connect the Laser4 RC Trainer Jack to microcontroller

[elad_so]

Hello
Is there a way to control Hitec Laser4 Remote Control from micro controller?
Anyone ever did that?
Basically I want to control the laser 4 from micro controller
And the laser 4 will transmit by RF signal the commands to my car vehicle.

can I connect the microcontroller to the trainer jack and control the remote control from there?

Any help would be appreciated

[Endurance]

There are a few solutions out there already: www.endurance-rc.com/pctx.html mile high wings made one but I dont think they are still around. There are also a few diy solutions as well. Google for pc to rc interface or something along those lines.

[Gord_W]

Hello
Is there a way to control Hitec Laser4 Remote Control from micro controller?
Anyone ever did that?
Basically I want to control the laser 4 from micro controller
And the laser 4 will transmit by RF signal the commands to my car vehicle.

can I connect the microcontroller to the trainer jack and control the remote control from there?

Any help would be appreciated

The answer is yes. You can do a search of the FCC website using the FCC number on the back of the TX to get the schematics and work from there.

I have been working on a modification of my Laser 4 by replacing the computer chip with a daughter board containing a PIC and also installing a cell phone LCD for programing mixes and information display. I also increased the number of channels to 5 so I can make full use of 5 channel RXs. I also built in a serial port for downloading new programs into the PIC, using the radio as a sim input box, etc.

The hardware is all finished and I used it last summer to fly a DLG without any fancy programing. I'm now working on the fancy programing :p

It is the ulitimate in programable radios only limited in my programing ability :D

I'll be describing the project here shortly but here are a few teaser pictures.

Gord_W

[elad_so]

Thank you all for the quick answer.
I am a bit new in this area.
What I basically want is to know if I can connect to the laser 4 input controllers and transmit the ppm signal from my microcontroller to the LASER 4 trainer jack.



basically if its possible - I want to know where to connect to , and what is the protocol of the ppm signal to active each channel ( Voltages , Freq of each channels , Timing of the pulse position modulation ... ).

To Gord_W - if you can send me your laser 4 original schematics and any other information I will be vary happy.


elad_so

[Gord_W]

Thank you all for the quick answer.
I am a bit new in this area.

To Gord_W - if you can send me your laser 4 original schematics and any other information I will be vary happy.


elad_so

Hmm... Maybe not a beginner project. Do you have any experience with microcontrollers? That is where you should start by learning how to program it and flash an LED. After that it is fairly straight forward :rolleyes:

Like I said, have a look on the FCC site for the schematics, but to answer your question for the connector on the back:

PIN 1, 4 is V+ from the battery
PIN 6, 7 is GND
PIN 2 is PPM out
PIN 3 is PPM in
PIN 5 is RF disable

Seach the net for the format of the PPM signal. Lots of information there.

Trainer switch needs to be activated to allow the PPM in signal to be transmitted.

The two most common microcontrollers that people use are PICs and AVRs. Lots of information on the web about these.

Regards,

Gord_W

[elad_so]

Yes.
Have a little experience in micro-controller especially microchip pick185452.
And also FPGA design - I am also a 4'Th year student for electrical and computer eng. So the next level for me is trying to create a signal from pic18 evaluation board that I have to the laser 4 RC. And try to active a robotic arm from the pic.

I guess that the FCC number is on the back of the RC - I will be able to see it only tomorrow (it's on the lab).

I have another question - my robotic arm has 6 channels - am I able to control all 6 channels from the laser 4 with the trainer jack?

How the channel does is chosen from the ppm modulation.
Each channel is another freq / timing?

Regards,
Elad

[Gord_W]

How the channel does is chosen from the ppm modulation.
Each channel is another freq / timing?



Have a search on the net for PPM first as I suggested and come back with questions later. You should also take a scope and look at the PPM signal out from the TX and see how it changes when you move the sticks around.

If you already have some ucontroller experience, this project won't be difficult for you. You can add as many channels as you want. You are not limited to four.

Gord_W