User Manual
X45
Version 1.0/2019
Copyright © 2019 by Xicoy Electrònica S.L. All rights reserved
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the need to plug in anything. The screen is very bright making it easy to observe the start-up on the display from a
short distance through a canopy, for instance.
Menu Items
.
Users familiar with other Xicoy ECUs will notice the menu structure is very similar to previous
generation ECUs, but with some display items in new positions, some extra functions added and some removed. This
is mainly because the ECU is specially produced for the X45 so functions which have previously been general purpose
are now tuned specifically for the engine and fixed. Anything which could be pre-set or does not require adjusting has
been removed from access to shorten the menus as much as possible to de-clutter.
Auto battery recognition
Kero / Diesel selector
Max thrust pre-set
Pump pre-set
We have added a few special options like the kero/diesel option which switches between pre-set routines for each
fuel. This saves you the ordeal of having to make many adjustments to fine tune the starting every time you switch
fuels, now you just press a button to click your fuel, and go. Diesel being heavier and higher flashpoint fuel than
kerosene requires a different start technique to enable it to start quickly and cleanly. We have spent time optimizing
the engine for each fuel and have prepared two start routines. You choose the fuel option and leave the ECU to use its
pre-set start routine.
To limit the engine to a reduced maximum rating there is a simple setting in the RUN menu which shows maximum
rpm with a corresponding nominal thrust figure. So it is easy to dial in say 35N (8lbs) without having to know the rpm
setting for this. This adjustment is operative between 20N (4.5lbs) and maximum.
Battery recognition
.
Another addition is automatic detection and accommodation for 7.4v LiPo and 9.9v 3-cell LiFe
batteries. The ECU detects the battery voltage at plug in, and automatically adjusts the starter maximum rpm to
make use of the additional voltage available. This is particularly useful in very low ambient pressures or areas of the
world with high altitude conditions where small engines have particular difficulties in starting due to the relatively
low rpm achieved on regular starters. In this case the 3-cell LiFe battery with the brushless starter can assist the X45
engine to start all the way up to idle rpm. Conversely, on plugging in the regular 2-cell LiPo battery the ECU will reset
the peak starter rpm to the usual speed.
The heart of the ECU is one of the latest high speed microprocessors which enable it to carry out millions of
instructions per second and do a great many things at the same time without having to stop and wait. It has its own
memory so can hold programme instructions and operating data and store runtime data from previous engine runs.
The ECU also controls the power to operate the two valves, the brushless starter motor and the glow plug. Two of the
three wires in the 3-cable are the power for these.
