Telemetry with Taranis

buzzbomb

I know nothing!
Hi all. I've been trying to set up battery telemetry with no success. I've got a Taranis X9D and I'm using RX6R receivers. The receivers come with lots of little wires with plugs, but after googling I can't find anywhere that shows what to do with them, nor do the instructions help. It became so frustrating that I just gave up on it.

Now however, I want to purchase another receiver for the next build after my SE5. I can get non-telemetry enabled for significantly less than the telemetry enabled, so I've got to make the decision.

Does anyone know how to set up battery telemetry with my equipment? Are there further purchases that have to be made? Is it worth the effort/cost when I'll soon be going to the field with six flyable planes?
 

FDS

Elite member
You need sensors in a plane to detect battery voltage. Most systems have an inline plug that goes on the main battery lead with an output or go on the balance lead.
You would need a FRSKY voltage sensor to read the voltage. They are like this.
I don’t bother with it in planes, most FT designs are around the 6 min mark on flight time, I start with that then measure the cell voltage. I don’t go below 3.6v or so per cell. Then I use the timer.
They are useful in wings or semi autonomous set ups that use a flight controller and servos. I am buying the non telemetry ones for my future builds. Then voice alert on the timer does the rest.
You can buy one sensor and plug it into each plane in turn if you like. I would think it would simply send via the existing bound RX via the smart port.
 

FDS

Elite member
I can’t hear those when my plane is flying.
Once the timer is set up I rarely get sizeable voltage variation unless the ambient temp drops. I also use fixed wing ESC’s which have built in low voltage protection, either by pulsing the throttle or a limiter.
 

buzzbomb

I know nothing!
if you are worried about batteries getting low you can get beepers /alarms ...i use these
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battery-Te...ocphy=9046572&hvtargid=pla-730014667188&psc=1

simply place on the balance lead when the battery reaches a set voltage (programmable) it will scream at you lol
Those were so cheap I tried one pretty early on. Like FDS I couldn't hear it until I retrieved the plane. For $5 bucks though, they do make a real handy field battery checker. Total and per cell voltage. Not bad for a fiver.
 

willsonman

Builder Extraordinare
Mentor
So, really the EASIEST way to do this is to use the new FrSky ESCs. They have built-in telemetry such as battery voltage and current but also RPM and ESC temperature.
https://alofthobbies.com/frsky-neuron-series-escs.html

In addition to the normal throttle plug into your receiver, just add one more to your smart port and then auto-detect telemetry on your Taranis and you are done. Also enable SDLogs on your throttle cut switch so your telemetry is logged for post-flight analysis.

The other SUPER cool thing I can to on my Horus X10S is run a LUA script which looks at my telemetry log and graphs up to 4 sensors at a time... ON THE TRANSMITTER. No need to go through the OpenTX Companion or MS Excel to see what happened during a flight.

edit:
The ESCs are based on BLHeli_32 so they are SUPER configurable in so many ways.
 

buzzbomb

I know nothing!
So, really the EASIEST way to do this is to use the new FrSky ESCs. They have built-in telemetry such as battery voltage and current but also RPM and ESC temperature.
https://alofthobbies.com/frsky-neuron-series-escs.html

In addition to the normal throttle plug into your receiver, just add one more to your smart port and then auto-detect telemetry on your Taranis and you are done. Also enable SDLogs on your throttle cut switch so your telemetry is logged for post-flight analysis.

The other SUPER cool thing I can to on my Horus X10S is run a LUA script which looks at my telemetry log and graphs up to 4 sensors at a time... ON THE TRANSMITTER. No need to go through the OpenTX Companion or MS Excel to see what happened during a flight.

edit:
The ESCs are based on BLHeli_32 so they are SUPER configurable in so many ways.
Oooohhhhh! I didn't know about those. That's pricey, but I've gotta get one. Summertime is coming, and it would be awesome to be able to graph and compare as I try different methods to keep everything cool. Plus, it's basically plug and play? That's awesome.
 

FDS

Elite member
Not seen those either. They are as expensive as the other options though. Plus they are bigger and heavier which isn’t always useful in lightweight planes.
 

willsonman

Builder Extraordinare
Mentor
Meh, If you are pinching grams then you don't need an ESC... only a rubber band for freeflight :p Seriously, Consider them. IF you were to buy an ESC at a lower cost and then get JUST the current sensor, you would likely spend just as much as the one unit but end up having less data.
 
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