I built the pro mini as per the Olliw's blog nice and easy to do. flashed the boot-loader got good out come there. I have set up the system on my CX, I get a steady blue led and a flashing green led when I power up the unit see pic can some one help me with this matter?

nice job, sir

you even went with the poti option, cool.

as regards the LEDs, info can be drawn from the original Arduino page, http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardProMini. So, the pro mini has two leds, one which is connected to the power and hence just works as a power indicator, and a second one which is connected to the microcontroller and can hence have different functions depending on the code, let's call it the status led. The power indicator led is located in the middle of the board, while the other led is located near the reset button. So, in your case

blue led = power indicator, flashes permanently as long as the pro mini is powered

green led = status led, shows the status of the coax mixer (as programmed into the firmware code you flashed)

So, only the status led (green in your case) is of relevance for you.

As regards the flash signals of the status led: The coax mixer firmware is a descendent of the GA250 gyromixer firmware (so to say it's little cousin), and accordingly it functions very similar in many respects. This is to say that it can be useful to look up the info on the GA250 gyromixer project if a piee of info is missing, since some aspects of the functioning are very similar (for instance, you also can use your USB flash adapter to set paramters remotely via a PC, or use the a programming box for setting the paramters remotely "in-field"... but these are advanced options). Info on the GA250 gyromixer project can be found here:
- http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1450125
- http://www.olliw.eu/2011/ga250-fpkoax-gyro-mischer/

The useful piece of info here is the description in this post, http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showt...0#post18410381, and scroll down to Functions of the GA250 Gyromixer. The GA250 has TWO status leds, while the pro mini has, as discussed in teh above, only ONE status led, so the one status led on the pro mini takes over both.

The only difference (if I recall correctly) is that the coax mixer first flashes the status led for ca 1s after power up, but then follows exactly the scehem as given in the GA250 gyromixer post, i.e.

status led for ca 1s after power up
|
(A0) Initialization and startup, the mixer first waits for a valid signal to come in from the reciever. The LED is blinking very fast.
|
(A1) Rx signals recieved (on both mixer inputs), The red LED is blinking fast.
the mixer waits for as long until Throttle becomes high or low
|
|-> Thro is high -> (B) Thro range programming mode
|
Thro is low
|
(C) Thro low mode
(D) Flight mode

alright?

In order to diagnose your issue that the motors are not responding, it would be needed to know in which status your mixer is, i.e., please describe more precisely what the status led (green in your case) is doing after power up... do you see e.g. the transition from very fast to fast blinking?


BTW: could you please leave a comment on my web blog telling that you openend this thread (with a link maybe) and transfered the discussion to her? Thx

thanks for the complement I'm trying. sorry not getting back sooner but i have been sick still not up to par yet the green led on maybe .2 sec then flashes vary fast like ............ fast

the green led on maybe .2 sec

this is a bit short... should be more like 1 sec...
I wonder, is there any chance that you're using a 5V version of the pro mini instead of a 3.3V version?
The difference is significant since the 5V runs at 16MHz while the 3.3V runs at 8MHz... and the code is for 8MHz... (however, the fact that you got the bootloader to work rather suggests that your pro mini is running with 8MHz... not sure what happens then the bootloader runs at an incorrect frequency). Maybe worthwhile to double check.

then flashes vary fast like ............ fast

=> (A0) Initialization and startup, the mixer first waits for a valid signal to come in from the reciever. The LED is blinking very fast.
So, your coaxmixer doesn't detect valid signals at both inputs.

Could you do this test just to double check that we are on the right track: First, disconnect either the rudder or thro signal from the coaxmixer (such that it can't detect a valid signal for sure) and look at what the green led is doing after power up. Then plug again everything correctly together and look at what the green led is doing after power up. Are there any differences in flashing behavior?

I carefully reinspected your above figures, and everything looks quite fine on them, but it could be that you have exchanged thro and rudd, i.e. it looks a bit as if your "black" plug would be thro and your "yellow" plug would be rudd, and that therefore your "yellow" plug should go to the gyro and the "black" one directly into reciever. This is hard to see and I might well be wrong, but maybe worth to double check.

Maybe a stupid question: your reciever does bind and outputs signals?

PS: thanks for the comment on the web blog, potentially very helpfull :-)

Well I do know that the mini pro I'm using is 5v 16MNz and I do not see the jumper switch (if that what it's called) on this board so that might be it. I will do the test of seeing the difronts plug in and not pluged in after looking it over. Last night I put the 3n1 and converters in. It was a good afternoon to fly here. I had no problems with the radio just some with the 3n1 so I don't think the bind is a problem

I found something that could explane my problem see pic my borad has a diffront end GND pin location.
Just to check I set the gyro servo out to 1520us/333Hz I will try the fix in the morring

Well I do know that the mini pro I'm using is 5v 16MNz

OK, this is a problem for sure, it can't operate properly with the 8 MHz files (I am surprised that the bootloader did work at all)... I will have to recompile and generate hex files for 16 MHz... gladly weekend is near and I should find the time soon

I found something that could explane my problem see pic my borad has a diffront end GND pin location.

this would surely be another potential problem... though it would be funny that the mixer is working at all, I mean it is obviously powered by the BESCs... for that reason I stringly suggest to double check if its not just the labbeling which is incorrect on your board (check for connections of the five top pads with the similar ones on the left).

Please do not forget to double check if rudd and thro were choosen correctly.

We made good progress and identified at least one major issue. GOOD JOB

Originally Posted by OlliW

Please do not forget to double check if rudd and thro were choosen correctly.

I did check that the rudd and thro they are right. The way I had the wires tucked in was miss leading

Originally Posted by OlliW

check for connections of the five top pads with the similar ones on the left

I have 2 blue borads that are the same as your pics the white borad is different.

a quick question please, which hex file(s) have you actually flashed?

the white borad is different

yeah... what I meant was that it's maybe worthwhile to check if on the white board indeed the electrical connections are different or if "only" the printed labelling is incorrect but that the electrical connections are as on the blue boards (I mean, I would doubt that the white-board producers have relayouted this board, whereby having everywhere the identical layout as the blue boards except for the four pads - a missprint of the labels looks likely too me).


EDIT:
OK, send you a PM with a link to a download of a zip file, try the respective hex file(s) for 16mhz...
Please note that I could not test these hex since I don't have the 16MHz hardware... but that's the best I can offer at the moment... if you experience still a problem I could retry.
please report back how it goes

Olliw here is a link to the mini pro I'm using http://www.jayconsystems.com/arduino...-5v-16mhz.html
hope this my help

I think they got the labelling wrong, but that the actuall copper wiring is identical (they explicitely mention designed by Sparkfun, yet their print out is different... so, somewhere there is a difference with their white board)

anyhow, you can check that by just checking if the pads on the top indeed have an electruical connection with the identically labelled pads on the left or right. This will tell for sure what's up with your board.

please reread my last post, I have edited it

I should down load the file with bootloader right?
olliw_coax_mixer_firmware_v007_wbootloader_m328p_1 6mhz

well, it's the easiest to just burn this file into the microcontroller with an ISP programmer...
(if it doesn't work you could burn the file olliw_coax_mixer_firmware_v007_m328p_16mhz instead and test)

Ok Olliw I burnd all hex files in the zip file with the AvrBurnTool I checked the that burned in they said ok.
Now I have the blue led on and no green led
Is the and Olliw's Avrconfig that will connect to a USB the one I have will connect to com1?

sorry, I can't follow...

I burnd all hex files

all? what does this mean...

Now I have ... no green led

for all hex files? or which?
no green led typically means that the coaxmixer firmware has not been correctly flashed

Is the and Olliw's Avrconfig that will connect to a USB the one I have will connect to com1?

I don't know which ISP programmer you're using and which com ports your PC likes to use... can't tell
also I don't know which version of AvrBurnTool you're using (may I guess, the version v001 attached in the vtail mixer thread?)