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Electric Stunt => Gettin all AMP'ed up! => Topic started by: Paul Allen on January 28, 2010, 12:50:40 PM
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Guy's
I need some help on what to purchase to log my motor/ battery
inflight info,any suggestions?
Paul Allen
Australia y1
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Paul:
The new Castle ICE series ESC's have built in dataloggers that work real well. Prior to that we used an Eagle Tree to good effect, do not know anything about the Hyperion. One advantage with the Eagle Tree (versus the ICE) is that it will let you hook up different kinds of sensors, I think Alan Hahn used it with a Pitot-Static tube to recored actual airspeeds.
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I have the Eagle Tree v3 logger. Very happy with it.
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Paul,
I have the Eagletree and an ICE50, and the Eagletree offers some advantages over the ICE. Mainly I think it is being able to add extra sensors and the current sensor is better calibrated than the ICE).
On the other hand, the ICE has one feature which can't be beat--it's called "Motor Power Out" ("MPO"). That quantity tells you how close you are to full throttle during the flight. As long as you never reach 100%, you are doing ok. It can do this because the ESC knows what throttle (PWM width) it is commanding to the motor. The Eagle tree can't give that.
If I were just starting out, the ICE really would be what I would want for CL. That "MPO" will tell you how close you are to running out of battery during the flight. Plus of course you get the other stuff (rpm, volts, amps, power out, and something called Voltage Ripple--it is the difference between the battery voltage with power on -voltage with power off (during the on/off period of the PWM). I am seeing something less than a volt, which is apparently "ok".
So I have both, but not the Hyperion e-meter. It might be pretty nice too.
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Dennis,Crist and Alan
Thanks for the info,now what do I need to order for the Eagle Tree?
Does the unit come with software to allow the printing of results and graphs
and will it work on Vista?
Do I need the powerpanel?
As always Alan I have a heap of questions!
Thanks
Paul
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Hi Paul,
What all the others have said. .... I really like my Eagle Tree setup.
Yes, it comes with a link to their software. The SW has everything you would ever need. I set my computer screen up to show all the readings like a FS planes instrument panel. You can do print outs of data and graphs and keep records on every flight if you want. It is an excellent piece of equipment and worth every penny if you like to experiment with different setups. It is well worth it's modest price.
I use two temp sensors (one for motor one for battery), RPM and Air Speed.
I have the powerpanel to plug in at the field but I don't use it much. I just took my laptop to the field and uploaded the data from the plane. After a lot of testing in the beginning, using the ET system, I have not used it or any other piece of test equipment for the past 300 trouble free flights. :-)
Here is their link, it should answer all your questions.
http://www.eagletreesystems.com/MicroPower/micro.htm
NOTE: For those in the wings reading this thread, please don't misunderstand our use of all our "techie" equipment stuff, IT IS NOT NEEDED! It is only needed by us AR types. ECL is "plug and play", (no test equipment needed), if you use one of the tried and true set ups available.
Have Fun, H^^
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I agree with Rudy about this stuff not being necessary.
However I would certainly recommend to anyone starting out to go with the ICE Lite just because sometimes it is useful to know what is going on in the air. For less than the price of what we were paying a year or so ago for an ESC, the ICE is nice!
My only complaint about the ICE is that is is a bit too big--at least compared to the Phoenix 45. So it may be a little more difficult to fit it in tight quarters.
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Rudy/Alan
V3 logger with leads- Yes or No
Brushless motor rpm sensor ( splice in type) Yes or No
Micro temp sensor or loop type ?
Thanks
Paul
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1. NO .... I have both and I like the NO leads better. It is easier to not have the extra cables to find room for. I can easily make up an extention if needed.
2. YES ..... This is very easy to hook up. I even used a small connector spliced in so I can easily move the sensor on and off the plane as needed.
3. I USE ONE SENSOR FOR MOTOR (use high temp 3M silver tape to motor. This stuff can be found at ACE hardware, expensive but you will have a supply for 10,000 sensor attachments ;-) .... THEN ONE LOOP for BATTERY ...... (these both only need to be used several times to get your cooling system set up correctly and when you fiddle with different props creating different loads on your power system, etc. )
Regards,
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Rudy
Thanks
Paul
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Paul,
I agree with Rudy on most of what he said. My ET has the wire leads. Yes, there is more wire to deal with but at the same time the "extra" wire gives me a bit more flexibility on how to get the ET in the plane for datalogging. While I think it is almost essential to collect your run data on the plane, after that I almost never used it again after I found my "setup" for flying. I used it mainly to gather data on the Castle software updates on their ESC.
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I agree with both Crist and Rudy. My ET does not have the extension leads.
Sometimes I wish I had leads because the area is getting a little crowded and I think leads would help. However sometimes there is just too much wire!