=== Connecting to TeleBT over Bluetooth™
+ Note that when turning TeleBT on, you may see a brief LED
+ flash, but there will be no "activity" indicated until you
+ pair with the device from AltosDroid.
+
Press the Android 'Menu' button or soft-key to see the
configuration options available. Select the 'Connect a
device' option and then the 'Scan for devices' entry
--- /dev/null
+== Configuration
+
+ There is very little that must be configured to make EasyMotor work.
+ In fact, the default configuration from the factory is typically
+ sufficient without change.
+
+ === Connecting to a Unit
+
+ To change any EasyMotor configuration, you need to attach
+ a battery and a power switch, then use a micro USB cable
+ to connect the board to a computer running AltosUI.
+
+ === Changing the Configuration
+
+ All available configuration options can be set using the
+ "Configure Altimeter" menu selection within the AltosUI
+ program.
+
--- /dev/null
+== Installation
+
+ EasyMotor needs to be rigidly attached in the airframe, and the
+ long axis of the circuit board needs to be aligned with the axis
+ of flight. By default, the round beeper on the board should be
+ "up" towards the nose cone, and the screw terminal strips should
+ be "down" towards the fins and motor nozzle end of the rocket.
+
+ === Power Switch and Battery
+
+ In addition to the circuit board itself, EasyMotor needs
+ a power switch and battery to operate. Unlike most other
+ Altus Metrum products, EasyMotor does not work with
+ single-cell LiPo batteries. That's because commonly
+ available inexpensive pressure sensors need 5V, which is
+ more than a single-cell LiPo provides. Any battery that
+ provides from 6.5 to about 15 volts should work. Good
+ choices are the common 9V alkaline battery, or the very
+ small and light A23 12V alkaline batteries.
+
+ Because he often mounts EasyMotor to the motor's forward
+ bulkhead instead of to the airframe itself, Bdale often
+ uses a length of "shooter wire" from an e-match or used
+ motor igniter as a power switch, routing the wire out of
+ the typical fin can vent hole and using "twist and tape"
+ to power up the board. Whatever works!
+
+ === Pressure Sensor
+
+ The primary motivation for designing EasyMotor was to have
+ a reliable way of recording motor chamber pressure during
+ flight. To that end, EasyMotor supports attachment of a
+ low-cost analog pressure sensor. The board provides 5V
+ to power the sensor, and an input for measuring and
+ logging the output voltage from the sensor.
+
+ The kind of sensor EasyMotor is designed to work with
+ takes 5V in and has a linear analog output that ranges
+ from 0.5V at 0 to 4.5V at the maximum pressure supported
+ by the sensor. Very inexpensive sensors that have a
+ "1/8 NPT" threaded input, a "Buick-style" 3-pin connector,
+ and typically ship with a short cable and mating
+ connector, are readily available on eBay and AliExpress.
+
+ To log in-flight chamber pressure, a typical approach
+ might be to drill a 1/8" sampling hole all the way
+ through the center of the motor's forward closure, then
+ drill and tap partially through the closure with a "1/8
+ NPT" pipe tap. Fill the touch hole with grease, screw in
+ the pressure sensor, and attach the sensor leads to
+ EasyMotor.
--- /dev/null
+== Introduction and Overview
+
+Welcome to the Altus Metrum community! Our circuits and software reflect
+our passion for both hobby rocketry and Free Software. We hope their
+capabilities and performance will delight you in every way, but by
+releasing all of our hardware and software designs under open licenses,
+we also hope to empower you to take as active a role in our collective
+future as you wish!
+
+Thank you for your interest in EasyMotor, an in-flight motor data collection
+board for hobby rockets. EasyMotor is a small circuit board that is meant
+to log motor chamber pressure and rocket acceleration during flight. With
+this data it's possible to determine whether a research motor is performing
+as expected. With additional information about masses and airframe drag,
+it is even possible to closely estimate complete motor performance.
+
+With EasyMotor, the dilemma of "do I burn this on a test stand to learn more
+about how it actually works, or do I go fly it" is no more! You can fly your
+motor and get real performance data about it too!
+
+Because documentation is just as prone as software to contain "bugs", and
+can always be improved... If you have questions that aren't answered in this
+manual, or just need a little help figuring things out, we strongly suggest
+joining the Altus Metrum user email list, which you can do by visiting
+https://lists.gag.com/mailman/listinfo/altusmetrum.
+
--- /dev/null
+== Operation
+
+ Operating an EasyMotor board is pretty easy. Turn the power on
+ before launch, typically during the usual pre-flight electronics
+ checklist after the rocket is installed on a launch rail.
+
+ The board will beep out a Morse code "P" every few seconds
+ indicating that it's in pad mode and ready to detect launch.
+ Once launch is detected, the board logs pressure and acceleration
+ data 100 times per second throughout the flight.
+
+ After flight, AltosUI can be used to download the flight data,
+ then export it to a comma separated values (CSV) file. Such a
+ file can easily be loaded into a spreadsheet for analysis.
+
projects / fw / altos / commitdiff