Blog Article Continuation(s) Review-WL Toys V959 Quadcopter with Camera

Discussion in 'Specific Models of Quadcopters and Drones' started by webman, Mar 19, 2013.

  1. RanTalbott

    RanTalbott New Member

    That thread from rcgroups I mentioned earlier describes a hack that adapts the V959 camera to standard RC receiver control. So you could use it on your other aircraft.

    Ran
     
  2. webman

    webman Administrator Staff Member

    Yeah, the hack may be a bit hard for some....especially if it's not for the popular 9X inexpensive radios....

    Interesting that a company (WL) would go backwards in appealing to hobbyists. You would think they would have a list of the sales points and of how people were using them and improve their products to fit. That would have meant the additional stabilization and maybe putting a switch for the cam (on off) on the cam or copter so it could be easily used with the other TX.

    Jumping through hoops can be interesting, but it's nice to take the thing out and fly!
     
  3. RanTalbott

    RanTalbott New Member

    My guess is that they do, and over 98% of those sales points are xxx-Mart and chain drug stores, where the ability to reduce their wholesale price by 12 cents can make the difference between getting on the shelf and losing to a competitor. I'd be astonished if we tinkerers were even in the teens of percent of the total sales of the "toy-grade" companies.
    The owner of massiverc.com has complained in both rcgroups and on his own catalog pages about the fact that WLToys is driven by the demands of the toy market, not the hacker market, but I believe he also understands that it's mostly about where their volume is.

    Ran
     
  4. webman

    webman Administrator Staff Member

    I think you are correct in the toy heli market.....but wonder if $90 quads with cams start to get above that particular demographic???

    But you are correct that they have that mindset.

    Quads don't seem to be too evident in radio shack stores or even toy stores around here....just helis and cars/trucks, etc.
     
  5. Dia

    Dia New Member

    Is it possible to use a 2C 7.4V lipo battery with this kind of quadcopter? Will it be too heavy? Will it fry the components?
     
  6. RanTalbott

    RanTalbott New Member

    There are 2S batteries not much bigger and heavier than the stock battery, but the higher voltage will definitely destroy some components. The only question is whether there would be visible smoke, or the lolgic circuits would get zapped before the motor drivers had a chance to get something really hot.
    You might get some additional flying time with a larger 1S battery, but maybe not as much as you'd think: for micro quads, the battery is a major part of the total weight, and hauling a bigger battery makes the quad work harder. The folks at massiverc have done tests on various batteries for the V202, and found that the lighter-weight 250mAH battery actually gave slightly longer flights that the heavier 300mAH ones, but didn't have as much "punch" for spirited maneuvers.
     
  7. Israel Cunha

    Israel Cunha New Member

    Hello
    I'm new here. I saw your post about the camera and the WL V959 Radio Turnigy 9X. I would like more details on how you put the button in exteno quad on and off the camera. because the 9X radio has no such possibility. I saw that some wires isolated vc camera intendi but not very well. I can pass the scheme. thank you
     
  8. IceFyre13th

    IceFyre13th Guest

    Good Find, eventually someone will sell an module.......just like the AR Drone and the MiruMod
     
  9. webman

    webman Administrator Staff Member


    The only easy way to do it is to place a momentary button on it like I did - then simply press the button before the quadcopter takes flight.

    It should be possible to do it using a switch on the radio, but that would be complicated and require either reverse engineering the particular radio signal or installing another receiver.

    Here is the guy who first identified the wires and signals:
    http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1842066

    He triggered it with a 9x, but it is a lot of work IMHO.....
     
  10. Israel Cunha

    Israel Cunha New Member

    I wanted to do as you did with the button .. but not intendi which wires to use and what wires vain for the button .. you can explain to me :)
     
  11. Israel Cunha

    Israel Cunha New Member

    I do not intendi what he did here:
    yellow: +3.3 v nominal pull to ground for 250ms to start or stop video fuction
    white: +3.3 v nominal pull to ground for 250ms to take a still photograph
    What is 250ms?
     
  12. webman

    webman Administrator Staff Member

    Don't worry about the 250ms -that means 1/4 of a second of time. That is how long you have to jump the two center wire (yellow and black) to make the video function turn on.

    See the post:
    https://www.droneflyers.com/talk/threads/review-wl-toys-v959-quadcopter-with-camera.45/#post-175

    So, you only need to think about the yellow and the black wires which go to the video camera. They need to be jumped together for an instant. I used a switch like this one:
    http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062546

    The switch should be normally open - then you press it quickly and leave go, which connects it for the (approx) 1/4 second and turns the camera on. Press it again and it will turn the camera off.

    swtich.jpg
     
  13. Israel Cunha

    Israel Cunha New Member

    Thanks for the explanation brother ..
    I do here, then I speak as it became ...

    thank you
     
  14. Israel Cunha

    Israel Cunha New Member

    Brother worked ...
    heheeh .. I used a button on / off cpu.
    already abusing their knowledge .. heheh's to do the same to turn on and off the LEDs?
     
  15. Nesher

    Nesher New Member

    Does the manual state, or has anybody tried: using a larger capacity SD card? Anything above 2GB is labelled as Micro SDHC, not SD. I'm going on a trip, not planning to bring a laptop, so I'd like to be able to shoot more than 18 minutes of aerial video total.
    Thanks for the reviews and discussion!
     
  16. webman

    webman Administrator Staff Member

  17. Nesher

    Nesher New Member

  18. webman

    webman Administrator Staff Member

    Here is a pic of a couple quickie mods - the zip tie landing gear always helps avoid damage - although it may make it easier for the quad to hang up in trees. It's probably a good idea not to tape it too securely!

    The velcro wrap around the battery holder is for a cheapo ($12) keychain camera. The video is definitely poor because of the shakiness of the quadcopter and lack of shock absorber in the mounting - I will improve that mount and also lighten the camera by removing much of the plastic case and drilling holes in the rest.

    Those interested in mostly taking video should purchase the quads already so-equipped, as they tend to be more stable and have a lighter cam (959, 222, etc.).

    View attachment 69
    Zip tie landing gear

    Screen shots with cheapo keychain cam - first flight with cam velcroed on.
    View attachment 71 View attachment 72 View attachment 70
     
  19. Bernie

    Bernie New Member

    Hi, I am still learning to fly. If my quad batteries run out at a hieght, will it come down and land safely, will it keep stabalized.
     
  20. IceFyre13th

    IceFyre13th Guest

    Bernie,

    Generally.......most UAS's (unmanned aerial system) will have a way to tell you the batteries are low.....AR Drone 2.0 puts it on the phone screen, others may beep or flash the LED's....all depends on the bird.

    So you should have enough time to land safely as the battery "dies" when te indicator tells you "Low Power".

    But not all UAS's will have this feature, so the first flights should be low to the ground and you should time them........once you know the approximate time the bird is low on power then land.

    If you do run out at height and the bird drops..........expect some damage.
     

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