Battery adapter for the Typhoon-H on the way

[GekoCH]

yep you're right I did resolder the XT60 to the battery and yes it is possible to put everything into the front part. Its a very tight fit but it works! Used a unused XT60 with leads and soldered them to the tray Deans connector.

So now I just need some more Deans connector

Andy

 

[glider]

I would advise doing a slow charge (.5c) on the graphene when new and only run down to say 50%, then recharge @.5 once more. After that run em down and charge @2c. You should see an increase in flight time after 2nd or 3rd charge.

I posted the discharge curves before from actual flights. At 3.5v, the graphene will discharge rapidly so you'd better have it close to the ground by then. They act differently than standard LiPo's.

I've seen no measurable difference using elaborate "break in" procedures. My 6.6 has dozens of flights and is very consistent using the above simple break-in method. I think they are better batteries for longevity regardless of price difference from say a Tattu (have two of them).

 

[Ralphy]

yep you're right I did resolder the XT60 to the battery and yes it is possible to put everything into the front part. Its a very tight fit but it works! Used a unused XT60 with leads and soldered them to the tray Deans connector.

So now I just need some more Deans connector

Andy

Great to hear Andy. Looking forward to your flight times and field testing!

 

[Ralphy]

I would advise doing a slow charge (.5c) on the graphene when new and only run down to say 50%, then recharge @.5 once more. After that run em down and charge @2c. You should see an increase in flight time after 2nd or 3rd charge.

I posted the discharge curves before from actual flights. At 3.5v, the graphene will discharge rapidly so you'd better have it close to the ground by then. They act differently than standard LiPo's.

I've seen no measurable difference using elaborate "break in" procedures. My 6.6 has dozens of flights and is very consistent using the above simple break-in method. I think they are better batteries for longevity regardless of price difference from say a Tattu (have two of them).

Thanks Well my crappy 50w charger charged at 3.1amps so just guessing that qualifies it for .5c ... I'll fly some more today and report back! I didn't do the 50% discharge can just do that today or is it too late.

 

[Ralphy]

This is what you have to do to avoid getting the wires to stick out. Bend them in and use some force and heat the shrink wrap until they stay folded inward. Enjoy!

 

[glider]

Thanks Well my crappy 50w charger charged at 3.1amps so just guessing that qualifies it for .5c ... I'll fly some more today and report back! I didn't do the 50% discharge can just do that today or is it too late.

You won't ruin the battery at 13.8v. In fact I have no proof my method is better than the next. It's just what I do and the batteries seem to last.

The concern is per cell voltage. Since the H doesn't monitor individual cells, you have to assume there is one cell that is lower than the others and the H force lands at 13.8 doesn't it? That's still 3.45v which doesn't concern me in the least. If there's a cell that's 3.0 the battery is toast anyway.

To compare flight times between batteries, there needs to be a standard test pattern in similar environmental conditions. What I do is move the slider to Turtle mode or a bit higher and go full throttle in figure 8 patterns to keep the speed consistent. Actually I also turn GPS off. Don't that if you're not confident to fly without it!!! Then a standard hover only test.

What I'd be interested in is how many mah's each battery takes after a hover test about 3 meters off the ground, then land as soon as it hits the last warning. Allow them to cool off for 15 minutes then recharge.

I see no need to finish my battery case project. You guys have done well. Plus my H is out of commission at the moment.

 

[richard bottos]

You won't ruin the battery at 13.8v. In fact I have no proof my method is better than the next. It's just what I do and the batteries seem to last.

The concern is per cell voltage. Since the H doesn't monitor individual cells, you have to assume there is one cell that is lower than the others and the H force lands at 13.8 doesn't it? That's still 3.45v which doesn't concern me in the least. If there's a cell that's 3.0 the battery is toast anyway.

To compare flight times between batteries, there needs to be a standard test pattern in similar environmental conditions. What I do is move the slider to Turtle mode or a bit higher and go full throttle in figure 8 patterns to keep the speed consistent. Actually I also turn GPS off. Don't that if you're not confident to fly without it!!! Then a standard hover only test.

What I'd be interested in is how many mah's each battery takes after a hover test about 3 meters off the ground, then land as soon as it hits the last warning. Allow them to cool off for 15 minutes then recharge.

I see no need to finish my battery case project. You guys have done well. Plus my H is out of commission at the moment.

I'm not aware of any flight controller that monitors individual cells, net effect is total voltage required. I had a bad cell on several li-pos, without knowing until it was removed for charging. The Frsky monitors total voltage also. A standardized test sequence would be valuable to look at other li-pos. The zippy 8000ma with a shoehorn or li-po shrinker may be very valuable on the market. I have a spare high pressure press!
Regards Dick Bottos

 

[Ken448]

In my opinion you need to find a way to reuse that battery tray so you buy one tray and can have several batts. Not sure if there is room left to solder in an adapter of your choice so you just plug the battery into that and go fly.

Thats pretty much what Id be looking for. Hard wire the tray, and plug in the battery to the tray.

 

[Ralphy]

Thats pretty much what Id be looking for. Hard wire the tray, and plug in the battery to the tray.

Agreed, I wanted to create something that maximized the number of batteries you can fit in there not just the Turnigy ones. This way you invest once in a tray and then you can spend the money exploring all the different lipos that can power it. Hopefully people report back on their findings wih different capacities and brands.

 

[glider]

I'm not aware of any flight controller that monitors individual cells, net effect is total voltage required. I had a bad cell on several li-pos, without knowing until it was removed for charging. The Frsky monitors total voltage also. A standardized test sequence would be valuable to look at other li-pos. The zippy 8000ma with a shoehorn or li-po shrinker may be very valuable on the market. I have a spare high pressure press!
Regards Dick Bottos

I have Frsky LiPo sensors for all my copters, except the H, toy grades or when using LR9 etc. It reports per cell voltage on the Taranis. It's really nice in conjunction with Teensy/PIxhawk.

 

[Ralphy]

I would advise doing a slow charge (.5c) on the graphene when new and only run down to say 50%, then recharge @.5 once more. After that run em down and charge @2c. You should see an increase in flight time after 2nd or 3rd charge.

I posted the discharge curves before from actual flights. At 3.5v, the graphene will discharge rapidly so you'd better have it close to the ground by then. They act differently than standard LiPo's.

I've seen no measurable difference using elaborate "break in" procedures. My 6.6 has dozens of flights and is very consistent using the above simple break-in method. I think they are better batteries for longevity regardless of price difference from say a Tattu (have two of them).

I followed your advice glider and today the Turnigy 6600mah flew to 19 min @14.3v first alert in 10mph winds. Dropped quick in a minute to 13.8v total flight time 20 min flying figure 8s and linear. It seems to be getting better and better. So far I've got a 2 minute gain on the previous flight time with windy conditions.

Can anyone else chime in on flight times with the 6600mah?

 

[QuadBart]

No offense to Ralphy, glad to see an adaptor out there so we can use our after-market chargers. Was wondering if anyone else was currently working on an adapter like Caronlinadronz or HobbyKing?

After thinking of the benefits, I'm buying one now...

 

[Ralphy]

No offense to Ralphy, glad to see an adaptor out there so we can use our after-market chargers. Was wondering if anyone else was currently working on an adapter like Caronlinadronz or HobbyKing?

Carolinadronz and quadcam have them as well at a more affordable price. I'm not sure hobby King sells them but thanks for the idea!!

 

[Ralphy]

Cool Bart! Would you like it in a special color??

I have yellow blue red green pink purple

Thanks!!

 

[NoCoOutdoorGuys]

Can someone point me to all the items I would need to replace the existing Yuneec charger? I'd like to be able to discharge as well.

Is this charger ok:
Turnigy Reaktor 300W 20A 6S Balance Charger

Also, I see mention of a power supply. Can someone suggest one? Is this stuff available as a package?
Thanks.

 

[Ralphy]

 

[PatR]

No worries, it really takes a while to source all the parts solder everything up and test it. To be exact its 2.75 hours of manual assembly labor per adapter. I'm very confident about the quality and performance and i really want it to be a product that yeilds a lifetime of performance.

No body has bought the 19.99 DIY kit despite many people claiming they would.

No one can sell a quality adapter like this for less than 50 bucks c'mon

By the time you consider all the fees paypal and ebay take and postage and packing i'm left with enough money to buy a cheeseburger on sunday when they are cheap!

Although I commend your sense of enterprise and ingenuity you might want to look at Horizon's pricing for the Chroma quick charge adapter, which is made by Yuneec. About 25% of what you market your adapter for. I doubt it will be much longer before Yuneec does the same for the H battery. Should you see a solid long term market for these you might want to source an inexpensive assembly labor force to increase production and sales volume. You'll be under cut fairly soon if you don't. In fact, I think that's already happened on the European front.

 

[Ralphy]

Although I commend your sense of enterprise and ingenuity you might want to look at Horizon's pricing for the Chroma quick charge adapter, which is made by Yuneec. About 25% of what you market your adapter for. I doubt it will be much longer before Yuneec does the same for the H battery. Should you see a solid long term market for these you might want to source an inexpensive assembly labor force to increase production and sales volume. You'll be under cut fairly soon if you don't. In fact, I think that's already happened on the European front.

Great insight thank you very much! Dont you see there has to be something fundamentally wrong with those factory batteries for them not to allow you all the normal functions lipos typically let you perform. Cant measure the resistance, cant balance discharge or storage mode and you pay $150 bucks.

I sure hope Yuneec doesnt come up with a functional tray adapter to use standard lipos on the model H . That would suck and put me out of business. Oh well at least we got there first. TIME WILL TELL!

Ohh they better offer lifetime warranty like me! Thats the USA advantage.

 

[PatR]

The day makers came up with the proprietary battery concept I knew consumers were/are getting screwed. For the price of a single Phantom battery you can buy almost a pair of Tattu batteries of greater capacity and much higher quality. There was no way for the buyer to establish cell quality and businesses ALWAYS use the cheapest product they can obtain in order to maximize mark up. So no, I do not believe we are being provided high quality batteries and it's quite likely one of the reasons for the 0.5C chargers is because the batteries will not tolerate repeated higher charge rate cycles. It's one of the reasons why I will not exceed a 1C charge rate with my Chroma or H batteries.

Another point with proprietary batteries and low C chargers has to do with who they are being sold to. The consumer drone market is pretty much an "any buyer" customer base, and the majority of them likely have zero experience with lithium ion batteries, chargers, cell monitoring equipment, and basic understanding of them. In selling to "anybody" the potential for disastrous residential fires caused by people lacking battery knowledge is pretty high. Consider the Hover Board debacle... So providing a system that protects the user from themselves has product liability benefits.

 

[PatR]

Ohh they better offer lifetime warranty like me! Thats the USA advantage.

A lifetime warranty is not location specific. They come from the knowledge the product is made with the best components and labor practices possible, regardless of location