CADDX Gimbals

CADDX GM1, GM2, GM3 gimbals are small 1, 2 and 3-axis gimbals weighing between 16g and 46g and can be paired with 19mm x 19mm FPV cameras

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Warning

Support for these gimbals is available in ArduPilot 4.6 (and higher) and requires the gimbal’s firmware be 3.4 (or higher)

The user manual can be found here

Where and What to Buy

  • The GM1, GM2 and GM3 gimbals can be purchased directly from CADDXFPV

  • The GL and GM Upgrade Cable is likely also required to upgrade the gimbal’s firmware to 3.4 (or higher)

Connecting to the Autopilot

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Connect the gimbal’s RX, TX and GND pins to one of the autopilot’s serial ports as shown above

Connect with a ground station and set the following parameters. The params below assume the autopilot’s telem2 port is used

  • SERIAL2_PROTOCOL to 8 (“Gimbal”)

  • SERIAL2_BAUD to “115” for 115200 bps

  • MNT1_TYPE to “13” (“CADDX”) and reboot the autopilot

  • MNT1_PITCH_MIN to -90

  • MNT1_PITCH_MAX to 90

  • MNT1_YAW_MIN to -170

  • MNT1_YAW_MAX to 170

  • MNT1_RC_RATE to 60 (deg/s) to control speed of gimbal when using RC targeting if controlling the movement RATE by RC is desired. If RC value is intended to control the ANGLE, then set it to 0.

  • RC6_OPTION = 213 (“Mount Pitch”) to control the gimbal’s pitch angle with RC channel 6

  • RC7_OPTION = 214 (“Mount Yaw”) to control the gimbal’s yaw angle with RC channel 7

  • RC8_OPTION = 163 (“Mount Lock”) to switch between “lock” and “follow” mode with RC channel 8

Configuring the Gimbal

Firmware upgrade instructions are in the “Upgrade” section of the user manual but in short:

  • Download the GimbalConfig windows application and latest gimbal firmware from the CADDXFPV Download Center (look for the “Firmware / GM Gimbal Firmware” link near the bottom of the page)

  • Extract the contents of the downloaded zip file and run the GimbalConfig application

  • Connect the Upgrade Cable to the upgrade port shown below, connect the other end to your PC

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  • Open the GimbalConfig application, select the COM port, then “Open” and find the “CwGimbalZGV2Main_V3.4.cahf” file and push “Upgrade”

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  • Ensure the channel drop-downs highlighted in orange above are set to CH01 and then push the “Save Param To Flash” button

Control and Testing

See Gimbal / Mount Controls for details on how to control the camera and gimbal using RC, GCS or Auto mode mission commands