soldered connections here, instead of the much more convenient connector option may not seem ideal. Various connectors were tried, but one compact enough, robust enough, and capable of carrying > 20 Amps per motor was not found. A custom connector suitable for this application will be included in a future revision of the Vortex to simplify the in-field replacement of arms.
The plastic pins and circlips installed into each of the dampers are important, and prevent the camera mounting plate from being separated from the frame in a crash. NOTE :It is important that all four of these pins are installed before every flight. Flying with fewer pins installed may result in damage in a crash. HD Camera (GoPro/Mobius) The camera mounting plate also includes slots used to secure either a GoPro, or Mobius camera.
The On Screen Display (OSD) The Welcome Screen Each time the Vortex is powered up, and before sticks are moved, the following welcome screen is displayed. This shows various pieces of status information, including the Flight Controller version number, and Flight Controller API version which is fairly important for OSD compatibility. Moving the pitch/roll stick (right stick for mode 2’ers) will dismiss the menu.
The Main Menu For Mode 2’ers, holding the throttle stick down and to the left will enter the main menu. Note that this stick position needs to be held for a few seconds before the menu appears. To navigate the menu, use the pitch/roll stick. The OSD Setup Menu Various OSD setup parameters are available in this menu.
Alarms may be enabled and disabled in the Alarms Setup menu. It is highly recommended to start flying with all alarms enabled, and disable them if required after getting used to the quad.
The LED Setup Menu The RGB LEDs on the rear of the Vortex are fully programmable, with colors, and various patterns. For Parameter Mode = Intensity , the intensity of the LEDs will reflect the current throttle position. For Parameter Mode = Frequency the blink rate of the LEDs will reflect the current throttle position. For Parameter Mode = Gradient , the LEDs will shift from the foreground color, to the background color, based upon the current throttle position.
The Flight Controller Menus In-field tweaking of flight-controller menus is possible without a laptop and USB cable. All of the critical parameters, PIDs, Expos, Loop time, etc. are available. Note that the PID Setup menu is a two page menu, keep moving the caret down to access the second page.
Note that all of the Flight Controller parameters can be preset by loading one of the installed Pro-Tunes .
The Video Tx Menu The Video Tx menu shows, graphically, the 5.8GHz frequency band, from low (left) through high (right) frequency. 5 bands are supported, covering the standard ImmersionRC/FatShark frequency bands, plus all of the ‘Boscam’, Team Black Sheep bands, and also the new ImmersionRC ‘RaceBand’. Note the need for RaceBand in this hobby is immediately obvious after looking at this graph! NOTE: Channel 8 of the IRC/FS set cannot be received by 7 channel ImmersionRC or FatShark receivers.
Flight Controller R/C Transmitter Control Modes Mode 1 - Common in Europe Pitch Throttle Yaw Roll Mode 2 - Common in the USA Throttle Pitch Yaw Roll Mode 3 Pitch Throttle Roll Yaw Mode 4 Throttle Pitch Roll Yaw 23
Flight Modes Three flight modes are configured by the Vortex Wizard, and are mapped by default to channel 5 of the R/C Tx. These modes are as follows: Acro This mode is the preferred mode for the more advanced mini-quad pilot. In many ways it is the simplest mode, but also the hardest mode to learn. In Acro mode, the accelerometer part of the IMU is not used, only the Gyro. Because of this, the quad will not self-level, explaining the steep learning curve for this mode.
Cleanflight / Baseflight / Multiwii / Open-Source The development of the Vortex would not have been possible without the effort of a large team of individuals who invested in the open source flight controller software that running on the Vortex. The variant of the open source flight controller firmware that we chose to power the Vortex is Cleanflight, mainly due to it’s solid support of the OneShot ESC control protocol.
Flight Controller Stick Commands Enter Menu/Disarm Flight Controller: Mode 2: Mode 1: Throttle stick left, and down (normal flight controller disarm control) Yaw left, Throttle stick down Arm Flight Controller: Mode 2: Mode 1: Throttle stick right, and down Yaw right, Throttle stick down Reset vTx Channel: Mode 2: Mode 1: Throttle Down, Rudder Left + Elevator Up, Aileron Left Throttle Down, Rudder Left + Elevator Up, Aileron Left 26
ESCs - The 12/16A Vortex ESC Overview The ESCs used in the Vortex are a full-custom design, which uses a potent 32-bit ARM processor. Their diminutive 9.4mm width allows them to be inserted into the carbon fiber arms of the Vortex, where they are fairly well protected against the elements, and from physical damage from passing tree-branches. The ESCs come pre-configured for all motors supported by the Vortex, and they have also been used successfully with various after market motors used by our test team.
Pro-Tuning During the development of the Vortex, a team of pro-quad pilots spent countless hours, tweaking the tuning (PIDs) of the flight controller, using various ‘PID Controllers’ supported by the Cleanflight firmware Each pilot fed back this data to the ImmersionRC team, and we incorporated it into the OSD firmware. Now, as a user, you can choose your favourite pilot, choice of props, battery, flight style, etc. and all flight controller settings are configured for you, based upon his pro-tune.
Gaming (Beta) The Birth of a Gaming Mode - The History In the Spring of 2015, A bunch of Vortexes (Vortices?), were racing around a field somewhere in Western Switzerland, while an observer watched. What the observer noticed is that there was no penalty for high altitude in typical quad racing, other than when forced through/under obstacles. Racers gained altitude as they gained speed.
Arming the quad will automatically remove the ‘Get Ready’ prompt, and switch to the gaming landscape: The bar at the top is a very rough idea of where you are in the multi-lap race (NOTE: There is no GPS on the Quad, so this is purely time based, but in testing showed to be useful to know roughly how many laps each pilot had completed). The bar at the bottom is a ‘fuel gauge’, full battery on the right, empty on the left.
Disarming the quad at the end of the race shows the time, min and max altitude, and the number of points accumulated. How the time and points are combined to decide who won is an exercise left to the gamer… for now. Let us know what you think, and we’ll continue to develop this feature in future firmware updates. feedback@immersionrc.com Idea: for a bit of fun, challenge your fellow internauts to a ‘remote race’.
Race Guidelines - Flying with Friends The current generation of FPV Analog video link brings many advantages. Low-cost, and zero latency being two of the most significant. They do however suffer from less than ideal ‘selectivity’, even when using large channel spacing as is the case with RaceBand. If a few simple rules are followed, quad racing can be a lot of fun. 1) NEVER land near another pilot. This is an absolutely golden rule.
Firmware Upgrades Both the OSD, and the Flight Controller, are updated using the USB port on the rear of the Vortex. OSD Firmware Upgrades 1) Remove all Props! 2) Download the ImmersionRC tools from the ImmersionRC website. Find it on the Vortex product page. 3) Connect a Lipo. 4) Press the button on the Fusion board during 3 seconds (through a hole in the top Carbon Fiber plate) 5) Attach the Vortex to a Windows PC (or a system running parallels, or similar) to the Vortex using a standard Micro-USB cable.
Flight Controller Firmware Upgrades 1) Remove all Props! 2) Connect the Vortex to any PC/Mac/Linux machine which supports the Cleanflight Configurator 3) Follow the standard upgrade instructions for Cleanflight. NOTE: Upgrading Cleanflight to a version not supported by the OSD firmware can easily result in the OSD not functioning. Please refer to the Vortex product page on the ImmersionRC website for compatibility information.
Appendix A: EzUHF Configuration The single-cable PPM connection between the EzUHF receiver and the Vortex power board requires v1.51 (or later) of firmware to support the uplink status. The configuration of the EzUHF receiver should be as follows: 1) 10 Channel PPM output 2) PPM on servo channel 1 3) UPSTAT on PPM slot 10 Note: To ease programmation of UPSTAT on a receiver equipped with v1.51 of firmware, a new version of the ImmersionRC tools is required, v1.41.
Appendix B: The Wizard - What else does it setup? On startup the wizard will reset Cleanflight configuration to its default state.
Appendix C: Video Tx - Staying Legal Depending upon the Vortex variant purchased, and the Tx module installed, the video transmitter power output level, and available transmit frequencies can vary. It is highly recommended to understand the rules and regulations in your country before using the Vortex. Transmitting outside a legal band is something frowned upon by the authorities, and may result in a fine, or confiscation of equipment.
ITU Region 1: Europe, Africa, Middle East, Iraq, Soviet Union Without a license, only the 25mW Tx module may be used, and then only in the ISM band from 5725 MHz thru 5875 MHz.
Troubleshooting / Known Issues Q. When I fly, all I see is the ground A. Tilt the flight camera up! (but beware that landing with a heavily tilted flight camera can be more of a challenge) Q. My quad appears to have unpredictable yaw in tight turns A. This can be due to a number of reasons. First thing to check though is that the motors are all aligned correctly (look through the side of the quad and ensure that props are parallel with the top frame).
Looking after your Vortex Snow and Water Even though most of the PCBs in the Vortex are coated with a conformal coating , which does offer some protection from water, it is not recommended to get the Vortex wet, even if that water comes in the form of snow. If your Vortex does get wet, immediately remove power, and place it in a sealed container containing uncooked rice, for 24 hours. The rice will absorb some of the water.
Specifications Flight Controller IMU Invensense 6050, 3 axis Gyro, 3 axis Accelerometer Altimeter Bosch BMP180 CPU STM32F103 32-bit ARM processor Firmware Cleanflight compatible (with API version matching that of the OSD) OSD CPU STM32F373 32-bit ARM processor Resolution 440H x 280V Style White, with black surround around all pixels Output Programmable Black/White levels Video Tx Features Transmitter Module Socketed, Custom NexWaveRF 5.
ESC Type ImmersionRC EzESC Rating 12A continuous, 16A peak Features OneShot125, and Motor Braking Processor 32-bit ARM R/C Receiver Channels Required Absolute minimum four. Five recommended to support mode switch. Interface Standard 3.3v-5v PPM Sum (all channels in one PPM stream) Receiver Power +5v @ 200mA max. (3.
Spare parts and Upgrades Several crash kits, and upgrades, are available for the Vortex, including the following: Part Numbers VX4CK1 Crash Kit #1, Plastic Parts VX4CK2 Crash Kit #2, Carbon Parts VX4CK3 Crash Kit #3, Arm/ESC/Motor assembly VXGF5030RL Gemfan 5030 Props, 4x CW, 4 x CCW VXHQ5040BNRL HQ 5040A Props, 4x CW, 4x CCW VXTM180623 OEM T-Motor 1806 2300kV EZESC12 EzESC 12A (16A peak), with soldered cables VXFUSION Vortex Fusion Flight Controller/OSD with cables VX4PDB Vortex Power Dist
Regulatory notice The use of this product may be prohibited in your country/region/state, please verify that the RF output power and frequencies used by this transmitter comply with local rules and regulations, this product may require a license to operate.
Social Networks Like Us We would like thank you for purchasing this ImmersionRC product. Like ImmersionRC’s Facebook page and be kept up-to-date with news, product releases, firmware updates, tips and tricks, and other information relevant to the FPV hobbyist. http://www.facebook.com/ImmersionRC You can also follow us on Google Plus google.com/+immersionrc We have even been known to Tweet on occasion https://twitter.
