Quick Start Guide

On this page I (OlliW) will list briefly the steps which are required to correctly setup the STorM32 brushless gimbal controller, as a kind of prestart check list.

A personal note first: That I'm sitting here and writing this guide is slightly disappointing. The STorM32 project is my hobby, and I share it for free because I do it in my spare time, which is limited. Documentation I consider thus the user's job, but essentially noone except one brave soul (yang/wdaehn) has contributed significantly to it. The firmware and GUI however has progressed, and several pieces of the wiki ran out of date. So I'm sitting here and am writing this guide. :)

In principle, the setup is completed in three major steps:

• Preparation: Learn about the basics, the Dos and Dont's, gimbal mechanics, flashing the firmware, and so on.
• Calibration: Learn how and why to do a calibration of your IMU(s).
• Basic Controller Configuration: Adjust those controller parameters, which are absolutely crucial for a correct working.

The Basic Controller Configuration can be itself distinguished into two major steps:

• Some parameters need to be set BEFORE the motors are enabled for the first time.
• The remaining parameters need to be set AFTER the gimbal was started the first time with the motors enabled.

The chapters below guide you (very) briefly through these steps.

The STorM32-BGC controller currently can be used for the following setups:

• 3-Axis with single IMU: Only one IMU, connected to the I2C port and mounted to the camera, is used.
• 3-Axis with on-board IMU: In addition to the camera IMU the on-board IMU is used as 2nd IMU. The board must be mounted on the gimbal support (above the yaw motor).
• 3-Axis with separate 2nd IMU: In addition to the camera IMU a further IMU connected to the I2C#2 port is used as 2nd IMU. The board can be mounted anywhere, but the 2nd IMU must be mounted on the gimbal support (above the yaw motor).
• 2-Axis: This is not "officially" supported but users figured out that the controller can be set up to work also fine for a 2-axis gimbal. Only one IMU attached to the I2C port and mounted to the camera can be used. The usage of a 2nd IMU is not supported.

The 3-Axis with single IMU and 2-Axis applications are obviously easier to set up, since one doesn't need to care about the 2nd IMU and what's required to get it working correctly. The following focused on the dual-IMU setups.

Preparation

• Comprehend the Dos and Dont', which you find here: Dos and Dont's.

• Understand the importance of a proper gimbal mechanics, read e.g. here: The Gimbal.

• Get familiar with the board, inspect: Pins and Connectors.

• Use the latest firmware and GUI. For downloading the latest firmware package see here: Downloads. For flashing the firmware to the board see here: How to flash firmware. Read the update and install instructions in the respective post in the rcgroups thread, and check that post for known bugs.

• Check that your setup matches one of the supported setups mentioned in the introductory paragraph.