Quanum Venture Quadcopter Owner’s Manual PDF
Recently I've been working on building my Quanum Venture FPV quadcopter, and writing up some posts and tutorials to help others build the quadcopter with less difficulty than I encountered. Before I ever started the assembly process though, as I was...
Types of Endstops
3D printers are extremely accurate and precise positioning systems, but the way 3D printers track their position is different than many people think. This post discusses different types of endstops and how they are used to allow 3D printers to zero their position before each print.
Bearings vs. Bushings
The previous post discussed the two dominant types of linear motion systems used in 3D printers: lead screws and belt drives. There is another important part of most 3D printer motion systems though. On most 3D printers, the build platform and the extruder slide over smooth rods as they move and use either linear bearings or bushings to minimize friction.
3D Printer Linear Motion Systems
Needless to say, a 3D printer’s linear motion system is one of the most important of the many mechanisms that make up a 3D printer. This post discusses stepper motors, which power every 3D printer linear motion system, as well as the two different linear motion systems found in almost all 3D printers: lead screws and timing belts.
3D Printer Frame Design
On one hand, the frame can be seen as one of the simplest parts of a 3D printer. On the other hand, designing the 3D printer frame gives Makers by far the greatest opportunity for creative thinking and problem solving. This post discusses the merits of various different 3D printer frame types and the way 3D printer frame design has progressed over the past ten or so years.
Selecting a Camera for FPV
Many parts go into an FPV system: a video transmitter, a video receiver, a viewing device, an optional on-screen display device, two different power sources, two different electrical systems, and, of course, a camera. Of all the parts on this list, the...
Form 1+ 0.1mm vs. 0.025mm Layer Thickness
The Formlabs Form 1+ is capable of printing parts in three layer thicknesses: 0.1mm, 0.05mm, or 0.025mm. There are benefits and drawbacks to each of these layer thicknesses and each has its own applications. This page compares the extremes...
The Form 1+’s Repeatability is a Blessing and a Curse
The Form 1+ is a very capable 3D printer for a number of reasons. Among the most important is that the Form 1+ has extremely good repeatability. If you print the same model a dozen times in a row, it will come out of the printer exactly the...
7 Tips for Using the Form 1+
Use a lever to detach models from the Form 1+ build platform When you print items on the Form 1+ using support material, which you likely do for the vast majority of prints, the PreForm software automatically generates support structures, including a kind of raft...
Day 1 with the Formlabs Form 1+ 3D Printer
About two months ago I was very, very fortunate to win a Formlabs Form 1+ 3D printer from the Formlabs Contest on Instructables.com. It took a little while for all the pieces of the printer to arrive (the printer ships in three parts: the...
A Gallery of Form 1+ Prints
The Form 1+ uses stereolithography rather than fused filament fabrication (FFF). Instead of taking a plastic filament, melting it, and pushing it through a little hole onto the build platform like most desktop 3D printers do, the Form 1+...
Getting an FCC License to Fly FPV
One thing most multirotor pilots interested in flying with FPV technology don't realize is that one of the prerequisites to flying FPV is getting an amateur radio licence from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Don't let this dampen your...
An Introduction to FPV
We all know humans can't fly. Our bones are far too dense and flapping our arms does not produce adequate lift to overcome the pull of gravity, but luckily we can use technology to give us the experience of flying. I'm not talking about flying in airplanes though, or...
How to Import an SVG into Fusion 360
After some time spent poking around Fusion 360, I finally figured out how to import SVG files into a sketch so that they can be used to create three-dimensional shapes. The process is not difficult, it is just a bit frustrating to figure out. I hope this short tutorial helps you avoid this frustration.
Adding LED Lights to Your Multirotor
Almost everything looks more futuristic with multicolored LEDs attached to it. This is certainly true of multirotor aircraft. But putting LEDs on your multirotor will not only make it look really cool, but also it will serve a practical purpose. When flying,...
Product Review: Rotor Bits
As you probably know, there are many different types of multirotor. All multirotors share a similar set of parts: a flight controller, some motors, some props, a battery, and some ESCs. Different multirotor designs have different numbers of motors, but the general...
Assembling the Rotor Bits Servo Mount
If you have read The Physics of Quadcopter Flight, you know that one of the interesting issues with multirotor design and control is a phenomenon called induced yaw. Basically, when you have a bunch of propellers spinning while the multirotor is airborne, the friction...
Multirotors and the Law (Specifically the FAA)
The past couple of years have seen a dramatic increase in the popularity of multirotor aircraft piloting as a hobby, as well as for potential commercial applications. The rapidly decreasing cost of multirotor flight systems, like the KK2.1 flight...
News: The Amazon Drone Store Opens Today
Remember a few months ago when Amazon announced it's theoretical new delivery service that would use drones to fly packages to customers in 30 minutes or less? They called the service Amazon Prime Air. Remember how everybody thought this was a fairly interesting idea...
Common Flight Controller Features
Flight controllers range in price from $30 to $300 or more and each of the many, many different flight controllers on the market has its own set of features. While many flight controllers, especially those on the higher end of the price range, have proprietary...
Product Review: The KK2.1 Flight Controller
Are you a beginner multirotor pilot? Are you looking for a flight controller that will let you get your multirotor up and flying quickly, without days of programming and calibration? Well then the KK2.1 flight controller from HobbyKing is a great option. While it...
KK2.1 Flight Controller Firmware Update Tutorial
Introduction When you place an order for a KK2.1 flight control board somebody goes into a HobbyKing warehouse somewhere, finds a KK2.1 on a shelf, puts it in a box, and sends it to you. The problem is, like most electronic devices, the software installed on the KK2.1...
Types of Multirotor
As I write this, I am embarking on building my second multirotor. When I first started learning about multirotors, I, like many beginner multirotor pilots, focused on quadcopters, which is just one of many types of multirotor. I built my very own SK450 Dead Cat...
Quadcopter Maths
As discussed in the previous guide, a multirotor flight controller is able to ascertain the position and orientation of the craft based on data from its onboard sensors. In order to make the multirotor change its position and/or orientation, the flight...
Maximizing Multirotor Battery Life
Battery life is perhaps the greatest limitation for multirotors. Even with a very large, heavy, and expensive high-capacity battery, most multirotor aircraft will struggle to get ten minutes of flight time. Now, even five minutes of flight time seems much...
Maximizing Multirotor Video Quality
If you are at all interested in doing aerial videography (and it is a great hobby that I would certainly encourage you to try) your biggest challenge is going to be optimizing the quality of your videos. Maximizing multirotor video quality is synonymous...
Understanding Transmitter Modes
Mode 1 or Mode 2, that is the question that many first-time multirotor pilots face when selecting radio transmitters and it is the first question we will address in this tutorial before moving on to discussing radio transmitter channels. Transmitter Modes Radio...
Selecting Multirotor Batteries
Multirotor aircraft are powered by Lithium Polymer batteries. Before we get to the process of choosing a battery, let's take a moment to talk about what a Lithium Polymer battery is and why this particular battery technology is used in multirotors. About Lithium...
Selecting ESCs for Your Multirotor
After selecting props and motors, you are probably a bit tired of making complex and important design decisions. Well good news, choosing an ESC is easy. Before we get to the easy part though, I just want to take a moment to explain what an ESC is. What is an ESC? ESC...
Selecting Motors for Your Multirotor
Selecting the best combination of components for your quadcopter is a long and complex process; if you have spent much time reading the other guides on this site, you are probably getting sense of this fact. And as one of the most important components on your...
Selecting Props for Your Multirotor
I have decided to spend the next week or so writing some posts covering basic design decisions for choosing multirotor components. Multirotors have many different parts, each of which is available in a number of different models. Choosing the correct mix of components...
First Flight with SK450 Dead Cat Quadcopter
After I built my quadcopter and waited months for this year's particularly long and severe winter to end, I took my SK450 Dead Cat out in the back yard for a test flight. My first day of flying was fairly successful; I did some maneuvering, some...
The Physics of Quadcopter Flight
I believe that when embarking on any project, especially one as complex as multirotor construction and piloting, it is useful to have an understanding of the theoretical underpinnings involved. So, when building and flying multirotors, I think it is valuable to have...
Let’s Start Something new
Say Hello!
Have any questions, comments, or ideas? Feel free to get in touch. There’s always more room in my inbox.