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IRC Ghost Ultimate Hybrid Operator's Manual

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Rev 2.5 - Sept2022

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Summary of Contents for IRC Ghost Ultimate Hybrid

  • Page 1 Rev 2.5 - Sept2022...
  • Page 2 Introduction, and History Back in early 2013, when FPV was still in its infancy, and mini-quads hadn’t been invented yet, ImmersionRC introduced the EzUHF 433MHz remote control system. In the early days, this system was used for some of the most iconic fixed-wing FPV flights, pushing limits out past 10s of km.

  • Page 3: Specifications

    Specifications Ghost General 2406 - 2479MHz Frequency Range, Ghost 2G4 Ghost Protocol Modulation Chirp Spread Spectrum + Adaptive FHSS (With LBT for EU, and MIC versions) Binding Bidirectional, with confirmation and protocol negotiation RF Profiles Solid250, Race500, Race250, Pure Race, Race, ‘Normal’ , and Long Range, more to come Ghost Transmitter Uplink Tx Power 16uW - 350mW (100mW EU LBT) (+/- 0.5dB)

  • Page 4: Getting Started

    Getting Started OpenTx Configuration The Ghost transmitters, and high frame rate + low latency that they can supply, are optimized for a new OpenTx protocol, GHST. For transmitters which do not yet support this protocol, OpenTx release 2.3.12 is highly recommended.
  • Page 5 Binding Binding SUCKS, it really does. How many times have you had to tear apart a model to get access to some buried bind button. How many times have you received a new ‘BNF’ model only to have to scour the internet for an out of date manual that tells you which of the identical-looking three buttons on the model are the bind button, and whether you need to press it while deftly plugging the battery (three hands would be useful for this), or just after power up.
  • Page 6 Receiver Pinouts 2G4 Atto Smaller than most receivers in the hobby, the Atto is optimized for use in race/freestyle quadcopters. it has the following pinout: Note: For the Atto v1 and Atto v2 (July 2022) a power supply of 5V is required. For the v1, exceeding 6.5V can damage the receiver.
  • Page 7 2G4 Hybrid v1 The 2G4 Hybrid board fuses together a Ghost 2.4GHz receiver (with similar specs to the Atto), and a 5.8GHz Tramp Nano video transmitter. Trivial cabling, just hook up the serial line for control, Video in from the OSD/FC or Camera, and 5V power.
  • Page 8 2G4 Hybrid v2 The ‘v2’ version of the hybrid adds two variants of the board, the Uno version with one 2.4GHz receiver, and the Duo version with two full 2.4GHz receivers, with twin antennas. For racing where every packet counts, and for long range use where multiple antenna polarities are useful, the Duo version is preferred.
  • Page 9 Note that the v2 version of the Hybrids has holes for 25.5x25.5 mounting on smaller quads. These holes are on ‘tabs’ that can be removed if necessary. In most cases for 20x20 mounting the tabs may be left, and they give a bit of extra protection in the occasional crash. If they are removed however, avoid flexing the PCB excessively, it is better to use a sharp pair of cutters to trim off the excess material.
  • Page 10 2G4 Ultimate Hybrid The 2G4 Ultimate Hybrid is a version of the Hybrid Uno tailored for long range operation, freestyle flight, and superb penetration through objects such as concrete buildings. One major difference is that the Ultimate Hybrid has a direct battery input instead of 5V. This is fed on a different pin of the connector to ensure that accidentally swapping an Ultimate Hybrid for a traditional v1/v2 Hybrid doesn’t result in product damage.
  • Page 11 Receiver Protocols Ghost receivers support a number of common protocols, selected during binding. Each has its own merits, and performance characteristics. Wherever possible, the GHST protocol should be used. It is available in development builds of most flight controller firmware. BetaFlight v4.3 has been released, and finally fully supports the GHST protocol.
  • Page 12 Receiver Wiring GHST Wiring to Flight Controllers GHST is a bidirectional protocol which requires connecting via a single wire to a UART TX pin, NOT a RX pin. GHST is now the preferred protocol for receiver to flight controller hookup. Value Ground 5V Power...
  • Page 13 NOTE: The standard SBus protocol is not recommended with fast RF Modes, such as those which generate packets at 250Hz. Normal, Race, or Long Range modes are fully supported however. (This is due to an issue in the SBus driver for iNav for example, which expects a longer delay between packets) PWM Operation for micro-Fixed wing The Atto receiver may be used for fixed-wing applications with up to 4 servos without any additional...
  • Page 14 Coaxial Cable Routing Something that needs to be noted when using any of the hybrid boards is the routing of the coaxial cables which are connected to the antennas. For the 5.8GHz Transmit antenna, routing the cable directly over the PCB is really not recommended, and can cause power level increases that can affect other pilots flying on adjacent channels.
  • Page 15 Link Quality (passed as RSSI) If using the SRXL-2, or GHST protocols, link quality is automatically communicated to BetaFlight, and does not need to be passed via an unused R/C channel. If using other protocols, the link quality may be passed down an unused R/C channel, and betaflight configured to that channel’s value as RSSI.
  • Page 16 Direct Tramp Control To control the frequency and power of a Tramp HV/Tramp Nano vTx, simply run a single wire from the ‘T’ pin of the Ghost to the ‘TEL’ pin of the Tramp. Note that this replaces any connection between the Tramp and the Flight Controller, which is not required with direct control.

  • Page 17: Updating Firmware

    Updating Firmware JR/’Lite’ Module Connect your PC to the Ghost JR module using a micro-USB cable. Press the Start Update button to start the procedure. If for any reason the Ghost Tx display does not turn on, power up the module with the joystick pressed to force boot load mode.
  • Page 18 Uberlite Module To Update the UberLite module, press and hold the lit Bind button while powering up the remote. Once powered, release the button, and connect the USB-C port to a Windows, or Mac computer. Use the Ghost Updater (v1.7 or later) to update the module.
  • Page 19 Receivers All Ghost receivers are updated using an over-the-air technology during binding. If a Rx firmware update was necessary, once complete, don’t immediately power down the Rx, leave it for 10-20 seconds to finalize the update. (LED will flash a few times to indicate update progress) ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...
  • Page 20 Antennas JR Module Transmitter The JR module is equipped with two antenna connectors, creating a diversity antenna configuration even for tiny micro-sized quads equipped with a single antenna. To comply with current FCC regulations the JR module uses RP-SMA (reverse-polarity SMA) antennas, an unfortunate departure from ImmersionRC’s traditional SMA bias.
  • Page 21 Atto Receiver The IRC qT Antenna - Balanced Dipole The Atto receiver ships with a small balanced dipole antenna, which does not have a ‘ground’ and ‘live’ end. Both antenna elements are ‘balanced’ . This means that the common practice of finding the ‘ground’...
  • Page 22 Antenna Placement The Ghost receiver is incredibly sensitive, and works best when distanced from the typically high power video transmitter antenna of long range drones. Try to space the two antennas as much as possible if maximum range is required, as should be common practice for any FPV control system.
  • Page 23 Transmitter User Interface JR Module The main OLED user interface is navigated using the left/right joystick functions. The following ‘pages’ are available. Note: Latency numbers in these images are from a PC-based simulator, and don’t reflect actual performance. Link Page The link page is shown by default by the transmitter, and contains all data relating to the ‘health’...
  • Page 24 Status Page The status page shows the current JR Module bay voltage, along with a low voltage warning. Note that the Rx version only shows when using a bidirectional protocol (currently all protocols but PureRace) Pack (Battery Pack) Status Page Valid when using GHST protocol to communicate with Betaflight.
  • Page 25 Latency Page (More Detail) Frame : Current frame rate RC dur: Duration of packet OpenTx to Ghost RC lat: Latency of packet OpenTx to Ghost RF RF dur: Duration of RF packet RX dur: Duration of Ghost to FC packet Total: Sum total of the above values vTx Page A Tramp (Nano, or HV), connected to the ‘T’...
  • Page 26 Root Menu, Second Page Bind Menu Receivers are bound from the Bind menu Two options are available, a simple ‘Bind’ , which preserves all Rx-specific setup (Rx Protocol, etc.), and a ‘Bind + Setup’ , which allows all Rx parameters to be specified (including Rx ID for team racing).
  • Page 27 Mode Menu The RF mode, and transmitter protocol is selected in this menu. For the RF Mode, ‘Normal’ is a good compromise between long range, and race. ‘Race’ is great for the race track with 160Hz frame updates, and bidirectional link. ‘Pure Race’...
  • Page 28 Antennas Menu In most cases, leave these settings at their default setting. Ghost will decide which antenna to use for both Tx and Rx. For ‘special cases’ , such as using directional antennas for extreme range, manually set the desired antenna. Tx Power Menu Auto power mode will decide which power level to use for the uplink transmission based on the...
  • Page 29 ‘Lite’ Module The tiny ‘Lite’ module shares a very similar UI to the JR module, but with a screen which is half the size. The descriptions above for the menus all apply to the Lite module. ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...
  • Page 30 OpenTx Ghost Tools Menu An alternative user-interface is available to Ghost users using OpenTx build 2.3.12. This mirrors the Ghost menu system on the radio’s LCD, and avoids the need to keep turning the radio around. Refer to the manual for the specific radio that you use to learn how to enter this tools menu. (TX16s requires holding the Sys button for example).
  • Page 31 OpenTx Custom Builds for GHST Full support for Ghost has been added to OpenTx thanks to the efforts of the OpenTx team. GHST protocol support without Sync capability is available in OpenTx release 2.3.11, with full support in the public 2.3.12 release.. For up to date information on firmware, and open source tool support (OpenTx, Betaflight, etc.) please refer to the following page: https:/ /www.immersionrc.com/ghostlatestrelease/...
  • Page 32 Long Range -117dBm 40.0km Note: Tool used to estimate FSL (Free Space Loss) is an online IRC tool located here: https:/ /www.immersionrc.com/rf-range-demystified/ Note that these numbers don’t take into consideration factors such as antenna cross-polarization, interference on the Rx end of the link, atmospheric effects, etc.
  • Page 33 Due to the relatively short wavelength of 2.4GHz signals, and the small antenna size, if better range (or better link margin) is required, directional patches may be used on the transmitter. An 8dBi patch can easily double range when compared with a ~2dBi dipole. Link Margin Definition: In a wireless communication system, the link margin, measured in dB, is the difference between the receiver's sensitivity (i.e., the received power at which the receiver will stop working) and the actual received...
  • Page 34 Range Test Mode The JR module has a power option of 16uW (0.000016W, or -18dBm). This mode is ideal for range testing. Place the transmitter on (ideally) a non-conducting object, in the RF mode that you wish to test, with Transmitter power set to 16uW.
  • Page 35 Latency and Frame Rate Latency in an R/C control system consists of several parts. 1) Time from stick/switch movement to packet sent to RF module (R/C packet) 2) R/C packet length duration (SBus, GHST, etc.) 3) Time from packet received to RF packet sent over the air 4) RF packet length duration 5) Time from RF packet received over the air to Flight Controller/Servo packet 6) Servo/FC packet duration (SBus, SRXL-2, GHST, etc.)
  • Page 36 RF Modes The Ghost family supports (currently) 6 different RF modes, each of which has its own tradeoff between telemetry, frame rate, and range. Mode Rx Sensitivity Frame Rate Telemetry Solid250 -105dBm 250Hz ‘Robust Mode’ , which uses various diversity techniques for the lowest-possible packet loss for the best of the best.
  • Page 37 Race Race should be selected by anyone involved in serious quad racing. It has ample range, faster update rate than most other systems, and includes a telemetry downlink. Normal Normal is the default mode, and is a good compromise between performance and range. Certainly for beginners, this is a suitable mode.
  • Page 38 I Am Totally Confused! ‘I am a racer who doesn’t care about telemetry’ Solid250 is a good choice, link will be solid, and more importantly completely consistent between practice sessions, and the more serious events, without the performance drop ‘on the day’ that has plagued racers in the past.
  • Page 39 Race/Team Race A unique feature of the Ghost ecosystem is integrated support for Race, and Team Race environments. The Team Race menu supports assigning up to two switches (or banks of buttons) to the selection of the active receiver. These switches then support split-second switching between up to 16 quads. To define the receiver ‘ID’...
  • Page 40 Transmitter Cloning (Clone Tx) To explain what transmitter cloning is, consider the following common use case: You have a primary JR-module based transmitter installed in your full-sized radio. You also have a ‘lite’ module in a travel radio. You would like to interchange the two radios, without rebinding your quads. To clone a transmitter (or rather a transmitter ID) you need to run the PC/MAC based Ghost Updater app (v1.6 or later).
  • Page 41 Once the slave has been written, it will inherit the Master’s ID, and may be used interchangeably with the Master radio, without the need to rebind receivers. If this is no longer required (or two enable/disable the clone ID in the field, use the Clone Tx menu. ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...
  • Page 42 Proton Packs ‘Proton Packs’ greatly simplify the installation of a 5.8GHz Video Transmitter, and Ghost Control Link in most quads. Connection between the two products is automatic, and video frequency can be set directly by the Ghost without the need to configure vTx Tables in Betaflight. As a bonus, add a dab of heat sink compound under the vTx before soldering and the entire PCB becomes an extra heat sink.
  • Page 43 Proton Pack Tiny Trainer™ The Tiny Trainer is a wonderful little quad from the Five33 team. The Tiny Trainer Proton pack is designed to sit comfortably above the AIO FC, with plenty of space for the optional LED board above it.
  • Page 44 Assembling Proton Packs To assemble the proton packs, use the installed 0.1” headers to solder the Tramp Nano, and Ghost Atto/Zepto to the boards. Be careful to install on the side with the outline of the board, and not the back side of the board. For a simple install, without worrying too much about stack height, simply use the header as-is, leaving the black plastic part between the proton pack and the Tramp/Ghost.

  • Page 45: Wiring Diagrams

    Wiring Diagrams Wiring diagrams for Ghost/Tramp on various common flight controllers are located on the IRC website here: https:/ /www.immersionrc.com/ghosttrampwiring As an example, this shows the wiring for the Diatone Mamba F722, with a Ghost Atto/Zepto, and Tramp nano, using SRXL-2 mode.
  • Page 46 Orqa FPV.Connect and Ghost Atto The Ghost Atto, when soldered onto an Orqa FPV.Connect board, provides a tight integration between the video tx frequency selected on the Ghost, and the selected goggle frequency. To install the Ghost, the following instructions should be used: 1.
  • Page 47 4. Install the FPV.Connect into the goggles using the flat-flex cable 5. Ensure that the RapidFIRE has at least version 1.3.2 installed 6. Follow the standard Ghost binding procedure for the Atto that was just installed, with one exception, select Goggles1 instead of Rx1 when binding. The Rx protocol does not matter, and will be automatically set.

  • Page 48: Troubleshooting

    Troubleshooting General Debug Downlink Link Quality is poor, even when sitting on the bench Ensure that the internal 2.4GHz transmitter of your R/C radio is completely disabled. OTA Firmware Upgrade is unreliable, rarely succeeds As above, ensure that the internal 2.4GHz transmitter of your R/C radio is completely disabled. A high power transmitter in such close proximity to the receiver can create issues for the upgrade process.
  • Page 49 Rx Flashes Error Code If the Ghost Rx fails diagnostic testing, it will blink an error code, the most common of which are documented below: One Red, 4 Orange Flashes This means that the Rx initialization failed, check the circled component on the Atto PCB. It is located quite close to the solder pads, and is easy to accidentally remove with a soldering iron.
  • Page 50 One Red, 7 Orange Flashes Duo Receivers only - caused by one of the two receivers being defective. This type of failure will require a repair by one of our service centers (repairs@immersionrc.com) Rx ‘Unbricking’ Over-The-Air (OTA) updating of tiny devices without handy serial ports always raises the question about how to avoid ‘bricking’...
  • Page 51 ImmersionRC Community Hub IRC Hub is where fans of IRC hang out on social media. A friendly place where users are happy to help out with any question that you might throw at them. Please use the search feature, many topics have already been discussed.
  • Page 52 Please contact us at: info@immersionrc.com, or at our ImmersionRC Hub on facebook. ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...

  • Page 53: Appendix A: Mechanical Drawings

    Appendix A: Mechanical Drawings Ghost 2G4 Atto ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...
  • Page 54 Ghost JR Module ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...
  • Page 55 Ghost 2G4 Hybrid ImmersionRC Limited immersionrc.com...
  • Page 56 Appendix B: Standards and Regions Ghost strives to provide a legal R/C control link regardless of where in the world it is used. This is accomplished by selling multiple transmitter models (SKUs) which enable only the modes permitted within a geographic region. Note that for race organizers with special licensing permissions (Drone Champions League, DCL for...
  • Page 57 Note on the use of the RP-SMA connector on Ghost Transmitters In May, 2000, the FCC removed RP-SMA from the accepted list of ‘non standard’ connectors permitted for intentional radiators with removable antennas. In September 2000, this requirement was suspended indefinitely, permitting again the use of RP-SMA connectors.

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