Vortex 150 MINI Instruction Manual
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Vortex 150 MINI Instruction Manual

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150 Mini Instruction manual
International edition
1.1
July 2016
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Rev
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Summary of Contents for Vortex 150 MINI

  • Page 1 150 Mini Instruction manual International edition July 2016 ​ ​ ​...
  • Page 2 Many hours of development, and testing time went into the product, we truly hope that this is reflected in your experience with the product. The 150 Mini was designed as an entry-level racer, priced much lower than it’s 250 Pro big brother, but with all of the features, and twice the smiles.

  • Page 3: Install Antenna

    The Video Transmitter included in the Vortex may be damaged permanently if run without the supplied SpiroNET Antenna. Please take care to install this antenna before every flight, and when powering up the Vortex for even a short time period.
  • Page 4 Getting Started for Newcomers to Race Drones This manual focuses on preparing your 150 Mini for first flight, and how to maintain it in the future. One step that is highly recommended for newcomers to the world of racing drones is to take the first flight within the safety of a simulator.

  • Page 5: Getting Started, Arf Version

    The separate ​ G etting Started ​ guide should be used when setting up your Vortex 150 Mini for the first time. It includes sections on choosing an appropriate battery, and R/C receiver, and also the operation of the setup wizard.

  • Page 6: Connectors And Switches

    3rd beep to put a (non-autobind) spektrum rx in bind mode, finally release after 4th beep to cancel operation. Note: To bind a Spektrum Rx using the reset button, the vortex must be placed in SPEKTRUM 1024/2048 mode, and not AUTO mode, using the Vortex Configurator on a PC or Mac.
  • Page 7 4) Receiver Connector (All Protocols, CPPM, SBus, DSMX ™ , etc.) The Vortex 150 Mini has a single connector for all supported receivers. 5V and 3.3V power supplies are available, to support most of the commonly used receivers on the market today. In most cases, one of the...
  • Page 8 Note that a piece of double-sided tape may be used to secure the receiver on top of the metal can beside the connector. Receiver antennas may be routed through one of the 6 available slots. Two at the back of the quad in the LED diffuser, and four in the side-plates.
  • Page 9 Connector Part Numbers and Sources If any of the connectors on the Vortex 150 Mini are damaged, or if 3rd party components are to be integrated into the system, the following list of connectors and pre-crimped wires should be useful.

  • Page 10: Arm Assembly

    Camera Mounting Flight Camera The Vortex 150 Mini is equipped with a state-of-the-art FatShark 600 TVL CCD camera. This camera has custom mounting points designed for race quads, which match up with the camera shroud. To remove the camera, simply remove the two hex-head screws under the nose of the quad and tilt the camera shroud upwards.

  • Page 11: Lost Model Alarm

    Note that the camera tilt is adjustable. Loosen the two upper-screws and tilt the camera to the desired angle, before re-tightening them. Cool Feature Alert ​ : The 150 Mini has a cool way to control the camera settings directly from the Vortex OSD. Lost Model Alarm The Lost Model Alarm on the Vortex 150 Mini sounds when the quad is disarmed after landing, or if a receiver failsafe occurs.
  • Page 12 The Touch’n’Race (TNR) Tag The Touch’n’Race tag is located behind the plastic side-plate of the right-side of the quad (looking from the back). A TNR Wand may be used to not only query the video transmission frequency before powering-up the quad, but also to set it to any of the supported channels before powering up.

  • Page 13: The On Screen Display (Osd)

    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.

  • Page 14: The Main 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. Note that some menus are multi-page, take a look in the top-right corner of the display to see how many pages in the current menu, and which is selected.

  • Page 15: The Osd Setup Menu

    The OSD Setup Menu Various OSD setup parameters are available in this menu. The ​ L andscape ​ , defines the elements that are shown on the main screen in flight, including an EzOSD-type landscape (the default), a clutter-free landscape for hardcore racers, and a gaming mode which is currently in Beta form (documented later in this manual).
  • Page 16 Alarms may be enabled and disabled in the ​ A larms Setup ​ menu. It is highly recommended to start flying with all alarms enabled, and disable them if required after getting used to the quad.

  • Page 17: The Led Setup Menu

    The LED Setup Menu The RGB LEDs on the rear of the Vortex are fully programmable, with colors, and various patterns. For Parameter Mode = ​ I ntensity ​ , the intensity of the LEDs will reflect the current throttle position.

  • Page 18: The Flight Controller Menus

    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. General configuration settings should not need changing, except to enable Air Mode (which is highly recommended).
  • Page 19 Note that the PID Settings menu is a two page menu, keep moving the caret down to access the second page.
  • Page 20 Note that all of the Flight Controller parameters can be preset by loading one of the installed ​ P ro-Tunes ​...

  • Page 21: The Video Tx Menu

    Within Europe, the Ham band is 5650MHz to 5850MHz, which allows the first 6 RaceBand channels. NOTE #1: There are several SKUs for the Vortex 150 Mini to allow sales in most countries. Each SKU may limit power and/or available channels.

  • Page 22: The Camera Settings

    A confirmation prompt appears before entering the camera’s OSD menu. When selecting YES, the OSD controls will change slightly from those used in the Vortex OSD. For Mode 2 users, the right-stick becomes the OSD setup joystick (up/down/left/right), and the Vortex OSD ‘Enter Menu’ control (left stick back and left) becomes the ‘select’ function.

  • Page 23: Video Transmitter

    (v1.0). PitStick Mode The new PitStick mode, unique to the Vortex 150 Mini, is enabled using the Video Tx menu, selecting the required band (typically RaceBand), and then selecting ‘PitStick’ as the channel number. When in this mode, the quad will not transmit at all when powered up, but will instead play a tune occasionally after power-up to remind the pilot that PitStick is active.
  • Page 24 An example of the settings from the DX9 are shown below. Set the channel, band, and power level from the LCD, and select ‘Send’ to send the settings to the Vortex. Note: To use DSMX to set the Tx settings, but not transmit immediately at power-up, select the PitStick channel following the procedure above.

  • Page 25: Flight Controller

    Flight Controller R/C Transmitter Control Modes Mode 1 - ​ C ommon in Europe Pitch Throttle Roll Mode 2 - ​ Common in the USA Throttle Pitch Roll Mode 3 Pitch Throttle Roll Mode 4 Throttle Pitch Roll...

  • Page 26: Flight Modes

    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.
  • Page 27 Betaflight 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 Betaflight, mainly due to it’s solid support of the OneShot ESC control protocol.

  • Page 28: Flight Controller Stick Commands

    Flight Controller Stick Commands Enter Menu/Disarm Flight Controller: Mode 2: Throttle stick left, and down (normal flight controller disarm control) Mode 1: Yaw left, Throttle stick down Arm Flight Controller: Mode 2: Throttle stick right, and down Mode 1: Yaw right, Throttle stick down Reset vTx Channel: Mode 2: Throttle Down, Rudder Left + Elevator Up, Aileron Left...
  • Page 29 The ESCs used in the Vortex Mini are a full-custom design, which uses a potent 32-bit ARM processor. They are small enough to be enclosed completely in the plastic ESC covers of the Vortex 150 Mini, where they are well protected against the elements, and from physical damage from passing tree-branches.
  • Page 30 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.
  • Page 31 R/C (Uplink) Receiver Selection The Vortex 150 Mini is shipped with three receiver interface cables, supporting 4 commonly used interfaces. 3-Pin 0.1” Servo Cable, for S-Bus, and CPPM (5V) 5-pin Picoblade for FrSky XSR receivers (5V) 3-pin JST-ZH for Spektrum DSMX receivers (3V) Receivers may be mounted externally on the tail-end of the quad, or internally.
  • Page 32 Notes on Receiver Selection One critical parameter to keep to a minimum in a race quad setup is latency. Latency from what the camera sees to the display device, and also from the control stick to the flight controller. For minimum latency, with reasonable range, the Spektrum ™ radios and satellite receivers are a great choice. Another good (and quite common) choice is the FrSky Taranis radio with a matched S-Bus receiver (X4R for example).

  • Page 33: Race Guidelines - Flying With Friends

    Receiver Auto-Detection A unique feature of the Vortex family of quadcopters is that the receiver type is auto-detected by the OSD when running the wizard. R/C Transmitter Configuration The advanced wizard used in the Vortex 150 Mini is cable of detecting most transmitter configurations. Channel ordering, stick range, center position, etc.
  • Page 34 Diagnostics - Motor Test The Vortex 150 Mini has a built-in diagnostic motor test. It can be useful to diagnose problems with ESC and\or Motors. It’s located in Vortex Menu>Diagnostics>Motor Test WARNING: This test can be extremely dangerous, great care is required.
  • Page 36 Motors will be tested independently in sequence, and then all together. Use the roll stick left to go to next steps: Motor1 -> Motor2 -> Motor3 -> Motor4 -> All Motors -> Test Summary The summary screen and the graph could help you to identify a damaged motor:...

  • Page 37: Hardware Upgrades

    To exit the test move the Roll stick to the left. Hardware Upgrades The Vortex 150 Mini was intentionally equipped with brushless motors which are suitable for beginners to the hobby, or for more advanced pilots to enjoy themselves around some tight tracks.

  • Page 38: Appendix A: Firmware Upgrades

    If your Vortex is not recognized as a valid USB device when you plug it in your PC, you will have to install a driver first. You can download it from here: ​...
  • Page 39 1) Remove props, connect a Lipo. 2) Attach the Vortex to a Windows PC or a Mac using a standard Micro-USB cable ​ ( ensure that this is a full USB cable, and not a power-only cable shipped with some products) 3) Start vortex-configurator from chrome://apps/ 4) Make sure the right COM port is selected and press the ​...

  • Page 40: Appendix B: The Wizard - What Else Does It Setup

    Default ImmersionRC settings (based on UmmaGawd’s tune) NOTE: If you have ‘tweaked’ any Betaflight settings outside of the Vortex OSD, please remember to back them up before running the wizard the next time, since it will reset them to default settings.
  • Page 41 With the FCC power limit for analog transmissions being so low for license-free use, it is not very interesting for race quad use. At present, ImmersionRC does not ship a ~1mW version of the Vortex transmitter module. This may change in the future.
  • Page 42 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. 5740 5760 5780 5800 5820 5840 5860 5880 IRC/FS...

  • Page 43: Appendix D: Led Board - Status Report

    Appendix D: LED Board - Status report The RGB LEDs on the rear of the Vortex 150 Mini are used by the OSD during the startup phase to report flight controller sensor status, FC API compatibility, and video link status information.
  • Page 44 It is highly recommended to keep the Vortex clean of foreign materials, especially those which tend to conduct electricity when wet. A toothbrush is the best tool to keep your Vortex 150 Mini looking like new. Stiff bristles are great at working dirt from hard-to-clean locations.

  • Page 45: Specifications

    Specifications Flight Controller Invensense SPI Gyro/Accelerometer, 8kHz loop speeds STM32F303 32-bit ARM processor Firmware Betaflight compatible ​ ( with API version matching that of the OSD) 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...
  • Page 46 Type ImmersionRC EzESC Rating 16A continuous, 20A peak Features OneShot125, OneShot42, MultiShot, rotorSENSE, Motor Braking Processor 32-bit ARM R/C Receiver Channels Required Absolute minimum four. Five recommended to support mode switch. Interface Standard CPPM, S-Bus, Spektrum, XBus, SumH, SumD (auto-sense with manual override) Receiver Power +5V, or +3.3V @ 200mA max.
  • Page 47 Spare parts and Upgrades Several crash kits, and upgrades, are available for the Vortex 150 Mini, including the following: Part Numbers EZESC16A Replacement ESC, 16A V15MPDB Replacement PDB V15MSYN Replacement Synergy (which includes the vTx) V15MCK1RD Replacement plastic parts, Red...

  • Page 48: Frequently Asked Questions

    Q. I don’t like the stock camera, and would like to upgrade it With previous Vortex quads, which shipped with a CMOS camera, there were clear reasons to do this. For the 150 Mini, we have installed a top-of-the-line CCD camera, with integrated OSD control, and a wide GoPro lens.

  • Page 49: Regulatory Notice

    USA Drone Registration When used with a suitably small battery (approx. 500mAh), the Vortex 150 Mini is below the 250g limit which triggers the need to register with the FAA. When used with larger packs, the 250g limit may be exceeded.. Be aware.

  • Page 50: Warranty

    Warranty For warranty claims or repair requests please consult the retailer that you purchased this product from, they will be able to help you with your warranty claim or repair request.

  • Page 51: Social Networks

    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...
  • Page 52 Index Thank You! Getting Started, ARF Version The Anatomy of a Vortex 150 Mini Connectors and Switches Connector Part Numbers and Sources Arm Assembly Camera Mounting Flight Camera Lost Model Alarm The Touch’n’Race (TNR) Tag The On Screen Display (OSD)
  • Page 53 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, Iraq, Soviet Union Appendix D: LED Board - Status report Looking after your Vortex Snow and Water The Sun Dirt...
  • Page 54 Q. I don’t like the stock camera, and would like to upgrade it Q. My Vortex is playing Crazy Train song Q. My vortex emits 2 long beeps followed by a short beep on startup (--·) Q. When I fly, all I see is the ground Q.

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