XFRobot Gimbals

XFRobot gimbals can be controlled using a custom serial protocol

../_images/xfrobot-gimbal.png

Warning

Support for these gimbals is available in ArduPilot 4.7 (and higher)

Where and What to Buy

Connecting to the Autopilot

../_images/xfrobot-autopilot-serial.png

Connect the gimbal’s UART2 port 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

Ethernet Connectivity

Instead of using a UART serial connection to control the gimbal, an Ethernet virtual serial connection may be used

../_images/xfrobot-autopilot-ethernet.png

An example of the setup of the gimbal in a networked ArduPilot vehicle system is detailed in Ethernet Connected Vehicle Example but in short, to control the gimbal over Ethernet:

The camera’s live video is available at rtsp://192.168.144.108. If connected to a PC, VLC can be used to test the feed

Firmware Upgrades

Both the camera and gimbal firmwares can be upgraded as described in the “GCU Upgrading” and “Gimbal Upgrading” sections of the user manual. The user manual for each camera gimbal can be found on its product page’s “Downloads” tab. The process is also outlined below.

Camera firmware upgrade procedure:

  • Open a browser to https://www.allxianfei.com/en/uav-payloads/, select the camera gimbal being used

  • Click the Downloads tab and Download “GCU_Upgrade_Tool_Vx.x.xx”, extract the contents of the file to a Windows PC

  • Connect a PC to the camera gimbal’s ethernet port using the provided RJ45 cable

  • Power on the camera gimbal

  • On the windows PC:

    • Open Settings, Ethernet Settings, IP assignment, Manual, IPv4 On, IP address of 192.168.144.99

    • run the “GCU Upgrade Tool.exe” (downloaded above)

  • Run the GCU Upgrade Tool (downloaded above):

    • Push the “Search Device” button

    • Push the “Connect” button

    • Push the “Upgrade” button

../_images/xfrobot-camera-firmware-update.png

Gimbal firmware update procedure:

  • Open a browser to https://www.allxianfei.com/en/uav-payloads/, select the camera gimbal being used

  • Click the Downloads tab and Download “Gimbal_Upgrade_package_V3.6”, extract the contents of the file

  • Connect a PC to the gimbal’s UART1 port using the provided USB-to-Serial converter

  • Power on the gimbal

  • On a Windows PC run GimbalConfig.exe (downloaded above)

  • On the GimbalConfig application:

    • Set the language to “English”

    • Select the gimbal’s COM port

    • Push the “Open” button near the bottom left and select the “Gimbal_Firmware_V3.6.cahf” downloaded above

    • Push the “Upgrade” button

    • The gimbal can be tested by pushing the “Start Debug” and note that the camera image moves with the gimbal

../_images/xfrobot-gimbal-firmware-update.png

Control and Testing

The camera and gimbal can be tested using the Dragonfly application which is available from each product page’s Download tab. Alternatively VLC can be used, select Media, Network Stream and enter rtsp://192.168.144.108

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