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ELEV 8 v.2 Bad design — Parallax Forums

ELEV 8 v.2 Bad design

Larry SutherlandLarry Sutherland Posts: 77
in General Discussion
Even following the instructions......it's a bad design, Come on guys!

Step 5: Soldering Power Breakout EC3
Connector
The last of the soldering for ELEV8
assembly is soldering EC3 connectors (image below) to the
Power Breakout Cable (this Step) and battery leads (Step 6). This is one of the most difficult
assembly steps, so we strongly suggest you take your time and do some research of your own
(watch some videos on "soldering EC3 connectors", etc).

Comments

  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    edited 2016-01-17 16:30
    Larry,

    I have done two Ver2. I admit it's tedious, but definitely doable given the soldering iron has the temp for the larger wires. What problems are you having?
  • ElectrodudeElectrodude Posts: 1,657
    edited 2016-01-17 21:29
    I got an ELEV-8 v2 for Christmas, and this was by far the most difficult part. In fact, I haven't successfully done it yet, and haven't had a chance to finish it now that school's started again. Also, I held off from doing it since I was thinking of putting a fuse in there first.

    Was anyone else suprised that there are no fuses? Is a fuse somehow not necessary? Would anyone recommend a fuse? If so, is one in series with the battery good enough, or should each ESC get its own fuse? How big should the fuse(s) be?
  • FireNWaterFireNWater Posts: 93
    I wouldn't recommend a fuse, since if it blows in flight your whole quad will come crashing down.
    .
    As long as you don't do something to stall the props, you will be all right.
    .
    But yes, there is a lot of soldering which is something I believe they eliminated in V3.
    .
  • David BetzDavid Betz Posts: 14,516
    edited 2016-01-17 22:10
    (deleted)
  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    I don't think you will find a fuse on a Drone, especially on the primary circuit.
  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    I'm not understand the hard part of soldering two wires? Can you guys explain the problem you are having? Really, I want to understand.
  • Larry SutherlandLarry Sutherland Posts: 77
    I got it done....Definitely tedious. Glad I have the right tools.

    1. Used a second Panavise [ bench vise ] to hold the battery when soldering
    2. Used a heater gun for final assembly of ECS connectors [ snap in perfectly ]

    Definitely a fun soldering job.... good skills required for clean work.

    Looking forward for v.3 project.
  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    Larry,

    OK, I guess you are a happy camper?

    The V3 is a breeze, no soldering at all.
  • ElectrodudeElectrodude Posts: 1,657
    edited 2016-01-17 23:24
    FireNWater wrote: »
    I wouldn't recommend a fuse, since if it blows in flight your whole quad will come crashing down.
    .
    As long as you don't do something to stall the props, you will be all right.
    .
    But yes, there is a lot of soldering which is something I believe they eliminated in V3.
    .

    What if metal debris gets in a motor and causes a short?

    Will the ESCs cut out, or will the thing come down in flames?

    EDIT: The ESCs are rated for 30A continuous. What about a fuse rated just below the power wires' maximum current rating? (Or can I just use the power wires themselves as fuses?) What about separate fuses per ESC and fancy flight controller software than can make a semi-controlled landing on a dead prop?
  • JasonDorieJasonDorie Posts: 1,930
    If you have a motor drawing more than 30A in flight, you have larger problems than a fuse will fix. The ESCs are rated higher than the motors. Everything will handle more than rated current for some amount of time before heat becomes a problem. In all my time flying quads I've never burnt an ESC or a motor in flight. Matching your motors and props pretty much guarantees you a maximum power draw unless you've stalled a motor, and ESCs (unlike brushed motor controllers) can detect this and prevent over current on startup.

    TL;DR - fuses would be almost completely pointless.
  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    The new Open Source Flight Controller on the version 3 is such a pleasure to work with.
  • ElectrodudeElectrodude Posts: 1,657
    JasonDorie wrote: »
    If you have a motor drawing more than 30A in flight, you have larger problems than a fuse will fix. The ESCs are rated higher than the motors. Everything will handle more than rated current for some amount of time before heat becomes a problem. In all my time flying quads I've never burnt an ESC or a motor in flight. Matching your motors and props pretty much guarantees you a maximum power draw unless you've stalled a motor, and ESCs (unlike brushed motor controllers) can detect this and prevent over current on startup.

    TL;DR - fuses would be almost completely pointless.

    OK, thanks. I'll assemble it normally, then.
  • Kyle M.Kyle M. Posts: 112
    edited 2016-01-19 22:47
    Larry-

    I'm sorry your experience with the ELEV-8 v2 has been underwhelming; we strive for much better than that, and feedback is critical to improvement.

    We don't take someone calling one of our products a "bad design" lightly - and it's still not clear why you made such a statement. What in particular was difficult, and how could the instructions have been more helpful? Since this product has been discontinued, I'm most interested in any feedback you have about the documentation (or design elements that were carried over to the v3).

    I won't deny that the ELEV-8 v2 build is difficult and at times tedious, but that's why we say on the product page and the packaging that it is for moderate to advanced skill levels and takes 6-12 hours to assemble. However, it's that very challenge that makes it all the more sweet when you finally get airborne. I mean, you build a flying robot from scratch - how cool is that!?!

    We made a great effort with the ELEV-8 v3 to improve the assembly experience, and one of the steps we took was to eliminate all soldering. I look forward to you sharing any constructive comments.

    -Kyle
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