AerobTec Altis v4 User manual

AerobTec Altis v4

Recording / Competition Altimeter

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 1

Table of Contents

1.Specifications..................................................................................................................3

2.Introduction......................................................................................................................3

3.How it works....................................................................................................................3

4.Hardware description.......................................................................................................4

onnectors of your Altis v4............................................................................................4

Mounting in the aircraft...................................................................................................5

onnection for data logging only...........................................................................5

ompetition connection with internal BE ............................................................5

onnection with external BE ...............................................................................6

onnection for telemetry.......................................................................................6

USB connection.....................................................................................................6

5.Altis v4 screens...............................................................................................................7

Initialization screen.........................................................................................................8

F5J screen......................................................................................................................8

User defined screen.......................................................................................................8

Do not disconnect screen...............................................................................................8

USB mode screen..........................................................................................................8

6.Work with Altis v4 in the Altis Flight Manager..................................................................9

Altis v4 window...............................................................................................................9

Downloading data...........................................................................................................9

Settings...........................................................................................................................9

Firmware update..........................................................................................................12

Firmware types.............................................................................................................13

Backup firmware...........................................................................................................13

7.Warning..........................................................................................................................13

8.Product Registration......................................................................................................14

9.Revision History.............................................................................................................14

10.Notes...........................................................................................................................14

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 2

1. Specifications

•Memory: 3.9MB (more than 15 hour record with 0.1s sample rate)

•Sample time: 0.1 – 25.5s (user selectable in 0.1s steps)

•Dimensions: 20 x 33 x 6.5mm

able length approx. 10cm

•Weight: 8g with JR cable

•Power supply range: 4 – 12.6V

•Logging:

◦altitude

◦voltage

◦temperature

◦throttle

•onforms to all existing competition rules (FAI F5J, ALES, etc.)

•Records multiple motor runs per flight

•OLED display (configurable screen)

•Telemetry support for Jeti Duplex EX® and Multiplex® M-Link

•Upgradeable firmware

•AerobTec Altis Flight manager software for Windows

2. Introduction

The AerobTec Altis v4 is a barometric altimeter designed especially to record the altitude of R/ aircraft

during flight with additional competition features. The unit has very small dimensions and a low weight.

The v4 senses barometric pressure variations caused by altitude changes of the aircraft. The altitude is

then calculated from pressure data and stored in the internal memory of the device.

The included system allows you to connect to a personal computer with a Windows (XP or higher)

operating system via USB. The supplied program will not only read the information from the device and

save it to the computer in various formats but it can also display the information in an advanced graph and

process the flight information in many other ways.

This altimeter has functions based on FAI F5J and Altitude limiting competitions (ALES) rules so it can be

used for these competitions.

The device and the software also provide some other complementary functions such as temperature,

throttle or voltage measurement and recording.

3. ow it works

The Altis v4 uses a modern, fast, digital pressure sensor which allows it to sense very low pressure

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 3

differences. This gives the unit an altitude resolution smaller than 0.5m with sample rates as low as 0.1s.

Since atmospheric pressure changes over time, these changes will affect your measurements. For this

reason, long term measurements may not be precise enough. However, the altitude for short term flights,

which are common in R/ aircraft, can be recorded very precisely.

The measured altitude is stored in the high capacity internal memory with which allows approx. 15 hours

of recording with the fastest sampling rate (0.1s).

After the Altis v4 is connected to a power supply, it will initialize in the first 3s. During initialization, the

reference altitude and a zero throttle level are measured. Note: It is necessary to keep the throttle on

your R/C transmitter turned off during this phase. It is recommended to set the initial altitude

before each flight by disconnecting and re connecting the power supply.

4. ardware description

Connectors of your Altis v4

Your Altis v4 has 5 connectors. They are shown in Fig 1.

IN – input signal from the R/ receiver. Power to Altis v4 is provided from

the receiver via this connector

OUT – output signal to ES (Electronic Speed ontrol)

USB micro – onnects the Altis v4 to a computer via USB

OM A, OM B – Molex connectors for connection with telemetry equipped receivers as well as

future additional features

Wire color Signal

brown Ground

red Positive power supply

orange R/C signal

Table 1: olors of the connector wires

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 4

Fig 1: Connectors of your Altis v4

Mounting in the aircraft

Since Altis v4 uses atmospheric pressure for its measurement, it has to have open access to the outside

atmosphere. It must not be completely sealed inside the fuselage or other box. As most standard R/

aircraft are not fully sealed, it is usually not necessary to do any special modifications for installation. The

Altis v4 can simply be put in a free space inside the fuselage.

If the unit is mounted outside the aircraft, the location must be carefully considered. The unit must be

mounted away from the airflow caused by the propeller.

Avoid mounting your Altis v4 on parts of the plane that might become hot during operation.

Connection for data logging only

If the Altis v4 device is used purely as a logging device, connect the device to any free receiver channel as

shown in Fig 2. The signal polarity must be observed as shown in Table 1.

Competition connection with internal BEC

For competition use (like F5J FAI, ALES, etc.) the JR input cable has to be connected to the R/ receiver,

and the JR ES cable has to be connected to the output connector on the main measuring unit board.

See Fig 3. The signal polarity must be observed as shown in Table 1.

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 5

Fig 3: Connection scheme for competition use (ESC - electronic speed controller, HRO -

throttle receiver channel)

Fig 2: Connection scheme for data logging only (FREE – free receiver channel)

Connection with external BEC

If you use a separate power source for your receiver or a battery eliminator circuit (BE ), you should

make sure to separate your power supply from your ES and the Altis v4. This is done by disconnecting

the red wire from the ES connector. This is not usually necessary for “Opto” ES s. The disconnected red

wire must be insulated to ensure that it does not cause any short circuit or other problems. See Fig 4.

Connection for telemetry

Some radio systems provide telemetry functions. These functions allow wireless transmission of certain

data from the aircraft during the flight and display it on your Tx or monitor screen. The Altis v4 has OM A

and OM B connectors reserved for this purpose. Use a Molex/JR telemetry cable (sold separately) to

connect your Altis v4 to the telemetry input of your receiver. See Fig 5.

USB connection

When you wish to download your logged data to a computer or change the settings of your Altis v4,

connect the Altis v4 using a standard micro USB cable (sold separately) to a computer with Windows XP

(or newer) operating system. See Fig 6. When you connect your Altis v4 for the first time, the computer

should install the drivers automatically. You need to have the Altis Flight Manager program installed in your

computer to display any stored data and make changes to your settings.

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 6

Fig 4: Connection of Altis v4 with BEC

Fig 5: elemetry connection

5. Altis v4 screens

The Altis v4 is equipped with an OLED display with great visibility in sunlight. There are several screens

displayed when you use the device. These screens are shown in Fig 7.

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 7

Fig 6: USB cable connection

Fig 7: Various screens: a) Initialization screen b) F5J screen c) User defined screen d) Do not

disconnect screen e) USB mode screen

Initialization screen

When you connect the device to your aircraft, the Altis v4 informs you about the 3s initialization phase by

displaying the initialization screen. This screen also shows the firmware version and the serial number of

your device.

It is not recommended to disconnect the device when you see this screen.

F5J screen

This screen shows the firmware version and the F5J height as specified by FAI F5J rules.

The F5J height is indicates by 3 + 1 digit number. If there is no F5J detected or the motor was restarted, -

- - . - is shown on the screen instead.

User defined screen

This screen allows you to choose which information you would like to display on the screen. Please refer

to page 12 for more information.

Do not disconnect screen

When logging data, there are times when it is dangerous for the device to be disconnected. If the Altis v4

is disconnected at these times there is a danger of losing all your data in the device. This is indicated by

the “Do not disconnect screen”. Do not disconnect the device when you see this screen!!!

It is not recommended to disconnect the device during the initialization screen, too.

USB mode screen

When you connect your Altis v4 to a computer, the device stops its competition and logging functionality

and provides its data to the computer. This data is indicated by the USB mode screen.

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 8

6. Work with Altis v4 in the Altis Flight Manager

The AerobTec Flight Manager (AFM) is a P application for Windows which allows you to communicate

with Altis v4 and other devices made by AerobTec and to display and process the flight data recorded by

them.

Altis Flight Manager can be downloaded from http://www.aerobtec.com/support/download/

Note: There is a separate manual for AFM. However, the following pages describe how to set up your

Altis v4 according to your needs.

In order to connect to the device click Tools > Device or Device icon on the toolbar. A window will appear.

See Fig 8. hoose Altis v4. AFM then automatically connects to your Altis v4. If there is more than one

Altis v4 connected to your computer, you will be asked to choose which one you wish to connect. When

connected, Altis v4 screen window will be displayed.

Altis v4 window

There are two parts of the window. The upper part shows general information about the device – its

firmware version, serial number and used memory.

The bottom part of the window is used for settings.

Downloading data

In order to access the logged data from your Altis v4, use the Download button. Once the data is

downloaded, you can close the Device window and work with the data.

Settings

There are many possible configurations for the Altis v4. You can set your Altis v4 according to your needs.

This is done by using the settings tabs in the bottom part of the window.

There are several tabs:

Logging Settings (Fig 9) – Here you can set how you wish to store the flight parameters to your device

memory. The basic parameter, Sample time, determines how frequently the parameters will be logged.

You can set which parameters you wish to log. You can log altitude, temperature of the device (note: the

device is usually several degrees warmer than its environment), input throttle PWM (signal from the R/

system) and the voltage on board (the voltage Altis v4 is powered from).

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 9

Fig 8: Device choosing window

Note that the more parameters you log or the lower the sample time is, the more memory it consumes.

However, there is memory enough to log about 15hours of data when logging all available parameters with

a Sample time of 0,1s. With different settings you can log up to several days of data.

You can choose also a trigger type – this determines when your device starts logging. There are the

following options:

•Always on – Data logging begins once the device is initialized

•R trigger – When Altis v4 is connected to a receiver channel controlled by a switch on your R/

transmitter. You will activate the logging manually by turning this channel on. Note that this option

is not available for some of the competition settings.

•Altitude trigger – The device starts logging when the plane reaches a certain altitude. It is possible

to set your desired altitude.

Competition settings (Fig 10) – There are several pre-programmed standard competitions. You can

simply choose the one you want from the ompetition Type list. This choice sets the proper values of all

necessary parameters.

Of course, you can customize the parameters according to your needs. For example, you can set a motor

switch at certain altitude or at certain time.

At the bottom of the ompetition Settings tab there are Safety and Training settings. Allow Emergency

Motor On has the following function:

In some competitions it is not allowed to switch the motor on again during the flight. However, you may

want to have the ability to switch the motor on again in an emergency situation. The user can choose to

enable this or not. If enabled, when the motor is switched on for an emergency the Altis v4 restarts the

recorded F5J height and it is recorded so it can be shown on the flight graph.

Sometimes during training it is not practical to reset your Altis v4 to start a new flight each time you land

AerobTec Altis v4 User Manual 10

Fig 9: Logging settings

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