ArduPilot - QGroundControl for Mac

ArduPilot configuration using QGroundControl for Mac on a simple GPS enabled FPV wing. No ground station, no compass, no airspeed sensor.

Mission Planner is the most popular ArduPilot configuration program but there is no Mac version

My gear for this ArduPilot test:

Matek F405-Wing board, LTE Rambler Wing, RadioMaster Boxer, ELRS receiver and RF module.

QGroundControl for Mac

Download and install QGroundControl for Mac

ArduPilot firmware

Go to the ArduPilot Github repository and find the latest stable ArduPilot Plane firmware for Matek F405-Wing (or your FC). Download the hex file that includes the boot loader (arduplane_with_bl.hex)

Firmware page - https://firmware.ardupilot.org/Plane/

All of this information comes from the ArduPilot Plane documentation - https://ardupilot.org/plane/index.html

Initial firmware flashing with INAV

QGroundControl cannot be used to flash Ardupilot to a board that does not already have Ardupilot loaded. INAV or BetaFlight can be used for this.

Connect the board to INAV Configurator in DFU mode by holding the DFU button while connecting the USB

Select Firmware Flasher then Load Firmware (Local)

Locate the dowloaded arduplane_with_bl.hex file and select Flash Firmware

Once Ardupilot firmware is flashed to the board QGroundControl can be used for updates and configuring.

Configuration with QGroundControl

Open QGroundControl and connect the F405-Wing via USB

IMPORTANT: First step is to RELOAD the firmware using QGroundControl now that Ardupilot is on the board. 

Click on Firmware, unplug the board, then reconnect to start the upload.

This seems to be necessary to make the sensor calibration and servo outputs behave correctly, not sure why.

Once the firmware has been updated and the board rebooted, the Horizon icon should react to board movements, and sensor setup notices will pop up.

Click on the Q icon (top left) to open Tools, then Vehicle Setup

Parameters screen should appear in a few seconds.

Calibrate Accelerometer

Click on the Sensors tab (left of parameter screen) and select Accelerometer

Follow the prompts to calibrate the accelerometer while holding the board in all 6 orientations.

Set up the ArduPilot model in your radio.

It is important to create a fresh model in your radio to avoid any leftover inputs, mixes or overrides.

Model setup for ArduPilot must have no mixing, no rates or expo. No matter what style of plane you are configuring, this is how the mixing page on your radio should be. 

All control surface mixing and channel reversing is done in QGroundControl

Ch 1 100% AIL

Ch 2 100% ELE

Ch 3 100% THR

Ch 4 100% RUD

Ch 5 100% MAX (ELRS requirement)

 

All ArduPilot's Flight Modes are on Ch 8 by default

Ch 8 100% SC for 3 positions operating 3 Modes

OR

Mixing for 6 modes using combination of SC (3 pos) and SD (2 pos) switches

Ch 8  31% SC -45% Offset, SD Up

ADD  31% SC +45% Offset, SD Down

OR

Ch 8  65% S3 (6 position switch) 

Weight of 65% is required so the 6 PWM values match the ArduPilot Mode PWM ranges

Make sure the receiver is bound to the radio 

Parameter Setup

To find and edit items in the Full Parameter list, click on Parameters then type in the search field, then click on the relevant line to bring up the Parameter Editor box.

The firmware does not correctly preset all of the parameters for the F405-Wing board. The following changes are essential to configure the board for successful operation.

Configuring SERIAL inputs (UARTS)

Note that some FCBs have a different UART numbering sequence to the Ardupilot SERIAL numbering. Check the board's product page or the Ardupilot board info list. https://ardupilot.org/plane/docs/common-autopilots.html

Luckily the Matek F405-Wing board UARTs do match.

The following SERIAL parameters need to be entered

1. Receiver protocol and UART1 selection

SERIAL1_PROTOCOL - Manually enter "23" 

This changes the RC protocol to RCIN - ELRS/CRSF

This info is on the Matek product page and ELRS documentation

2. GPS connects to UART3 and/or UART4

SERIAL3_PROTOCOL - GPS

Baud Rate is automatically adjusted

No other SERIAL inputs need to be changed at this stage (Unless you have HD FPV that needs UART connection)

Connect ELRS receiver RX and TX to UART1 on the board. Connect receiver power to 4.5V pin if you want it to be powered from USB for setup

Calibrate Radio in QGroundControl

With the receiver connected and bound to the radio, click on the Radio tab.

Follow the prompts while moving sticks and switches to calibrate Ardupilot for the radio. 

This configures the stick functions or RC inputs, and sets the channel endpoints

Configuring motor and servo connections

SERVOn_FUNCTION

Edit SERVO Parameters to be as shown below

SERVO1_FUNCTION - Throttle

  Change SERVO1_MIN to 1000

ESC signal connects to S1 pins on the F405

SERVO3_FUNCTION - ElevonLeft 

May need to change and/or reverse later

  Change SERVO3_TRIM to 1500

Left Elevon connects to S3 pins on the F405

SERVO4_FUNCTION - ElevonRight 

May need to change and/or reverse later

Right Elevon connects to S4 pins on the F405

Configuring other parameters

SAFETY (Click the Safety tab)

Safety Checks - Leave ALL ticked.

Return To Launch Altitude - Change if desired. I use 7000cm (70m)

COMPASS_ENABLE - Disable 

Otherwise Safety Checks will prevent arming

ARSPD_TYPE - None 

Otherwise Safety Checks will prevent arming

ARMING_RUDDER - ArmorDisarm 

To allow arm and disarm with rudder stick. 

Arming by a Switch is also available

FS_LONG_ACTN - RTL 

Return to Launch on a "longer than short" Failsafe. 

Short Failsafe Action is preset to CIRCLE to attempt RC reconnection, then reverts to Long failsafe after 2 sec.

SERVO_AUTO_TRIM - Enable 

Continuously trim servo midpoints for level flight in Manual

TRIM_PITCH_CD - 300 

300 centi degrees for 3º of nose up for level flight (maintain altitude) in FBWA. Adjust for your craft

TRIM_THROTTLE - 38 

For criuse throttle of 38%. Adjust for your craft

RSSI_TYPE - ReveiverProtocol 

Allows ELRS RSSI and LQ to be displayed correctly

Configuring Control surface movements

1. Correct stabilisation directions

IMPORTANT - Do this before step 2.

Check control surface movements for stabilisation in FBWA Mode

Without touching the sticks - 

Left elevon should move up and right elevon down, when the left wing is raised

Right elevon should move up and left elevon down, when the right wing is raised

Both elevons should move up when the tail is raised

I needed to make the following changes to give correct stabilisation elevon movements

SERVO3_FUNCTION - Change to ElevonRight

SERVO3_REVERSE - Change to Reverse

SERVO4_FUNCTION - Change to ElevonLeft

2. Correct stick input directions

Check control surface movement for stick inputs in Manual Mode

My elevator action was reversed, so I needed reverse the elevator input (RC2) in parameters 

RC2_REVERSED - Reverse

Coming from INAV I prefer to reverse RC inputs in QGroundControl and not in the radio. But I think either method is OK in Ardupilot.

Analog OSD Setup

Connect camera and video transmitter to the board

Search for OSD parameters

OSD_ENABLED - Enabled (To turn OSD on)

By editing the OSD parameters you can Enable and Disable OSD elements and position them by changing the X and Y parameters.

There are about 23 horizontal and 13 vertical positions

The F405-Wing board does not have enough memory to include alternative fonts. 

However other fonts can be stored on the SD card and called up using the OSD1_FONT parameter

Download fonts from the Ardupilot Font repository

I changed to the INAV style font (font2.bin) 

Copy the font2.bin file onto the SD card and choose OSD1_FONT = 2

Setup and maiden videos - https://www.youtube.com/@AndrewNewton/search?query=Ardupilot