4 image::altosui.png[width="4.6in"]
6 The AltosUI program provides a graphical user interface for
7 interacting with the Altus Metrum product family. AltosUI can
8 monitor telemetry data, configure devices and many other
9 tasks. The primary interface window provides a selection of
10 buttons, one for each major activity in the system. This
11 chapter is split into sections, each of which documents one of
12 the tasks provided from the top-level toolbar.
16 <subtitle>Receive, Record and Display Telemetry Data</subtitle>
19 Selecting this item brings up a dialog box listing all
20 of the connected TeleDongle devices. When you choose
21 one of these, AltosUI will create a window to display
22 telemetry data as received by the selected TeleDongle
25 .Device Selection Dialog
26 image::device-selection.png[width="3.1in"]
28 All telemetry data received are automatically recorded
29 in suitable log files. The name of the files includes
30 the current date and rocket serial and flight numbers.
32 The radio frequency being monitored by the TeleDongle
33 device is displayed at the top of the window. You can
34 configure the frequency by clicking on the frequency
35 box and selecting the desired frequency. AltosUI
36 remembers the last frequency selected for each
37 TeleDongle and selects that automatically the next
38 time you use that device.
40 Below the TeleDongle frequency selector, the window
41 contains a few significant pieces of information about
42 the altimeter providing the telemetry data stream:
44 * The configured call-sign
46 * The device serial number
48 * The flight number. Each altimeter remembers how
49 many times it has flown.
51 * The rocket flight state. Each flight passes through
52 several states including Pad, Boost, Fast, Coast,
53 Drogue, Main and Landed.
55 * The Received Signal Strength Indicator value. This
56 lets you know how strong a signal TeleDongle is
57 receiving. At the default data rate, 38400 bps, in
58 bench testing, the radio inside TeleDongle v0.2
59 operates down to about -106dBm, while the v3 radio
60 works down to about -111dBm. Weaker signals, or an
61 environment with radio noise may cause the data to
62 not be received. The packet link uses error
63 detection and correction techniques which prevent
64 incorrect data from being reported.
66 * The age of the displayed data, in seconds since the
67 last successfully received telemetry packet. In
68 normal operation this will stay in the low single
69 digits. If the number starts counting up, then you
70 are no longer receiving data over the radio link
71 from the flight computer.
73 Finally, the largest portion of the window contains a
74 set of tabs, each of which contain some information
75 about the rocket. They're arranged in 'flight order'
76 so that as the flight progresses, the selected tab
77 automatically switches to display data relevant to the
78 current state of the flight. You can select other tabs
79 at any time. The final 'table' tab displays all of the
80 raw telemetry values in one place in a
81 spreadsheet-like format.
85 .Monitor Flight Launch Pad View
86 image::launch-pad.png[width="5.5in"]
88 The 'Launch Pad' tab shows information used to decide when the
89 rocket is ready for flight. The first elements include red/green
90 indicators, if any of these is red, you'll want to evaluate
91 whether the rocket is ready to launch:
94 This indicates whether the Li-Po battery powering the
95 flight computer has sufficient charge to last for
96 the duration of the flight. A value of more than
97 3.8V is required for a 'GO' status.
99 Apogee Igniter Voltage::
100 This indicates whether the apogee
101 igniter has continuity. If the igniter has a low
102 resistance, then the voltage measured here will be close
103 to the Li-Po battery voltage. A value greater than 3.2V is
104 required for a 'GO' status.
106 Main Igniter Voltage::
107 This indicates whether the main
108 igniter has continuity. If the igniter has a low
109 resistance, then the voltage measured here will be close
110 to the Li-Po battery voltage. A value greater than 3.2V is
111 required for a 'GO' status.
113 On-board Data Logging::
114 This indicates whether there is space remaining
115 on-board to store flight data for the upcoming
116 flight. If you've downloaded data, but failed to erase
117 flights, there may not be any space left. Most of our
118 flight computers can store multiple flights, depending
119 on the configured maximum flight log size. TeleMini
120 v1.0 stores only a single flight, so it will need to
121 be downloaded and erased after each flight to capture
122 data. This only affects on-board flight logging; the
123 altimeter will still transmit telemetry and fire
124 ejection charges at the proper times even if the
125 flight data storage is full.
128 For a TeleMetrum or TeleMega device, this indicates
129 whether the GPS receiver is currently able to compute
130 position information. GPS requires at least 4
131 satellites to compute an accurate position.
135 For a TeleMetrum or TeleMega device, this indicates
136 whether GPS has reported at least 10 consecutive
137 positions without losing lock. This ensures that the
138 GPS receiver has reliable reception from the
141 The Launchpad tab also shows the computed launch pad
142 position and altitude, averaging many reported
143 positions to improve the accuracy of the fix.
147 .Monitor Flight Ascent View
148 image::ascent.png[width="5.5in"]
150 This tab is shown during Boost, Fast and Coast
151 phases. The information displayed here helps monitor the
152 rocket as it heads towards apogee.
154 The height, speed, acceleration and tilt are shown along
155 with the maximum values for each of them. This allows you to
156 quickly answer the most commonly asked questions you'll hear
159 The current latitude and longitude reported by the GPS are
160 also shown. Note that under high acceleration, these values
161 may not get updated as the GPS receiver loses position
162 fix. Once the rocket starts coasting, the receiver should
163 start reporting position again.
165 Finally, the current igniter voltages are reported as in the
166 Launch Pad tab. This can help diagnose deployment failures
167 caused by wiring which comes loose under high acceleration.
171 .Monitor Flight Descent View
172 image::descent.png[width="5.5in"]
174 Once the rocket has reached apogee and (we hope)
175 activated the apogee charge, attention switches to
176 tracking the rocket on the way back to the ground, and
177 for dual-deploy flights, waiting for the main charge
180 To monitor whether the apogee charge operated
181 correctly, the current descent rate is reported along
182 with the current height. Good descent rates vary based
183 on the choice of recovery components, but generally
184 range from 15-30m/s on drogue and should be below
185 10m/s when under the main parachute in a dual-deploy
188 With GPS-equipped flight computers, you can locate the
189 rocket in the sky using the elevation and bearing
190 information to figure out where to look. Elevation is
191 in degrees above the horizon. Bearing is reported in
192 degrees relative to true north. Range can help figure
193 out how big the rocket will appear. Ground Distance
194 shows how far it is to a point directly under the
195 rocket and can help figure out where the rocket is
196 likely to land. Note that all of these values are
197 relative to the pad location. If the elevation is near
198 90°, the rocket is over the pad, not over you.
200 Finally, the igniter voltages are reported in this tab
201 as well, both to monitor the main charge as well as to
202 see what the status of the apogee charge is. Note
203 that some commercial e-matches are designed to retain
204 continuity even after being fired, and will continue
205 to show as green or return from red to green after
210 .Monitor Flight Landed View
211 image::landed.png[width="5.5in"]
213 Once the rocket is on the ground, attention switches
214 to recovery. While the radio signal is often lost once
215 the rocket is on the ground, the last reported GPS
216 position is generally within a short distance of the
217 actual landing location.
219 The last reported GPS position is reported both by
220 latitude and longitude as well as a bearing and
221 distance from the launch pad. The distance should give
222 you a good idea of whether to walk or hitch a ride.
223 Take the reported latitude and longitude and enter
224 them into your hand-held GPS unit and have that
225 compute a track to the landing location.
227 Our flight computers will continue to transmit RDF
228 tones after landing, allowing you to locate the rocket
229 by following the radio signal if necessary. You may
230 need to get away from the clutter of the flight line,
231 or even get up on a hill (or your neighbor's RV roof)
232 to receive the RDF signal.
234 The maximum height, speed and acceleration reported
235 during the flight are displayed for your admiring
236 observers. The accuracy of these immediate values
237 depends on the quality of your radio link and how many
238 packets were received. Recovering the on-board data
239 after flight may yield more precise results.
241 To get more detailed information about the flight, you
242 can click on the 'Graph Flight' button which will
243 bring up a graph window for the current flight.
247 .Monitor Flight Table View
248 image::table.png[width="5.5in"]
250 The table view shows all of the data available from the
251 flight computer. Probably the most useful data on
252 this tab is the detailed GPS information, which includes
253 horizontal dilution of precision information, and
254 information about the signal being received from the satellites.
258 .Monitor Flight Site Map View
259 image::site-map.png[width="5.5in"]
261 When the TeleMetrum has a GPS fix, the Site Map tab
262 will map the rocket's position to make it easier for
263 you to locate the rocket, both while it is in the air,
264 and when it has landed. The rocket's state is
265 indicated by color: white for pad, red for boost, pink
266 for fast, yellow for coast, light blue for drogue,
267 dark blue for main, and black for landed.
269 The map's default scale is approximately 3m (10ft) per
270 pixel. The map can be dragged using the left mouse
271 button. The map will attempt to keep the rocket
272 roughly centered while data is being received.
274 You can adjust the style of map and the zoom level
275 with buttons on the right side of the map window. You
276 can draw a line on the map by moving the mouse over
277 the map with a button other than the left one pressed,
278 or by pressing the left button while also holding down
279 the shift key. The length of the line in real-world
280 units will be shown at the start of the line.
282 Images are fetched automatically via the Google Maps
283 Static API, and cached on disk for reuse. If map
284 images cannot be downloaded, the rocket's path will be
285 traced on a dark gray background instead.
287 You can pre-load images for your favorite launch sites
288 before you leave home; check out the 'Preload Maps'
293 .Monitor Flight Additional Igniter View
294 image::ignitor.png[width="5.5in"]
296 TeleMega includes four additional programmable pyro
297 channels. The Ignitor tab shows whether each of them has
298 continuity. If an ignitor has a low resistance, then the
299 voltage measured here will be close to the pyro battery
300 voltage. A value greater than 3.2V is required for a 'GO'
305 The altimeter records flight data to its internal
306 flash memory. TeleMetrum data is recorded at a much
307 higher rate than the telemetry system can handle, and
308 is not subject to radio drop-outs. As such, it
309 provides a more complete and precise record of the
310 flight. The 'Save Flight Data' button allows you to
311 read the flash memory and write it to disk.
313 Clicking on the 'Save Flight Data' button brings up a
314 list of connected flight computers and TeleDongle
315 devices. If you select a flight computer, the flight
316 data will be downloaded from that device directly. If
317 you select a TeleDongle device, flight data will be
318 downloaded from a flight computer over radio link via
319 the specified TeleDongle. See the chapter on
320 Controlling An Altimeter Over The Radio Link for more
323 After the device has been selected, a dialog showing
324 the flight data saved in the device will be shown
325 allowing you to select which flights to download and
326 which to delete. With version 0.9 or newer firmware,
327 you must erase flights in order for the space they
328 consume to be reused by another flight. This prevents
329 accidentally losing flight data if you neglect to
330 download data before flying again. Note that if there
331 is no more space available in the device, then no data
332 will be recorded during the next flight.
334 The file name for each flight log is computed
335 automatically from the recorded flight date, altimeter
336 serial number and flight number information.
340 Select this button and you are prompted to select a flight
341 record file, either a .telem file recording telemetry data or a
342 .eeprom file containing flight data saved from the altimeter
345 Once a flight record is selected, the flight monitor interface
346 is displayed and the flight is re-enacted in real time. Check
347 the Monitor Flight chapter above to learn how this window operates.
351 Select this button and you are prompted to select a flight
352 record file, either a .telem file recording telemetry data or a
353 .eeprom file containing flight data saved from
356 Note that telemetry files will generally produce poor graphs
357 due to the lower sampling rate and missed telemetry packets.
358 Use saved flight data in .eeprom files for graphing where possible.
360 Once a flight record is selected, a window with multiple tabs is
366 image::graph.png[width="5.5in"]
368 By default, the graph contains acceleration (blue),
369 velocity (green) and altitude (red).
371 The graph can be zoomed into a particular area by
372 clicking and dragging down and to the right. Once
373 zoomed, the graph can be reset by clicking and
374 dragging up and to the left. Holding down control and
375 clicking and dragging allows the graph to be panned.
376 The right mouse button causes a pop-up menu to be
377 displayed, giving you the option save or print the
382 .Flight Graph Configuration
383 image::graph-configure.png[width="5.5in"]
385 This selects which graph elements to show, and, at the
386 very bottom, lets you switch between metric and
389 ==== Flight Statistics
392 image::graph-stats.png[width="5.5in"]
394 Shows overall data computed from the flight.
399 image::graph-map.png[width="5.5in"]
401 Shows a satellite image of the flight area overlaid
402 with the path of the flight. The red concentric
403 circles mark the launch pad, the black concentric
404 circles mark the landing location.
408 This tool takes the raw data files and makes them
409 available for external analysis. When you select this
410 button, you are prompted to select a flight data file,
411 which can be either a .eeprom or .telem. The .eeprom
412 files contain higher resolution and more continuous
413 data, while .telem files contain receiver signal
414 strength information. Next, a second dialog appears
415 which is used to select where to write the resulting
416 file. It has a selector to choose between CSV and KML
419 ==== Comma Separated Value Format
421 This is a text file containing the data in a form
422 suitable for import into a spreadsheet or other
423 external data analysis tool. The first few lines of
424 the file contain the version and configuration
425 information from the altimeter, then there is a single
426 header line which labels all of the fields. All of
427 these lines start with a '#' character which many
428 tools can be configured to skip over.
430 The remaining lines of the file contain the data, with
431 each field separated by a comma and at least one
432 space. All of the sensor values are converted to
433 standard units, with the barometric data reported in
434 both pressure, altitude and height above pad units.
436 ==== Keyhole Markup Language (for Google Earth)
438 This is the format used by Google Earth to provide an
439 overlay within that application. With this, you can
440 use Google Earth to see the whole flight path in 3D.
442 === Configure Altimeter
444 .Altimeter Configuration
445 image::configure-altimeter.png[width="3.6in"]
447 Select this button and then select either an altimeter or
448 TeleDongle Device from the list provided. Selecting a TeleDongle
449 device will use the radio link to configure a remote altimeter.
451 The first few lines of the dialog provide information about the
452 connected device, including the product name,
453 software version and hardware serial number. Below that are the
454 individual configuration entries.
456 At the bottom of the dialog, there are four buttons:
459 This writes any changes to the configuration parameter
460 block in flash memory. If you don't press this button,
461 any changes you make will be lost.
464 This resets the dialog to the most recently saved
465 values, erasing any changes you have made.
469 This reboots the device. Use this to switch from idle
470 to pad mode by rebooting once the rocket is oriented
471 for flight, or to confirm changes you think you saved
476 This closes the dialog. Any unsaved changes will be
479 The rest of the dialog contains the parameters to be configured.
481 ==== Main Deploy Altitude
483 This sets the altitude (above the recorded pad
484 altitude) at which the 'main' igniter will fire. The
485 drop-down menu shows some common values, but you can
486 edit the text directly and choose whatever you
487 like. If the apogee charge fires below this altitude,
488 then the main charge will fire two seconds after the
493 When flying redundant electronics, it's often
494 important to ensure that multiple apogee charges don't
495 fire at precisely the same time, as that can over
496 pressurize the apogee deployment bay and cause a
497 structural failure of the air-frame. The Apogee Delay
498 parameter tells the flight computer to fire the apogee
499 charge a certain number of seconds after apogee has
504 Apogee lockout is the number of seconds after boost
505 where the flight computer will not fire the apogee
506 charge, even if the rocket appears to be at
507 apogee. This is often called 'Mach Delay', as it is
508 intended to prevent a flight computer from
509 unintentionally firing apogee charges due to the
510 pressure spike that occurrs across a mach
511 transition. Altus Metrum flight computers include a
512 Kalman filter which is not fooled by this sharp
513 pressure increase, and so this setting should be left
514 at the default value of zero to disable it.
518 This configures which of the frequencies to use for
519 both telemetry and packet command mode. Note that if
520 you set this value via packet command mode, the
521 TeleDongle frequency will also be automatically
522 reconfigured to match so that communication will
527 The radios in every Altus Metrum device are calibrated
528 at the factory to ensure that they transmit and
529 receive on the specified frequency. If you need to
530 you can adjust the calibration by changing this value.
531 Do not do this without understanding what the value
532 means, read the appendix on calibration and/or the
533 source code for more information. To change a
534 TeleDongle's calibration, you must reprogram the unit
537 ==== Telemetry/RDF/APRS Enable
539 Enables the radio for transmission during
540 flight. When disabled, the radio will not
541 transmit anything during flight at all.
543 ==== Telemetry baud rate
545 This sets the modulation bit rate for data
546 transmission for both telemetry and packet
547 link mode. Lower bit rates will increase range
548 while reducing the amount of data that can be
549 sent and increasing battery consumption. All
550 telemetry is done using a rate 1/2 constraint
551 4 convolution code, so the actual data
552 transmission rate is 1/2 of the modulation bit
557 How often to transmit GPS information via APRS
558 (in seconds). When set to zero, APRS
559 transmission is disabled. This option is
560 available on TeleMetrum v2 and TeleMega
561 boards. TeleMetrum v1 boards cannot transmit
562 APRS packets. Note that a single APRS packet
563 takes nearly a full second to transmit, so
564 enabling this option will prevent sending any
565 other telemetry during that time.
569 Which SSID to report in APRS packets. By
570 default, this is set to the last digit of the
571 serial number, but can be configured to any
576 This sets the call sign included in each
577 telemetry packet. Set this as needed to
578 conform to your local radio regulations.
580 ==== Maximum Flight Log Size
582 This sets the space (in kilobytes) allocated
583 for each flight log. The available space will
584 be divided into chunks of this size. A smaller
585 value will allow more flights to be stored, a
586 larger value will record data from longer
589 ==== Ignitor Firing Mode
591 This configuration parameter allows the two standard ignitor
592 channels (Apogee and Main) to be used in different
596 This is the usual mode of operation; the
597 'apogee' channel is fired at apogee and the
598 'main' channel at the height above ground
599 specified by the 'Main Deploy Altitude' during
603 This fires both channels at apogee, the
604 'apogee' channel first followed after a two
605 second delay by the 'main' channel.
608 This fires both channels at the height above
609 ground specified by the Main Deploy Altitude
610 setting during descent. The 'apogee' channel
611 is fired first, followed after a two second
612 delay by the 'main' channel.
616 Because they include accelerometers,
617 TeleMetrum, TeleMega and EasyMega are
618 sensitive to the orientation of the board. By
619 default, they expect the antenna end to point
620 forward. This parameter allows that default to
621 be changed, permitting the board to be mounted
622 with the antenna pointing aft instead.
625 In this mode, the antenna end of the flight
626 computer must point forward, in line with the
627 expected flight path.
630 In this mode, the antenna end of the flight
631 computer must point aft, in line with the
632 expected flight path.
634 ==== Beeper Frequency
636 The beeper on all Altus Metrum flight
637 computers works best at 4000Hz, however if you
638 have more than one flight computer in a single
639 airframe, having all of them sound at the same
640 frequency can be confusing. This parameter
641 lets you adjust the base beeper frequency
644 ==== Configure Pyro Channels
646 .Additional Pyro Channel Configuration
647 image::configure-pyro.png[width="5.5in"]
649 This opens a separate window to configure the
650 additional pyro channels available on TeleMega
651 and EasyMega. One column is presented for
652 each channel. Each row represents a single
653 parameter, if enabled the parameter must meet
654 the specified test for the pyro channel to be
657 Select conditions and set the related value;
658 the pyro channel will be activated when *all*
659 of the conditions are met. Each pyro channel
660 has a separate set of configuration values, so
661 you can use different values for the same
662 condition with different channels.
664 At the bottom of the window, the 'Pyro Firing
665 Time' configuration sets the length of time
666 (in seconds) which each of these pyro channels
669 Once you have selected the appropriate
670 configuration for all of the necessary pyro
671 channels, you can save the pyro configuration
672 along with the rest of the flight computer
673 configuration by pressing the 'Save' button in
674 the main Configure Flight Computer window.
676 include::pyro-channels.raw[]
678 === Configure AltosUI
680 image:configure-altosui.png[width="2.4in"]
682 This button presents a dialog so that you can
683 configure the AltosUI global settings.
687 AltosUI provides voice announcements during
688 flight so that you can keep your eyes on the
689 sky and still get information about the
690 current flight status. However, sometimes you
691 don't want to hear them.
694 Turns all voice announcements on and off
697 Plays a short message allowing you to verify
698 that the audio system is working and the volume settings
703 AltosUI logs all telemetry data and saves all
704 TeleMetrum flash data to this directory. This
705 directory is also used as the staring point
706 when selecting data files for display or
709 Click on the directory name to bring up a
710 directory choosing dialog, select a new
711 directory and click 'Select Directory' to
712 change where AltosUI reads and writes data
717 This value is transmitted in each command
718 packet sent from TeleDongle and received from
719 an altimeter. It is not used in telemetry
720 mode, as the callsign configured in the
721 altimeter board is included in all telemetry
722 packets. Configure this with the AltosUI
723 operators call sign as needed to comply with
724 your local radio regulations.
726 Note that to successfully command a flight
727 computer over the radio (to configure the
728 altimeter, monitor idle, or fire pyro
729 charges), the callsign configured here must
730 exactly match the callsign configured in the
731 flight computer. This matching is case
736 This switches between metric units (meters)
737 and imperial units (feet and miles). This
738 affects the display of values use during
739 flight monitoring, configuration, data
740 graphing and all of the voice
741 announcements. It does not change the units
742 used when exporting to CSV files, those are
743 always produced in metric units.
747 Selects the set of fonts used in the flight
748 monitor window. Choose between the small,
749 medium and large sets.
753 This causes all communication with a connected
754 device to be dumped to the console from which
755 AltosUI was started. If you've started it from
756 an icon or menu entry, the output will simply
757 be discarded. This mode can be useful to debug
758 various serial communication issues.
760 ==== Manage Frequencies
762 This brings up a dialog where you can
763 configure the set of frequencies shown in the
764 various frequency menus. You can add as many
765 as you like, or even reconfigure the default
766 set. Changing this list does not affect the
767 frequency settings of any devices, it only
768 changes the set of frequencies shown in the
771 === Configure Groundstation
773 image:configure-groundstation.png[width="3.1in"]
775 Select this button and then select a
776 TeleDongle or TeleBT Device from the list
779 The first few lines of the dialog provide
780 information about the connected device,
781 including the product name, software version
782 and hardware serial number. Below that are the
783 individual configuration entries.
785 Note that TeleDongle and TeleBT don't save any
786 configuration data, the settings here are
787 recorded on the local machine in the Java
788 preferences database. Moving the device to
789 another machine, or using a different user
790 account on the same machine will cause
791 settings made here to have no effect.
793 At the bottom of the dialog, there are three
797 This writes any changes to the local Java
798 preferences file. If you don't press this
799 button, any changes you make will be lost.
802 This resets the dialog to the most recently
803 saved values, erasing any changes you have
807 This closes the dialog. Any unsaved changes
810 The rest of the dialog contains the parameters
815 This configures the frequency to use for both
816 telemetry and packet command mode. Set this
817 before starting any operation involving packet
818 command mode so that it will use the right
819 frequency. Telemetry monitoring mode also
820 provides a menu to change the frequency, and
821 that menu also sets the same Java preference
826 The radios in every Altus Metrum device are
827 calibrated at the factory to ensure that they
828 transmit and receive on the specified
829 frequency. To change a TeleDongle or TeleBT's
830 calibration, you must reprogram the unit
831 completely, so this entry simply shows the
832 current value and doesn't allow any changes.
836 This lets you match the telemetry and packet
837 link rate from the transmitter. If they don't
838 match, the device won't receive any data.
842 This reprograms Altus Metrum devices with new
843 firmware. TeleMetrum v1.x, TeleDongle v0.2, TeleMini
844 and TeleBT are all reprogrammed by using another
845 similar unit as a programming dongle (pair
846 programming). TeleMega, EasyMega, TeleMetrum v2,
847 EasyMini and TeleDongle v3 are all programmed directly
848 over their USB ports (self programming). Please read
849 the directions for flashing devices in the Updating
850 Device Firmware chapter below.
855 image::fire-igniter.png[width="1.2in"]
857 This activates the igniter circuits in the flight
858 computer to help test recovery systems
859 deployment. Because this command can operate over the
860 Packet Command Link, you can prepare the rocket as for
861 flight and then test the recovery system without
862 needing to snake wires inside the air-frame.
864 Selecting the 'Fire Igniter' button brings up the
865 usual device selection dialog. Pick the desired
866 device. This brings up another window which shows the
867 current continuity test status for all of the pyro
870 Next, select the desired igniter to fire. This will
871 enable the 'Arm' button.
873 Select the 'Arm' button. This enables the 'Fire'
874 button. The word 'Arm' is replaced by a countdown
875 timer indicating that you have 10 seconds to press the
876 'Fire' button or the system will deactivate, at which
877 point you start over again at selecting the desired
882 .Scan Channels Window
883 image::scan-channels.png[width="3.2in"]
885 This listens for telemetry packets on all of the
886 configured frequencies, displaying information about
887 each device it receives a packet from. You can select
888 which of the baud rates and telemetry formats should
889 be tried; by default, it only listens at 38400 baud
890 with the standard telemetry format used in v1.0 and
896 image::load-maps.png[width="5.2in"]
898 Before heading out to a new launch site, you can use
899 this to load satellite images in case you don't have
900 internet connectivity at the site.
902 There's a drop-down menu of launch sites we know
903 about; if your favorites aren't there, please let us
904 know the lat/lon and name of the site. The contents of
905 this list are actually downloaded from our server at
906 run-time, so as new sites are sent in, they'll get
907 automatically added to this list. If the launch site
908 isn't in the list, you can manually enter the lat/lon
911 There are four different kinds of maps you can view;
912 you can select which to download by selecting as many
913 as you like from the available types:
916 A combination of satellite imagery and road data. This
920 Just the satellite imagery without any annotation.
923 Roads, political boundaries and a few geographic
927 Contour intervals and shading that show hills and
930 You can specify the range of zoom levels to download;
931 smaller numbers show more area with less
932 resolution. The default level, 0, shows about
933 3m/pixel. One zoom level change doubles or halves that
934 number. Larger zoom levels show more detail, smaller
937 The Map Radius value sets how large an area around the
938 center point to download. Select a value large enough
939 to cover any plausible flight from that site. Be aware
940 that loading a large area with a high maximum zoom
941 level can attempt to download a lot of data. Loading
942 hybrid maps with a 10km radius at a minimum zoom of -2
943 and a maximum zoom of 2 consumes about 120MB of
944 space. Terrain and road maps consume about 1/10 as
945 much space as satellite or hybrid maps.
947 Clicking the 'Load Map' button will fetch images from
948 Google Maps; note that Google limits how many images
949 you can fetch at once, so if you load more than one
950 launch site, you may get some gray areas in the map
951 which indicate that Google is tired of sending data to
952 you. Try again later.
957 image::monitor-idle.png[width="5.2in"]
959 This brings up a dialog similar to the Monitor Flight
960 UI, except it works with the altimeter in “idle” mode
961 by sending query commands to discover the current
962 state rather than listening for telemetry
963 packets. Because this uses command mode, it needs to
964 have the TeleDongle and flight computer callsigns
965 match exactly. If you can receive telemetry, but
966 cannot manage to run Monitor Idle, then it's very
967 likely that your callsigns are different in some way.
969 You can change the frequency and callsign used to
970 communicate with the flight computer; they must both
971 match the configuration in the flight computer