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TBS Discovery PRO Quadrotor, Assembly Instructions & Owner'S Manual

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TBS Discovery PRO Quadrotor Assembly Instructions & Owner'S Manual Download Page 9

 

 

Long range photography 

Team BlackSheep are the undisputed kings of long range FPV. With the TBS DISCOVERY PRO you can make 

camera shots that rival those of real helicopters. You can chase BMX drivers down an entire slope. You can film 

boats and yachts from the shore. You can shoot breathtaking action scenes from the director's seat! Since 

you're piloting from the camera view, your skill is the limit. 

We offer 2 basic setups, each with their different flavors of ranges. The TBS 5.8GHz FPV system gives you 

ranges between 500m (25mW) to 3km (600mW). Please make sure your 2.4GHz R/C can match this distance! 

To fly further, we offer the EzUHF Tx & Rx long range control system and the Lawmate 2.4GHz long range video 

system. Compatible with all remote controls! With the 11dBi Yagi ranges of 10km or more are easily achieved. 

The battery life now is your limit.   

Frequency choice 

Frequency choice depends on the ranges you want to fly. Using 5.8GHz video is an ideal frequency if you do not 

plan on flying far away from yourself or behind objects. It is compatible with 2.4GHz remote controls. 

Using 2.4GHz video (TBS video frequency of choice) will give you nearly unlimited range and far superior link 

quality, but you can not use your 2.4GHz remote control on the same quad because of limited separation (it is no 

problem for our R/C buddies to fly with 2.4GHz remote controls next to you though!). You will need an EzUHF or 

any other UHF control system available on the market. 

1.2GHz works very well in urban environments where the 2.4GHz band is completely polluted. 

By using the same connector type across all transmission frequencies, the TBS eco-system allows quick and 

effortless switching between the frequencies. 

Typical ranges (based on customer feedback) with omnidirectional antennas: 

●

Lawmate 2.4GHz 500mW - 4km 

●

TBS 5.8GHz 25mW - 400m 

●

TBS 5.8GHz 200mW - 1.4km 

●

Boscam/Foxtech/HobbyKing 5.8GHz 500mW - do NOT buy, bad design! 

●

Boscam/Foxtech/HobbyKing 5.8GHz 400mW - 2.5km 

●

ImmersionRC 5.8GHz 600mW - 2.5km 

More range can be achieved by using higher gain (directional) antennas. With the 11dBi TBS Yagi on 500mW 

Lawmate 2.4GHz gear, 10km of range is no problem at all. The battery normally only lasts for 8km of flight (4km 

and return.) 

 

 

 

9 

 

Summary of Contents for Quadrotor

Page 1: ...e flight time and video link quality By implementing the wiring into the frame the copter is easy to build and outperforms similar quads in terms of FPV range and video link quality The DJI Flamewheel arms as predetermined breaking point protect your electronics and are easily replaceable in the field Features Integrated brushless gimbal control board plug play Built in camera switch GoPro live ou...

Page 2: ...manual for future reference regarding tuning and maintenance Disclaimer Our request to you the aircraft may not be used to infringe on people s right to privacy We have designed a toy with mind blowing capabilities It is your responsibility to use it reasonably and according to your experience level Use common sense Fly safe You are on your own TBS has no liability for use of this aircraft Locate ...

Page 3: ...RE to auto switch profiles GB2208 80 motors Center of Gravity 15mm in front of Center of Thrust mark Duration 8 to 13min dependent on drive train and battery system Distance up to 4km range and return Altitude up to 1 5km 5000ft All up weight 1500 to 2000g Required tools Hex Allen screwdrivers 0 9mm 1 5mm 2 0mm 2 5mm Soldering iron 50 to 100W recommended Solder Sn60Pb40 or Sn62Pb36Ag2 multicore fl...

Page 4: ... Pilot camera mount plate 7x Red aluminum spacers 1x Battery pigtail 14AWG with XT60 connector 2x VTx and camera Molex Picoblade cables 4x Black Molex 1 25 Picoblade cables 3x Pin headers for R C and RSSI connections 4x Hex screws bags M2 5x5 M3x6 5 M2 5x6 M3x4 M2x6 M2x12 10x Black anodized aluminium gimbal parts 1x Gimbal bearing 2x Gimbal motors 25x Orange Red Green gimbal dampeners 4 ...

Page 5: ...2xCCW 1x 4S 3300 to 4500mAh LiPo battery 1x Multicopter flight controller 1x R C receiver 6 channels or more 8 channels preferred 1x R C transmitter 6 channels or more 8 channels preferred 1x LiPo battery charger 1x Pilot camera 32x32mm 1x HD recording camera GoPro HD Hero 1 2 3 1x Video transmitter 1x Equipped ground station 3x Velcro straps now included Other essential parts 1x Threadlock purple...

Page 6: ...istribution to the FPV camera user installed video transmitter user installed gimbal electronics IMU board and gimbal motors regardless of input voltage 2S 10S It delivers up to 2A at 5V and 0 65A at 12V though the 12V rail is powered from the 5V part to support a wide input voltage range so make sure to leave enough headroom when picking gear If you need more power than that you have to power you...

Page 7: ...nector for extended R C uplink stats on the video display With the advent of PPM compatible receivers and flight controllers setting up a multirotor was made really easy just plug in a single cable into the flight controller PPM essentially stacks all the channels after another in a sequentially stream requiring only one hardware pin while the traditional PWM channels all require its own dedicated...

Page 8: ... between the colors and layouts keeping the left and right half of the gimbal symmetrical to find the system that works for you Top and bottom do not need to remain identical TBS can only ensure proper operation with the TBS approved setup 900kV motors 9x5 Graupner propellers TBS BULLETPROOF ESCs All other layouts are subject to optimization Use the provided damping balls to experiment to find an ...

Page 9: ...from yourself or behind objects It is compatible with 2 4GHz remote controls Using 2 4GHz video TBS video frequency of choice will give you nearly unlimited range and far superior link quality but you can not use your 2 4GHz remote control on the same quad because of limited separation it is no problem for our R C buddies to fly with 2 4GHz remote controls next to you though You will need an EzUHF...

Page 10: ...through a dedicated R C channel on the receiver Similarly one or two slider switches on your R C transmitter allows control over the 2 axis gimbal Connect a servo cable from the R C receiver to the designated connectors on the top plate of the frame Electronics installation The electronics installation is split into two sections one for the R C equipment and the second for the FPV gear We recommen...

Page 11: ...ra CH1 CH2 CH3 CH4 CH5 CH6 CH7 CH8 RC receiver Speed controller Speed controller GoPro camera Motor CW Motor CCW Motor CW Speed controller Motor CCW Speed controller Flight controller Optional GPS Top frame Bottom frame BEC regulator rev 10 2013 by ivc no tbs ESCs with 5V BEC disconnect all RED wires except one CoT CoG Electronics installation For channel setup refer to the manufacurer s manual Fo...

Page 12: ...t Ideal for Parks R C clubs front lawns R C transmitter receiver Graupner MX 12 2 4GHz radio with bundled receiver GR 6 or Futaba 8FG 7C 2 4GHz radio with included receiver R6208SB R617FS Quadrotor equipment 4x DJI Flame Wheel F450 arms 4x TBS BULLETPROOF 30A 5V SBEC speed controllers 4x TBS 900kV2 brushless motors 4x Graupner E Prop 9x5 inch propellers 1x DJI NAZA M flight controller optional GPS...

Page 13: ...rollers 4x TBS 900kV2 brushless motors 4x Graupner E Prop 9x5 inch propellers 1x DJI NAZA M flight controller optional GPS add on Battery TBS 4S 14 8V 3300mAh 4500mAh 35C Lipo pack Battery charger Graupner Ultramat 14S premium or TBS B6AC 80W budget FPV transmitter Lawmate 2 4GHz 500mW Video Tx stock or tuned FPV receiver Lawmate 2 4GHz Video Rx stock or tuned with 11dBi Yagi FPV pilot camera TBS ...

Page 14: ...mounting plate later on The kit includes 35 damping balls of varying elasticity Play around with different combinations to find an optimal match which opposes absorbs the vibrations from the frame In general it is recommended to go as hard as possible up to the stage where vibrations jello begin to propagate The harder you go on the front mounting brackets the softer you can go on the back lever p...

Page 15: ...damping balls will point the opposite direction backward and hold the bottom end of the mounting bracket This creates the ideal push pull compression state where the gimbal rests nicely on the damping balls and allows them to operate under ideal conditions Start out by using the recommended damping layouts shown below and experiment GoPro HD Hero1 and GoPro HD Hero2 Alternative 1 Alternative 2 GoP...

Page 16: ...he 16 holes on the base mounting plate and frame mounting brackets Wrap the wire or string inside the groove of the balls one or two turns feed both ends into the hole and pull through using a plier The same applies for the lever arm only this time it is best to start with lever then work on the plate 15 ...

Page 17: ...ing plate Here use 4x M2 5x6mm screws Take note of the four adjustable mounting holes on the roll rear motor use these to balance the GoPro at the end of the build Connect the 5 pin Molex connector to the TBS IMU Inertial Measurement Unit board and feed the cable through the hole on the top gimbal cage plate Align it with the two holes and use 2x M2 5x6mm screws to secure it Attach the left side c...

Page 18: ...gram 1 M3x4mm motor mount screws 2 M2 5x6mm gimbal screws 3 M2x12mm bearing clamp screw 4 M2x6mm grub screws 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 2 Note Parts with the same number belong to the same group 5 M3x6mm lever to motor mount screws 4 M2 5x5mm frame screws 4 ...

Page 19: ...o the left gimbal arm Pass the 5 pin cable through the inner U gap Do the same for the right gimbal arm Use the small 2x M2x6mm grub screws to secure the tilt right motor shaft to the gimbal cage This requires a 0 9mm hex Allen key Align the two notches on the motor shaft with the grub screw holes Ensure that both screws are properly tightened but do not overtighten as the screws could strip Strap...

Page 20: ...aining cables through the two oval holes on either side of the plate Make sure the cables does not obstruct free movement or is under tension Also check that the cage can move freely and there is no binding rubbing on either side Mount lever arm with the flat surface with the holes pointing down The lever plate should have the protruding thread holes also pointing down This completes the gimbal ar...

Page 21: ...m screws Double check that the right tilt motor is connected to the PITCH connector and the back roll motor to ROLL The cables should move freely Adjust the gimbal so that it is parallel and true to the frame The arms and motors should not be tilting at an angle looking from the side Use the sliding position holes on the bottom plate to make the final adjustment If the mounting brackets are slippi...

Page 22: ...g to reduce vibrations jello on the footage Adjust the balance on both the tilt and roll axis by moving the GoPro back forth and adjusting the mounting screws on the motor behind the GoPro respectively With no power applied the gimbal should stay perfectly still and not lean in either particular direction Important Avoid rotating the gimbal multiple full turns on the tilt axis This puts tension on...

Page 23: ...distribution Start by pre tinning add solder to the battery pads speed controller pads auxiliary power pads for flight controller power speed controller power leads and the battery pigtail If needed desolder and change the XT60 connector to your preferred connector of choice e g Deans EC5 Cut the the battery pigtail to 14cm and pre tin the ends Solder the wires to the positive red and negative bla...

Page 24: ...S Associates Inc 31 07 2013 DWG NO tbs_disc_pro_frame_assy TITLE SIZE A2 SCALE REV 2 M2 5x5mm frame arm and gimbal screws 1 M3x6 5mm spacer screws 7 Aluminium spacers 3 Pin header 6 Frame arm 4 Top plate 5 Bottom plate 6 6 6 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 2 3 Parts with the same number belong to the same type ...

Page 25: ...pads on the bottom frame The pads are located next to the two frame arm screw holes Heat the solder pad hold the cable in a slight angle so both cables will form a V remove the solder iron and keep still until the solder has had time to cool down and settle nicely Calibrate the throttle range for each ESC individually except for DJI and TBS BULLETPROOF ESCs by connecting the ESC directly to the th...

Page 26: ...provide 5V BEC power to the flight controller The middle red wire on the end connector should be disconnected on three of the ESCs If the flight controller is providing power e g NAZA M PMU V SEN unit all ESC BECs should be disconnected The reason for this is to avoid voltage oscillations caused by erroneous voltage regulator feedback 23 ...

Page 27: ...nt the controller Be sure to double check the orientation of the flight controller for proper operation When using PPM S BUS there is a handy easy to reach PPM header output located on the bottom frame Also be sure the radio and receiver is properly mapping the channels in the PPM stream For setup and tuning parameters of the flight controller refer to the manufacturer manual or guides on fpvlab c...

Page 28: ...110 130 NAZA M V1 V2 Lite Attitude 130 130 Note The pitch axis gain will in most cases be greater than the roll axis gain because of the inherent asymmetric design and weight distribution on the frame Frame arms Install the frame arms on the four designated locations using the long neck M2 5x5mm screws Feed the speed controller wires through the gap between the frame arm and bottom plate With the ...

Page 29: ...ed frame arms for the front and back pair to make it easier to identify the orientation of the quadcopter in the air Motors Mount the brushless motors to the frame arms using the supplied M3x6 5mm hex screws There is no need to add an X mount to the motors Apply a small drop of medium threadlock to a secure the base Feed the motor wires through the frame arm comb pattern to minimize clutter 26 ...

Page 30: ...the bullet connectors to the speed controllers Swap any two wires to change the direction of rotation if they do not rotate as shown below See the image above for the most commonly used motor setup e g NAZA M 27 ...

Page 31: ...PWM control signals solder the second header with the pins pointing down towards the bottom plate flight controller Use tape to keep the header in place while applying a reasonable amount of solder to all of the pins while applying heat The flux in the solder will make the solder flow around the pins The layout of the header is as follows channel 1 for PPM stream or channel 1 to 4 for PWM aileron ...

Page 32: ...g in the short servo extensions on the header on the top plate and connect them to the R C receiver Use a self adhesive foam pad to mount the unit to the back end of the top plate Mount the antenna s in a vertical and or V formation using nylon antenna tube s Channel 5 6 and 8 pin headers can be used for other purposes e g NAZA X1 X2 by disabling the gimbal R C mapping via SimpleBGC BaseCam and or...

Page 33: ...AZA X3 X2 X1 U R T E A RSSI analog Camera switcher Gimbal pitch Gimbal roll PPM EzUHF RSSI Link Enable LINK in the RSSI CORE menu Flight controller PPM Use a jumper over the elevator and aileron channels R C pin header R C receiver Configure Muxed PPM on CH1 and the camera switch channel to output CH8 in IMRC Tools PPM CH8 CH7 CH6 CH5 CH4 CH3 CH2 CH1 EzUHF APM2 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Aux4 Aux3 Aux2 Aux1 ...

Page 34: ...yering should be as follows prop adaptor optional reduction ring propeller washer and lock nut You can skip any bell screw as it may add unnecessary vibrations The TBS 900kV motors have a 5mm prop shaft This is compatible with Graupner 9x5 inch propellers For Graupner 10x5 inch propellers you will need aluminium 8mm to 5mm reduction spacers available separately Try to match the motor and propeller...

Page 35: ...e bottom link cable to the designated connector on the bottom plate It carries carries current sensor signal Vbatt ground V5 V12 up and PPM down When closing the frame plug in the cable to the corresponding connector on the top plate 31 ...

Page 36: ...ads The CORE and R C power rails are completely separated and is by design not dependent on either system in order to function properly Interference and noise from the driver train is isolated nicely from the rest of the electronics on the frame Configure the required voltage for your FPV gear by soldering a dab to the pads labeled VTX and CAM on the top plate as shown in the pictures above The fr...

Page 37: ... CORE menu layout Button Enter use up ...

Page 38: ... layout of the CORE menu system is available as an appendix to this manual Pilot camera Use the supplied camera plate to mount the pilot camera The mounting pattern is designed to be compatible with most standard 32x32 mm board cameras You might need to break away excessive board support Either use two small zip ties rubber bands or four M2x15mm screws and nuts not supplied to mount the camera use...

Page 39: ... 5V VTx are designed to work with the TBS GREENHORN TBS ROOKIE Lawmate video transmitters and the supplied 12V CAM cable with the TBS59 TBS69 cameras respectively You can of course modify and solder the wires to suit your specific need The connector wire color and signal arrangement is shown in the picture previously where yellow is video white is audio red is power and black is ground 34 ...

Page 40: ... includes a small JST cable which is compatible with Lawmate 500mW VTx as well as our TBS GREENHORN and TBS ROOKIE For FatShark VTx you need to cut the cable and solder your FatShark cable onto it The connector wire color and signal arrangement is shown in the picture above Powerful video transmitters such as the ImmersionRC 5 8GHz 600mW or more powerful VTx must be powered directly from the botto...

Page 41: ...3S PPM S DISCOVERY PRO Top Link B a t t e r y 5 0 A 1 S IMU GoPro Roll Pitch VTX 12V 5V 12V Audio Video Gnd Pwr Gnd Vcc Rx Tx UART Gimbal Gimal Roll Gimbal Pitch Gimbal PPM Camera switch Analog RSSI Flight controller PPM PPM S DISCOVERY PRO Top Link B a t t e r y 5 0 A 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 S PPM Gimbal Bottom link IMU GoPro Roll Pitch VTX CAM 5V 12V 5V 12V Audio Video Gnd Pwr Pwr Gnd Audio Video GP Out...

Page 42: ...alance both axis by moving the GoPro back or forth until it stays still independent of how you rotate leave it Additional configuration can be done using the SimpleBGC software package via the micro USB connector on the right side of the top frame The CORE uses dual profile switching described later in the manual which means that all essential flight tuning should be done in both profiles The gimb...

Page 43: ...ler chip To enable PPM gimbal you need to close the solder pads labeled PPM GIMBAL on the top plate enable PPM Sum and assign the right channels via the SimpleBCG software Remember to remove any servo cables between the receiver and the header channel 5 and 6 as any PWM signal would cause conflict Note that in PPM mode the CORE can not switch profiles because it relies on the gimbal controller to ...

Page 44: ...rd just passes the video signal straight through to the CORE video switcher input in an uncluttered fashion Advanced users only There is even a component you can add on the board to be able to change the charging rate from 1A to 0 5A continuous To reduce the charging rate order the IC part NCP380HSN05AAT1G from Mouser or Digi Key and solder the IC to the unoccupied pads on the adaptor board adequa...

Page 45: ...ax radio on and min radio off value The bottom plate includes an on board current sensor in line with the battery supply Configure the CORE to use the 50A current sensor The sensor can also be tuned in increments to more accurately display current consumption mAh i e at the end of a flight if it was 1 too high adjust it down 1 The same kind of adjustments can be made for the battery voltage in 0 1...

Page 46: ...ve details of the brushless controller is available in the SimpleBGC manual DISCOVERY PRO utilizes two profiles one silent profile Profile 1 to keep the gimbal quiet while on ground and one noisy profile Profile 2 The CORE MCU will detect when main motor starts current consumption 3A and switch from the silent to noisy profile automatically If you change something in SimpleBGC you have to do the c...

Page 47: ...peed and reduce jello GoPro HD Hero1 Video format NTSC or PAL to match pilot camera to get 30fps Video resolution 1080p 30fps medium angle for 10x5 inch props 720p 30fps wide angle for 9x5 inch props GoPro HD Hero2 Video format NTSC or PAL to match pilot camera to get 30fps Video resolution 1080p 30fps high quality video Video angle Medium 127 degrees for 10x5 inch props Wide 170 degrees for 9x5 i...

Page 48: ...he battery The CG over the longitudinal roll axis should be in the center of the frame front to back and should only need slight adjustments When the frame is out of balance some motors are going to have to work harder than others and you will have less authority in a given axis due to the fact that one or more motors are already working more than normally required Small balance variations are cou...

Page 49: ...Median Median Center of Gravity C e n t e r o f T h r u s t rev 08 2013 by ivc no tbs Center of Gravity diagram ...

Page 50: ...ation labeled VTX2 GND VBatt Video The GoPro output selector jumper works like this the middle and right pads are connected by default from the factory transferring the Gopro image to the camera switcher To use a second transmitter cut the trace in between the two pads This can be done with a sharp knife Use a multimeter to verify that the two pads are entirely separated Now connect the left and m...

Page 51: ...e between the two GP OUT SEL jumper pads and solder the left pad to the middle Dual operator with yaw authority To give the video operator the ultimate freedom over framing and picture positioning swap the responsibility for yaw control over to the the video operator This requires good piloting skills and continuous communications back and forth to practice safe maneuvering and flight 44 ...

Page 52: ...video out from the VTX port on the DISCO PRO to the CAM port on the CORE PRO Connect the video transmitter VTx to the VTX port on the CORE PRO Note If the VTx is high power and has an on board regulator connect the power leads normally red and black to the unregulated power pads on the bottom plate pads on the DISCO PRO The video signal normally yellow wire should be connected separately to the VT...

Page 53: ...able separately Caution do not use the normal CAM cable to connect the CORE PRO to the DISCOVERY PRO two voltage sources conflict XT60 Note mount unit in center of the bottom plate on top of the flight controller NAZA or on the left side on the bottom plate Sept 2014 by ivc no tbs Note 1 disable the on board DISCOVERY PRO OSD in the CORE menu using the buttons on the top plate else the OSDs will o...

Page 54: ...and elevator sticks Remember only small stick movements If the stick works in the opposite direction than expected invert the channel and watch the flight controller monitor to confirm Let go of the sticks and observe if it drifts in either direction Compensate by adding 2 or 3 clicks of trim on the radio in the opposite direction only in Attitude mode If the quadcopter still drifts land put the f...

Page 55: ...nt is properly shielded Adding Return To Home RTH to an unreliable system does not increase the chances of getting your plane back Work on making your system reliable without RTH first then add RTH as an additional safety measure if you must Avoid powering the VTx directly from battery step up or step down the voltage and provide a constant level of power to your VTx Make sure your VTx runs until ...

Page 56: ... Do not buy the cheapest equipment unless it is proven to work reliably e g parts falling off multitudes of bug fix firmware updates community hacks and mods are a good indicator of poor quality and something you do NOT want to buy for a safe system Do due diligence and some research before sending your aircraft skyward 48 ...

Page 57: ...o camera be charged from the frame Solution If you don t use the internal power supply from the TBS CORE for your VTx e g a VTx with an included power supply there is enough 5V power available to charge the GoPro In this case TBS has conveniently located a soldering pad to activate the charging feature Issue After switching video from GoPro to pilot camera video is rolling and desynced Solution Se...

Page 58: ...pt running for extended periods of time Connect the micro USB to the top plate and select Connect in the software Now select Acc Calibration and wait for the motors to regain power Then select Gyro calibration If these steps have been done correctly the gimbal will now lock dead center You can remove whatever you used to support the Gimbal and it will hold its position Issue The gimbal stutters or...

Page 59: ...er Motors MT2216 10 11 900KV brushless motor 5mm shaft DJI 2212 920KV brushless motor 8mm shaft Sunnysky 2216 12 800KV brushless motor Speed controllers TBS 30A Multicopter SimonK firmware speed controller DJI OPTO 30A no BEC speed controller Tiger Motors 18A BEC speed controller HobbyKing F 20A or F 30A BEC programmable ESC with SimonK firmware Flight controller DJI NAZA M V1 V2 Lite with optiona...

Page 60: ...C or KyPOM KT3300 35 4S Lipo pack Gens Ace 4S 3300mAh 25C Lipo pack Zippy Compact 4S 4000mAh 25C Lipo pack Zippy Compact 4S 5000mAh 25C Lipo Pack Turnigy nano tech 4S 3300mAh 35C Lipo pack FPV transmitter Lawmate TM 240500 LM 2 4GHz 500mW transmitter TBS ROOKIE 5 8GHz 200mW transmitter TBS GREENHORN 5 8GHz 25mW transmitter BosCam TS 353 5 8GHz 400mW transmitter FPV camera TBS69 or TBS59 FPV camera...

Page 61: ...You can either get spare parts directly from us team blacksheep com or from one of our distributors and retailers near you Our ever growing list of retailers is published on the left at team blacksheep com shop 53 ...

Page 62: ...m Gimbal assembly diagram Electronics installation diagram Common R C receiver setups Video transmitter installation diagram CORE menu layout Center of Gravity diagram Manual written and designed by ivc no in cooperation with TBS 54 ...

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