Power control for Futaba T6X - Method of powering Futaba T6X

[coupar]

Just started with FMS. What an incredible piece of software. I looked at Realflight and OK, FMS is not as sofisticated but it does the job very well and it's not $200. Many thanks to the creators.

There is so much information on this forum. I have been able to get both the PIC and Audio interfaces working well on Windows 2000.

For anyone interested:

One problem I had is getting my Futaba T6X transmitter to
operate in the low power mode (without the RF stage). Jumpering pin 4+5 on the 6 pin Din does'nt work with this transmitter. I figured out that by tapping off the +9V (positive side) from the battery, through a switch, to pin 1 on the Din, the transmitter operates without the RF stage and the battery lasts forever! The main switch stays OFF.

Hope this helps someone.

[NewFlyer]

I have a Futaba FP-T4NBF. I opened the case and there are only 4 wires connected to the plug, black (7,shield), red (1), blue (2) and Yellow (3). pins 4-6 are blank. Which battery are you referring to? A standard 9v battery or the battery in the case? If I hook the positive to pin 1 and the negative to 7 (shield) will it power the box without transmit?

[coupar]

Sounds like your transmitter is different from the T6X. Your model may not allow for powering up of only the coding stage of your transmitter. The battery I was refering to is the main one in the transmitter not an additional battery.

Sorry I cant help more.

[Isaac]

In the FP-T4NBF (and almost all Futaba radios I know), pin 1 is the power input for powering only the coding stage, and the shield is ground.

You can use a wall adapter for powering the transmitter when using FMS, if you use a circuit for regulating the voltage and protecting the radio.

The text below is an excerpt from a FMS interface project I designed years ago. It is ASCII Art, and can be understood only in fixed pitch fonts. Copy it to Windows Notepad, and *perhaps* you can understand it.

It consists of two diodes, one regultor IC (LM7810) and a J4 jack.

;===============================================================================
; OPTIONAL CIRCUIT FOR EXTERNAL POWER FOR THE RADIO TX
;===============================================================================
;
;
; 1N4007 LM7810 1N4007
; |\ | +-----------+ |\ |
; EXTERNAL POWER a | \ | k 1 | | 3 a | \ | k TRAINER
; CENTER TIP o-----| >|---------| VOLTAGE |----------| >|------o PIN 1
; J4 JACK | / | | REGULATOR | | / | DIN6M
; +12V |/ | +-----------+ |/ |
; DIODE 2 | DIODE
; |
; |
; |
; |
; |
; |
; EXTERNAL POWER | TRAINER
; OUTER RING o-------------------------o--------------------------o SHIELD
; J4 JACK | DIN6M
; 0V |
; |
; |
; -----
; --- GROUND
; -
;===============================================================================
;
; NOTES:
; 1) All nodes labeled GROUND are connected together (11 in all).
; 2) All nodes labeled VCC are connected together (3 in all).
; 3) An "o" in the middle of a wire indicates a junction, where all wires
; arriving to the "o" are connected together.
; 4) An "o" at the end of a wire (and near a label) indicates an external
; connection (connector) or a connection to another component. The label
; indicates where to connect.
; 5) For the diodes, "a" stands for ANODE and "k" stands for CATODE.
; 6) For the transistors, "e" stands for EMITTER, "b" stands for BASE and "c"
; stands for COLLECTOR.
; 7) The "v" in the transistors symbols is intended to be an arrowhead,
; pointing *to* the transistor base (PNP) or *out of* the transistor base
; (NPN).
; The transistors may be replaced by almost any small signal transistors.
; Just pay attention to the polarity (two are NPN and one is PNP).
; 9) The diodes 1N4007 may be replaced by most popular rectifier diodes, with
; a current of 300mA or more, and reverse voltages of 30V or more.
; 10) The Zener diode may be replaced by a 1/2W device. The voltage must
; be under 5.5V .
; 11) This circuit and firmware autodetects the simulator that is running
; (FMS or Pre-Flight) and uses the correspondent protocol.
; 12) The trainer port connector pinout shown in the schematics is for Futaba
; radios. This circuit was tested on Futaba Conquest 4 ch, Futaba SkySport
; 4 ch. and Futaba SkySport 6 ch.
; 12) This circuit is powered by the serial port and doesn't need any other
; power source. The optional circuit is only needed if you want to power
; the radio tx from an external power source, thus saving battery for the
; field (real) flights.
; 13) For external power, use a wall outlet adapter of +12V DC with at least
; 300 mA current. No need to turn the transmitter's power switch on, and
; no need to remove the crystal or other tweak.
; 14) This circuit is based upon a circuit by Vitaly Puzrin, originally
; designed for FMS. I made several changes and additions. The software
; is entirely my creation.
; 15) To read the schematics, open this file in the Windows Notepad (with
; fixed width fonts the drawings are readable, otherwise everything
; apears to be a mess).
;
; DISCLAIMER:
; THE SCHEMATICS AND PROGRAM ARE SUPPLIED AS IS. I DON'T ASSUME ANY
; RESPONSABILITIES ABOUT THE CORRECTIONESS OF THIS DOCUMENT, OR THE
; RESULTS OF ITS USE.
; I USE THIS CIRCUIT AND PROGRAM MYSELF, AND FOR ME THEY WORK FINE. YOU
; SHOULD KNOW ENOUGH ELECTRONICS TO BUILD THIS CIRCUIT, SO YOU WON'T KILL
; YOUR COMPUTER OR RADIO TRANSMITTER.
; I WON'T ACCEPT ANY LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OF THIS
; CIRCUIT.
; IF YOU DON'T FEEL CONFIDENT ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT OR YOUR SKILLS IN
; ELECTRONICS, **DON'T USE IT**. ASK TO A PERSON WITH MORE EXPERIENCE.
;===============================================================================