ST16 (And I'm man-anal I mean "manual") although I am "anal"

[Guest99]

When I went out yesterday to test fly my new H, I had previously watched a few videos on calibration, etc.as I had before I flew my first Q500 4K two years ago.

I take the H and the manual outside (contained in a 3 ring binder) and as I am reviewing the printed "COMPASS CALIBRATION V1.0" guide, I see "Tap the GPS CALIBRATION icon on the ST16 screen."

My ST16 doesn't have what I saw in the videos I viewed, nor does it have "GPS CALIBRATION" on the screen. To make matters worse, I wear bifocals and have cataracts and it is very sunny as I am staring at the glossy screen on my ST16.

As you read my comment here, keep in mind I am an old codger, with MS lesions in my brain where short term memory is located, and I am a war veteran. Part of my former "military brain" forces me to follow directions exactly as I read or see them and as a long-time aircraft pilot (trained by a former Army Air Corp Instructor Pilot) my old brain tends to raise a "red flag" when something is outta whack (like cows pooping on a grass runway where I wanted to land.)

I'm wondering why everything I've seen in the manual, and YouTube shows every ST16 out there with a "GPS Calibration" on the screen and mine shows "Setting calibration on the ST16." Not seeing "GPS" next to "calibration" - If there are any veterans out there, you might get my drift in regard to "This ain't S.O.P." And although this slight inconsistency in the manual isn't like cows placing organic matter where you want to land an airplane, it's enough "poop" to make me feel less than warm and fuzzy.

I'm attaching two lousy-quality pictures to show my ST16 and others I've seen on YouTube and elsewhere. I updated the firmware for the H and the ST16 yesterday prior to flying, so I wonder if this is the reason my ST16 doesn't show "GPS Calibration" on the screen.

 

[PatR]

Well, I suppose they just didn't have enough screen available to print out "GPS switch, Compass Calibration, Accelerometer Calibration,and Light Switch menu"?

 

[Steve Carr]

GPS Calibration

Mine reads "Setting Calibration" as well. I would guess it was changed from "GPS Calibration" in the firmware update.

 

[kd4pbs]

Yep. That one had me chasing my tail for a while too.

 

[Orville]

Yep. That one had me chasing my tail for a while too.

Me three. Looked at as many videos I could and none showed what I was seeing on my ST16 and I did some serious head scratching wondering why the graphics and text were not what I saw in the manual.

 

[Dr Delta]

I never bothered with any disrepancies since the switch is located on same spot as before.... (never noticed the difference really).

Besides... the word 'calibration' was enough to raise my curiosity and to look behind the 'switch'.
Video's from the elder screen also show the GPS calibration switch hides many more functions, so the newer name for it is more to the point.

 

[Guest99]

Please don't get me wrong. I LOVE all 5 of my Yuneec drones and I certainly want this company to stay in business in light of all the recent bad news I've seen (lay offs, CEO just quit). They have been outstanding to me in customer support after the sale in the two plus years I've been buying their products, BUT I think some of the quirks in their manuals might be hurting them (probably a lot of other "anal" people out there besides me... who buy and get too focused on the quirks and throw in the towel and they go elsewhere.)

One of my Yuneec Q500 4Ks I bought from someone on Ebay who crashed it (I wanted it for parts) and his complaint was "the manual " and it resulted in him wrecking the drone (I can't buy that one though.)

Two of my other Q500 4Ks I bought on Ebay from a people who never attempted to fly it after reading the manual. Thus, I have four Q500s.

The learning curve for first time drone buyers is fairly steep, and "quirks" in a manual don't build the confidence level.

My first drone was a Phantom 3. The manual and other materials were nearly flawless. Their customer support was non-existent. DJI has Yuneec "beat" in regard to manuals, but I like the design and engineering in my Yuneecs.

Ray Croc (the guy who turned McDonalds into a real "hot dog" after joining the company) turned it around by fixing what was "broken." And after he made his "repairs", the company went ballistic. Croc was once quoted "Sometimes I think it best to hire leaders to howl at the moon." And he said the reason why, is "they spot things that need attention that other leaders overlook." And Yuneec needs to take a second look at how their manuals "read" here in the USA and other English speaking/reading countries. Consistency, Continuity, Clarity coupled with Cleverness... I think Yuneec has two of these down, they just need some help in regard to Continuity and Clarity.

 

[Steve Carr]

Yuneec needs to take a second look at how their manuals "read"

Actually they have done this with the H520. I understand the manual was developed and written in the US by a team to test and fly that machine. The result should be a huge improvement.

 

[PatR]

I have to agree that Yuneec's documentation is pretty bad but you already knew of the user efforts to improve the manual before you received your H since you posted in the thread that contains this: Typhoon H manual

As one that has written military level sUAS ops and maintenance documentation I know their mandatory text format is not something the average recreational flyer is going to find easy to follow. Too many link backs to other manual sections, process code references, incomplete maintenance descriptions that require reference to other maintenance processes to complete process and part descriptions, etc. Sure, DJI has better manuals, now, but they didn't used to. They've had a few years and some U.S. product reps to clean them up. We can hope Yuneec will recognize their documentation deficiencies and make improvements. It has been alleged the 520 will be accompanied by a comprehensive user manual. Considering the programming it is supposed to contain such documentation would be essential for successful operations.

Yuneec does not offer SOP's to operate or service their equipment. I can understand that as most commercial users worth their salt develop their own SOP's based of their understanding of the aircraft and system after dedicating time in learning about them and incorporate the system SOP's with pre-existing SOP's applicable to previously established required company protocols. Recreational flyers generally don't bother with SOP's and just fling it in the air as soon as it comes out of the box and ask questions after the crash. It doesn't require that much effort to explore the functions and features of the ST-16 with the aircraft sitting on the ground, props removed, and powered up in order to learn what each feature does, where it resides on the controller, and how they interact with the aircraft. Kind of like hopping into a new full scale you've never flown before after performing the pre-flight inspection, you're going to study the panel and learn how it is laid out, where all the switches are, how the radio stack was set up, etc., for a period of time before switching on the mags.

Although the following is redundant, it's worth repeating that commercial operators develop and repeatedly use SOP documentation, recreational users seem hard pressed to even review the help videos that come on the aircraft's SD card, or review the Quick Start Guide included in the box with the aircraft, so I can almost understand why the Yuneec documentation sucks. Almost. Because of the efforts of the early users of the H we have a pretty good reference library to go to with the user written manual, should we choose to. Nice thing is it's a working document and is continually being expanded as users discover more about the system. I doubt Yuneec has employees that fully comprehend the system and functions (that becomes evident when speaking with some of their service people, but they are a lot better than DJI's) so the users are probably the best source for some information. Each of us is accustomed to doing this or that a certain way and may have spent a lot of time with other systems that are very much different from Yuneec's platforms. It's probably not reasonable to expect a company to fit their practices and procedures to each buyer's expectations and previous experiences, especially when we consider there are no "industry standards" for consumer, or even commercial level, multirotors.

Once you get used to the differences and learn your way around the system I think you'll like it. The operational differences are quite pleasant. You'll also quickly learn you have a system that is completely owned by you and not on a short leash with the manufacturer.

 

[Mojoe35]

When I went out yesterday to test fly my new H, I had previously watched a few videos on calibration, etc.as I had before I flew my first Q500 4K two years ago.

I take the H and the manual outside (contained in a 3 ring binder) and as I am reviewing the printed "COMPASS CALIBRATION V1.0" guide, I see "Tap the GPS CALIBRATION icon on the ST16 screen."

My ST16 doesn't have what I saw in the videos I viewed, nor does it have "GPS CALIBRATION" on the screen. To make matters worse, I wear bifocals and have cataracts and it is very sunny as I am staring at the glossy screen on my ST16.

As you read my comment here, keep in mind I am an old codger, with MS lesions in my brain where short term memory is located, and I am a war veteran. Part of my former "military brain" forces me to follow directions exactly as I read or see them and as a long-time aircraft pilot (trained by a former Army Air Corp Instructor Pilot) my old brain tends to raise a "red flag" when something is outta whack (like cows pooping on a grass runway where I wanted to land.)

I'm wondering why everything I've seen in the manual, and YouTube shows every ST16 out there with a "GPS Calibration" on the screen and mine shows "Setting calibration on the ST16." Not seeing "GPS" next to "calibration" - If there are any veterans out there, you might get my drift in regard to "This ain't S.O.P." And although this slight inconsistency in the manual isn't like cows placing organic matter where you want to land an airplane, it's enough "poop" to make me feel less than warm and fuzzy.

I'm attaching two lousy-quality pictures to show my ST16 and others I've seen on YouTube and elsewhere. I updated the firmware for the H and the ST16 yesterday prior to flying, so I wonder if this is the reason my ST16 doesn't show "GPS Calibration" on the screen.

 

[Mojoe35]

When I went out yesterday to test fly my new H, I had previously watched a few videos on calibration, etc.as I had before I flew my first Q500 4K two years ago.

I take the H and the manual outside (contained in a 3 ring binder) and as I am reviewing the printed "COMPASS CALIBRATION V1.0" guide, I see "Tap the GPS CALIBRATION icon on the ST16 screen."

My ST16 doesn't have what I saw in the videos I viewed, nor does it have "GPS CALIBRATION" on the screen. To make matters worse, I wear bifocals and have cataracts and it is very sunny as I am staring at the glossy screen on my ST16.

As you read my comment here, keep in mind I am an old codger, with MS lesions in my brain where short term memory is located, and I am a war veteran. Part of my former "military brain" forces me to follow directions exactly as I read or see them and as a long-time aircraft pilot (trained by a former Army Air Corp Instructor Pilot) my old brain tends to raise a "red flag" when something is outta whack (like cows pooping on a grass runway where I wanted to land.)

I'm wondering why everything I've seen in the manual, and YouTube shows every ST16 out there with a "GPS Calibration" on the screen and mine shows "Setting calibration on the ST16." Not seeing "GPS" next to "calibration" - If there are any veterans out there, you might get my drift in regard to "This ain't S.O.P." And although this slight inconsistency in the manual isn't like cows placing organic matter where you want to land an airplane, it's enough "poop" to make me feel less than warm and fuzzy.

I'm attaching two lousy-quality pictures to show my ST16 and others I've seen on YouTube and elsewhere. I updated the firmware for the H and the ST16 yesterday prior to flying, so I wonder if this is the reason my ST16 doesn't show "GPS Calibration" on the screen.
View attachment 7227

View attachment 7225

Well, I certainly never caught that when I was reading my manual. I bought my Typhoon H in May of 2016 and as far as I can remember, my ST16 has always had the "Setting Calibration" and not GPS Calibration on the screen. As others here have said, the manual sucks! This is why I often check the Forum for better answers. We have some great minds here.

As long as you get the same screen when you tap the 'Settings Calibration' button, that's what counts. I've attached two screenshots of my ST16 showing the calibration settings.

View attachment 7289 View attachment 7290