ArduCopter 3.2-rc1 9-May-2014
Changes from 3.1.4
1) Hybrid mode - position hold mode but with direct response to pilot input during repositioning (JulienD, SandroT)
2) Spline waypoints (created by David Dewey, modified and integrated by Leonard, Randy)
3) Drift mode uses "throttle assist" for altitude control (Jason)
4) Extended Kalman Filter for potentially more reliable attitude and position control (Pixhawk only) (Paul Riseborough). Set AHRS_EKF_USE to 1 to enable or use Ch7/8 switch to enable/disable in flight.
5) Manual flight smoothness:
a) Smoother roll, pitch response using RC_FEEL_RP parameter (100 = crisp, 0 = extremely soft)
b) Adjustable max rotation rate (ATC_RATE_RP_MAX, ATC_RATE_Y_MAX) and acceleration (ATC_ACCEL_RP_MAX, ATC_ACCEL_Y_MAX)
6) Autopilot smoothness:
a) Vertical acceleration in AltHold, Loiter, Hybrid modes can be configured with PILOT_ACCEL_Z parameter (higher = faster acceleration)
b) Maximum roll and pitch angle acceleration in Loiter mode can be configured with WPNAV_LOIT_JERK (higher = more responsive but potentially jerky)
c) Yaw speed can be adjusted with ATC_SLEW_YAW parameter (higher = faster)
d) smoother takeoff with configurable acceleration using WPNAV_ACCEL_Z parameter
e) Twitches removed during guided mode or when entering Loiter or RTL from high speeds
7) Mission improvements:
a) mission will be resumed from last active command when pilot switches out and then back into Auto mode (prev behaviour can be restored by setting MIS_RESTART param to 1)
b) DO_SET_ROI persistent across waypoints. All-zero DO_SET_ROI command restores default yaw behaviour
c) do-jump fixed
d) conditional_distance fixed
e) conditional_delay fixed
f) do-change-speed command takes effect immediately during mission
g) vehicle faces directly at next waypoint (previously it could be about 10deg off)
h) loiter turns fix to ensure it will circle around lat/lon point specified in mission command (previously it could be off by CIRCLE_RADIUS)
8) Safety improvements:
a) After a fence breach, if the pilot re-takes control he/she will be given a minimum of 10 seconds and 20m to recover before the autopilot will invoke RTL or LAND
b) Parachute support including automatic deployment during mechanical failures
9) Other enhancements:
a) V-tail quad support
b) Dual GPS support (secondary GPS output is simply logged, not actually used yet)
c) Electro Permanent Magnet (aka Gripper) support
d) Servo pass through for channels 6 ~ 8 (set RC6_FUNCTION to 1)
e) Remove 80m limit on RTL's return altitude but never let it be above fence's max altitude
10) Other bug fixes:
a) Bug fix for LAND sometimes getting stuck at 10m
b) During missions, vehicle will maintain altitude even if WPNAV_SPEED is set above the vehicle's capabilities
c) when autopilot controls throttle (i.e. Loiter, Auto, etc) vehicle will reach speeds specified in PILOT_VELZ_MAX and WPNAV_SPEED_UP, WPNAV_SPEED_DN parameters
11) CLI removed from APM1/2 to save flash space, critical functions moved to MAVLink:
a) Individual motor tests (see MP's Initial Setup > Optional Hardware > Motor Test)
b) compassmot (see MP's Initial Setup > Optional Hardware > Compass/Motor Calib)
c) parameter reset to factory defautls (see MP's Config/Tuning > Full Parameter List > Reset to Default)
