Smart-Fly PowerSystem Competition 12 Turbo User Manual page 2

Receiver Mounting
The receiver mounts in the center of the unit over the labeling "Smart-Fly
PowerSystem Competition 12". 3M dual-lock mounting tape has been supplied
to mount the receiver. This tape's holding power is extremely strong. It is
recommended that the whole 1"x2" piece not be used, instead cut some 1"x ½"
strips and use these on either end of the receiver.
You want to keep the receiver pigtails away from the regulator heat-sink. You
may want to move the receiver down on the unit, especially end-loading
receivers. The dual-lock can loosen up over time but the receiver will still be
firmly locked. If this happens a small piece of foam under the receiver between
the two pieces of dual-lock will remedy this situation.
We also have available an "L" shaped receiver mount that will mount the
receiver at a sixty degree angle and get the antenna(s) up, away from the unit.
While we have not found this to be necessary some pilots like to get the short
2.4GHz antennas up off the unit towards the canopy. In general, pilots use this
receiver mount with 2.4GHz receivers.
Receiver Connections
CAUTION: Do not plug any receiver pigtails into the battery input of your
receiver. On PCM it will put your receiver into DSC mode, on 2.4GHz
receivers it may cause your receiver to unbind. All connections from the
PowerExpander are meant to plug into servo outputs ONLY.
The receiver servo outputs are connected to the pigtails coming out of the
PowerSystem Competition 12 in the area marked "Channel Inputs From
Receiver" on the reference drawing. The two channels on the end ("Chan A"
and "Chan L") have power connections to the receiver in addition to the signal
connection. If you have a receiver that has less than twelve channels, you
should still use both the end connections as this will provide you with power
redundancy to the receiver in the event that a power or ground lead should fail.
The unit will accommodate both end-loading receivers and top-loading
receivers. All signals from the receiver into the PowerExpander Competition
12 are RF filtered. This prevents noise from the servos entering the receiver
connections to the receiver. If all channels are not going to be used, then the
unused pigtail can be tucked away.
Connections Directly To Receiver
If you want to connect a device directly to the receiver instead of going through
the PowerSystem Competition 12, make sure the current draw of the receiver
and the device is less than one amp. We recommend you do not connect
servos directly to the receiver
There are several reasons that a device might be connected directly to the
receiver instead of going through the PowerSystem Competition 12. The most
likely would be if you had a fourteen channel receiver and needed to use the
extra channels. Items such as jet ECUs and smoke pump control do not draw
much current and could be used.
Servo Connections
Servos are connected to the PowerSystem Competition 12 along the two rails
on either side of the receiver. The servo connectors are universal in that they
will work with Futaba or JR connectors. When using a JR connector, be
careful to observe the polarity of the connection. The ground lead (black on
Futaba, brown on JR) is indicated by the "minus" sign, the positive power lead
(red on Futaba and JR) is indicated by the "plus" sign and the signal line (white
on Futaba, orange on JR) is indicated by the "top hat" symbol.
All receiver channels have each servo signal output individually buffered. If a
servo were to short its signal wire, the other servos on that channel would not
be affected. Ten of the channels have three servo outputs while two channels
have four servo outputs.
The unit also RF filters each signal output and matches line impedance
resulting in a cleaner signal down long servo leads. The impedance matching
reduces the electrical "ringing" that can occur on long servo leads. Ringing can
generate RF interference and can reduce receiver range.
Power Connections
Lithium batteries should be used with this unit. Power is supplied to the unit
through the two Deans Ultra plug male connectors. The power inputs are
protected from each other in case of a dead cell or short. There is a 0.47 drop
between the input and the regulator due to the input protection. It is highly
recommended that you use two battery packs for redundancy and to provide
extra current to the unit. Each input can supply 12 amps of power to the unit.
Servo Regulator Heatsink
The servo regulator has a large heatsink on it. This dissipates the heat the
regulator generates from regulating the voltage down from the battery voltage
to the output voltage the regulator is set to. It is very important not to obstruct
this heatsink so air can flow around and away from it keeping the regulator
temperature within its operating range. The transistor that regulates the
voltage can operate to 175 degrees Centigrade. The heatsink can get very hot
under normal operating conditions.
Adjusting The Output Voltage
The regulator comes from the factory set to its lowest setting, approximately
5.5 volts. The regulator's output voltage is adjusted by momentarily (less than
a second) shorting one of the adjustment pins to the center pin. This can be
done with any metal object such as a screwdriver. To increase the voltage,
short the pin designated "Up" to the center pin momentarily. To decrease the