The Vision Aerial systems come standard with a Herelink ground control station (GCS). Some come with an optional, TAA (Made in America) compliant, Blue Herelink. Both ground control stations function in the same manner.
WARNING: Do not intentionally turn the controller off during flight. Any loss of communication or GCS power will initiate an immediate lost link failsafe.
Overview
Safety
Keep the controller away from liquids, fire, microwaves, and other hazardous or combustible materials. Don’t expose the controller to extreme temperatures. If the controller is hot to the touch, wait for it to cool before using or charging. Perform periodic visual inspections of the controller battery to check for any damage and handle the controller battery using the same safety precautions as the flight battery.
Ground Control Station Antenna Configuration
For the strongest connection to your Vision Aerial drone, position the Omni-Directional antenna so its vertical axis is in alignment with the center of the earth, or perpendicular to the ground. Position the Directional antenna so it points at the aircraft.
Charging the Ground Control Station
To charge the controller, plug the included Micro USB cable into a power source and the other end into the Micro USB port on the bottom of the controller.
Mission Planning
Review the section on Flight Deck to learn more about mission planning and the flight control software.
Controller Features
The controller features and control inputs are shown below.
Left Joystick Controls altitude and yaw.
Right Joystick Controls pitch and roll.
Upper Left Wheel Controls camera Pan and Tilt.
Upper Right Button Toggle between Manual and Brake Mode.
Button A Toggle between camera Pan and Tilt operation.
Button B Programmable C1 functions. (See “button programming” to come.)
Power Button Controller Power button. Press and hold for 5 seconds to turn on or off. Tap to put it into power save (sleep) mode.
Home Button Initiates Return To Launch (RTL).
Button C Programmable C1 functions.
Button D Programmable C1 functions.
The left stick controls the altitude (throttle) and rotation (yaw) of the SwitchBlade-Elite.
Use the right stick to fly forward, back, left, and right. These movements are relative to the tail-in orientation, so always maintain awareness of the drone’s forward-facing direction before inputting control.
See Flight Controls for more information.
Camera Pan and Tilt Functions
Tapping on the A Button toggles between camera Pan and Tilt operation. The scroll wheel will either Pan the camera right or left when Pan is selected and Tilt up and down when Tilt is selected. Pan or Tilt will remain active on the scroll wheel, will remain in effect until the A button is tapped again.
Note: There is no operator feedback as to when Pan or Tilt are selected, therefore the operator will need to move the scroll wheel and observe the camera effect to determine which is active. If the camera Tilts when the scroll wheel is moved off center, and Pan is the desired operation, a short press on the “A” Button will toggle the scroll wheel operation to Pan and vice versa.
Resetting Pan and Tilt to Default Positions
A long press on the “A” Button will reset the camera a default 0° pan angle (pointing directly forward) and 0° horizontal tilt.
Caution: Before moving the UAS from the current position, it is recommended to reset the camera to its default position by performing a long press on the “A” Button. There is potential for pilot disorientation when the camera direction is not in alignment with the UAS.