SETUP CAMERA STRINGER

1.1. Pixhawk setup:

Arducopter 4.4.x or above

MNT1_DEFLT_MODE set to 3

MNT1_TYPE set to 6 (if using telemetry 2)

RC10_OPTION (or any channel) set to 213 to control the Tilt axis

RC11_OPTION (or any channel) set to 214 to control the Pan axis

SERIAL_2_BAUD set to 115

CAM1_TYPE set to 2

CAM1_RELAY_ON set to 1

RELAY_PIN set to 50 (use the AUX 1 output to trigger the camera).

RC9_OPTION set to 9 (Trigger camera) (use the channel 9 in remote to trigger the camera).

1.2. Gtune setup

Go to SETTING => CONTROL => MAVLINK

COM 2 set baudrate to 115200 (after setting it, please reboot).

Relay control connection and configuration

Connect one of the autopilot’s GPIO pins to the camera or the camera control cable that accepts high/low voltage input. As mentioned on the relay wiki page the autopilot’s servo/motor outputs can normally be used but, in addition, some autopilots have dedicated pins purely for use as relays/GPIOs.

Configure the autopilot by setting these parameters:

If using 4.5 (or earlier) only the 1st relay can be used so set RELAY_PIN to the GPIO pin used
If using 4.6 (or higher) any relay can be used. Below are settings if the first relay is used.
- Set RELAY1_FUNCTION = 4 (Camera)
- Set RELAY1_PIN to the GPIO pin used
Set SERVOx_FUNCTION = -1 (GPIO) where “x” is the servo output channel used. This is not required in the rare case where an autopilot’s dedicated GPIO pins are used.
Set CAM1_DURATION to the time (in seconds) that the relay is held high
Set CAM1_RELAY_ON = 0 to swap the relay voltage. E.g. GPIO output would now be normally high by default, and then low to trigger the camera shutter

Camera shutter feedback logging

ArduPilot logs TRIG messages when it triggers the camera. If the camera provides a GPIO output (e.g. camera flash hotshoe) then this can be used to also log CAM messages at the exact moment that pictures are taken.

Connect the camera’s GPIO output to one of the autopilot’s GPIO pins (e.g. AUX OUT). As mentioned above there are restrictions on which pins may be used.

Set the following parameters:

Set SERVOx_FUNCTION = -1 (GPIO) where “x” is the servo output channel used. This is not required in the rare case where the autopilot’s dedicated GPIO pins are used.
Set CAM1_FEEDBAK_PIN to the pin number connected to the hotshoe.
Set CAM1_FEEDBAK_POL = 0 if the hotshoe voltage goes low when a picture is taken or 1 if the voltage goes high.

See digital input pin for more details.

Consider using the Seagulls SYNC2 Shoe Horn Adapter

For more references: Camera Shutter Configuration

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Relay control connection and configuration

Configure the autopilot by setting these parameters:

If using 4.5 (or earlier) only the 1st relay can be used so set RELAY_PIN to the GPIO pin used

If using 4.6 (or higher) any relay can be used. Below are settings if the first relay is used.

Set RELAY1_FUNCTION = 4 (Camera)
Set RELAY1_PIN to the GPIO pin used

Set SERVOx_FUNCTION = -1 (GPIO) where “x” is the servo output channel used. This is not required in the rare case where an autopilot’s dedicated GPIO pins are used.

Set CAM1_DURATION to the time (in seconds) that the relay is held high

Set CAM1_RELAY_ON = 0 to swap the relay voltage. E.g. GPIO output would now be normally high by default, and then low to trigger the camera shutter

Camera shutter feedback logging

Connect the camera’s GPIO output to one of the autopilot’s GPIO pins (e.g. AUX OUT). As mentioned above there are restrictions on which pins may be used.

Set the following parameters:

Set SERVOx_FUNCTION = -1 (GPIO) where “x” is the servo output channel used. This is not required in the rare case where the autopilot’s dedicated GPIO pins are used.

Set CAM1_FEEDBAK_PIN to the pin number connected to the hotshoe.

Set CAM1_FEEDBAK_POL = 0 if the hotshoe voltage goes low when a picture is taken or 1 if the voltage goes high.