EN CN
Connect ONLY Yaw Encoder
  • junkbox
    I am working on my highfly gimbal since 2014 and posted many Tutorials on Youtube (Channel: timo.rucks). My last projekt ist to add an encoder only to my Yaw axis. So I bought the AS5048A Magnetic Encoder for GBM5208 GBM6208 GBM8017 GBM8108 GBM1103d from iflight and 3d-printed an adapter for the magnet. If you like, you can have the stl file. Find it on http://www.hannaundtimo.ch/steadycam/
    In the free version GUI 2.60b4 (no encoder version) I activated my AS5048A in the Yaw-Encoder-Tab. But nothing happened. I was very dissapointed due to all the effort for designing the adapter and so on. So I decided to buy the GUI encoder version for 40$. Immediately I could press the CALIB.EL FIELD button and it worked fantastic. But then I realised that my Pitc and Roll motors make a lot of high vibrations. And they don't go back to home position after tapping them; they only make sharp noise. No PID settings could stop this. And after some minutes even the encoder stopped working. I found a lot of yaw encoder errors.
    Here in the forum I found only the note that SimpleBGC boards would work only with three encoders on all axes properly. I downgraded back to the free no-encoder 2.60b4 version and my gimbal worked fine again except the yaw encoder. So my main question is how to activate a yaw encoder in the normal GUI 2.60b4 as indicated in the Yaw Encoder tab or how to get it working in the encoder version - but yaw only.

    Thanks a lot
  • paologi
    Junkbox, I added the only encoder for yaw without problems, I use free firm 2.62 b4.
    I Followed the manual
  • ReNNo
    To use yaw encoder in non-encoder version it has to be connected to RC_ROLL. (I'm not 100% sure, if I'm wrong try connecting it to RC_PITCH) But there are not lot of benefits when using encoder only on YAW. Gimbal will consume same current, there is no any improvements in stabilization. Only benefit is that you will know absolute position of YAW.
  • junkbox
    Thanks for your advise. I tried both with free firm 2.62b4 - RC_Roll and RC_Pitch. It makes no difference. If I activate AS5048A,B (PMW) as type I can see no difference to the normal setup without encoder. Except for that the Yaw axis is not following any longer if the encoder is activated. The field "input" is still blank.
    The white arrow is not moving at all if I disconnect the second IMU as it is written in the manual for free version firmware.
    Maybe you have one more advice for me.
    But now I understand that the improvements are much less than using the extended firmware version with encoders on all motors. I always thought the difference is only the number of encoders and not different performance.
  • ReNNo
    I just checked, it should be connected to RC_PITCH. You will not be able to select port where it is connected but you will know that it works by checking it in "Monitoring". ENC_RAW_Y will appear and you will be able to check it.

    You will still need second IMU to improve stability and precision. Frame IMU is not needed only if you have encoders on all 3 axis and also encoder version of firmware.
    One benefit of using encoder on YAW is that camera can point forward when you power gimbal. Calibrate offset in "Encoders" tab and turn on "Center YAW axis at start-up" to enable this option.
  • junkbox
    I tested it again without success. I use now free firm 2.64b5 with the AS5048A,B (PMW) encoder connected to RC_Pitch. If activated ENC-RAW-Y in "Monitoring" shows 0. The white arrow is not spinning and I cannot see the "Center YAW axis at start-up" choice.
    So the encoder is not working. But I am shure that it is attached correctly, because it works fine with the encoder firmware (but only with Pitch an Roll problems).
    In the manual is written that the free firmware only supports analog encoders. Is that correct?
    Has anyone connect a single YAW encoder with the free firm and PMW?
  • junkbox
    I wasn't lucky till now to get my YAW encoder running. But I finished my Tutorial on YouTube. How to mount an encoder to a standard carbon fiber gimbal:

    I think I have to put encoders on all three axes to make it work with the encoder firmware.
  • alexmosalexmos
    "In the manual is written that the free firmware only supports analog encoders. Is that correct?
    Has anyone connect a single YAW encoder with the free firm and PMW? "

    Correct, but for the old version. In later versions, we add a support for all other encoders that are supported in the "encoder" firmware, excepting SPI interface. Though, 2.62b4 should work with PWM type, try latest 2.62b6, and of course use the same version GUI.
Add a Comment