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Mini-Review
UP air "Chase" (V1) & "One" (V2 & V3) (Under construction)
The UPair "chase" (V1) review starts from post #1.
The Upair "one" (V2/V3) review starts from post #5  INTRODUCTION Here is a new chinese brand introducing a full RTF model with a 2-axis gimbal, 2K/4K camera broadcasting FPV signal, a 7inch FPV monitor and OSD informations. The UPair chase represents a direct competitor of the Wingsland minivet, the Cheerson CX-22 and the Phantom 3 standard. The is a first early alpha stage of the review. Elements will be added on the fly. For instance, only some internal plarts are shown. BOX CONTENT + 1 x UPair chase (with a 3S 5400mAh LiPo) + 1 x Transmitter (using a 3S LiPo) + 1 x 5400mAh, 10C battery + 1 x Charger for the main LiPo + 1 x Charger for the transmitter LiPo + 4 x Props (2 CW, 2 CCW) + 1 x Transportation bag No instruction manual out of the box, you need to download it here for example: http://imgmgr.banggood.com/images/up...1/SKU285709.7z OVERVIEW The Chase comes with a transportation bag (the props are located Inside the internal Pocket out of the box)   Nice initiative. You can be ready to fly in 1min -Front view -Side view  -Rear view  Originaly to power the quad, you need first to briefly press to central button then to repress it and hold it more than 2s. The same to turn off the Chase: i) briefly press the button then ii) hold on more thant 2s At background of the battery bay, you can find the main gimbal + video connector   Good news, they decentralized the compass to avoid HF interferences  The linear 5.8G antenna  and the 2.4G located on the other leg  -Upper view  -Bottom view -Weight Motors Some classic 22 type are installed as for most of 350mm machine. No real KV reference for them   Props Some 9450 self-tightning  LiPo Initially, the LiPo was missing in my transportation bag. I finally received it.  A 5400mAh with only 10C as discharge rate. A proprietary connector is present slightly different from the Cheerson CX-22 model. According to the instruction, no auto-storage mode since they advice to store it with at maximum 50% of charge. So be aware of this.  You have to plug the charger connector with the logo UPair on top. I found, it not impossible to plug it in the opponent way, so it can be potentially very dangerous.   Camera module It's nothing else than a Firefly 5S with firmware V1.0   with a 1600mAh Lipo   Actually, the camera is jailed by only side and plugged via the miniUSB connector  Gimbal Dampening ball seems to work great in term of vibrations  Amazing, but there is a push button hidden beneath. You can't access to it. Probably, it serves to reset/set level of the gimbal. How it's possible to hide such important button ?  Disassembling In practice, you need to remove the four motor's screws, the four most inner screws of the landing gear, the four screws of the LEDs and the two small screws at the exit of the battery bay. EDIT: full disassembling procedure
  Unfortunaly, you would need to desolder the motor's lead wires on the PCB to completly split in two the UPair ... What's a pity, the maintenance is definitively not easy. The FC is isolated from transmitted vibrations with dampening balls. Good point.  The GPS module is located below the black protection, probably also compatible with Glonass system  ESC   An ATmega2560, a 8bits core associated generally with APM controller  What a suprize, there is a microUSB plug located inside !!!!  The receiver  Here with the button, probably a minimOSD board  Here are the basic displayed information via the OSD  The main APM board  The GPS is located just above the FC, approxilative 2cm of distance. In practice, the fixing is very fast. Less than 2min for my first cold start and around 30s for warm start. In average, I receive a constant 12-14 satellites.
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Last edited by SeByDocKy; Aug 03, 2016 at 12:42 AM.
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FPV monitor
   There is free plug. Maybe there is a way to add control to ajust brightness, contrast, etc...  Unfortunatly, the monitor is almost invisible with strong daylights, it deserves the presence of a sunshade. More, when the FPV connexion is lost, the screen turns to "black" (blue screen) Video transmitter    The 5.8G antenna is directly soldered as well as the main lead and video signal wires ....   Transmitter   As you can see, some connexions are directly soldered on the connector.... crap... The 5.8G is directly soldered ....  A CC2500 RF chip for the 2.4G part like for the FrSky, Futaba protocols  There is uFL connector at least for the 2.4G antenna A free port is available, on the top right (CH7 ?)  So in theory it should be possible to add an extra switch  FIRST USAGE with the 2K (firefly 5S)
with the 4K (firefly 6S)
CONCLUSIONS UNBOXING
PROS + Super stable video plateform + Almost 0 transmitted vibrations + APM based + Fast GPS fixing + Great control range + 4K camera version (firefly 6S) + Transportation bag CONS - Auto stop/start video recording espcially with the 4K version - OSD flickerings - No direct USB connexion to mission planner out of the box (very important to perform compass calibration, compass mot, etc...) - No LCD settings available - FPV monitor not visible in strong daylight conditions - "Blue" screen (in practice a black screen) - Poor FPV range (~150m) - - No gimbal settings available - Gimbal FC housing impossible to open and potentially a source of unsoldered wires in the assembling stage - Gimbal wires directly soldered - Gimbal reset/set level button not reachable - No all spare parts yet (should come very soon) Instruction manual: http://imgmgr.banggood.com/images/up...1/SKU285709.7z This quadcopter have been courtesy provided by Banggood in order to make a fair and not biased review. I would like to thanks them for this attitude. You can find it actually for 550USD(2K)/600USD(4K) at http://www.banggood.com/UPair-UP-Air-FPV-With-12_0MP-1080P-SONY-HD-Camera-2-Axis-Gimbal-RC-Quadcopter-p-995265.html - SPARE PARTS - Battery  http://www.banggood.com/UPair-Chase-UP-Air-RC-Quadcopter-Spare-Parts-11_1V-5400mAh-Lithium-Battery-p-1011263.html |
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Last edited by SeByDocKy; Jun 27, 2016 at 04:46 AM.
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MODDING
- Mission planner connexion Maybe you can do a better job, but I did like this. You need a short (10cm) microUSB to USB cable (no OTG) and USB female to USB male cable extender     You will need to attach a small microUSB to USB to attach the UPair to the APM/arducopter mission planner software
- GPS shielding Some EMI tape: http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-1-Foot-X-50mm-Copper-Foil-Tape-EMI-Shielding-for-Fender-Guitars-1-ft-X-2-p-49790.html 
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Last edited by SeByDocKy; Nov 21, 2015 at 06:10 AM.
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UP air "One" (in Early construction) INTRODUCTION Few months ago after the first UP air "Chase" edition (check review https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show....php?t=2546498), the original compagny have been bought by Gten (G10). The original "Chase" was potentially an interesting model but some problem in term of stabilities, with the camera recording triggering and the FPV part were the limiting points of the Chase. Gten deliver here with the UPair "One" UPair "One", clearly a "Chase" bugfree edition. Since, most of elements are shared, I will mainly focused on the differences & novelties. BOX CONTENT  + 1 x UPair one (with a 3S 5400mAh LiPo with proprietary connector) + 1 x Transmitter (using a 3S 2100mAh LiPo with JST connector) + 1 x Main LiPo charger + 1 x Emax B3 charger + 1 x 2-axis gimbal + 1 x 4K camera (Firefly 6S) + 1 x Screwdriver + 1 x Instruction manual (English/Chinese) OVERVIEW Absoluptly no visual change from an external point of view versus the "Chase" edition -Front view  -Side view  -Rear view With the battery inserted indicating the remaining level of charge  The battery bay with the main Gimbal connector and VTX connector  Both are JST-SH 1mm connector: one 8P (gimbal) and one 3P (VTX) -Bottom view The same metallic casing housing the 5.8G VTX is one unique botton to cycle between the 8 Vfreq (Band A)  The 2.4G antenna is still installed front left. No change for this antenna  For the front left leg, the external compass is still here but no more jailed into the metallic structure  It's a better design decreasing the magnetic potentiel interferences associated with the original metallic casing -Weight Props Still the same 9450 props selftighting   Motors Exactly the same 2206 motors LiPo Exactly the same LiPo, a 3S 5400mAh LiPo with proprietary connector.  To control the battery charge, just briefly press on it to see how many green LEDs are there (Up to 5 leds for 100% of charge). To power the machine, you still need to 1) press briefly on the button then immediatly after 2) repress and hold the button during more than 2s. I noticed a small difference in the behaviour for the charging: When the battery level is above 12.3V, the charging don't start. The LiPo need to be more depleted to be charged. I suspect the LiPo F/W have been upgraded to offer an auto-storage mode. LiPo charger   Camera module The 4K version is nothing else than a Firefly 6S coming with Firwmare 2.5. By default, TVout must be set to PAL to enjoy all informations of the OSD (if set to NTSC, some informations at bottom part can dissipear). Default settings are 1080p@60fps, WDR off, Gyro off, Low bit rate. Timestamp off, large angle  As you will be able to see in my first flight with the default settings, my 4K came out of focus. I had to disassembled it to refocusing everything correctly. This video helped me
I flashed later the last 2.6 F/W (check last flight video)  2 axis Gimbal   Good news;, now a large central access have been designed and a central 8p gimbal port is here. From left to right, the first pin is +12V, the third is the Vout (for the VTX) and the last is the GND.  We can see they add even later a large cap/coil probably to offer a clean power and probably to solve the auto start/stop recording problems. Be aware, before to plug the first time your gimbal, check that no contacts between each of the 4 legs of the coil. Add eventually some liquid electrical tape to secure everything  EDIT 06/28/16 It have been confirmed that beneath the upper plastic casing, there is a microUSB port for the Gimbal ... It's amazing, this port is hidden. To access to it, you will need to saw all the border and pry on it.... Here two photos (Courtesy porschegt)   5.8G VTX Below the metallic casing, still the same VTX  but now with the JST-SH 3p connector and a uFL/IPX connector to attach the 5.8G antenna. Two good points to install easily another antenna and/or to swap to another VTX.  Bad news, I measured the Output powered via my ImmersionRC module and I observed around 50mW ....   This measure can explain the relatively poor FPV range bounded around 150-200m. Luckely, some third party VTX can be installed easily IMHO. For example the Skyzone 40CH: http://www.banggood.com/Skyzone-Upgrade-TS5823S-40CH-5_8G-200MW-AV-Transmitter-Module-RP-SMA-Female-p-1017491.html FPV screen & Radio combo The same 7" FPV monitor without any sunshade or buttons to tune settings or power the system. The monitor is powered by the USB plug.  In shadow zone, the FPV screen is visible. Good news, no more OSD flickerings ...  but with strong daylights, it's almost impossible to see... to sunshade or brightness settings are here Disassembling Still the same 4x6+2=26 screws to remove to start to open it (check video below). You need to disconnect the compass and the 2.4G antenna too.  the 2.4G receiver is now taped on the left side and no more on top of the former board  They changed also receiver module, no more visible "radiolink" inscription with this new version.  WIth this version, the microUSB is more hidden  Be aware if you want to plug a microUSB to USB female, pay attention to the cap nearby. They can be damaged during the microUSB attachement. Transmitter No change for this part.... a nice radio with two left shoulders button to trigger photo & video recording, a right POT button to play with the pitch orientation of the camera, a left 2-way switch to engage the RTH and a 3-way switch for the flight modes: Altitulde hold, GPS hold and headless  FIRST USAGE First demo with the default settings of the machine. Videos are ultra stable, almost 0 vibrations whatever the commands. Results are much better versus the Cheerson CX-22 and the Minivet for example. As you can see, the 4K cam was out of focus (solved later). In another hand, the altitulde hold stabilization is not amazing with drifts and sensitivive to Wind. A trick to improve stability consist to perform a 720degrees CW tour just after hovering. In any case, a compassMot calibration can probably help but requires the USB mod.
A second video with more Advanced camera settings (WDR on, Gyro on, High bit rate).... Results are good... As epected, unfortunatlly the FPV range show first statics after 30-40m. Don't expect a solid link beyond 200m. After the USB mod, probably the VTX mod is a must to do with this machine.
A last video with beautiful area.. FPV range still ok with 150m.
CONCLUSIONS A lot of improvements have been done with the "one"... Now connectors are everywehere, so gimbal can attached/detached easily. No more OSD flickerings and autostart/stop video recordings too.... Finally where have here with the 4K bundle one of the best gimbal stabilization very comparable with some Phantom work but here for only 350 USD !!!. No firework yet... You have to know that this machine can present some instabilities in Altitulde hold out of the box especially in windy conditions and the FPV range is limited due to a relatively weak 5.8G VTX.... So if you are ready to do USB mod, to swap the VTX for a more powerful, the UP air one can be a good choice. You can even enjoy the Mission planner associated with the APM board.The other competitor is the probably the Wingsland Minivet. This Minivet is a more stable machine but the work of the 3-axis gimbal is less efficient IMHO (even with last F/W). UNBOXING
PROS + Nice job of the gimbal + GPS shielding via EMI tape + Connectors everywhere (receiver, 5.8G VTX and gimbal) + Fixed autostart/stop video recording + Fixed OSD flickerings + Nice 4K videos + No more metallic casing for the casing + Autostorage feature added to the battery + Share most of parts with the "Chase" edition + Cheaper than the "Chase", one of the most competitve AP (~~ around 350USD for the 4K) CONS - Still 8bits APM FC based (MCU overloaded ?) - Lack of stability in Altitulde hold especially in windy conditions (need compass & compassMot calibrations) - Poor FPV range (<200m due to a ~50mW vTX, 8CH only, band A) - FPV screen with no settings, no sunshade, poor brightness & visitility and still with "blue screen" when the FPV signal is lost (UPair logo appearing) - Still no USB connexion for the APM board - No possibility to perform compass calibration with a sticks command - No more transportation bag This quadcopter have been courtesy provided by Banggood in order to make a fair and not biased review. I would like to thank them for this attitude. You can find it actually for 297/352USD with coupon "bgupair" at http://www.banggood.com/UPair-UP-Air-FPV-With-12_0MP-1080P-SONY-HD-Camera-2-Axis-Gimbal-RC-Quadcopter-p-995265.html UP air "One" USB plug mod
 UP air "One" VTX mod The video mod with the TS5823S
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Last edited by SeByDocKy; Aug 03, 2016 at 12:40 AM.
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I have explored the Chase further, and found that it is in fact relatively easy to seperate the canopy parts.
Aside from the earlier mentioned 26 screws/bolts, you just lift up the upper part along with the components and you simply guide the quadcopters antenna through the hole, disconnect the gimbal connector, cut the little tie wrap that is holding a few cables together, to then be able to disconnect the (compass-)cable from the board. And you will have seperated the housing as seen in the picture below. For those asking why one would want to do this, I will be adding a USB cable, and will try to integrate this in the canopy. The EMI tape will also be easier applied, when you remove another 8 screws it will create even more space to do so. |
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Good find
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Quote:
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Are you running into problems opening it?
It really is quite easy, as long as you disconnect the aforementioned wires. Of course be gentle when lifting the upper part. Just;
That really is all to it, should you have questions about any of these steps let me know, I will be happy to try and clarify. I don't have a good camera to capture video, I might take some photos today or tomorrow should that be necessary. Below you see the EMI job, that I copied from you  .
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Yet another update, finally received all the parts I needed (micro USB to USB female in white and USB male to male in white). First measured the size where the notch is at (of the USB female side), for reference it is 15x8.5mm.
I then filed a notch into the lower part of the canopy. Tie wrapped the USB cable into a shape to make it fit nicely. I soon found out that the receiver needed to move, so removed it from it's position and tie wrapped that above the USB cable. All in all a nice mod to do, took me around 30mins total, while watching my hometown club win their game (Celtic FC - AFC Ajax 1-2!). Tools used;
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. Maybe I will do the same
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