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Draganfly HHC User Manual

Handheld controller
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HHC USER MANUAL
Handheld Controller
Version 2.1

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Summary of Contents for Draganfly HHC

  • Page 1 HHC USER MANUAL Handheld Controller Version 2.1...

  • Page 2: Operator Notice

    Operator Notice The responsibility to operate in a safe manner, prevent injury to persons or damage to property, and to take no unnecessary risks falls upon the owner and those whom the owner authorizes to pilot and operate the Draganflyer helicopter. Furthermore the onus is upon each owner/authorizer/pilot to comply with all regulations pertinent to the use of the Draganflyer helicopter and associated components at the location of operation with regards to the use of airspace as well as radio...
  • Page 3 Warning The Draganflyer aircraft is a precision machine that is vulnerable to misuse and can prove to be dangerous if not properly maintained or used in an inappropriate manor. Special notice: Throughout this manual, look for and pay special attention to these information boxes for tips, tricks, safety information, or serious warnings and risks, associated with this product.
  • Page 4 DO NOT PLACE YOUR HANDS OR ARMS IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE ROTORS OR ATTEMPT TO STOP SPINNING ROTORS WITH YOUR HANDS AS SERIOUS INJURY COULD RESULT FROM CONTACT. THIS PRODUCT CONTAINS CHEMICALS WHICH ARE KNOWN BY THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TO CAUSE CANCER, BIRTH DEFECTS AND/OR OTHER REPRODUCTIVE HARM.

  • Page 5: Safety Precautions

    Safety Precautions As the pilot in command you are responsible for the safety of yourself and others whether it be in the immediate takeoff and landing area, or the general flight path area. Please take safety very seriously. • Always wear protective eyewear. •...
  • Page 6 The rubber grip and feel reinforces control of the aircraft while the direct sunlight viewable OLED display, provides easy to read, real-time, aircraft telemetry. Below you see/learn more about the HHC layout and controls. SD flight log Flight mode...
  • Page 7 Letting go of the switch immediately resumes instructor control. The HHC battery is a 3 cell LiPo that is easily charged using the balance port and main power charge plugs. Later in this manual charging is discussed in more detail.
  • Page 8 The HHC can be used as a standalone controller or it can be fitted with a Nexus digital display. The display can be used as a handheld device by your observer, client, or if you prefer having the display attached it quickly locks into the HHC using two 1/4 turn spring loaded pins.
  • Page 9 Chapter 2: Battery Safety and Charging The HHC is powered by a Lithium Polymer battery so please take time to read this chapter. Lithium Polymer (LiPo) battery technology has improved greatly over the years; but if not cared for properly, the batteries can be very dangerous.
  • Page 10 Chapter 1 Page 9...
  • Page 11 Understanding the HHC The standard handheld controller (HHC) might not look as fancy or as sophisticated as the Draganfly GCS, but there is no question that over the years, it has proven to be an excellent, simple, and reliable flight controller.
  • Page 12 So for example, if your GCS or another HHC had been connected earlier to the aircraft, the aircraft is busy looking for the same GCS or HHC. To get connected you’ll have to force the aircraft to “acquire a new” controller.

  • Page 13: Home Screen

    Home Screen The vast majority of your time flying the aircraft will be using the primary HHC home screen. This screen provides essential real-time graphical aircraft and system status. And although the HHC will provide audio alerts to status changes and critical warnings, it’s always a good idea to develop the habit of visually scanning the screen on a regular basis during flight.
  • Page 14 Starting at the top of the screen we have two navigation buttons that when touched, will take you to the Configuration set-up and control screens or return you to the main “View” or more commonly called the HHC Home Screen. On the home screen we see: Time: GMT received by the helicopter.
  • Page 15 Altitude, Climb rate and Speed: The readouts are real-time and are a good size so they are easy to read. More times than not you’ll develop a trained eye to quickly scan and check the aircraft altitude and because you’re operating a direct line-of-sight aircraft, most often you’ll have a good sense of climb rate and speed by just watching the aircraft.

  • Page 16: Configuration Screen

    HHC configuration “Home Screen” screen Time: 00:00 Views Config Flight: 00:00 If the HHC is configured with a Another layer of six setup video receiver, this screen sets Basic Video screens to adjust LED the “receive” channel. To receive Config...
  • Page 17 During daylight hours we the connection or power off the recommend that you have HHC and start over. navigation LED brightness set at 100%. If you’re flying near sunset or later in the evening they might be too bright.
  • Page 18 Always On Always Off Done Cancel Done If your HHC is equipped with a A more detailed explanation of the Any screen that starts out with a dual diversity analog video receiver trainer mode setup is provided warning will always get your this screen is used to set the video later in the manual but it’s this...
  • Page 19 Most of the screens are very intuitive and will be described in more detail on the following pages. Always takes you Navigate to the back to the HHC HHC configuration “Home Screen” screen Time: 00:00...
  • Page 20 Tilt Setup Lower Limit Helicopter LED Time Zone -511 Brightness This is the GMT offset of Upper Limit your local time zone -6.0 Disable Rate Reverse Control Done Done Done The system gets it’s time from the The screen itself and others are If you are flying a gyro stabilized GPS onboard the helicopter as payload both the upper and lower...
  • Page 21 Transmitter Sounds Altitude Limit Use these buttons to learn the Units sounds made by the transmitter A warning will be issued if the Trim Trim vehicle reaches this altitude (AGL). Adjust Centered Set this to your provided altitude limit or 0 to disable. Vehical Vehicle Acquired...
  • Page 22 Zoom Pitch The controls are “passed Tilt over” when the “training switch” located on the top left Hold of the HHC is depressed. CH 1-4 CH 5-8 Done CH 1-4 CH 5-8 Done Once the master or primary controller has been setup, please turn on the other controller.
  • Page 23 With everything connected it’s all very easy to use. Unless the trainer switch is depressed the primary (master) controller has full control of the aircraft. It’s only when the trainer button is depressed, that selected controls will be passed over to the secondary controller.
  • Page 24 Chapter 2 LiPo Charge[sel] LiPo Charge[sel] 4sPACK 4sPACK C=3.00A C=3.00A ENT/ ENT/ MODE MODE STOP STOP Page 23...

  • Page 25: Battery Charging System

    Battery Charging System Please fully read and understand the Lithium battery safety instructions and warnings section at the end of this chapter before using or charging your batteries. The operator assumes full responsibility for all risks associated with the use of this product.

  • Page 26: Setup And Operation

    Your Draganflyer system comes equipped with a complete charging kit for the helicopter and controller batteries used with the aircraft system. The charging system has been designed for ease of use, portability, safety, and convenience, to keep your systems charged and flying. Included with the Draganflyer aircraft charging system is: 1 –...
  • Page 27 Included with your system is the handheld Ground Control System (GCS) and a standard handheld controller. The GCS is powered by a smaller capacity 4 Cell LiPo battery and the standard handheld controller (HHC) is powered by a 3 Cell LiPo battery. Page 26...
  • Page 28 Charging these batteries is just as simple as charging your helicopter battery. The connections are the same using the balancer cable and main power charge plug but you always need to remember that when charging the standard controller, you need to change the charger cell count from 4 to 3, and reduce your charge current.
  • Page 29 Connect the balance port connector and the main battery charge cable to the GCS. The charge connectors are located on the backside of the HHC. With the cables connected and the charger powered on, briefly press the ENT button to step through the display until you select the cell PACK setting.
  • Page 30 One cable is a cell balancer cable, and the other is the main charge cable. When charging the GCS you need a lower charge current setting and with the standard HHC, both the cell count and the charge current must be adjusted. Handheld Ground Control System (GCS) Standard Handheld Controller (HHC) Charger setting = 4sPACK @1.7 Amps...

  • Page 31: Things You Need To Know

    Things you need to know Special notice: You might think that we’re exaggerating the issue but no, LiPo battery safety is something to be taken seriously. If you want to see examples of what can go wrong just search YouTube for LiPo fire examples. It’s common to think “this will never happen to me”...
  • Page 32 Lithium Battery Safety Instructions and Warnings Please read and fully understand all of the instructions and warnings below before using Lithium Polymer (LiPo) batteries are or charging your lithium polymer batteries. volatile; improper use or failure to follow these instructions and warnings may result in fire, personal injury and/or damaged property.

  • Page 33: Storage And Transport

    Do not store or expose controllers to direct sunlight for extended periods of time. • Do not store controllers near a source of heat. • Exposing either the GCS or HHC to temperatures in excess of 65 Page 32 degrees C (150 F) may cause...
  • Page 34 Disposal: If you believe there is a problem with the battery in the GCS or HHC controllers contact Draganfly to get more information. Do not attempt to disassemble the controller to remove the battery. Special notice: Never disassemble the handheld controllers to remove the battery, inspect battery or dispose of the battery.
  • Page 35 Chapter 3 Page 34...

  • Page 36: Ready For Flight

    In the helicopter manual we describe flying a photo shoot and focus more on the flying than the actual mechanics of using the HHC to launch and control the aircraft. In this manual we will cover HHC specific information to: Get in the air: •...
  • Page 37 Get in the air: Earlier in this manual we had you remove your props and if for some reason they’re back on the aircraft, please take a minute to remove them. Whenever you’re trying something new, doing some experiments, or just want the system powered on to check some settings, it’s a good idea to remove the props to prevent any possible accidents.
  • Page 38 For this exercise make sure the props have been removed from the helicopter, install a battery and power-up the aircraft. Power-up the HHC and after booting, if the HHC had been connected with the the helicopter it will simply “reconnect”. If not, acquire the helicopter to get connected.
  • Page 39 Engage the motors: When you engage the motors it just gets them spinning at a moderate speed. The thrust is low enough where you don’t have to worry about the aircraft taking off but it’s very important at this step of the process to make sure that all of the motors are running. As part of your pre-flight, before initiating an auto-takeoff you must always check to make sure all aircraft motors are running.
  • Page 40 When the motors have stopped, return the throttle to the center position. Then move the throttle to the lower left position and hold it there until the HHC confirms the motors have been disarmed. When disarmed the helicopter navigation LEDs will start blinking and it’s safe to be near the aircraft.
  • Page 41 The “Get in the air” info provided in this manual is geared more towards the unique aspects of the HHC and how you get the most out of the system. To get a good understanding of flying the system we recommend that you read and use both manuals.
  • Page 42 HHC before powering up the system and getting up in the air. You want to look over the HHC for any physical damage, check the battery voltage, make sure the joy sticks are operating smoothly, double check all the settings, set the antennas to the proper position, and make sure switches are in the right place before lift-off.
  • Page 43 Helicopter preflight Just like a real aircraft it is very important to pre-flight the Draganfly helicopter to make sure it’s airworthy. We recommend a static on-the-ground pre-flight as illustrated below, and once you have taken off, we suggest a second flight check in a hover to make sure the aircraft and system are behaving properly.
  • Page 44 In the flight scenario described in the helicopter manual we were focused on explaining information about the aircraft itself versus the HHC during a typical photo shoot but in this scenario, we’re more focused on the HHC while flying a mission at a train derailment.
  • Page 45 Pre-planning: Safety is always a priority so before flying, the flight team designates a primary takeoff and landing area along with two safety zones. The safety zones are designated areas to be kept clear of personnel and equipment in the event the aircraft needs to come down quickly.
  • Page 46 With both the GCS preflight and aircraft preflight completed we’re ready to get into the air. The helicopter system is brought over to the designated takeoff and landing area and we then: • power on the helicopter and HHC • remove lens cap and power on the camera • connect to the aircraft •...
  • Page 47 “park” the helicopter in a GPS position hold to get the photos needed. When you switch into GPS position hold using the mode switch on the front of the HHC, it’s always a good idea to slow the aircraft to a hover, then initiate the GPS position hold.
  • Page 48 Release the GPS position hold and fly to the next location to shoot more photos. As you approach the next GPS position hold spot, slow the aircraft into a steady hover and engage the GPS position hold. Always remember that you’re the pilot in command of the flight.
  • Page 49 Create a folder with the case number, project number or name for the project. Remove the micro SD memory card from the HHC and copy the flight logs into the folder. In the above scenario we flew four flights, so you’ll need to copy the last four log files from the HHC.
  • Page 50 Chapter 4 Page 49...

  • Page 51: Troubleshooting

    Troubleshooting Problem: How do I get the best range with the system Possible cause: • Antenna orientation Solution: Please keep in mind this is a “line-of-sight” vehicle and is not intended to be flown as an FPV aircraft. To get the best rage for data and video, it’s important to know the “weakest”...
  • Page 52 Double check the video Tx is set to channel number one. On the HHC power-up the controller and go to Config, Video Setup, and select CH1 as the receive channel. By default the Power Setting is set “Auto” so double check to make sure it’s set properly and press “done”.
  • Page 53 Problem: I power on the HHC but I can never connect to the aircraft or pull up my basic view screen. Possible cause: • The number of log files on the SD memory card exceeds 256 Solution: If this happens out in the field simply power off the HHC and remove the SD memory card, then power back on and you’ll get connected.

  • Page 54: Technical Specifications

    Technical Specifications Handheld Controller (HHC): • Width: 22cm (8.7”) • Height: 12cm (4.7”) • Depth: 8cm (3.1”) • Weight: 895g (1.97 lbs) Data Link RF Communications: • Link Type: 2.4GHz two way • Helicopter Antenna: Wired Whip Antenna • Controller Antenna: Omni Directional Whip •...

  • Page 55: Contact Information

    Contact Information Draganfly Innovations Inc. Product support: Phone: 1-800-979-9794 International: 1-306-955-9907 e-mail: support@draganfly.com Sales information: Phone: 1-800-979-9794 International: 1-306-955-9907 Online: www.draganfly.com e-mail: sales@draganfly.com Mailing address: https://www.draganfly.com Draganfly Innovations Inc. 2108 St. George Avenue Saskatoon, SK S7M0K7 Canada This product and manual are copyrighted by Draganfly Innovations Inc. with all rights reserved.

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