Advanced Setup
Further details of the UHV ESC cooling recommendations and mounting details.
Starting Settings
When utilising the UHV in a new setup, it is recommended a series of tests are run with the default configuration before tuning occurs. In most cases, these are the most optimal settings for a given power train. When analysing the controller logs, there are 2 things to look at for that will indicate further tuning is required:
The motor duty cycle and throttle duty cycle are not aligned. When the motor duty cycle is consistently below the commanded throttle duty cycle, this indicates the ESC is reducing power due to setup inconsistencies. This typically is a result of an over-propped motor or too high a voltage for a given kV. ESC timing can be manually modified to attempt to compensate for these effects. In most cases, timing should be left automatic.
The phase and bus currents are not aligned. Similarly to the above, when the phase current (output to the motor) and bus currents (inputs to the ESC) are not equal, this indicates the ESC is working less efficiently than expected and will result in higher thermal losses. Once again ESC timing can be manually modified to attempt to compensate for these effects.
Thermal and Mounting Considerations
To achieve optimal product life and avoid reaching the thermal throttle limits of the UHV, the following design considerations of your application should be made to reduce the risk of damaging the ESC.
Avoid the use of adhesives on the UHV that may insulate the heat-generating components or case when attaching the ESC or attaching a heat sink.
Ensure there is sufficient air-flow passing over the UHV aluminium casing. We recommend the ESC is positioned in an area where it can be actively cooled by propeller wash for example (in a helicopter use case). Mounts for externally powered fans are also available.
Confirm that the wires selected for the power inputs and motor output terminals are appropriately rated for the anticipated current draw.
Check that the terminals are screwed securely.
Tones
Once the ESC is connected to a motor and powered on, the following sequences of tones give statuses and errors as they occur. The tones occur in either high or low beeps (high and low frequency). The output of the tones can be disabled with the motor beep toggle, under Advanced in the configuration tool
Tone Sequence | Indication |
3 High, 1 High, 1 Low | PWM detected + Armed |
6 Fast High Tones (5-second repeat) | No signal detected or signal above arming point for the ESC |
1 High (10-second repeat) | Normal operation, waiting for arming throttle signal |
3 High (10-second repeat) | Thermal limit exceeded last flight, shut down occurred |
4 High (10-second repeat) | Under-voltage event occurred last flight, shut down occurred |
5 High (10-second repeat) | Over-voltage event occurred last flight, shut down occurred |
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