System information
FMA Direct 23 Co-Pilot II reference manual
Set Angles, Stick Priority, Gyro output control on SVO4, etc.,
it’s a convenient place to set up Flight Modes.
Flight Modes are exible, and it’s up to you how you want to
use them. If no Flight Mode control is set up, then Co-Pilot
will always be ON and set up for Level Flight Mode. If you
have a Flight Mode control, then one setting must be OFF.
Many people use the Flight Mode control as a panic button.
When you lose control, ip the switch to ON. Co-Pilot will
stabilize your aircraft from any attitude to level ight imme-
diately. Some people keep Co-Pilot on all the time. (Flying
with Co-Pilot is very natural, so it should not be a problem to
do aerobatic ying when Co-Pilot is always ON. The key is
adjusting Gains and Stick Priority to suit your ying style.)
3D Flight Modes are more involved than the others, which is
why they are harder to access. Let’s walk through a typical
scenario. Suppose you have a 2-way switch programmed for
OFF and Inverted Flight. You can take off with Co-Pilot in
the OFF position or you can take off with it in the ON posi-
tion. Co-Pilot will not arm inverted mode until the aircraft is
in the correct attitude AND THEN the Flight Mode switch is
moved from OFF to Inverted. If you take off with Co-Pilot
ON in this scenario, Co-Pilot will operate in Level Flight
mode. When you’re ready to go inverted, switch Co-Pilot to
OFF. Invert the aircraft, then switch Co-Pilot ON. As long
as the measured angles satisfy the computer that the aircraft is
properly inverted, when the Flight Mode switch is moved to
the Inverted position, Co-Pilot will hold inverted ight with
little effort from you.
It may take some trial and error to set the Angles properly.
This is because when the aircraft is inverted, it may require
different trim settings than when it is ying right-side up.
This is why you can Set Angles individually for each of the
various Flight Modes from within Preferences. If invert the
aircraft, then ip the Flight Mode switch to Inverted and the
aircraft wants to fall out of inverted (due to trim issues), you
need to land, use the IRNet Programmer to adjust the angles
for inverted, and try again. Once the angles are adjusted
properly for a specic installation, they will remain fairly
well adjusted over time.
What happens when the aircraft is not properly trimmed
during inverted, or perhaps it is adjusted properly, but you
want to go back to Level Flight while ying? When the
aircraft falls out of inverted, or if you roll it out of inverted,
then Co-Pilot will do one of two things. It can be set up to
turn itself OFF, or it can be set up to switch from Inverted to
Level Flight. You set this option within Preferences. Since
the vertical sensor is required for 3D Flight Mode setup, the
aircraft will always roll out of Inverted during recovery to
Level Flight if Co-Pilot is initially programmed to recover
to Level Flight. We recommend you recover to Level Flight
Mode when practicing Inverted, and this is the default setting.
This is the safest action because if you fall out (or terminate)
Inverted, the only thing you need to remember is to move the
Flight Mode switch to OFF. Co-Pilot will do the rest to bring
the aircraft to a safe attitude.
Q: What is the difference between Auto Trim and Set Angles,
and what is a good strategy for trimming the model with
Co-Pilot installed?
A: Auto Trim is expressed in degrees. The default value is 6
degrees. If you are using Auto Trim, trim the model with Co-
Pilot switched OFF. Then turn Co-Pilot ON and re-trim the
model again for level ight. When you turn Co-Pilot OFF
again, trim should not change. If it does, increase the Auto
Trim value. If it still does not hold same trim with Co-Pilot
ON versus OFF, then you will need to either alter the angle of
the main sensor (tilt it slightly), or use Set Angles to trim Co-
Pilot.
Auto Trim maintains Co-Pilot slightly ON even when it is
switched OFF, so it’s recommended for beginners. In con-
trast, advanced pilots may not like the fact that Co-Pilot has
any control over the aircraft when it is switched OFF. If
you want Co-Pilot to have no control over the aircraft when
switched OFF, then set Auto Trim to zero.
You will need to trim Co-Pilot for level ight when it is
ON independently of when it is OFF. Some people tilt the
main sensor to achieve level ight in this case. Some people
use the Set Angles menus. Both methods achieve the same
result—one does it mechanically, the other does it electroni-
cally.
Auto Trim and Set Angles do similar things. They can be
used independently or together. They both provide a way to
adjust the model’s trim. The difference is that Auto Trim af-
fects level ight even with Co-Pilot OFF. Set Angles only
applies when Co-Pilot is ON.
The IR sensors see in “cones” 120 degrees across. If other
installed components block a portion of a cone, it may affect
the model’s trim. It’s usually not possible for the IR sensors
to have a 100% clear view, so compensating with a higher
Auto Trim value, or adjusting Set Angles is appropriate. If
the sensor view is blocked by a component that could emit
heat in varying amounts—like a mufer, or a black n that
heats from the sun, or a digital servo that heats up as you
y—then it will be more difcult to achieve proper trim be-
cause the trim could change continuously.
Q: I’m using Co-Pilot II and I want to SLOWLY take more
control and reduce Co-Pilot’s help. Do I slowly reduce
Gain and increase Stick Priority? (Or do I increase Gain
and reduce Stick Priority?)
A: If the transmitter channel you are using to turn Co-Pilot ON
and OFF can be assigned to a slider or knob, you vary Co-
Pilot’s sensitivity from the transmitter. This is not the same
thing as reducing the Gains. Gains control the gain of the
ampliers in the IR sensors. Higher sensitivity means that
servo travel is increased during stabilization. Reducing Gains
or reducing sensitivity will cause longer recovery time during
stabilization.
Stick Priority works differently from Gains and sensitivity.
Stick Priority lowers the gain of the system as you move the
stick farther from neutral. A lower setting means the gain is
turned down less; therefore you feel like you have less con-