Quick Start

  1. Download PC 32bit(even if you run 64bit) or Mac OSX DOWNLOAD HERE- install on your PC or Mac - then shut down fully - wait 1 min - restart to activate the USB driver
  2. DownloadArduino 1.0.3 Here- this is important for PC users, even if youdon'tuse it as it contains the driver libraries - different version - each works with Mac,MacBook or PC win 7/8
  3. Browse our custom sketches on your boards product page. Download the driver, and GUI from dropbox
  4. Install JAVAfrom HERE- then restart your PC/Mac - connect the FC Micro USB to your PC USB .GUI requires Java is installed and running -
  5. Download the match v2.3 GUIjava app HERE- Open the file calledMultiWiiConf.exe (PC ; orMultiWiiConf23.app (Mac OSX)
  6. Connect your USB to the FC
  7. Turn on your Radio Tx transmitter .Start MultiwiiConf. or Wiigui
  8. Some Receivers my need full 5v from UBEC to power
  9. Select the com port
  10. Wait 5 secs ; then press START
  11. Wait another 3secs and press READ
  12. Calibration in the GUI - The FC arrives with GYRO and Acc already calibrated - sitting on your desk the ACC numbers should be approx 0/0/250 - if the board is tilt a little they will be similar to this 16/-19/252 - be careful not to un-do whats already done by clicking calibrate wildly or randomly ! - The IMU arrow faces forwards - The Gyro and the Acc can be re-calibrated (in the future if needed) in the GUI by holding the IMU at 0.00° level - motionless for 5 secs - click-pressing CALIB_ACC - not moving - after about 6 secs you will see the Acc data will reset and show 0/0/250 approx
  13. Press CALIB_MAG - in the next 60 secs the entire Quad needs to be rotated one turn on X,Y & Z axis within 60secs of pressing CALIB_MAG ( this is best done with the stick commands)
  14. Now look at the top right Blue-on light Blue-bars - each one will move in conjunction with your RC Tx - when sticks are centred the reading should be 1500 . When the throttle is placed at idle/off - the THROT should bead <1100 usually 1090 approx - at full the throttle should read 1905 approx - also check the other three sticks are 1095/1500/1905 approx - if you purchased your radio from us this is already done for you.
  15. Set yourTx to ACRO(basic Airplane) mode -set PPM(not PCM),Activate Ch5(Gear-Mode)Read your Tx/Rx product manuals
  16. Set your Reverse: for spectrum THR=NORMAL ;AIL=REVERSE ;ELE=NORMAL;RUD=REVERSE (the light blue bars MUST move in the same direction as the stick you are moving- If they do not then REVERSE that Ch in your Tx. So if you move the throttle stick up - then the blue Throttle bar should move up. If you move your rudder right then the YAW bar should move right)
  17. Set the Tx stick ranges (done on transmitter) - "End points/travel"Setup mainly involves the accurate checking or adjusting of your RC Tx - called Transmitter calibration! DO NOT SKIP THIS first STEP- the very first thing you must do for your first board is Calibrate your Transmitter to give accurate PWM output range - every transmitter is slightly different - Create a new model memory on the Tx and Call it MWC.you will see that changes made on the Tx menu are sent to the FC via your Rx - and actual critical uSEC readings -1015/1500mid/1985can be set. If you cannot get it exact then use 1000/1500/2000. Flight controller is a digital interface and the software running invisibly inside requires very specific digital PWM uSEC numbers to hover 100% auto-level, arm, disarm etc. So this may seem a bit weird but you will be using/pressing buttons on your Tx whilst your eyes are looking at your PC or Mac. So move all sticks to the center - set all Tx trims to neutral - Now useSUB TRIM MENUon your Tx to set all mid points to 1500 on these blue bars. Then move, one at a time,move each stick to the low position andset 1015; then move each stick/switch to the high position andset 1985. Then go back and check all your midpointsare still 1500 Do this for all sticks and switches. (see videos below)
  18. There are 3 windows in the GUI - MultiWii.com/Servo/Settings - Check settings, change if needed
  19. Arm by rudder max right while throttle min.
    - Disarm by rudder max left while throttle min
    - If the quad flips on motor start up, you've plugged motors in incorrectly.
    - If it doesn't fly (no lift), you've got the props installed incorrectly.
  20. - Keep props off until ready for first flight.
    - Calibrate ESCs, check motor wiring for correct rotation... see diagrams on bag or website.
    - Make sure to connect motors correctly to flight controller, should be a label with diagram on the antistatic bag or check the product page for links and diagrams
  21. IF the GUI cannot read USB after connected. - Quit the GUI and restart if nessary - If you see any unusual settings after calibrations - always restart the GUI and re-power the FC - if you see something strange - STOP - power cycle the FC and re-start the GUI - FIRST - then investigate further.
  22. Changes to the GUI switches - a white square means "active" - grey means inactive - click the upper left side of any square to activate it - then to save that change, press WRITE. To change the value of a number - Click->drag it with your mouse. Then press WRITE.
  23. Advanced users - if you are doing Arduino code commenting - Always clear EEPROM twice, if/before loading new specific sketch code. Beginners - NEVER reload code - chances are the code is wrong and you will create problems you cannot solve.
  24. Keep your PROPS OFF - not installed - until you are fully conversant/understand in full the functions of your Tx in full including TRAV (end Points), the arm and disarm procedures - realise that for skiping or out-of-order set-up steps or moving sticks, or even static -PROPS may start at anytime without warning.Never install propsprior to calibration of the ESC and testing the gyro orientation, and arm/disarm testing of the board - YOU areresponsible- make sure your actions and your Copter is safe. Never ASSUME the props will not start -removing the props removes the risk.
  25. Motor conections and rotation directions - The engine numbers relate to the small white text (called silk) printed on the bottom or top side of the Flight controllers next to the pins for the ESC - to reverse the direction of a motor swap any 2 of the 3 motor wires over.
  26. If the ESC's beep-non-stopthen they are not connected to the PARIS board ESC pins or theRx is incorrectly connectedor the Rx/PARIS sees you do not have your throttle to zero.
  27. If your copter goes out of radio-rangeit may cause harm - if still powered - Taketheprecaution to program in the FAILSAFE condition to protect people/property
  28. Always maiden on default PIDs' - If the copter is not almost perfect on default PID's then DO NOT go straight to altering the PID's! Copters require good quality ESCs such as F-20 fire or blue ice then do full calibrations of all the ESCs, the correct timing set/programmed into the ESCs and lastly good quality wiring and soldering (not 3.5mm press fit connectors if possible ) - Use FLUX PASTE to complete all soldered wires.
  29. If your getting squirrelly behavior after updating code - and it seems very unusual to you as an experienced flyer - (like an alien flying your copter not you ) - it possible the eeprom is corrupted - so just clear it out -clearing the eeprom - note down your old PIDS or do a screen capture of them - Fire up Arduino to load MultiWii 2.3Arduino>File>Examples>EEPROM>eeprom_clear ; upload

Arming- Learn to recognize that your Copter is ARMED. Hold right Yaw (or right cyclic) for 1 sec - you will see the LED come on - stays on SOLID

Disarming- Learn to DISARM the ESC's before touching or approaching the CopterESC's/Motors can start suddenly and the props can cutfingers and eyes - permanent injuries!! soWith THRO OFF ; Hold the YAW stick LEFT for 1 sec ; then the CPU LED will go OUT and stay out

Gyro Calibration- Disarm the copter (see above) ;Place the Copter on a perfectly LEVEL LZ - it must be completely static -Check all Tx Trims = neutral -Stand back -With THRO off, Hold theYAW LEFT and the Cyclic stick Back for 1 Sec ; release - you will see the LEDblinking fast for a few secsthen go out

Accelerometer(Acc)Calibration- The FC is calibrated before shipping, at 25°C - Howeverif you Flights are at a different temp a temp bias can be introduced need a re-cal, so for yourOps temp set the Copter level 0.00°Confirm the DISARMED LED is OFF -Hold Full THRO/YAW LEFT and the Cyclic stick Back for 1 Sec ; release - you will see the GREEN LEDblinking fast for a few secsthen go out - The Acc is now calibrated for LEVEL mode(at this ambient temperature)

Accelerometer(Acc) 2°Trimming - Also called auto-LEVEL trimming-Land - The final ACC trimming procedure is this -DISARM - the Green LED will go OFF) Move the THRO to the 'Learn Position - full up) - in this example the copter was moving back and right - so ; using stick-banging - move the cyclic (right stick) up once (led blinks) - then left once (led blinks) - these alterations are saved to the CPU memory. ARM again - hover and repeat the process until the copter hovers 'level'. Each Stick-bang = 0.1°

Flight MODES

ACRO- Gyros only mode - sometimes called full-manual mode or acro mode - in this mode the gyros prevent disturbance from wind and turbulence but do NOT interfere with pilot inputs - its a crisp and responsive mode - absolute best mode for amazing flying

ARM- we recommend not arming by switch unless your running a Tricopter

ANGLE- - self leveling mode - activates the Accelerometer -Great for learning FPV and hovering. You can not Flip this mode- its a required mode for RTH or PTH

HORIZON- new multiWii mode - stable mode - so when the cyclic stick is near the centre the Acc is activated (self leveling) - but when you want to fly fast forward or even do Acrobatic flips and you push the cyclic controls toward the edges - then its gyros only

BARO- First set the aircraft in the hover at 50% throttle - then engage BARO switch - the autopilot will power the motors up/down to hold the Altitude based on barometric pressure - Do NOT take off and fly around on BARO -- if exposed to airflow (no dome is used) then cover the BARO with black felt - this prevent erroneous barometric pressure waves from speed or wind entering the BARO.

MAG- Compass or heading locks yaw in the hover - be sure you have 1500 setup as the RC Tx Rudder ! check your GUI - use manual tilt to trim residual yaw out in early test flights - then when the rudder or yaw stick is centred - engage MAG - this will lock the heading. We don't recommend flying around with MAG on - reason - MAG will lock out if bank angle exceeds 20°. Mag is useful for doing towering climbs or descents where you are flat - and trying to shoot facing one direction - be sure to tune your airframe (by engine inclination) so you have zero latent yaw.

HEADFREE- this requires you mount the MAG - away from all magnetic interference -

HEADADJ- allows you to re-align headfree lock position

GPS HOME- setup /NGLE and GPS home on the same switch position - BARO also if you prefer - then use this to fly home - will return to the position where it was last armed - does NOT control throttle so be sure to use enough power to fly/hover. - it is not fully autonomous and does not control motors - this is a good thing as it allows the pilot to make inputs to avoid obstacles.

GPS HOLD- Sometimes called Loitering - or sky-parking - yes - if you really depend on this type of thing (noobs) then it's going to be better to run the PARIS v5 under

OSD- allows you to toggle OSD on or OFF with a switch in flight.

Changing the Yaw rate to 0.3 increases the turn speed

HEADFREE/CAREFREE -Head-free mode is great for beginners who aren't used to projecting their mind into theplane's perspective. Head free (or Care free) mode uses the compass and your last known position to transform the transmitter stick input from your perspective into the perspective of the copter. For most beginner pilots this is the toughest part, imagining in your minds eye, you are sitting in the copter and facing the same direction. Head-free mode removes this burden! The copter control software, knowing where you are, adjusts the stick input so that roll left is always left on the copter from your perspective and roll right is always right, and the same with the pitch. You take away the notion of a "front" on the copter, there is no front anymore!

  1. set the copter down you are behind the copter and it‘s front is facing ahead of me in the same direction.
  2. Plug in the quad . Then arm/ At this point the heads-free mode records my position as being behind the copter.
  3. Back up a number of paces staying behind the copter, maknig sure to keep the same direction.
  4. Take off and activate head free mode. . The trick is to never move your feet out of your "headfree- set point". Always keep the system in frount of you at all times!

The AUX Mode Matrix

The 3-way toggle switch is in the top position, then the AUX1 channel in MultiWii GUI shows LOW (1000us), see theReceiver Channelsbox in the diagram below. Auto-Level (ANGLE mode) is enable. Thus in theFlight Mode Matrixbelow AUX1 has 1 white box in the first column (titled LOW) at the row labeled ANGLE. The 3-way is in the middle position AUX1 shows MID (1500us). HORIZON mode is now enablethe white box in the AUX1 second column (MID) at the row labeled HORIZON. With the 3-way at the bottom,AUX1 shows HIGH. I want this to not enable any modes and thus be Acrobat mode. Clear out any white boxes in the 3rd column (HIGH) of AUX1. Currently The switch in the top/LOW position, ANGLE mode is activated and thus lit green.

Perfecting auto-level performance / How to trim auto-level mode

Auto-level flight requires a properly calibrated accellerometer. The FC's accellerometer is calibrated at the factory but you can also repeat the calibration process in the MultiWii GUI. In any case, a desk or a floor is not perfectly level so some adjustment of this calibration will have to be done in-flight. There is a method to tuning the accellerometer (auto-level) in the field. This must be done after trimming the transmitter though otherwise you are just trying to correct one error with another. So with acc pre-calibrated and your transmitter already trimmed previously in gyro/acro mode do the following:

  1. Enable LEVEL mode using the aux switch on your transmitter. You should have already setup LEVEL mode on one of your AUX channels/switches.
  2. Arm the copter and take off. Try to maintain level flight, if level is not perfect you will have to counteract the error with some stick input.
  3. Same as with acro try to keep the copter level and note how much roll/pitch stick you need to put in to correct the error.
  4. Now land the copter and disarm motors (throttle all the way back, roll all the way left)
  5. Now with motors disarmed, slowing move throttle all the way to max (motors will not spin if copter is properly disarmed). Move throttle slowly just in case motor disarm failed. With the throttle at maximum, the copter is waiting for command input to adjust the ACC level.
  6. If the copter was pitching forward (going away from you), then:
  7. a. Pull full back on the pitch.
  8. b.Then return to center
  9. c.Repeat a number of times, the more times you repeat the more correction it will make but it only does it in a single small increments for each “full back, and return to center” sequence. Repeating3-4 times is not really noticeable (only a slight correction). I often have to start with 10-12 increments for the first correction. Then test fly, and repeat the process with another 3-5 increments.
  10. Now you can do the roll, same process:
  11. a.All the way left or right, then return to center
  12. b.Only do a correction for a single direction at a time…diagonal correction input does not work.
  13. After doing a number of increments for Roll and Pitch. With the P/R stick at center, return the throttle back to full low. Re-arm the motors and test fly. Repeat until the copter maintains level.
  14. Do notdo the ACC calibration from MultiWii again or you will lose this calibration. The copter will remember your calibration settings so once trimmed your auto-level should perform perfectly and you won't have to repeat this tutorial until you upgrade your copter Firmware.

MAG/ COMPASS CALIBRATION