1 <html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"><title>The Altus Metrum System</title><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.76.1"></head><body bgcolor="white" text="black" link="#0000FF" vlink="#840084" alink="#0000FF"><div class="book" title="The Altus Metrum System"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h1 class="title"><a name="idm15092880"></a>The Altus Metrum System</h1></div><div><h2 class="subtitle">An Owner's Manual for TeleMetrum, TeleMini and TeleDongle Devices</h2></div><div><div class="author"><h3 class="author"><span class="firstname">Bdale</span> <span class="surname">Garbee</span></h3></div></div><div><div class="author"><h3 class="author"><span class="firstname">Keith</span> <span class="surname">Packard</span></h3></div></div><div><div class="author"><h3 class="author"><span class="firstname">Bob</span> <span class="surname">Finch</span></h3></div></div><div><div class="author"><h3 class="author"><span class="firstname">Anthony</span> <span class="surname">Towns</span></h3></div></div><div><p class="copyright">Copyright © 2012 Bdale Garbee and Keith Packard</p></div><div><div class="legalnotice" title="Legal Notice"><a name="idp191472"></a><p>
2 This document is released under the terms of the
3 <a class="ulink" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/" target="_top">
4 Creative Commons ShareAlike 3.0
7 </p></div></div><div><div class="revhistory"><table border="1" width="100%" summary="Revision history"><tr><th align="left" valign="top" colspan="2"><b>Revision History</b></th></tr><tr><td align="left">Revision 1.1</td><td align="left">13 September 2012</td></tr><tr><td align="left" colspan="2">
8 Updated for software version 1.1. Version 1.1 has new
9 features but is otherwise compatible with version 1.0.
10 </td></tr><tr><td align="left">Revision 1.0</td><td align="left">24 August 2011</td></tr><tr><td align="left" colspan="2">
11 Updated for software version 1.0. Note that 1.0 represents a
12 telemetry format change, meaning both ends of a link
13 (TeleMetrum/TeleMini and TeleDongle) must be updated or
14 communications will fail.
15 </td></tr><tr><td align="left">Revision 0.9</td><td align="left">18 January 2011</td></tr><tr><td align="left" colspan="2">
16 Updated for software version 0.9. Note that 0.9 represents a
17 telemetry format change, meaning both ends of a link (TeleMetrum and
18 TeleDongle) must be updated or communications will fail.
19 </td></tr><tr><td align="left">Revision 0.8</td><td align="left">24 November 2010</td></tr><tr><td align="left" colspan="2">Updated for software version 0.8 </td></tr></table></div></div></div><hr></div><div class="acknowledgements" title="Acknowledgements"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp108936"></a>Acknowledgements</h2></div></div></div>
21 Thanks to Bob Finch, W9YA, NAR 12965, TRA 12350 for writing "The
22 Mere-Mortals Quick Start/Usage Guide to the Altus Metrum Starter
23 Kit" which formed the basis of the original Getting Started chapter
24 in this manual. Bob was one of our first customers for a production
25 TeleMetrum, and his continued enthusiasm and contributions
26 are immensely gratifying and highly appreciated!
29 And thanks to Anthony (AJ) Towns for major contributions including
30 the AltosUI graphing and site map code and associated documentation.
31 Free software means that our customers and friends can become our
32 collaborators, and we certainly appreciate this level of
36 Have fun using these products, and we hope to meet all of you
37 out on the rocket flight line somewhere.
38 </p><div class="literallayout"><p><br>
39 Bdale Garbee, KB0G<br>
40 NAR #87103, TRA #12201<br>
42 Keith Packard, KD7SQG<br>
43 NAR #88757, TRA #12200<br>
46 </div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp111040">1. Introduction and Overview</a></span></dt><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp1178312">2. Getting Started</a></span></dt><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp1458272">3. Handling Precautions</a></span></dt><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp2203968">4. Hardware Overview</a></span></dt><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp3576752">5. System Operation</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp2648960">1. Firmware Modes </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp843848">2. GPS </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp1474008">3. Controlling An Altimeter Over The Radio Link</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp8640">4. Ground Testing </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp53640">5. Radio Link </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp13080">6. Configurable Parameters</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp54304">6.1. Radio Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp55472">6.2. Apogee Delay</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp57856">6.3. Main Deployment Altitude</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp58968">6.4. Maximum Flight Log</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp62744">6.5. Ignite Mode</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp64088">6.6. Pad Orientation</a></span></dt></dl></dd></dl></dd><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp65864">6. AltosUI</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp66944">1. Monitor Flight</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp72832">1.1. Launch Pad</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp78800">1.2. Ascent</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp80968">1.3. Descent</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp84192">1.4. Landed</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3850320">1.5. Site Map</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3852600">2. Save Flight Data</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3855520">3. Replay Flight</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3856768">4. Graph Data</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3859280">5. Export Data</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3860288">5.1. Comma Separated Value Format</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3861864">5.2. Keyhole Markup Language (for Google Earth)</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3862696">6. Configure Altimeter</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3866872">6.1. Main Deploy Altitude</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3867856">6.2. Apogee Delay</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3868896">6.3. Radio Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3869808">6.4. Radio Calibration</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3870872">6.5. Callsign</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3871608">6.6. Maximum Flight Log Size</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3872472">6.7. Ignite Mode</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3875312">6.8. Pad Orientation</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3877536">7. Configure AltosUI</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3878160">7.1. Voice Settings</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3880432">7.2. Log Directory</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3881656">7.3. Callsign</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3882624">7.4. Imperial Units</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3883528">7.5. Font Size</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3884232">7.6. Serial Debug</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3885144">7.7. Manage Frequencies</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3886128">8. Configure Groundstation</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3890048">8.1. Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3891032">8.2. Radio Calibration</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3892024">9. Flash Image</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3895096">10. Fire Igniter</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3897200">11. Scan Channels</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3898104">12. Load Maps</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3900232">13. Monitor Idle</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp3901104">7. Using Altus Metrum Products</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3901424">1. Being Legal</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3902440">2. In the Rocket</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3904984">3. On the Ground</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3911792">4. Data Analysis</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3913544">5. Future Plans</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp3915584">8. Altimeter Installation Recommendations</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3916568">1. Mounting the Altimeter</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3918904">2. Dealing with the Antenna</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3923232">3. Preserving GPS Reception</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3925616">4. Radio Frequency Interference</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3929344">5. The Barometric Sensor</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3931184">6. Ground Testing</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp3933320">9. Updating Device Firmware</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3935760">1. Updating TeleMetrum Firmware</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3941064">2. Updating TeleMini Firmware</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3946480">3. Updating TeleDongle Firmware</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp3953536">10. Hardware Specifications</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3953856">1. TeleMetrum Specifications</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3959584">2. TeleMini Specifications</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="chapter"><a href="#idp3964408">11. FAQ</a></span></dt><dt><span class="appendix"><a href="#idp3968152">A. Notes for Older Software</a></span></dt><dt><span class="appendix"><a href="#idp3984384">B. Calibration</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3985360">1. Radio Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3988680">2. TeleMetrum Accelerometer</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="appendix"><a href="#idp3993576">C. Release Notes</a></span></dt></dl></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 1. Introduction and Overview"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp111040"></a>Chapter 1. Introduction and Overview</h2></div></div></div><p>
47 Welcome to the Altus Metrum community! Our circuits and software reflect
48 our passion for both hobby rocketry and Free Software. We hope their
49 capabilities and performance will delight you in every way, but by
50 releasing all of our hardware and software designs under open licenses,
51 we also hope to empower you to take as active a role in our collective
54 The first device created for our community was TeleMetrum, a dual
55 deploy altimeter with fully integrated GPS and radio telemetry
56 as standard features, and a "companion interface" that will
57 support optional capabilities in the future.
59 The newest device is TeleMini, a dual deploy altimeter with
60 radio telemetry and radio direction finding. This device is only
61 13mm by 38mm (½ inch by 1½ inches) and can fit easily in an 18mm
64 Complementing TeleMetrum and TeleMini is TeleDongle, a USB to RF
65 interface for communicating with the altimeters. Combined with your
67 notebook computer, TeleDongle and our associated user interface software
68 form a complete ground station capable of logging and displaying in-flight
69 telemetry, aiding rocket recovery, then processing and archiving flight
70 data for analysis and review.
72 More products will be added to the Altus Metrum family over time, and
73 we currently envision that this will be a single, comprehensive manual
74 for the entire product family.
75 </p></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 2. Getting Started"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp1178312"></a>Chapter 2. Getting Started</h2></div></div></div><p>
76 The first thing to do after you check the inventory of parts in your
77 "starter kit" is to charge the battery.
79 The TeleMetrum battery can be charged by plugging it into the
80 corresponding socket of the TeleMetrum and then using the USB A to
82 cable to plug the TeleMetrum into your computer's USB socket. The
83 TeleMetrum circuitry will charge the battery whenever it is plugged
84 in, because the TeleMetrum's on-off switch does NOT control the
87 When the GPS chip is initially searching for
88 satellites, TeleMetrum will consume more current than it can pull
89 from the USB port, so the battery must be attached in order to get
90 satellite lock. Once GPS is locked, the current consumption goes back
91 down enough to enable charging while
92 running. So it's a good idea to fully charge the battery as your
93 first item of business so there is no issue getting and maintaining
94 satellite lock. The yellow charge indicator led will go out when the
95 battery is nearly full and the charger goes to trickle charge. It
96 can take several hours to fully recharge a deeply discharged battery.
98 The TeleMini battery can be charged by disconnecting it from the
99 TeleMini board and plugging it into a standalone battery charger
100 board, and connecting that via a USB cable to a laptop or other USB
103 The other active device in the starter kit is the TeleDongle USB to
104 RF interface. If you plug it in to your Mac or Linux computer it should
105 "just work", showing up as a serial port device. Windows systems need
106 driver information that is part of the AltOS download to know that the
107 existing USB modem driver will work. We therefore recommend installing
108 our software before plugging in TeleDongle if you are using a Windows
109 computer. If you are using Linux and are having problems, try moving
110 to a fresher kernel (2.6.33 or newer), as the USB serial driver had
111 ugly bugs in some earlier versions.
113 Next you should obtain and install the AltOS software. These include
114 the AltosUI ground station program, current firmware images for
115 TeleMetrum, TeleMini and TeleDongle, and a number of standalone
116 utilities that are rarely needed. Pre-built binary packages are
117 available for Linux, Microsoft Windows, and recent MacOSX versions.
118 Full source code and build instructions are also available.
119 The latest version may always be downloaded from
120 <a class="ulink" href="http://altusmetrum.org/AltOS" target="_top">http://altusmetrum.org/AltOS</a>.
121 </p></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 3. Handling Precautions"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp1458272"></a>Chapter 3. Handling Precautions</h2></div></div></div><p>
122 All Altus Metrum products are sophisticated electronic devices.
123 When handled gently and properly installed in an air-frame, they
124 will deliver impressive results. However, as with all electronic
125 devices, there are some precautions you must take.
127 The Lithium Polymer rechargeable batteries have an
128 extraordinary power density. This is great because we can fly with
129 much less battery mass than if we used alkaline batteries or previous
130 generation rechargeable batteries... but if they are punctured
131 or their leads are allowed to short, they can and will release their
133 Thus we recommend that you take some care when handling our batteries
134 and consider giving them some extra protection in your air-frame. We
135 often wrap them in suitable scraps of closed-cell packing foam before
136 strapping them down, for example.
138 The barometric sensors used on both TeleMetrum and TeleMini are
139 sensitive to sunlight. In normal TeleMetrum mounting situations, it
140 and all of the other surface mount components
141 are "down" towards whatever the underlying mounting surface is, so
142 this is not normally a problem. Please consider this, though, when
143 designing an installation, for example, in an air-frame with a
144 see-through plastic payload bay. It is particularly important to
145 consider this with TeleMini, both because the baro sensor is on the
146 "top" of the board, and because many model rockets with payload bays
147 use clear plastic for the payload bay! Replacing these with an opaque
148 cardboard tube, painting them, or wrapping them with a layer of masking
149 tape are all reasonable approaches to keep the sensor out of direct
152 The barometric sensor sampling port must be able to "breathe",
153 both by not being covered by foam or tape or other materials that might
154 directly block the hole on the top of the sensor, and also by having a
155 suitable static vent to outside air.
157 As with all other rocketry electronics, Altus Metrum altimeters must
158 be protected from exposure to corrosive motor exhaust and ejection
160 </p></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 4. Hardware Overview"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp2203968"></a>Chapter 4. Hardware Overview</h2></div></div></div><p>
161 TeleMetrum is a 1 inch by 2.75 inch circuit board. It was designed to
162 fit inside coupler for 29mm air-frame tubing, but using it in a tube that
163 small in diameter may require some creativity in mounting and wiring
164 to succeed! The presence of an accelerometer means TeleMetrum should
165 be aligned along the flight axis of the airframe, and by default the 1/4
166 wave UHF wire antenna should be on the nose-cone end of the board. The
167 antenna wire is about 7 inches long, and wiring for a power switch and
168 the e-matches for apogee and main ejection charges depart from the
169 fin can end of the board, meaning an ideal "simple" avionics
170 bay for TeleMetrum should have at least 10 inches of interior length.
172 TeleMini is a 0.5 inch by 1.5 inch circuit board. It was designed to
173 fit inside an 18mm air-frame tube, but using it in a tube that
174 small in diameter may require some creativity in mounting and wiring
175 to succeed! Since there is no accelerometer, TeleMini can be mounted
176 in any convenient orientation. The default 1/4
177 wave UHF wire antenna attached to the center of one end of
178 the board is about 7 inches long, and wiring for a power switch and
179 the e-matches for apogee and main ejection charges depart from the
180 other end of the board, meaning an ideal "simple" avionics
181 bay for TeleMini should have at least 9 inches of interior length.
183 A typical TeleMetrum or TeleMini installation involves attaching
184 only a suitable Lithium Polymer battery, a single pole switch for
185 power on/off, and two pairs of wires connecting e-matches for the
186 apogee and main ejection charges. All Altus Metrum products are
187 designed for use with single-cell batteries with 3.7 volts nominal.
189 By default, we use the unregulated output of the Li-Po battery directly
190 to fire ejection charges. This works marvelously with standard
191 low-current e-matches like the J-Tek from MJG Technologies, and with
192 Quest Q2G2 igniters. However, if you want or need to use a separate
193 pyro battery, check out the "External Pyro Battery" section in this
194 manual for instructions on how to wire that up. The altimeters are
195 designed to work with an external pyro battery of no more than 15 volts.
197 Ejection charges are wired directly to the screw terminal block
198 at the aft end of the altimeter. You'll need a very small straight
199 blade screwdriver for these screws, such as you might find in a
200 jeweler's screwdriver set.
202 TeleMetrum also uses the screw terminal block for the power
203 switch leads. On TeleMini, the power switch leads are soldered
204 directly to the board and can be connected directly to a switch.
206 For most air-frames, the integrated antennas are more than
207 adequate. However, if you are installing in a carbon-fiber or
208 metal electronics bay which is opaque to RF signals, you may need to
209 use off-board external antennas instead. In this case, you can
210 order an altimeter with an SMA connector for the UHF antenna
211 connection, and, on TeleMetrum, you can unplug the integrated GPS
212 antenna and select an appropriate off-board GPS antenna with
213 cable terminating in a U.FL connector.
214 </p></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 5. System Operation"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3576752"></a>Chapter 5. System Operation</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp2648960">1. Firmware Modes </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp843848">2. GPS </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp1474008">3. Controlling An Altimeter Over The Radio Link</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp8640">4. Ground Testing </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp53640">5. Radio Link </a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp13080">6. Configurable Parameters</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp54304">6.1. Radio Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp55472">6.2. Apogee Delay</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp57856">6.3. Main Deployment Altitude</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp58968">6.4. Maximum Flight Log</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp62744">6.5. Ignite Mode</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp64088">6.6. Pad Orientation</a></span></dt></dl></dd></dl></div><div class="section" title="1. Firmware Modes"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp2648960"></a>1. Firmware Modes </h2></div></div></div><p>
215 The AltOS firmware build for the altimeters has two
216 fundamental modes, "idle" and "flight". Which of these modes
217 the firmware operates in is determined at start up time. For
218 TeleMetrum, the mode is controlled by the orientation of the
219 rocket (well, actually the board, of course...) at the time
220 power is switched on. If the rocket is "nose up", then
221 TeleMetrum assumes it's on a rail or rod being prepared for
222 launch, so the firmware chooses flight mode. However, if the
223 rocket is more or less horizontal, the firmware instead enters
224 idle mode. Since TeleMini doesn't have an accelerometer we can
225 use to determine orientation, "idle" mode is selected when the
226 board receives a command packet within the first five seconds
227 of operation; if no packet is received, the board enters
230 At power on, you will hear three beeps or see three flashes
231 ("S" in Morse code for start up) and then a pause while
232 the altimeter completes initialization and self test, and decides
233 which mode to enter next.
235 In flight or "pad" mode, the altimeter engages the flight
236 state machine, goes into transmit-only mode to
237 send telemetry, and waits for launch to be detected.
238 Flight mode is indicated by an "di-dah-dah-dit" ("P" for pad)
239 on the beeper or lights, followed by beeps or flashes
240 indicating the state of the pyrotechnic igniter continuity.
241 One beep/flash indicates apogee continuity, two beeps/flashes
242 indicate main continuity, three beeps/flashes indicate both
243 apogee and main continuity, and one longer "brap" sound or
244 rapidly alternating lights indicates no continuity. For a
245 dual deploy flight, make sure you're getting three beeps or
246 flashes before launching! For apogee-only or motor eject
247 flights, do what makes sense.
249 If idle mode is entered, you will hear an audible "di-dit" or see
250 two short flashes ("I" for idle), and the flight state machine is
251 disengaged, thus no ejection charges will fire. The altimeters also
252 listen for the radio link when in idle mode for requests sent via
253 TeleDongle. Commands can be issued to a TeleMetrum in idle mode
255 USB or the radio link equivalently. TeleMini only has the radio link.
256 Idle mode is useful for configuring the altimeter, for extracting data
257 from the on-board storage chip after flight, and for ground testing
260 One "neat trick" of particular value when TeleMetrum is used with
261 very large air-frames, is that you can power the board up while the
262 rocket is horizontal, such that it comes up in idle mode. Then you can
263 raise the air-frame to launch position, and issue a 'reset' command
264 via TeleDongle over the radio link to cause the altimeter to reboot and
265 come up in flight mode. This is much safer than standing on the top
266 step of a rickety step-ladder or hanging off the side of a launch
267 tower with a screw-driver trying to turn on your avionics before
269 </p></div><div class="section" title="2. GPS"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp843848"></a>2. GPS </h2></div></div></div><p>
270 TeleMetrum includes a complete GPS receiver. A complete explanation
271 of how GPS works is beyond the scope of this manual, but the bottom
272 line is that the TeleMetrum GPS receiver needs to lock onto at least
273 four satellites to obtain a solid 3 dimensional position fix and know
276 TeleMetrum provides backup power to the GPS chip any time a
277 battery is connected. This allows the receiver to "warm start" on
278 the launch rail much faster than if every power-on were a GPS
279 "cold start". In typical operations, powering up TeleMetrum
280 on the flight line in idle mode while performing final air-frame
281 preparation will be sufficient to allow the GPS receiver to cold
282 start and acquire lock. Then the board can be powered down during
283 RSO review and installation on a launch rod or rail. When the board
284 is turned back on, the GPS system should lock very quickly, typically
285 long before igniter installation and return to the flight line are
287 </p></div><div class="section" title="3. Controlling An Altimeter Over The Radio Link"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp1474008"></a>3. Controlling An Altimeter Over The Radio Link</h2></div></div></div><p>
288 One of the unique features of the Altus Metrum system is
289 the ability to create a two way command link between TeleDongle
290 and an altimeter using the digital radio transceivers built into
291 each device. This allows you to interact with the altimeter from
292 afar, as if it were directly connected to the computer.
294 Any operation which can be performed with TeleMetrum can
295 either be done with TeleMetrum directly connected to the
296 computer via the USB cable, or through the radio
297 link. TeleMini doesn't provide a USB connector and so it is
298 always communicated with over radio. Select the appropriate
299 TeleDongle device when the list of devices is presented and
300 AltosUI will interact with an altimeter over the radio link.
302 One oddity in the current interface is how AltosUI selects the
303 frequency for radio communications. Instead of providing
304 an interface to specifically configure the frequency, it uses
305 whatever frequency was most recently selected for the target
306 TeleDongle device in Monitor Flight mode. If you haven't ever
307 used that mode with the TeleDongle in question, select the
308 Monitor Flight button from the top level UI, and pick the
309 appropriate TeleDongle device. Once the flight monitoring
310 window is open, select the desired frequency and then close it
311 down again. All radio communications will now use that frequency.
312 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
313 Save Flight Data—Recover flight data from the rocket without
315 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
316 Configure altimeter apogee delays or main deploy heights
317 to respond to changing launch conditions. You can also
318 'reboot' the altimeter. Use this to remotely enable the
319 flight computer by turning TeleMetrum on in "idle" mode,
320 then once the air-frame is oriented for launch, you can
321 reboot the altimeter and have it restart in pad mode
322 without having to climb the scary ladder.
323 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
324 Fire Igniters—Test your deployment charges without snaking
325 wires out through holes in the air-frame. Simply assembly the
326 rocket as if for flight with the apogee and main charges
327 loaded, then remotely command the altimeter to fire the
329 </p></li></ul></div><p>
330 Operation over the radio link for configuring an altimeter, ground
331 testing igniters, and so forth uses the same RF frequencies as flight
332 telemetry. To configure the desired TeleDongle frequency, select
333 the monitor flight tab, then use the frequency selector and
334 close the window before performing other desired radio operations.
336 TeleMetrum only enables radio commanding in 'idle' mode, so
337 make sure you have TeleMetrum lying horizontally when you turn
338 it on. Otherwise, TeleMetrum will start in 'pad' mode ready for
339 flight, and will not be listening for command packets from TeleDongle.
341 TeleMini listens for a command packet for five seconds after
342 first being turned on, if it doesn't hear anything, it enters
343 'pad' mode, ready for flight and will no longer listen for
344 command packets. The easiest way to connect to TeleMini is to
345 initiate the command and select the TeleDongle device. At this
346 point, the TeleDongle will be attempting to communicate with
347 the TeleMini. Now turn TeleMini on, and it should immediately
348 start communicating with the TeleDongle and the desired
349 operation can be performed.
351 You can monitor the operation of the radio link by watching the
352 lights on the devices. The red LED will flash each time a packet
353 is tramsitted, while the green LED will light up on TeleDongle when
354 it is waiting to receive a packet from the altimeter.
355 </p></div><div class="section" title="4. Ground Testing"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp8640"></a>4. Ground Testing </h2></div></div></div><p>
356 An important aspect of preparing a rocket using electronic deployment
357 for flight is ground testing the recovery system. Thanks
358 to the bi-directional radio link central to the Altus Metrum system,
359 this can be accomplished in a TeleMetrum or TeleMini equipped rocket
360 with less work than you may be accustomed to with other systems. It
363 Just prep the rocket for flight, then power up the altimeter
364 in "idle" mode (placing air-frame horizontal for TeleMetrum or
365 selected the Configure Altimeter tab for TeleMini). This will cause
366 the firmware to go into "idle" mode, in which the normal flight
367 state machine is disabled and charges will not fire without
368 manual command. You can now command the altimeter to fire the apogee
369 or main charges from a safe distance using your computer and
370 TeleDongle and the Fire Igniter tab to complete ejection testing.
371 </p></div><div class="section" title="5. Radio Link"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp53640"></a>5. Radio Link </h2></div></div></div><p>
372 The chip our boards are based on incorporates an RF transceiver, but
373 it's not a full duplex system... each end can only be transmitting or
374 receiving at any given moment. So we had to decide how to manage the
377 By design, the altimeter firmware listens for the radio link when
378 it's in "idle mode", which
379 allows us to use the radio link to configure the rocket, do things like
380 ejection tests, and extract data after a flight without having to
381 crack open the air-frame. However, when the board is in "flight
382 mode", the altimeter only
383 transmits and doesn't listen at all. That's because we want to put
384 ultimate priority on event detection and getting telemetry out of
386 the radio in case the rocket crashes and we aren't able to extract
389 We don't use a 'normal packet radio' mode like APRS because they're
390 just too inefficient. The GFSK modulation we use is FSK with the
391 base-band pulses passed through a
392 Gaussian filter before they go into the modulator to limit the
393 transmitted bandwidth. When combined with the hardware forward error
394 correction support in the cc1111 chip, this allows us to have a very
395 robust 38.4 kilobit data link with only 10 milliwatts of transmit
396 power, a whip antenna in the rocket, and a hand-held Yagi on the
397 ground. We've had flights to above 21k feet AGL with great reception,
398 and calculations suggest we should be good to well over 40k feet AGL
399 with a 5-element yagi on the ground. We hope to fly boards to higher
400 altitudes over time, and would of course appreciate customer feedback
401 on performance in higher altitude flights!
402 </p></div><div class="section" title="6. Configurable Parameters"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp13080"></a>6. Configurable Parameters</h2></div></div></div><p>
403 Configuring an Altus Metrum altimeter for flight is very
404 simple. Even on our baro-only TeleMini board, the use of a Kalman
405 filter means there is no need to set a "mach delay". The few
406 configurable parameters can all be set using AltosUI over USB or
407 or radio link via TeleDongle.
408 </p><div class="section" title="6.1. Radio Frequency"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp54304"></a>6.1. Radio Frequency</h3></div></div></div><p>
409 Altus Metrum boards support radio frequencies in the 70cm
410 band. By default, the configuration interface provides a
411 list of 10 "standard" frequencies in 100kHz channels starting at
412 434.550MHz. However, the firmware supports use of
413 any 50kHz multiple within the 70cm band. At any given
414 launch, we highly recommend coordinating when and by whom each
415 frequency will be used to avoid interference. And of course, both
416 altimeter and TeleDongle must be configured to the same
417 frequency to successfully communicate with each other.
418 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.2. Apogee Delay"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp55472"></a>6.2. Apogee Delay</h3></div></div></div><p>
419 Apogee delay is the number of seconds after the altimeter detects flight
420 apogee that the drogue charge should be fired. In most cases, this
421 should be left at the default of 0. However, if you are flying
422 redundant electronics such as for an L3 certification, you may wish
423 to set one of your altimeters to a positive delay so that both
424 primary and backup pyrotechnic charges do not fire simultaneously.
426 The Altus Metrum apogee detection algorithm fires exactly at
427 apogee. If you are also flying an altimeter like the
428 PerfectFlite MAWD, which only supports selecting 0 or 1
429 seconds of apogee delay, you may wish to set the MAWD to 0
430 seconds delay and set the TeleMetrum to fire your backup 2
431 or 3 seconds later to avoid any chance of both charges
432 firing simultaneously. We've flown several air-frames this
433 way quite happily, including Keith's successful L3 cert.
434 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.3. Main Deployment Altitude"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp57856"></a>6.3. Main Deployment Altitude</h3></div></div></div><p>
435 By default, the altimeter will fire the main deployment charge at an
436 elevation of 250 meters (about 820 feet) above ground. We think this
437 is a good elevation for most air-frames, but feel free to change this
438 to suit. In particular, if you are flying two altimeters, you may
440 deployment elevation for the backup altimeter to be something lower
441 than the primary so that both pyrotechnic charges don't fire
443 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.4. Maximum Flight Log"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp58968"></a>6.4. Maximum Flight Log</h3></div></div></div><p>
444 TeleMetrum version 1.1 and 1.2 have 2MB of on-board flash storage,
445 enough to hold over 40 minutes of data at full data rate
446 (100 samples/second). TeleMetrum 1.0 has 1MB of on-board
447 storage. As data are stored at a reduced rate during descent
448 (10 samples/second), there's plenty of space to store many
449 flights worth of data.
451 The on-board flash is partitioned into separate flight logs,
452 each of a fixed maximum size. Increase the maximum size of
453 each log and you reduce the number of flights that can be
454 stored. Decrease the size and TeleMetrum can store more
457 All of the configuration data is also stored in the flash
458 memory, which consumes 64kB on TeleMetrum v1.1/v1.2 and 256B on
459 TeleMetrum v1.0. This configuration space is not available
460 for storing flight log data.
462 To compute the amount of space needed for a single flight,
463 you can multiply the expected ascent time (in seconds) by
464 800, multiply the expected descent time (in seconds) by 80
465 and add the two together. That will slightly under-estimate
466 the storage (in bytes) needed for the flight. For instance,
467 a flight spending 20 seconds in ascent and 150 seconds in
468 descent will take about (20 * 800) + (150 * 80) = 28000
469 bytes of storage. You could store dozens of these flights in
472 The default size, 192kB, allows for 10 flights of storage on
473 TeleMetrum v1.1/v1.2 and 5 flights on TeleMetrum v1.0. This
474 ensures that you won't need to erase the memory before
475 flying each time while still allowing more than sufficient
476 storage for each flight.
478 As TeleMini does not contain an accelerometer, it stores
479 data at 10 samples per second during ascent and one sample
480 per second during descent. Each sample is a two byte reading
481 from the barometer. These are stored in 5kB of
482 on-chip flash memory which can hold 256 seconds at the
483 ascent rate or 2560 seconds at the descent rate. Because of
484 the limited storage, TeleMini cannot hold data for more than
485 one flight, and so must be erased after each flight or it
486 will not capture data for subsequent flights.
487 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.5. Ignite Mode"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp62744"></a>6.5. Ignite Mode</h3></div></div></div><p>
488 Instead of firing one charge at apogee and another charge at
489 a fixed height above the ground, you can configure the
490 altimeter to fire both at apogee or both during
491 descent. This was added to support an airframe that has two
492 TeleMetrum computers, one in the fin can and one in the
495 Providing the ability to use both igniters for apogee or
496 main allows some level of redundancy without needing two
497 flight computers. In Redundant Apogee or Redundant Main
498 mode, the two charges will be fired two seconds apart.
499 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.6. Pad Orientation"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp64088"></a>6.6. Pad Orientation</h3></div></div></div><p>
500 TeleMetrum measures acceleration along the axis of the
501 board. Which way the board is oriented affects the sign of
502 the acceleration value. Instead of trying to guess which way
503 the board is mounted in the air frame, TeleMetrum must be
504 explicitly configured for either Antenna Up or Antenna
505 Down. The default, Antenna Up, expects the end of the
506 TeleMetrum board connected to the 70cm antenna to be nearest
507 the nose of the rocket, with the end containing the screw
508 terminals nearest the tail.
509 </p></div></div></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 6. AltosUI"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp65864"></a>Chapter 6. AltosUI</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp66944">1. Monitor Flight</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp72832">1.1. Launch Pad</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp78800">1.2. Ascent</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp80968">1.3. Descent</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp84192">1.4. Landed</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3850320">1.5. Site Map</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3852600">2. Save Flight Data</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3855520">3. Replay Flight</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3856768">4. Graph Data</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3859280">5. Export Data</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3860288">5.1. Comma Separated Value Format</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3861864">5.2. Keyhole Markup Language (for Google Earth)</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3862696">6. Configure Altimeter</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3866872">6.1. Main Deploy Altitude</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3867856">6.2. Apogee Delay</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3868896">6.3. Radio Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3869808">6.4. Radio Calibration</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3870872">6.5. Callsign</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3871608">6.6. Maximum Flight Log Size</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3872472">6.7. Ignite Mode</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3875312">6.8. Pad Orientation</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3877536">7. Configure AltosUI</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3878160">7.1. Voice Settings</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3880432">7.2. Log Directory</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3881656">7.3. Callsign</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3882624">7.4. Imperial Units</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3883528">7.5. Font Size</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3884232">7.6. Serial Debug</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3885144">7.7. Manage Frequencies</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3886128">8. Configure Groundstation</a></span></dt><dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3890048">8.1. Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3891032">8.2. Radio Calibration</a></span></dt></dl></dd><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3892024">9. Flash Image</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3895096">10. Fire Igniter</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3897200">11. Scan Channels</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3898104">12. Load Maps</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3900232">13. Monitor Idle</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>
510 The AltosUI program provides a graphical user interface for
511 interacting with the Altus Metrum product family, including
512 TeleMetrum, TeleMini and TeleDongle. AltosUI can monitor telemetry data,
513 configure TeleMetrum, TeleMini and TeleDongle devices and many other
514 tasks. The primary interface window provides a selection of
515 buttons, one for each major activity in the system. This manual
516 is split into chapters, each of which documents one of the tasks
517 provided from the top-level toolbar.
518 </p><div class="section" title="1. Monitor Flight"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp66944"></a>1. Monitor Flight</h2></div><div><h3 class="subtitle">Receive, Record and Display Telemetry Data</h3></div></div></div><p>
519 Selecting this item brings up a dialog box listing all of the
520 connected TeleDongle devices. When you choose one of these,
521 AltosUI will create a window to display telemetry data as
522 received by the selected TeleDongle device.
524 All telemetry data received are automatically recorded in
525 suitable log files. The name of the files includes the current
526 date and rocket serial and flight numbers.
528 The radio frequency being monitored by the TeleDongle device is
529 displayed at the top of the window. You can configure the
530 frequency by clicking on the frequency box and selecting the desired
531 frequency. AltosUI remembers the last frequency selected for each
532 TeleDongle and selects that automatically the next time you use
535 Below the TeleDongle frequency selector, the window contains a few
536 significant pieces of information about the altimeter providing
537 the telemetry data stream:
538 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>The configured call-sign</p></li><li class="listitem"><p>The device serial number</p></li><li class="listitem"><p>The flight number. Each altimeter remembers how many
540 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
541 The rocket flight state. Each flight passes through several
542 states including Pad, Boost, Fast, Coast, Drogue, Main and
544 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
545 The Received Signal Strength Indicator value. This lets
546 you know how strong a signal TeleDongle is receiving. The
547 radio inside TeleDongle operates down to about -99dBm;
548 weaker signals may not be receivable. The packet link uses
549 error detection and correction techniques which prevent
550 incorrect data from being reported.
551 </p></li></ul></div><p>
552 Finally, the largest portion of the window contains a set of
553 tabs, each of which contain some information about the rocket.
554 They're arranged in 'flight order' so that as the flight
555 progresses, the selected tab automatically switches to display
556 data relevant to the current state of the flight. You can select
557 other tabs at any time. The final 'table' tab displays all of
558 the raw telemetry values in one place in a spreadsheet-like format.
559 </p><div class="section" title="1.1. Launch Pad"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp72832"></a>1.1. Launch Pad</h3></div></div></div><p>
560 The 'Launch Pad' tab shows information used to decide when the
561 rocket is ready for flight. The first elements include red/green
562 indicators, if any of these is red, you'll want to evaluate
563 whether the rocket is ready to launch:
564 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
565 Battery Voltage. This indicates whether the Li-Po battery
566 powering the TeleMetrum has sufficient charge to last for
567 the duration of the flight. A value of more than
568 3.7V is required for a 'GO' status.
569 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
570 Apogee Igniter Voltage. This indicates whether the apogee
571 igniter has continuity. If the igniter has a low
572 resistance, then the voltage measured here will be close
573 to the Li-Po battery voltage. A value greater than 3.2V is
574 required for a 'GO' status.
575 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
576 Main Igniter Voltage. This indicates whether the main
577 igniter has continuity. If the igniter has a low
578 resistance, then the voltage measured here will be close
579 to the Li-Po battery voltage. A value greater than 3.2V is
580 required for a 'GO' status.
581 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
582 On-board Data Logging. This indicates whether there is
583 space remaining on-board to store flight data for the
584 upcoming flight. If you've downloaded data, but failed
585 to erase flights, there may not be any space
586 left. TeleMetrum can store multiple flights, depending
587 on the configured maximum flight log size. TeleMini
588 stores only a single flight, so it will need to be
589 downloaded and erased after each flight to capture
590 data. This only affects on-board flight logging; the
591 altimeter will still transmit telemetry and fire
592 ejection charges at the proper times.
593 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
594 GPS Locked. For a TeleMetrum device, this indicates whether the GPS receiver is
595 currently able to compute position information. GPS requires
596 at least 4 satellites to compute an accurate position.
597 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
598 GPS Ready. For a TeleMetrum device, this indicates whether GPS has reported at least
599 10 consecutive positions without losing lock. This ensures
600 that the GPS receiver has reliable reception from the
602 </p></li></ul></div><p>
604 The Launchpad tab also shows the computed launch pad position
605 and altitude, averaging many reported positions to improve the
608 </p></div><div class="section" title="1.2. Ascent"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp78800"></a>1.2. Ascent</h3></div></div></div><p>
609 This tab is shown during Boost, Fast and Coast
610 phases. The information displayed here helps monitor the
611 rocket as it heads towards apogee.
613 The height, speed and acceleration are shown along with the
614 maximum values for each of them. This allows you to quickly
615 answer the most commonly asked questions you'll hear during
618 The current latitude and longitude reported by the TeleMetrum GPS are
619 also shown. Note that under high acceleration, these values
620 may not get updated as the GPS receiver loses position
621 fix. Once the rocket starts coasting, the receiver should
622 start reporting position again.
624 Finally, the current igniter voltages are reported as in the
625 Launch Pad tab. This can help diagnose deployment failures
626 caused by wiring which comes loose under high acceleration.
627 </p></div><div class="section" title="1.3. Descent"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp80968"></a>1.3. Descent</h3></div></div></div><p>
628 Once the rocket has reached apogee and (we hope) activated the
629 apogee charge, attention switches to tracking the rocket on
630 the way back to the ground, and for dual-deploy flights,
631 waiting for the main charge to fire.
633 To monitor whether the apogee charge operated correctly, the
634 current descent rate is reported along with the current
635 height. Good descent rates vary based on the choice of recovery
636 components, but generally range from 15-30m/s on drogue and should
637 be below 10m/s when under the main parachute in a dual-deploy flight.
639 For TeleMetrum altimeters, you can locate the rocket in the sky
640 using the elevation and
641 bearing information to figure out where to look. Elevation is
642 in degrees above the horizon. Bearing is reported in degrees
643 relative to true north. Range can help figure out how big the
644 rocket will appear. Note that all of these values are relative
645 to the pad location. If the elevation is near 90°, the rocket
646 is over the pad, not over you.
648 Finally, the igniter voltages are reported in this tab as
649 well, both to monitor the main charge as well as to see what
650 the status of the apogee charge is. Note that some commercial
651 e-matches are designed to retain continuity even after being
652 fired, and will continue to show as green or return from red to
654 </p></div><div class="section" title="1.4. Landed"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp84192"></a>1.4. Landed</h3></div></div></div><p>
655 Once the rocket is on the ground, attention switches to
656 recovery. While the radio signal is often lost once the
657 rocket is on the ground, the last reported GPS position is
658 generally within a short distance of the actual landing location.
660 The last reported GPS position is reported both by
661 latitude and longitude as well as a bearing and distance from
662 the launch pad. The distance should give you a good idea of
663 whether to walk or hitch a ride. Take the reported
664 latitude and longitude and enter them into your hand-held GPS
665 unit and have that compute a track to the landing location.
667 Both TeleMini and TeleMetrum will continue to transmit RDF
668 tones after landing, allowing you to locate the rocket by
669 following the radio signal if necessary. You may need to get
670 away from the clutter of the flight line, or even get up on
671 a hill (or your neighbor's RV roof) to receive the RDF signal.
673 The maximum height, speed and acceleration reported
674 during the flight are displayed for your admiring observers.
675 The accuracy of these immediate values depends on the quality
676 of your radio link and how many packets were received.
677 Recovering the on-board data after flight will likely yield
678 more precise results.
680 To get more detailed information about the flight, you can
681 click on the 'Graph Flight' button which will bring up a
682 graph window for the current flight.
683 </p></div><div class="section" title="1.5. Site Map"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3850320"></a>1.5. Site Map</h3></div></div></div><p>
684 When the TeleMetrum has a GPS fix, the Site Map tab will map
685 the rocket's position to make it easier for you to locate the
686 rocket, both while it is in the air, and when it has landed. The
687 rocket's state is indicated by color: white for pad, red for
688 boost, pink for fast, yellow for coast, light blue for drogue,
689 dark blue for main, and black for landed.
691 The map's scale is approximately 3m (10ft) per pixel. The map
692 can be dragged using the left mouse button. The map will attempt
693 to keep the rocket roughly centered while data is being received.
695 Images are fetched automatically via the Google Maps Static API,
696 and cached on disk for reuse. If map images cannot be downloaded,
697 the rocket's path will be traced on a dark gray background
700 You can pre-load images for your favorite launch sites
701 before you leave home; check out the 'Preload Maps' section below.
702 </p></div></div><div class="section" title="2. Save Flight Data"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3852600"></a>2. Save Flight Data</h2></div></div></div><p>
703 The altimeter records flight data to its internal flash memory.
704 TeleMetrum data is recorded at a much higher rate than the telemetry
705 system can handle, and is not subject to radio drop-outs. As
706 such, it provides a more complete and precise record of the
707 flight. The 'Save Flight Data' button allows you to read the
708 flash memory and write it to disk. As TeleMini has only a barometer, it
709 records data at the same rate as the telemetry signal, but there will be
710 no data lost due to telemetry drop-outs.
712 Clicking on the 'Save Flight Data' button brings up a list of
713 connected TeleMetrum and TeleDongle devices. If you select a
714 TeleMetrum device, the flight data will be downloaded from that
715 device directly. If you select a TeleDongle device, flight data
716 will be downloaded from an altimeter over radio link via the
717 specified TeleDongle. See the chapter on Controlling An Altimeter
718 Over The Radio Link for more information.
720 After the device has been selected, a dialog showing the
721 flight data saved in the device will be shown allowing you to
722 select which flights to download and which to delete. With
723 version 0.9 or newer firmware, you must erase flights in order
724 for the space they consume to be reused by another
725 flight. This prevents accidentally losing flight data
726 if you neglect to download data before flying again. Note that
727 if there is no more space available in the device, then no
728 data will be recorded during the next flight.
730 The file name for each flight log is computed automatically
731 from the recorded flight date, altimeter serial number and
732 flight number information.
733 </p></div><div class="section" title="3. Replay Flight"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3855520"></a>3. Replay Flight</h2></div></div></div><p>
734 Select this button and you are prompted to select a flight
735 record file, either a .telem file recording telemetry data or a
736 .eeprom file containing flight data saved from the altimeter
739 Once a flight record is selected, the flight monitor interface
740 is displayed and the flight is re-enacted in real time. Check
741 the Monitor Flight chapter above to learn how this window operates.
742 </p></div><div class="section" title="4. Graph Data"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3856768"></a>4. Graph Data</h2></div></div></div><p>
743 Select this button and you are prompted to select a flight
744 record file, either a .telem file recording telemetry data or a
745 .eeprom file containing flight data saved from
748 Once a flight record is selected, a window with two tabs is
749 opened. The first tab contains a graph with acceleration
750 (blue), velocity (green) and altitude (red) of the flight,
751 measured in metric units. The
752 apogee(yellow) and main(magenta) igniter voltages are also
753 displayed; high voltages indicate continuity, low voltages
754 indicate open circuits. The second tab contains some basic
757 The graph can be zoomed into a particular area by clicking and
758 dragging down and to the right. Once zoomed, the graph can be
759 reset by clicking and dragging up and to the left. Holding down
760 control and clicking and dragging allows the graph to be panned.
761 The right mouse button causes a pop-up menu to be displayed, giving
762 you the option save or print the plot.
764 Note that telemetry files will generally produce poor graphs
765 due to the lower sampling rate and missed telemetry packets.
766 Use saved flight data in .eeprom files for graphing where possible.
767 </p></div><div class="section" title="5. Export Data"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3859280"></a>5. Export Data</h2></div></div></div><p>
768 This tool takes the raw data files and makes them available for
769 external analysis. When you select this button, you are prompted to
771 data file (either .eeprom or .telem will do, remember that
772 .eeprom files contain higher resolution and more continuous
773 data). Next, a second dialog appears which is used to select
774 where to write the resulting file. It has a selector to choose
775 between CSV and KML file formats.
776 </p><div class="section" title="5.1. Comma Separated Value Format"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3860288"></a>5.1. Comma Separated Value Format</h3></div></div></div><p>
777 This is a text file containing the data in a form suitable for
778 import into a spreadsheet or other external data analysis
779 tool. The first few lines of the file contain the version and
780 configuration information from the altimeter, then
781 there is a single header line which labels all of the
782 fields. All of these lines start with a '#' character which
783 many tools can be configured to skip over.
785 The remaining lines of the file contain the data, with each
786 field separated by a comma and at least one space. All of
787 the sensor values are converted to standard units, with the
788 barometric data reported in both pressure, altitude and
789 height above pad units.
790 </p></div><div class="section" title="5.2. Keyhole Markup Language (for Google Earth)"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3861864"></a>5.2. Keyhole Markup Language (for Google Earth)</h3></div></div></div><p>
791 This is the format used by Google Earth to provide an overlay
792 within that application. With this, you can use Google Earth to
793 see the whole flight path in 3D.
794 </p></div></div><div class="section" title="6. Configure Altimeter"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3862696"></a>6. Configure Altimeter</h2></div></div></div><p>
795 Select this button and then select either a TeleMetrum or
796 TeleDongle Device from the list provided. Selecting a TeleDongle
797 device will use the radio link to configure a remote altimeter.
799 The first few lines of the dialog provide information about the
800 connected device, including the product name,
801 software version and hardware serial number. Below that are the
802 individual configuration entries.
804 At the bottom of the dialog, there are four buttons:
805 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
806 Save. This writes any changes to the
807 configuration parameter block in flash memory. If you don't
808 press this button, any changes you make will be lost.
809 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
810 Reset. This resets the dialog to the most recently saved values,
811 erasing any changes you have made.
812 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
813 Reboot. This reboots the device. Use this to
814 switch from idle to pad mode by rebooting once the rocket is
815 oriented for flight, or to confirm changes you think you saved
817 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
818 Close. This closes the dialog. Any unsaved changes will be
820 </p></li></ul></div><p>
821 The rest of the dialog contains the parameters to be configured.
822 </p><div class="section" title="6.1. Main Deploy Altitude"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3866872"></a>6.1. Main Deploy Altitude</h3></div></div></div><p>
823 This sets the altitude (above the recorded pad altitude) at
824 which the 'main' igniter will fire. The drop-down menu shows
825 some common values, but you can edit the text directly and
826 choose whatever you like. If the apogee charge fires below
827 this altitude, then the main charge will fire two seconds
828 after the apogee charge fires.
829 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.2. Apogee Delay"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3867856"></a>6.2. Apogee Delay</h3></div></div></div><p>
830 When flying redundant electronics, it's often important to
831 ensure that multiple apogee charges don't fire at precisely
832 the same time, as that can over pressurize the apogee deployment
833 bay and cause a structural failure of the air-frame. The Apogee
834 Delay parameter tells the flight computer to fire the apogee
835 charge a certain number of seconds after apogee has been
837 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.3. Radio Frequency"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3868896"></a>6.3. Radio Frequency</h3></div></div></div><p>
838 This configures which of the configured frequencies to use for both
839 telemetry and packet command mode. Note that if you set this
840 value via packet command mode, you will have to reconfigure
841 the TeleDongle frequency before you will be able to use packet
843 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.4. Radio Calibration"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3869808"></a>6.4. Radio Calibration</h3></div></div></div><p>
844 The radios in every Altus Metrum device are calibrated at the
845 factory to ensure that they transmit and receive on the
846 specified frequency. If you need to you can adjust the calibration
847 by changing this value. Do not do this without understanding what
848 the value means, read the appendix on calibration and/or the source
849 code for more information. To change a TeleDongle's calibration,
850 you must reprogram the unit completely.
851 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.5. Callsign"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3870872"></a>6.5. Callsign</h3></div></div></div><p>
852 This sets the call sign included in each telemetry packet. Set this
853 as needed to conform to your local radio regulations.
854 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.6. Maximum Flight Log Size"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3871608"></a>6.6. Maximum Flight Log Size</h3></div></div></div><p>
855 This sets the space (in kilobytes) allocated for each flight
856 log. The available space will be divided into chunks of this
857 size. A smaller value will allow more flights to be stored,
858 a larger value will record data from longer flights.
859 </p></div><div class="section" title="6.7. Ignite Mode"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3872472"></a>6.7. Ignite Mode</h3></div></div></div><p>
860 TeleMetrum and TeleMini provide two igniter channels as they
861 were originally designed as dual-deploy flight
862 computers. This configuration parameter allows the two
863 channels to be used in different configurations.
864 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
865 Dual Deploy. This is the usual mode of operation; the
866 'apogee' channel is fired at apogee and the 'main'
867 channel at the height above ground specified by the
868 'Main Deploy Altitude' during descent.
869 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
870 Redundant Apogee. This fires both channels at
871 apogee, the 'apogee' channel first followed after a two second
872 delay by the 'main' channel.
873 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
874 Redundant Main. This fires both channels at the
875 height above ground specified by the Main Deploy
876 Altitude setting during descent. The 'apogee'
877 channel is fired first, followed after a two second
878 delay by the 'main' channel.
879 </p></li></ul></div></div><div class="section" title="6.8. Pad Orientation"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3875312"></a>6.8. Pad Orientation</h3></div></div></div><p>
880 Because it includes an accelerometer, TeleMetrum is
881 sensitive to the orientation of the board. By default, it
882 expects the antenna end to point forward. This parameter
883 allows that default to be changed, permitting the board to
884 be mounted with the antenna pointing aft instead.
885 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
886 Antenna Up. In this mode, the antenna end of the
887 TeleMetrum board must point forward, in line with the
888 expected flight path.
889 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
890 Antenna Down. In this mode, the antenna end of the
891 TeleMetrum board must point aft, in line with the
892 expected flight path.
893 </p></li></ul></div></div></div><div class="section" title="7. Configure AltosUI"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3877536"></a>7. Configure AltosUI</h2></div></div></div><p>
894 This button presents a dialog so that you can configure the AltosUI global settings.
895 </p><div class="section" title="7.1. Voice Settings"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3878160"></a>7.1. Voice Settings</h3></div></div></div><p>
896 AltosUI provides voice announcements during flight so that you
897 can keep your eyes on the sky and still get information about
898 the current flight status. However, sometimes you don't want
900 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>Enable—turns all voice announcements on and off</p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
901 Test Voice—Plays a short message allowing you to verify
902 that the audio system is working and the volume settings
904 </p></li></ul></div></div><div class="section" title="7.2. Log Directory"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3880432"></a>7.2. Log Directory</h3></div></div></div><p>
905 AltosUI logs all telemetry data and saves all TeleMetrum flash
906 data to this directory. This directory is also used as the
907 staring point when selecting data files for display or export.
909 Click on the directory name to bring up a directory choosing
910 dialog, select a new directory and click 'Select Directory' to
911 change where AltosUI reads and writes data files.
912 </p></div><div class="section" title="7.3. Callsign"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3881656"></a>7.3. Callsign</h3></div></div></div><p>
913 This value is transmitted in each command packet sent from
914 TeleDongle and received from an altimeter. It is not used in
915 telemetry mode, as the callsign configured in the altimeter board
916 is included in all telemetry packets. Configure this
917 with the AltosUI operators call sign as needed to comply with
918 your local radio regulations.
919 </p></div><div class="section" title="7.4. Imperial Units"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3882624"></a>7.4. Imperial Units</h3></div></div></div><p>
920 This switches between metric units (meters) and imperial
921 units (feet and miles). This affects the display of values
922 use during flight monitoring, data graphing and all of the
923 voice announcements. It does not change the units used when
924 exporting to CSV files, those are always produced in metric units.
925 </p></div><div class="section" title="7.5. Font Size"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3883528"></a>7.5. Font Size</h3></div></div></div><p>
926 Selects the set of fonts used in the flight monitor
927 window. Choose between the small, medium and large sets.
928 </p></div><div class="section" title="7.6. Serial Debug"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3884232"></a>7.6. Serial Debug</h3></div></div></div><p>
929 This causes all communication with a connected device to be
930 dumped to the console from which AltosUI was started. If
931 you've started it from an icon or menu entry, the output
932 will simply be discarded. This mode can be useful to debug
933 various serial communication issues.
934 </p></div><div class="section" title="7.7. Manage Frequencies"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3885144"></a>7.7. Manage Frequencies</h3></div></div></div><p>
935 This brings up a dialog where you can configure the set of
936 frequencies shown in the various frequency menus. You can
937 add as many as you like, or even reconfigure the default
938 set. Changing this list does not affect the frequency
939 settings of any devices, it only changes the set of
940 frequencies shown in the menus.
941 </p></div></div><div class="section" title="8. Configure Groundstation"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3886128"></a>8. Configure Groundstation</h2></div></div></div><p>
942 Select this button and then select a TeleDongle Device from the list provided.
944 The first few lines of the dialog provide information about the
945 connected device, including the product name,
946 software version and hardware serial number. Below that are the
947 individual configuration entries.
949 Note that the TeleDongle itself doesn't save any configuration
950 data, the settings here are recorded on the local machine in
951 the Java preferences database. Moving the TeleDongle to
952 another machine, or using a different user account on the same
953 machine will cause settings made here to have no effect.
955 At the bottom of the dialog, there are three buttons:
956 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
957 Save. This writes any changes to the
958 local Java preferences file. If you don't
959 press this button, any changes you make will be lost.
960 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
961 Reset. This resets the dialog to the most recently saved values,
962 erasing any changes you have made.
963 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
964 Close. This closes the dialog. Any unsaved changes will be
966 </p></li></ul></div><p>
967 The rest of the dialog contains the parameters to be configured.
968 </p><div class="section" title="8.1. Frequency"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3890048"></a>8.1. Frequency</h3></div></div></div><p>
969 This configures the frequency to use for both telemetry and
970 packet command mode. Set this before starting any operation
971 involving packet command mode so that it will use the right
972 frequency. Telemetry monitoring mode also provides a menu to
973 change the frequency, and that menu also sets the same Java
974 preference value used here.
975 </p></div><div class="section" title="8.2. Radio Calibration"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="idp3891032"></a>8.2. Radio Calibration</h3></div></div></div><p>
976 The radios in every Altus Metrum device are calibrated at the
977 factory to ensure that they transmit and receive on the
978 specified frequency. To change a TeleDongle's calibration,
979 you must reprogram the unit completely, so this entry simply
980 shows the current value and doesn't allow any changes.
981 </p></div></div><div class="section" title="9. Flash Image"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3892024"></a>9. Flash Image</h2></div></div></div><p>
982 This reprograms any Altus Metrum device by using a TeleMetrum
983 or TeleDongle as a programming dongle. Please read the
984 directions for flashing devices in the Updating Device
985 Firmware chapter below.
987 Once you have the programmer and target devices connected,
988 push the 'Flash Image' button. That will present a dialog box
989 listing all of the connected devices. Carefully select the
990 programmer device, not the device to be programmed.
992 Next, select the image to flash to the device. These are named
993 with the product name and firmware version. The file selector
994 will start in the directory containing the firmware included
995 with the AltosUI package. Navigate to the directory containing
996 the desired firmware if it isn't there.
998 Next, a small dialog containing the device serial number and
999 RF calibration values should appear. If these values are
1000 incorrect (possibly due to a corrupted image in the device),
1001 enter the correct values here.
1003 Finally, a dialog containing a progress bar will follow the
1004 programming process.
1006 When programming is complete, the target device will
1007 reboot. Note that if the target device is connected via USB, you
1008 will have to unplug it and then plug it back in for the USB
1009 connection to reset so that you can communicate with the device
1011 </p></div><div class="section" title="10. Fire Igniter"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3895096"></a>10. Fire Igniter</h2></div></div></div><p>
1012 This activates the igniter circuits in TeleMetrum to help test
1013 recovery systems deployment. Because this command can operate
1014 over the Packet Command Link, you can prepare the rocket as
1015 for flight and then test the recovery system without needing
1016 to snake wires inside the air-frame.
1018 Selecting the 'Fire Igniter' button brings up the usual device
1019 selection dialog. Pick the desired TeleDongle or TeleMetrum
1020 device. This brings up another window which shows the current
1021 continuity test status for both apogee and main charges.
1023 Next, select the desired igniter to fire. This will enable the
1026 Select the 'Arm' button. This enables the 'Fire' button. The
1027 word 'Arm' is replaced by a countdown timer indicating that
1028 you have 10 seconds to press the 'Fire' button or the system
1029 will deactivate, at which point you start over again at
1030 selecting the desired igniter.
1031 </p></div><div class="section" title="11. Scan Channels"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3897200"></a>11. Scan Channels</h2></div></div></div><p>
1032 This listens for telemetry packets on all of the configured
1033 frequencies, displaying information about each device it
1034 receives a packet from. You can select which of the three
1035 telemetry formats should be tried; by default, it only listens
1036 for the standard telemetry packets used in v1.0 and later
1038 </p></div><div class="section" title="12. Load Maps"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3898104"></a>12. Load Maps</h2></div></div></div><p>
1039 Before heading out to a new launch site, you can use this to
1040 load satellite images in case you don't have internet
1041 connectivity at the site. This loads a fairly large area
1042 around the launch site, which should cover any flight you're likely to make.
1044 There's a drop-down menu of launch sites we know about; if
1045 your favorites aren't there, please let us know the lat/lon
1046 and name of the site. The contents of this list are actually
1047 downloaded at run-time, so as new sites are sent in, they'll
1048 get automatically added to this list.
1050 If the launch site isn't in the list, you can manually enter the lat/lon values
1052 Clicking the 'Load Map' button will fetch images from Google
1053 Maps; note that Google limits how many images you can fetch at
1054 once, so if you load more than one launch site, you may get
1055 some gray areas in the map which indicate that Google is tired
1056 of sending data to you. Try again later.
1057 </p></div><div class="section" title="13. Monitor Idle"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3900232"></a>13. Monitor Idle</h2></div></div></div><p>
1058 This brings up a dialog similar to the Monitor Flight UI,
1059 except it works with the altimeter in "idle" mode by sending
1060 query commands to discover the current state rather than
1061 listening for telemetry packets.
1062 </p></div></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 7. Using Altus Metrum Products"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3901104"></a>Chapter 7. Using Altus Metrum Products</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3901424">1. Being Legal</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3902440">2. In the Rocket</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3904984">3. On the Ground</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3911792">4. Data Analysis</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3913544">5. Future Plans</a></span></dt></dl></div><div class="section" title="1. Being Legal"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3901424"></a>1. Being Legal</h2></div></div></div><p>
1063 First off, in the US, you need an <a class="ulink" href="http://www.altusmetrum.org/Radio/" target="_top">amateur radio license</a> or
1064 other authorization to legally operate the radio transmitters that are part
1066 </p></div><div class="section" title="2. In the Rocket"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3902440"></a>2. In the Rocket</h2></div></div></div><p>
1067 In the rocket itself, you just need a <a class="ulink" href="http://www.altusmetrum.org/TeleMetrum/" target="_top">TeleMetrum</a> or
1068 <a class="ulink" href="http://www.altusmetrum.org/TeleMini/" target="_top">TeleMini</a> board and
1069 a single-cell, 3.7 volt nominal Li-Po rechargeable battery. An
1070 850mAh battery weighs less than a 9V alkaline battery, and will
1071 run a TeleMetrum for hours.
1072 A 110mAh battery weighs less than a triple A battery and will run a TeleMetrum for
1073 a few hours, or a TeleMini for much (much) longer.
1075 By default, we ship the altimeters with a simple wire antenna. If your
1076 electronics bay or the air-frame it resides within is made of carbon fiber,
1077 which is opaque to RF signals, you may choose to have an SMA connector
1078 installed so that you can run a coaxial cable to an antenna mounted
1079 elsewhere in the rocket.
1080 </p></div><div class="section" title="3. On the Ground"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3904984"></a>3. On the Ground</h2></div></div></div><p>
1081 To receive the data stream from the rocket, you need an antenna and short
1082 feed-line connected to one of our <a class="ulink" href="http://www.altusmetrum.org/TeleDongle/" target="_top">TeleDongle</a> units. The
1083 TeleDongle in turn plugs directly into the USB port on a notebook
1084 computer. Because TeleDongle looks like a simple serial port, your computer
1085 does not require special device drivers... just plug it in.
1087 The GUI tool, AltosUI, is written in Java and runs across
1088 Linux, Mac OS and Windows. There's also a suite of C tools
1089 for Linux which can perform most of the same tasks.
1091 After the flight, you can use the radio link to extract the more detailed data
1092 logged in either TeleMetrum or TeleMini devices, or you can use a mini USB cable to plug into the
1093 TeleMetrum board directly. Pulling out the data without having to open up
1094 the rocket is pretty cool! A USB cable is also how you charge the Li-Po
1095 battery, so you'll want one of those anyway... the same cable used by lots
1096 of digital cameras and other modern electronic stuff will work fine.
1098 If your TeleMetrum-equipped rocket lands out of sight, you may enjoy having a hand-held GPS
1099 receiver, so that you can put in a way-point for the last reported rocket
1100 position before touch-down. This makes looking for your rocket a lot like
1101 Geo-Caching... just go to the way-point and look around starting from there.
1103 You may also enjoy having a ham radio "HT" that covers the 70cm band... you
1104 can use that with your antenna to direction-find the rocket on the ground
1105 the same way you can use a Walston or Beeline tracker. This can be handy
1106 if the rocket is hiding in sage brush or a tree, or if the last GPS position
1107 doesn't get you close enough because the rocket dropped into a canyon, or
1108 the wind is blowing it across a dry lake bed, or something like that... Keith
1109 and Bdale both currently own and use the Yaesu VX-7R at launches.
1111 So, to recap, on the ground the hardware you'll need includes:
1112 </p><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li class="listitem">
1113 an antenna and feed-line
1114 </li><li class="listitem">
1116 </li><li class="listitem">
1118 </li><li class="listitem">
1119 optionally, a hand-held GPS receiver
1120 </li><li class="listitem">
1121 optionally, an HT or receiver covering 435 MHz
1124 The best hand-held commercial directional antennas we've found for radio
1125 direction finding rockets are from
1126 <a class="ulink" href="http://www.arrowantennas.com/" target="_top">
1129 The 440-3 and 440-5 are both good choices for finding a
1130 TeleMetrum- or TeleMini- equipped rocket when used with a suitable 70cm HT.
1131 </p></div><div class="section" title="4. Data Analysis"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3911792"></a>4. Data Analysis</h2></div></div></div><p>
1132 Our software makes it easy to log the data from each flight, both the
1133 telemetry received during the flight itself, and the more
1134 complete data log recorded in the flash memory on the altimeter
1135 board. Once this data is on your computer, our post-flight tools make it
1136 easy to quickly get to the numbers everyone wants, like apogee altitude,
1137 max acceleration, and max velocity. You can also generate and view a
1138 standard set of plots showing the altitude, acceleration, and
1139 velocity of the rocket during flight. And you can even export a TeleMetrum data file
1140 usable with Google Maps and Google Earth for visualizing the flight path
1141 in two or three dimensions!
1143 Our ultimate goal is to emit a set of files for each flight that can be
1144 published as a web page per flight, or just viewed on your local disk with
1146 </p></div><div class="section" title="5. Future Plans"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3913544"></a>5. Future Plans</h2></div></div></div><p>
1147 In the future, we intend to offer "companion boards" for the rocket that will
1148 plug in to TeleMetrum to collect additional data, provide more pyro channels,
1151 We are also working on the design of a hand-held ground terminal that will
1152 allow monitoring the rocket's status, collecting data during flight, and
1153 logging data after flight without the need for a notebook computer on the
1154 flight line. Particularly since it is so difficult to read most notebook
1155 screens in direct sunlight, we think this will be a great thing to have.
1157 Because all of our work is open, both the hardware designs and the software,
1158 if you have some great idea for an addition to the current Altus Metrum family,
1159 feel free to dive in and help! Or let us know what you'd like to see that
1160 we aren't already working on, and maybe we'll get excited about it too...
1161 </p></div></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 8. Altimeter Installation Recommendations"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3915584"></a>Chapter 8. Altimeter Installation Recommendations</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3916568">1. Mounting the Altimeter</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3918904">2. Dealing with the Antenna</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3923232">3. Preserving GPS Reception</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3925616">4. Radio Frequency Interference</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3929344">5. The Barometric Sensor</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3931184">6. Ground Testing</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>
1162 Building high-power rockets that fly safely is hard enough. Mix
1163 in some sophisticated electronics and a bunch of radio energy
1164 and oftentimes you find few perfect solutions. This chapter
1165 contains some suggestions about how to install Altus Metrum
1166 products into the rocket air-frame, including how to safely and
1167 reliably mix a variety of electronics into the same air-frame.
1168 </p><div class="section" title="1. Mounting the Altimeter"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3916568"></a>1. Mounting the Altimeter</h2></div></div></div><p>
1169 The first consideration is to ensure that the altimeter is
1170 securely fastened to the air-frame. For TeleMetrum, we use
1171 nylon standoffs and nylon screws; they're good to at least 50G
1172 and cannot cause any electrical issues on the board. For
1173 TeleMini, we usually cut small pieces of 1/16" balsa to fit
1174 under the screw holes, and then take 2x56 nylon screws and
1175 screw them through the TeleMini mounting holes, through the
1176 balsa and into the underlying material.
1177 </p><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li class="listitem">
1178 Make sure TeleMetrum is aligned precisely along the axis of
1179 acceleration so that the accelerometer can accurately
1180 capture data during the flight.
1181 </li><li class="listitem">
1182 Watch for any metal touching components on the
1183 board. Shorting out connections on the bottom of the board
1184 can cause the altimeter to fail during flight.
1185 </li></ol></div></div><div class="section" title="2. Dealing with the Antenna"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3918904"></a>2. Dealing with the Antenna</h2></div></div></div><p>
1186 The antenna supplied is just a piece of solid, insulated,
1187 wire. If it gets damaged or broken, it can be easily
1188 replaced. It should be kept straight and not cut; bending or
1189 cutting it will change the resonant frequency and/or
1190 impedance, making it a less efficient radiator and thus
1191 reducing the range of the telemetry signal.
1193 Keeping metal away from the antenna will provide better range
1194 and a more even radiation pattern. In most rockets, it's not
1195 entirely possible to isolate the antenna from metal
1196 components; there are often bolts, all-thread and wires from other
1197 electronics to contend with. Just be aware that the more stuff
1198 like this around the antenna, the lower the range.
1200 Make sure the antenna is not inside a tube made or covered
1201 with conducting material. Carbon fiber is the most common
1202 culprit here -- CF is a good conductor and will effectively
1203 shield the antenna, dramatically reducing signal strength and
1204 range. Metallic flake paint is another effective shielding
1205 material which is to be avoided around any antennas.
1207 If the ebay is large enough, it can be convenient to simply
1208 mount the altimeter at one end and stretch the antenna out
1209 inside. Taping the antenna to the sled can keep it straight
1210 under acceleration. If there are metal rods, keep the
1211 antenna as far away as possible.
1213 For a shorter ebay, it's quite practical to have the antenna
1214 run through a bulkhead and into an adjacent bay. Drill a small
1215 hole in the bulkhead, pass the antenna wire through it and
1216 then seal it up with glue or clay. We've also used acrylic
1217 tubing to create a cavity for the antenna wire. This works a
1218 bit better in that the antenna is known to stay straight and
1219 not get folded by recovery components in the bay. Angle the
1220 tubing towards the side wall of the rocket and it ends up
1221 consuming very little space.
1223 If you need to place the antenna at a distance from the
1224 altimeter, you can replace the antenna with an edge-mounted
1225 SMA connector, and then run 50Ω coax from the board to the
1226 antenna. Building a remote antenna is beyond the scope of this
1228 </p></div><div class="section" title="3. Preserving GPS Reception"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3923232"></a>3. Preserving GPS Reception</h2></div></div></div><p>
1229 The GPS antenna and receiver in TeleMetrum are highly
1230 sensitive and normally have no trouble tracking enough
1231 satellites to provide accurate position information for
1232 recovering the rocket. However, there are many ways to
1233 attenuate the GPS signal.
1234 </p><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li class="listitem">
1235 Conductive tubing or coatings. Carbon fiber and metal
1236 tubing, or metallic paint will all dramatically attenuate the
1237 GPS signal. We've never heard of anyone successfully
1238 receiving GPS from inside these materials.
1239 </li><li class="listitem">
1240 Metal components near the GPS patch antenna. These will
1241 de-tune the patch antenna, changing the resonant frequency
1242 away from the L1 carrier and reduce the effectiveness of the
1243 antenna. You can place as much stuff as you like beneath the
1244 antenna as that's covered with a ground plane. But, keep
1245 wires and metal out from above the patch antenna.
1247 </p></div><div class="section" title="4. Radio Frequency Interference"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3925616"></a>4. Radio Frequency Interference</h2></div></div></div><p>
1248 Any altimeter will generate RFI; the digital circuits use
1249 high-frequency clocks that spray radio interference across a
1250 wide band. Altus Metrum altimeters generate intentional radio
1251 signals as well, increasing the amount of RF energy around the board.
1253 Rocketry altimeters also use precise sensors measuring air
1254 pressure and acceleration. Tiny changes in voltage can cause
1255 these sensor readings to vary by a huge amount. When the
1256 sensors start mis-reporting data, the altimeter can either
1257 fire the igniters at the wrong time, or not fire them at all.
1259 Voltages are induced when radio frequency energy is
1260 transmitted from one circuit to another. Here are things that
1261 influence the induced voltage and current:
1262 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1263 Keep wires from different circuits apart. Moving circuits
1264 further apart will reduce RFI.
1265 </li><li class="listitem">
1266 Avoid parallel wires from different circuits. The longer two
1267 wires run parallel to one another, the larger the amount of
1268 transferred energy. Cross wires at right angles to reduce
1270 </li><li class="listitem">
1271 Twist wires from the same circuits. Two wires the same
1272 distance from the transmitter will get the same amount of
1273 induced energy which will then cancel out. Any time you have
1274 a wire pair running together, twist the pair together to
1275 even out distances and reduce RFI. For altimeters, this
1276 includes battery leads, switch hookups and igniter
1278 </li><li class="listitem">
1279 Avoid resonant lengths. Know what frequencies are present
1280 in the environment and avoid having wire lengths near a
1281 natural resonant length. Altusmetrum products transmit on the
1282 70cm amateur band, so you should avoid lengths that are a
1283 simple ratio of that length; essentially any multiple of 1/4
1284 of the wavelength (17.5cm).
1285 </li></ul></div></div><div class="section" title="5. The Barometric Sensor"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3929344"></a>5. The Barometric Sensor</h2></div></div></div><p>
1286 Altusmetrum altimeters measure altitude with a barometric
1287 sensor, essentially measuring the amount of air above the
1288 rocket to figure out how high it is. A large number of
1289 measurements are taken as the altimeter initializes itself to
1290 figure out the pad altitude. Subsequent measurements are then
1291 used to compute the height above the pad.
1293 To accurately measure atmospheric pressure, the ebay
1294 containing the altimeter must be vented outside the
1295 air-frame. The vent must be placed in a region of linear
1296 airflow, have smooth edges, and away from areas of increasing or
1297 decreasing pressure.
1299 The barometric sensor in the altimeter is quite sensitive to
1300 chemical damage from the products of APCP or BP combustion, so
1301 make sure the ebay is carefully sealed from any compartment
1302 which contains ejection charges or motors.
1303 </p></div><div class="section" title="6. Ground Testing"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3931184"></a>6. Ground Testing</h2></div></div></div><p>
1304 The most important aspect of any installation is careful
1305 ground testing. Bringing an air-frame up to the LCO table which
1306 hasn't been ground tested can lead to delays or ejection
1307 charges firing on the pad, or, even worse, a recovery system
1310 Do a 'full systems' test that includes wiring up all igniters
1311 without any BP and turning on all of the electronics in flight
1312 mode. This will catch any mistakes in wiring and any residual
1313 RFI issues that might accidentally fire igniters at the wrong
1314 time. Let the air-frame sit for several minutes, checking for
1315 adequate telemetry signal strength and GPS lock. If any igniters
1316 fire unexpectedly, find and resolve the issue before loading any
1319 Ground test the ejection charges. Prepare the rocket for
1320 flight, loading ejection charges and igniters. Completely
1321 assemble the air-frame and then use the 'Fire Igniters'
1322 interface through a TeleDongle to command each charge to
1323 fire. Make sure the charge is sufficient to robustly separate
1324 the air-frame and deploy the recovery system.
1325 </p></div></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 9. Updating Device Firmware"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3933320"></a>Chapter 9. Updating Device Firmware</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3935760">1. Updating TeleMetrum Firmware</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3941064">2. Updating TeleMini Firmware</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3946480">3. Updating TeleDongle Firmware</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>
1326 The big concept to understand is that you have to use a
1327 TeleDongle as a programmer to update a TeleMetrum or TeleMini,
1328 and a TeleMetrum or other TeleDongle to program the TeleDongle
1329 Due to limited memory resources in the cc1111, we don't support
1330 programming directly over USB.
1332 You may wish to begin by ensuring you have current firmware images.
1333 These are distributed as part of the AltOS software bundle that
1334 also includes the AltosUI ground station program. Newer ground
1335 station versions typically work fine with older firmware versions,
1336 so you don't need to update your devices just to try out new
1337 software features. You can always download the most recent
1338 version from <a class="ulink" href="http://www.altusmetrum.org/AltOS/" target="_top">http://www.altusmetrum.org/AltOS/</a>.
1340 We recommend updating the altimeter first, before updating TeleDongle.
1341 </p><div class="section" title="1. Updating TeleMetrum Firmware"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3935760"></a>1. Updating TeleMetrum Firmware</h2></div></div></div><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li class="listitem">
1342 Find the 'programming cable' that you got as part of the starter
1343 kit, that has a red 8-pin MicroMaTch connector on one end and a
1344 red 4-pin MicroMaTch connector on the other end.
1345 </li><li class="listitem">
1346 Take the 2 screws out of the TeleDongle case to get access
1347 to the circuit board.
1348 </li><li class="listitem">
1349 Plug the 8-pin end of the programming cable to the
1350 matching connector on the TeleDongle, and the 4-pin end to the
1351 matching connector on the TeleMetrum.
1352 Note that each MicroMaTch connector has an alignment pin that
1353 goes through a hole in the PC board when you have the cable
1355 </li><li class="listitem">
1356 Attach a battery to the TeleMetrum board.
1357 </li><li class="listitem">
1358 Plug the TeleDongle into your computer's USB port, and power
1360 </li><li class="listitem">
1361 Run AltosUI, and select 'Flash Image' from the File menu.
1362 </li><li class="listitem">
1363 Pick the TeleDongle device from the list, identifying it as the
1365 </li><li class="listitem">
1366 Select the image you want put on the TeleMetrum, which should have a
1367 name in the form telemetrum-v1.2-1.0.0.ihx. It should be visible
1368 in the default directory, if not you may have to poke around
1369 your system to find it.
1370 </li><li class="listitem">
1371 Make sure the configuration parameters are reasonable
1372 looking. If the serial number and/or RF configuration
1373 values aren't right, you'll need to change them.
1374 </li><li class="listitem">
1375 Hit the 'OK' button and the software should proceed to flash
1376 the TeleMetrum with new firmware, showing a progress bar.
1377 </li><li class="listitem">
1378 Confirm that the TeleMetrum board seems to have updated OK, which you
1379 can do by plugging in to it over USB and using a terminal program
1380 to connect to the board and issue the 'v' command to check
1382 </li><li class="listitem">
1383 If something goes wrong, give it another try.
1384 </li></ol></div></div><div class="section" title="2. Updating TeleMini Firmware"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3941064"></a>2. Updating TeleMini Firmware</h2></div></div></div><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li class="listitem">
1385 You'll need a special 'programming cable' to reprogram the
1386 TeleMini. It's available on the Altus Metrum web store, or
1387 you can make your own using an 8-pin MicroMaTch connector on
1388 one end and a set of four pins on the other.
1389 </li><li class="listitem">
1390 Take the 2 screws out of the TeleDongle case to get access
1391 to the circuit board.
1392 </li><li class="listitem">
1393 Plug the 8-pin end of the programming cable to the matching
1394 connector on the TeleDongle, and the 4-pins into the holes
1395 in the TeleMini circuit board. Note that the MicroMaTch
1396 connector has an alignment pin that goes through a hole in
1397 the PC board when you have the cable oriented correctly, and
1398 that pin 1 on the TeleMini board is marked with a square pad
1399 while the other pins have round pads.
1400 </li><li class="listitem">
1401 Attach a battery to the TeleMini board.
1402 </li><li class="listitem">
1403 Plug the TeleDongle into your computer's USB port, and power
1405 </li><li class="listitem">
1406 Run AltosUI, and select 'Flash Image' from the File menu.
1407 </li><li class="listitem">
1408 Pick the TeleDongle device from the list, identifying it as the
1410 </li><li class="listitem">
1411 Select the image you want put on the TeleMini, which should have a
1412 name in the form telemini-v1.0-1.0.0.ihx. It should be visible
1413 in the default directory, if not you may have to poke around
1414 your system to find it.
1415 </li><li class="listitem">
1416 Make sure the configuration parameters are reasonable
1417 looking. If the serial number and/or RF configuration
1418 values aren't right, you'll need to change them.
1419 </li><li class="listitem">
1420 Hit the 'OK' button and the software should proceed to flash
1421 the TeleMini with new firmware, showing a progress bar.
1422 </li><li class="listitem">
1423 Confirm that the TeleMini board seems to have updated OK, which you
1424 can do by configuring it over the radio link through the TeleDongle, or
1425 letting it come up in "flight" mode and listening for telemetry.
1426 </li><li class="listitem">
1427 If something goes wrong, give it another try.
1428 </li></ol></div></div><div class="section" title="3. Updating TeleDongle Firmware"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3946480"></a>3. Updating TeleDongle Firmware</h2></div></div></div><p>
1429 Updating TeleDongle's firmware is just like updating TeleMetrum or TeleMini
1430 firmware, but you use either a TeleMetrum or another TeleDongle as the programmer.
1431 </p><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li class="listitem">
1432 Find the 'programming cable' that you got as part of the starter
1433 kit, that has a red 8-pin MicroMaTch connector on one end and a
1434 red 4-pin MicroMaTch connector on the other end.
1435 </li><li class="listitem">
1436 Find the USB cable that you got as part of the starter kit, and
1437 plug the "mini" end in to the mating connector on TeleMetrum or TeleDongle.
1438 </li><li class="listitem">
1439 Take the 2 screws out of the TeleDongle case to get access
1440 to the circuit board.
1441 </li><li class="listitem">
1442 Plug the 8-pin end of the programming cable to the
1443 matching connector on the programmer, and the 4-pin end to the
1444 matching connector on the TeleDongle.
1445 Note that each MicroMaTch connector has an alignment pin that
1446 goes through a hole in the PC board when you have the cable
1448 </li><li class="listitem">
1449 Attach a battery to the TeleMetrum board if you're using one.
1450 </li><li class="listitem">
1451 Plug both the programmer and the TeleDongle into your computer's USB
1452 ports, and power up the programmer.
1453 </li><li class="listitem">
1454 Run AltosUI, and select 'Flash Image' from the File menu.
1455 </li><li class="listitem">
1456 Pick the programmer device from the list, identifying it as the
1458 </li><li class="listitem">
1459 Select the image you want put on the TeleDongle, which should have a
1460 name in the form teledongle-v0.2-1.0.0.ihx. It should be visible
1461 in the default directory, if not you may have to poke around
1462 your system to find it.
1463 </li><li class="listitem">
1464 Make sure the configuration parameters are reasonable
1465 looking. If the serial number and/or RF configuration
1466 values aren't right, you'll need to change them. The TeleDongle
1467 serial number is on the "bottom" of the circuit board, and can
1468 usually be read through the translucent blue plastic case without
1469 needing to remove the board from the case.
1470 </li><li class="listitem">
1471 Hit the 'OK' button and the software should proceed to flash
1472 the TeleDongle with new firmware, showing a progress bar.
1473 </li><li class="listitem">
1474 Confirm that the TeleDongle board seems to have updated OK, which you
1475 can do by plugging in to it over USB and using a terminal program
1476 to connect to the board and issue the 'v' command to check
1477 the version, etc. Once you're happy, remove the programming cable
1478 and put the cover back on the TeleDongle.
1479 </li><li class="listitem">
1480 If something goes wrong, give it another try.
1482 Be careful removing the programming cable from the locking 8-pin
1483 connector on TeleMetrum. You'll need a fingernail or perhaps a thin
1484 screwdriver or knife blade to gently pry the locking ears out
1485 slightly to extract the connector. We used a locking connector on
1486 TeleMetrum to help ensure that the cabling to companion boards
1487 used in a rocket don't ever come loose accidentally in flight.
1488 </p></div></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 10. Hardware Specifications"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3953536"></a>Chapter 10. Hardware Specifications</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3953856">1. TeleMetrum Specifications</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3959584">2. TeleMini Specifications</a></span></dt></dl></div><div class="section" title="1. TeleMetrum Specifications"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3953856"></a>1. TeleMetrum Specifications</h2></div></div></div><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
1489 Recording altimeter for model rocketry.
1490 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1491 Supports dual deployment (can fire 2 ejection charges).
1492 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1493 70cm ham-band transceiver for telemetry down-link.
1494 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1495 Barometric pressure sensor good to 45k feet MSL.
1496 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1497 1-axis high-g accelerometer for motor characterization, capable of
1498 +/- 50g using default part.
1499 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1500 On-board, integrated GPS receiver with 5Hz update rate capability.
1501 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1502 On-board 1 megabyte non-volatile memory for flight data storage.
1503 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1504 USB interface for battery charging, configuration, and data recovery.
1505 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1506 Fully integrated support for Li-Po rechargeable batteries.
1507 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1508 Uses Li-Po to fire e-matches, can be modified to support
1509 optional separate pyro battery if needed.
1510 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1511 2.75 x 1 inch board designed to fit inside 29mm air-frame coupler tube.
1512 </p></li></ul></div></div><div class="section" title="2. TeleMini Specifications"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3959584"></a>2. TeleMini Specifications</h2></div></div></div><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
1513 Recording altimeter for model rocketry.
1514 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1515 Supports dual deployment (can fire 2 ejection charges).
1516 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1517 70cm ham-band transceiver for telemetry down-link.
1518 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1519 Barometric pressure sensor good to 45k feet MSL.
1520 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1521 On-board 5 kilobyte non-volatile memory for flight data storage.
1522 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1523 RF interface for battery charging, configuration, and data recovery.
1524 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1525 Support for Li-Po rechargeable batteries, using an external charger.
1526 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1527 Uses Li-Po to fire e-matches, can be modified to support
1528 optional separate pyro battery if needed.
1529 </p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
1530 1.5 x .5 inch board designed to fit inside 18mm air-frame coupler tube.
1531 </p></li></ul></div></div></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 11. FAQ"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3964408"></a>Chapter 11. FAQ</h2></div></div></div><p>
1532 TeleMetrum seems to shut off when disconnected from the
1533 computer. Make sure the battery is adequately charged. Remember the
1534 unit will pull more power than the USB port can deliver before the
1535 GPS enters "locked" mode. The battery charges best when TeleMetrum
1538 It's impossible to stop the TeleDongle when it's in "p" mode, I have
1539 to unplug the USB cable? Make sure you have tried to "escape out" of
1540 this mode. If this doesn't work the reboot procedure for the
1541 TeleDongle *is* to simply unplug it. 'cu' however will retain it's
1542 outgoing buffer IF your "escape out" ('~~') does not work.
1543 At this point using either 'ao-view' (or possibly
1544 'cutemon') instead of 'cu' will 'clear' the issue and allow renewed
1547 The amber LED (on the TeleMetrum) lights up when both
1548 battery and USB are connected. Does this mean it's charging?
1549 Yes, the yellow LED indicates the charging at the 'regular' rate.
1550 If the led is out but the unit is still plugged into a USB port,
1551 then the battery is being charged at a 'trickle' rate.
1553 There are no "dit-dah-dah-dit" sound or lights like the manual mentions?
1554 That's the "pad" mode. Weak batteries might be the problem.
1555 It is also possible that the TeleMetrum is horizontal and the output
1556 is instead a "dit-dit" meaning 'idle'. For TeleMini, it's possible that
1557 it received a command packet which would have left it in "pad" mode.
1559 How do I save flight data?
1560 Live telemetry is written to file(s) whenever AltosUI is connected
1561 to the TeleDongle. The file area defaults to ~/TeleMetrum
1562 but is easily changed using the menus in AltosUI. The files that
1563 are written end in '.telem'. The after-flight
1564 data-dumped files will end in .eeprom and represent continuous data
1565 unlike the .telem files that are subject to losses
1566 along the RF data path.
1567 See the above instructions on what and how to save the eeprom stored
1568 data after physically retrieving your altimeter. Make sure to save
1569 the on-board data after each flight; while the TeleMetrum can store
1570 multiple flights, you never know when you'll lose the altimeter...
1571 </p></div><div class="appendix" title="Appendix A. Notes for Older Software"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3968152"></a>Appendix A. Notes for Older Software</h2></div></div></div><p>
1572 <span class="emphasis"><em>
1573 Before AltosUI was written, using Altus Metrum devices required
1574 some finesse with the Linux command line. There was a limited
1575 GUI tool, ao-view, which provided functionality similar to the
1576 Monitor Flight window in AltosUI, but everything else was a
1577 fairly 80's experience. This appendix includes documentation for
1578 using that software.
1581 Both TeleMetrum and TeleDongle can be directly communicated
1582 with using USB ports. The first thing you should try after getting
1583 both units plugged into to your computer's USB port(s) is to run
1584 'ao-list' from a terminal-window to see what port-device-name each
1585 device has been assigned by the operating system.
1586 You will need this information to access the devices via their
1587 respective on-board firmware and data using other command line
1588 programs in the AltOS software suite.
1590 TeleMini can be communicated with through a TeleDongle device
1591 over the radio link. When first booted, TeleMini listens for a
1592 TeleDongle device and if it receives a packet, it goes into
1593 'idle' mode. Otherwise, it goes into 'pad' mode and waits to be
1594 launched. The easiest way to get it talking is to start the
1595 communication link on the TeleDongle and the power up the
1598 To access the device's firmware for configuration you need a terminal
1599 program such as you would use to talk to a modem. The software
1600 authors prefer using the program 'cu' which comes from the UUCP package
1601 on most Unix-like systems such as Linux. An example command line for
1602 cu might be 'cu -l /dev/ttyACM0', substituting the correct number
1603 indicated from running the
1604 ao-list program. Another reasonable terminal program for Linux is
1605 'cutecom'. The default 'escape'
1606 character used by CU (i.e. the character you use to
1607 issue commands to cu itself instead of sending the command as input
1608 to the connected device) is a '~'. You will need this for use in
1609 only two different ways during normal operations. First is to exit
1610 the program by sending a '~.' which is called a 'escape-disconnect'
1611 and allows you to close-out from 'cu'. The
1612 second use will be outlined later.
1614 All of the Altus Metrum devices share the concept of a two level
1615 command set in their firmware.
1616 The first layer has several single letter commands. Once
1617 you are using 'cu' (or 'cutecom') sending (typing) a '?'
1618 returns a full list of these
1619 commands. The second level are configuration sub-commands accessed
1620 using the 'c' command, for
1621 instance typing 'c?' will give you this second level of commands
1622 (all of which require the
1623 letter 'c' to access). Please note that most configuration options
1624 are stored only in Flash memory; TeleDongle doesn't provide any storage
1625 for these options and so they'll all be lost when you unplug it.
1627 Try setting these configuration ('c' or second level menu) values. A good
1628 place to start is by setting your call sign. By default, the boards
1629 use 'N0CALL' which is cute, but not exactly legal!
1630 Spend a few minutes getting comfortable with the units, their
1631 firmware, and 'cu' (or possibly 'cutecom').
1632 For instance, try to send
1633 (type) a 'c r 2' and verify the channel change by sending a 'c s'.
1634 Verify you can connect and disconnect from the units while in your
1635 terminal program by sending the escape-disconnect mentioned above.
1637 To set the radio frequency, use the 'c R' command to specify the
1638 radio transceiver configuration parameter. This parameter is computed
1639 using the desired frequency, 'F', the radio calibration parameter, 'C' (showed by the 'c s' command) and
1640 the standard calibration reference frequency, 'S', (normally 434.550MHz):
1641 </p><pre class="programlisting">
1644 Round the result to the nearest integer value.
1645 As with all 'c' sub-commands, follow this with a 'c w' to write the
1646 change to the parameter block in the on-board flash on
1647 your altimeter board if you want the change to stay in place across reboots.
1649 To set the apogee delay, use the 'c d' command.
1650 As with all 'c' sub-commands, follow this with a 'c w' to write the
1651 change to the parameter block in the on-board DataFlash chip.
1653 To set the main deployment altitude, use the 'c m' command.
1654 As with all 'c' sub-commands, follow this with a 'c w' to write the
1655 change to the parameter block in the on-board DataFlash chip.
1657 To calibrate the radio frequency, connect the UHF antenna port to a
1658 frequency counter, set the board to 434.550MHz, and use the 'C'
1659 command to generate a CW carrier. Wait for the transmitter temperature
1660 to stabilize and the frequency to settle down.
1661 Then, divide 434.550 MHz by the
1662 measured frequency and multiply by the current radio cal value show
1663 in the 'c s' command. For an unprogrammed board, the default value
1664 is 1186611. Take the resulting integer and program it using the 'c f'
1665 command. Testing with the 'C' command again should show a carrier
1666 within a few tens of Hertz of the intended frequency.
1667 As with all 'c' sub-commands, follow this with a 'c w' to write the
1668 change to the parameter block in the on-board DataFlash chip.
1670 Note that the 'reboot' command, which is very useful on the altimeters,
1671 will likely just cause problems with the dongle. The *correct* way
1672 to reset the dongle is just to unplug and re-plug it.
1674 A fun thing to do at the launch site and something you can do while
1675 learning how to use these units is to play with the radio link access
1676 between an altimeter and the TeleDongle. Be aware that you *must* create
1677 some physical separation between the devices, otherwise the link will
1678 not function due to signal overload in the receivers in each device.
1680 Now might be a good time to take a break and read the rest of this
1681 manual, particularly about the two "modes" that the altimeters
1682 can be placed in. TeleMetrum uses the position of the device when booting
1683 up will determine whether the unit is in "pad" or "idle" mode. TeleMini
1684 enters "idle" mode when it receives a command packet within the first 5 seconds
1685 of being powered up, otherwise it enters "pad" mode.
1687 You can access an altimeter in idle mode from the TeleDongle's USB
1688 connection using the radio link
1689 by issuing a 'p' command to the TeleDongle. Practice connecting and
1690 disconnecting ('~~' while using 'cu') from the altimeter. If
1691 you cannot escape out of the "p" command, (by using a '~~' when in
1692 CU) then it is likely that your kernel has issues. Try a newer version.
1694 Using this radio link allows you to configure the altimeter, test
1695 fire e-matches and igniters from the flight line, check pyro-match
1696 continuity and so forth. You can leave the unit turned on while it
1697 is in 'idle mode' and then place the
1698 rocket vertically on the launch pad, walk away and then issue a
1699 reboot command. The altimeter will reboot and start sending data
1700 having changed to the "pad" mode. If the TeleDongle is not receiving
1701 this data, you can disconnect 'cu' from the TeleDongle using the
1702 procedures mentioned above and THEN connect to the TeleDongle from
1703 inside 'ao-view'. If this doesn't work, disconnect from the
1704 TeleDongle, unplug it, and try again after plugging it back in.
1706 In order to reduce the chance of accidental firing of pyrotechnic
1707 charges, the command to fire a charge is intentionally somewhat
1708 difficult to type, and the built-in help is slightly cryptic to
1709 prevent accidental echoing of characters from the help text back at
1710 the board from firing a charge. The command to fire the apogee
1711 drogue charge is 'i DoIt drogue' and the command to fire the main
1712 charge is 'i DoIt main'.
1714 On TeleMetrum, the GPS will eventually find enough satellites, lock in on them,
1715 and 'ao-view' will both auditorily announce and visually indicate
1717 Now you can launch knowing that you have a good data path and
1718 good satellite lock for flight data and recovery. Remember
1719 you MUST tell ao-view to connect to the TeleDongle explicitly in
1720 order for ao-view to be able to receive data.
1722 The altimeters provide RDF (radio direction finding) tones on
1723 the pad, during descent and after landing. These can be used to
1724 locate the rocket using a directional antenna; the signal
1725 strength providing an indication of the direction from receiver to rocket.
1727 TeleMetrum also provides GPS tracking data, which can further simplify
1728 locating the rocket once it has landed. (The last good GPS data
1729 received before touch-down will be on the data screen of 'ao-view'.)
1731 Once you have recovered the rocket you can download the eeprom
1732 contents using either 'ao-dumplog' (or possibly 'ao-eeprom'), over
1733 either a USB cable or over the radio link using TeleDongle.
1734 And by following the man page for 'ao-postflight' you can create
1735 various data output reports, graphs, and even KML data to see the
1736 flight trajectory in Google-earth. (Moving the viewing angle making
1737 sure to connect the yellow lines while in Google-earth is the proper
1740 As for ao-view.... some things are in the menu but don't do anything
1741 very useful. The developers have stopped working on ao-view to focus
1742 on a new, cross-platform ground station program. So ao-view may or
1743 may not be updated in the future. Mostly you just use
1744 the Log and Device menus. It has a wonderful display of the incoming
1745 flight data and I am sure you will enjoy what it has to say to you
1746 once you enable the voice output!
1747 </p></div><div class="appendix" title="Appendix B. Calibration"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3984384"></a>Appendix B. Calibration</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3985360">1. Radio Frequency</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="#idp3988680">2. TeleMetrum Accelerometer</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>
1748 There are only two calibrations required for a TeleMetrum board, and
1749 only one for TeleDongle and TeleMini. All boards are shipped from
1750 the factory pre-calibrated, but the procedures are documented here
1751 in case they are ever needed. Re-calibration is not supported by
1752 AltosUI, you must connect to the board with a serial terminal program
1753 and interact directly with the on-board command interpreter to effect
1755 </p><div class="section" title="1. Radio Frequency"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3985360"></a>1. Radio Frequency</h2></div></div></div><p>
1756 The radio frequency is synthesized from a clock based on the 48 MHz
1757 crystal on the board. The actual frequency of this oscillator
1758 must be measured to generate a calibration constant. While our
1760 bandwidth is wide enough to allow boards to communicate even when
1761 their oscillators are not on exactly the same frequency, performance
1762 is best when they are closely matched.
1763 Radio frequency calibration requires a calibrated frequency counter.
1764 Fortunately, once set, the variation in frequency due to aging and
1765 temperature changes is small enough that re-calibration by customers
1766 should generally not be required.
1768 To calibrate the radio frequency, connect the UHF antenna port to a
1769 frequency counter, set the board to 434.550MHz, and use the 'C'
1770 command in the on-board command interpreter to generate a CW
1771 carrier. For TeleMetrum, this is best done over USB. For TeleMini,
1772 note that the only way to escape the 'C' command is via power cycle
1773 since the board will no longer be listening for commands once it
1774 starts generating a CW carrier.
1776 Wait for the transmitter temperature to stabilize and the frequency
1777 to settle down. Then, divide 434.550 MHz by the
1778 measured frequency and multiply by the current radio cal value show
1779 in the 'c s' command. For an unprogrammed board, the default value
1780 is 1186611. Take the resulting integer and program it using the 'c f'
1781 command. Testing with the 'C' command again should show a carrier
1782 within a few tens of Hertz of the intended frequency.
1783 As with all 'c' sub-commands, follow this with a 'c w' to write the
1784 change to the parameter block in the on-board DataFlash chip.
1786 Note that any time you re-do the radio frequency calibration, the
1787 radio frequency is reset to the default 434.550 Mhz. If you want
1788 to use another frequency, you will have to set that again after
1789 calibration is completed.
1790 </p></div><div class="section" title="2. TeleMetrum Accelerometer"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="idp3988680"></a>2. TeleMetrum Accelerometer</h2></div></div></div><p>
1791 The TeleMetrum accelerometer we use has its own 5 volt power
1793 the output must be passed through a resistive voltage divider to match
1794 the input of our 3.3 volt ADC. This means that unlike the barometric
1795 sensor, the output of the acceleration sensor is not ratio-metric to
1796 the ADC converter, and calibration is required. Explicitly
1797 calibrating the accelerometers also allows us to load any device
1798 from a Freescale family that includes at least +/- 40g, 50g, 100g,
1799 and 200g parts. Using gravity,
1800 a simple 2-point calibration yields acceptable results capturing both
1801 the different sensitivities and ranges of the different accelerometer
1802 parts and any variation in power supply voltages or resistor values
1803 in the divider network.
1805 To calibrate the acceleration sensor, use the 'c a 0' command. You
1806 will be prompted to orient the board vertically with the UHF antenna
1807 up and press a key, then to orient the board vertically with the
1808 UHF antenna down and press a key. Note that the accuracy of this
1809 calibration depends primarily on how perfectly vertical and still
1810 the board is held during the cal process. As with all 'c'
1811 sub-commands, follow this with a 'c w' to write the
1812 change to the parameter block in the on-board DataFlash chip.
1814 The +1g and -1g calibration points are included in each telemetry
1815 frame and are part of the header stored in onboard flash to be
1816 downloaded after flight. We always store and return raw ADC
1817 samples for each sensor... so nothing is permanently "lost" or
1818 "damaged" if the calibration is poor.
1820 In the unlikely event an accel cal goes badly, it is possible
1821 that TeleMetrum may always come up in 'pad mode' and as such not be
1822 listening to either the USB or radio link. If that happens,
1823 there is a special hook in the firmware to force the board back
1824 in to 'idle mode' so you can re-do the cal. To use this hook, you
1825 just need to ground the SPI clock pin at power-on. This pin is
1826 available as pin 2 on the 8-pin companion connector, and pin 1 is
1827 ground. So either carefully install a fine-gauge wire jumper
1828 between the two pins closest to the index hole end of the 8-pin
1829 connector, or plug in the programming cable to the 8-pin connector
1830 and use a small screwdriver or similar to short the two pins closest
1831 to the index post on the 4-pin end of the programming cable, and
1832 power up the board. It should come up in 'idle mode' (two beeps),
1834 </p></div></div><div class="appendix" title="Appendix C. Release Notes"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="idp3993576"></a>Appendix C. Release Notes</h2></div></div></div><p>
1835 Version 1.1 is a minor release. It provides a few new features in AltosUI
1836 and the AltOS firmware and fixes bugs.
1838 AltOS Firmware Changes
1839 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1840 Add apogee-lockout value. Overrides the apogee detection logic to
1841 prevent incorrect apogee charge firing.
1842 </li><li class="listitem">
1843 Fix a bug where the data reported in telemetry packets was
1845 </li><li class="listitem">
1846 Force the radio frequency to 434.550MHz when the debug clock
1847 pin is connected to ground at boot time. This provides a way
1848 to talk to a TeleMini which is configured to some unknown frequency.
1849 </li><li class="listitem">
1850 Provide RSSI values for Monitor Idle mode. This makes it easy to check radio
1851 range without needing to go to flight mode.
1852 </li><li class="listitem">
1853 Fix a bug which caused the old received telemetry packets to
1854 be retransmitted over the USB link when the radio was turned
1859 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1860 Fix a bug that caused GPS ready to happen too quickly. The
1861 software was using every telemetry packet to signal new GPS
1862 data, which caused GPS ready to be signalled after 10 packets
1863 instead of 10 GPS updates.
1864 </li><li class="listitem">
1865 Fix Google Earth data export to work with recent versions. The
1866 google earth file loading code got a lot pickier, requiring
1867 some minor white space changes in the export code.
1868 </li><li class="listitem">
1869 Make the look-n-feel configurable, providing a choice from
1870 the available options.
1871 </li><li class="listitem">
1872 Add an 'Age' element to mark how long since a telemetry packet
1873 has been received. Useful to quickly gauge whether
1874 communications with the rocket are still active.
1875 </li><li class="listitem">
1876 Add 'Configure Ground Station' dialog to set the radio
1877 frequency used by a particular TeleDongle without having to go
1878 through the flight monitor UI.
1879 </li><li class="listitem">
1880 Add configuration for the new apogee-lockout value. A menu provides a list of
1881 reasonable values, or the value can be set by hand.
1882 </li><li class="listitem">
1883 Changed how flight data are downloaded. Now there's an initial
1884 dialog asking which flights to download, and after that
1885 finishes, a second dialog comes up asking which flights to delete.
1886 </li><li class="listitem">
1887 Re-compute time spent in each state for the flight graph; this
1888 figures out the actual boost and landing times instead of
1889 using the conservative values provide by the flight
1890 electronics. This improves the accuracy of the boost
1891 acceleration and main descent rate computations.
1892 </li><li class="listitem">
1893 Make AltosUI run on Mac OS Lion. The default Java heap space
1894 was dramatically reduced for this release causing much of the
1895 UI to fail randomly. This most often affected the satellite
1896 mapping download and displays.
1897 </li><li class="listitem">
1898 Change how data are displayed in the 'table' tab of the flight
1899 monitoring window. This eliminates entries duplicated from the
1900 header and adds both current altitude and pad altitude, which
1901 are useful in 'Monitor Idle' mode.
1902 </li><li class="listitem">
1903 Add Imperial units mode to present data in feet instead of
1907 Version 1.0.1 is a major release, adding support for the TeleMini
1908 device and lots of new AltosUI features
1910 AltOS Firmware Changes
1911 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1912 Add TeleMini v1.0 support. Firmware images for TeleMini are
1913 included in AltOS releases.
1914 </li><li class="listitem">
1915 Change telemetry to be encoded in multiple 32-byte packets. This
1916 enables support for TeleMini and other devices without requiring
1917 further updates to the TeleDongle firmware.
1918 </li><li class="listitem">
1919 Support operation of TeleMetrum with the antenna pointing
1920 aft. Previous firmware versions required the antenna to be
1921 pointing upwards, now there is a configuration option allowing
1922 the antenna to point aft, to aid installation in some airframes.
1923 </li><li class="listitem">
1924 Ability to disable telemetry. For airframes where an antenna
1925 just isn't possible, or where radio transmissions might cause
1926 trouble with other electronics, there's a configuration option
1927 to disable all telemetry. Note that the board will still
1928 enable the radio link in idle mode.
1929 </li><li class="listitem">
1930 Arbitrary frequency selection. The radios in Altus Metrum
1931 devices can be programmed to a wide range of frequencies, so
1932 instead of limiting devices to 10 pre-selected 'channels', the
1933 new firmware allows the user to choose any frequency in the
1934 70cm band. Note that the RF matching circuit on the boards is
1935 tuned for around 435MHz, so frequencies far from that may
1936 reduce the available range.
1937 </li><li class="listitem">
1938 Kalman-filter based flight-tracking. The model based sensor
1939 fusion approach of a Kalman filter means that AltOS now
1940 computes apogee much more accurately than before, generally
1941 within a fraction of a second. In addition, this approach
1942 allows the baro-only TeleMini device to correctly identify
1943 Mach transitions, avoiding the error-prone selection of a Mach
1948 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1949 Wait for altimeter when using packet mode. Instead of quicly
1950 timing out when trying to initialize a packet mode
1951 configuration connection, AltosUI now waits indefinitely for
1952 the remote device to appear, providing a cancel button should
1953 the user get bored. This is necessary as the TeleMini can only
1954 be placed in "Idle" mode if AltosUI is polling it.
1955 </li><li class="listitem">
1956 Add main/apogee voltage graphs to the data plot. This provides
1957 a visual indication if the igniters fail before being fired.
1958 </li><li class="listitem">
1959 Scan for altimeter devices by watching the defined telemetry
1960 frequencies. This avoids the problem of remembering what
1961 frequency a device was configured to use, which is especially
1962 important with TeleMini which does not include a USB connection.
1963 </li><li class="listitem">
1964 Monitor altimeter state in "Idle" mode. This provides much of
1965 the information presented in the "Pad" dialog from the Monitor
1966 Flight command, monitoring the igniters, battery and GPS
1967 status withing requiring the flight computer to be armed and
1969 </li><li class="listitem">
1970 Pre-load map images from home. For those launch sites which
1971 don't provide free Wi-Fi, this allows you to download the
1972 necessary satellite images given the location of the launch
1973 site. A list of known launch sites is maintained at
1974 altusmetrum.org which AltosUI downloads to populate a menu; if
1975 you've got a launch site not on that list, please send the
1976 name of it, latitude and longitude along with a link to the
1977 web site of the controlling club to the altusmetrum mailing list.
1978 </li><li class="listitem">
1979 Flight statistics are now displayed in the Graph data
1980 window. These include max height/speed/accel, average descent
1981 rates and a few other bits of information. The Graph Data
1982 window can now be reached from the 'Landed' tab in the Monitor
1983 Flight window so you can immediately see the results of a
1987 Version 0.9.2 is an AltosUI bug-fix release, with no firmware changes.
1988 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1989 Fix plotting problems due to missing file in the Mac OS install image.
1990 </li><li class="listitem">
1991 Always read whole eeprom blocks, mark empty records invalid, display parsing errors to user.
1992 </li><li class="listitem">
1993 Add software version to Configure AltosUI dialog
1995 Version 0.9 adds a few new firmware features and accompanying
1996 AltosUI changes, along with new hardware support.
1997 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
1998 Support for TeleMetrum v1.1 hardware. Sources for the flash
1999 memory part used in v1.0 dried up, so v1.1 uses a different part
2000 which required a new driver and support for explicit flight log
2002 </li><li class="listitem">
2003 Multiple flight log support. This stores more than one flight
2004 log in the on-board flash memory. It also requires the user to
2005 explicitly erase flights so that you won't lose flight logs just
2006 because you fly the same board twice in one day.
2007 </li><li class="listitem">
2008 Telemetry support for devices with serial number >=
2009 256. Previous versions used a telemetry packet format that
2010 provided only 8 bits for the device serial number. This change
2011 requires that both ends of the telemetry link be running the 0.9
2012 firmware or they will not communicate.
2014 Version 0.8 offers a major upgrade in the AltosUI
2015 interface. Significant new features include:
2016 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
2017 Post-flight graphing tool. This lets you explore the behaviour
2018 of your rocket after flight with a scroll-able and zoom-able
2019 chart showing the altitude, speed and acceleration of the
2020 airframe along with events recorded by the flight computer. You
2021 can export graphs to PNG files, or print them directly.
2022 </li><li class="listitem">
2023 Real-time moving map which overlays the in-progress flight on
2024 satellite imagery fetched from Google Maps. This lets you see in
2025 pictures where your rocket has landed, allowing you to plan
2026 recovery activities more accurately.
2027 </li><li class="listitem">
2028 Wireless recovery system testing. Prep your rocket for flight
2029 and test fire the deployment charges to make sure things work as
2030 expected. All without threading wires through holes in your
2032 </li><li class="listitem">
2033 Optimized flight status displays. Each flight state now has it's
2034 own custom 'tab' in the flight monitoring window so you can
2035 focus on the most important details. Pre-flight, the system
2036 shows a set of red/green status indicators for battery voltage,
2037 apogee/main igniter continutity and GPS reception. Wait until
2038 they're all green and your rocket is ready for flight. There are
2039 also tabs for ascent, descent and landing along with the
2040 original tabular view of the data.
2041 </li><li class="listitem">
2042 Monitor multiple flights simultaneously. If you have more than
2043 one TeleDongle, you can monitor a flight with each one on the
2045 </li><li class="listitem">
2046 Automatic flight monitoring at startup. Plug TeleDongle into the
2047 machine before starting AltosUI and it will automatically
2048 connect to it and prepare to monitor a flight.
2049 </li><li class="listitem">
2050 Exports Google Earth flight tracks. Using the Keyhole Markup
2051 Language (.kml) file format, this provides a 3D view of your
2052 rocket flight through the Google Earth program.
2054 Version 0.7.1 is the first release containing our new cross-platform Java-based user interface. AltosUI can:
2055 </p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem">
2056 Receive and log telemetry from a connected TeleDongle
2057 device. All data received is saved to log files named with the
2058 current date and the connected rocket serial and flight
2059 numbers. There is no mode in which telemetry data will not be
2061 </li><li class="listitem">
2062 Download logged data from TeleMetrum devices, either through a
2063 direct USB connection or over the air through a TeleDongle
2065 </li><li class="listitem">
2066 Configure a TeleMetrum device, setting the radio channel,
2067 callsign, apogee delay and main deploy height. This can be done
2068 through either a USB connection or over a radio link via a
2070 </li><li class="listitem">
2071 Replay a flight in real-time. This takes a saved telemetry log
2072 or eeprom download and replays it through the user interface so
2073 you can relive your favorite rocket flights.
2074 </li><li class="listitem">
2075 Reprogram Altus Metrum devices. Using an Altus Metrum device
2076 connected via USB, another Altus Metrum device can be
2077 reprogrammed using the supplied programming cable between the
2079 </li><li class="listitem">
2080 Export Flight data to a comma-separated-values file. This takes
2081 either telemetry or on-board flight data and generates data
2082 suitable for use in external applications. All data is exported
2083 using standard units so that no device-specific knowledge is
2084 needed to handle the data.
2085 </li><li class="listitem">
2086 Speak to you during the flight. Instead of spending the flight
2087 hunched over your laptop looking at the screen, enjoy the view
2088 while the computer tells you what’s going on up there. During
2089 ascent, you hear the current flight state and altitude
2090 information. During descent, you get azimuth, elevation and
2091 range information to try and help you find your rocket in the
2092 air. Once on the ground, the direction and distance are
2094 </li></ul></div></div></div></body></html>
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