# frsky taranis supplemental

m ar k I I

24 July 2014

# Disclaimers

This document should not be treated as a full manual for the FrSky Taranis radio . It is provided only as a FireFLY6

- specific supplement to the official Taranis User Manual, which can be d ownloaded directly from the manufacturer at http://frsky

- rc.com with additional information available at http://www.open

- tx.org/

. Please review the official Taranis /OpenTX User Ma nual s in

their entirety before proceeding.

# Revision History

Date Rev Comments Approval

0 4 July 2014 mkI Initial release ARS

24 July 2014 mkII Updated guidance for pre

- 2.0 OpenTX firmware loads ARS

# FrSky Taranis Configuration

1. Download the Taranis Configuration zip file from our

Downloads page and unzip the folder in a convenient location on your hard drive.

2. Before proceeding, you will need to know what

firmware is loa ded on your Taranis. Power on the

radio.

3. Press and hold the MENU button to access the
"RADIO SETUP" screen

. 4. Press the PAGE button three times to access the

"VERSION" screen

. 5. Your firmware version will be listed next to "SVN :"

or "VERS :" as either 2.0 ( or higher) or something like

“ opentx

- r XXXX”. Take note of which, as it will impact your actions later.

6. Power off the radio. 7. The Taranis has multiple options for accessing its onboard memory, dependent on the OpenTX firmware build that is loaded on your r adio. The easiest and most reliable method for configuring your Taranis is to remove the microSD card and access it directly via your computer. If you are familiar with accessing your Taranis’ onboard memory via USB cable, skip to Step 10 . Otherwise,

re move the radio’s battery cover to gain access to

the microSD card.8. Remove the microSD card from the radio by pressing in on the card to release it from the radio. Place it in a SD adapter and connect it to your computer via a built

- in SD card reade r or an appropriate USB adapter.

9. If you are prompted with an AutoPlay window, click “Open folder to view files.” Otherwise, navigate to Computer and open the Removable Disk. 10. You should see a window like the following:

11. If your Taranis firmware version (f rom Step 5 above) was 2.0 or higher, c opy FireFLY6.bin from the Taranis Configuration folder ( from Step 1 ) to

the MODELS folder on the SD card and skip to Step

13

. 12. If your Taranis firmware version (from Step 5 above) was something like “ opentx

- r XXXX,” cop y FF6_r2940.bin from the Taranis Configuration folder (from Step 1) to the MODELS folder on the

SD card.

WARNING: Do not load the FF6_r2940.bin file on a radio with 2.0 or higher firmware! 13. Copy FF.wav and hover.wav from the Taranis Configuration folder to the SOUNDS/en folder.

14. Copy tada.wav from the Taranis Configuration folder to the SOUNDS/en/system folder. When you are presented with a message indicating that there is already a file with the same name in that location, select “Copy and Replace.”

15. Cop y FireFLY6.bmp from the Taranis Configuration

folder to the BMP folder.

TIP : If you’re familiar w ith flashing firmware to your

radio and are looking for the full FireFLY6

- Taranis experience, the splash.bmp file is provided for

your use as your splash scr een image during your next firmware update

.

16. Remove the microSD card from your computer and place it back in the radio’s card slot. Don’t forget to press in to lock it into place.

17. Place the radio battery back in its slot below the microSD card and replace the battery cover.

18. Power on the radio.

19. Press the MENU button. 20. Use the (

– ) button to select an open model slot.

21. Hold down the ENT button. This should bring up a selection menu with two options.22. Use the (

– ) button to highlight “Restore Model.”

Press the ENT button to confirm.

23. You should see a selection menu with either

“FireFLY6” only or multiple models

, depending on your usage of your Taranis. If multiple models are

shown, use the (

– ) button to highlight “FireFLY6.”

Press the ENT button to confirm. 24. The model number before “FireFLY6” should now be highlighted. If not, use the (+) and (

- ) keys to navigate to the FireFLY6’s model number. Once highlighted, hold down the ENT key. This should bring up a menu with several options, shown here:

25. Use (+ ) and (

- ) keys to navigate to “Select Model” if it is not already highlighted, then press the ENT

button to select the FireFLY6.

26. Press the EXIT button to return to the radio home page. Your Taranis is now configured for use with

the FireFLY6.

# FireFLY6 C ontrol Scheme

1. The Taranis is programmed as follows:

a. Mode 2 Control (throttle/yaw on left stick, pitch/roll on right stick)

b. Left Slider: Flight Mode (and Motor Tilt )

• Down = Hover Mode

• Up = Forward Flight Mode

c. Right Slider: Retractable Gear

• Down = Gear Dow n

• Up = Gear Up

d. Switch F: Hover Controller Mode (M Lite)

• Away = Attitude Mode

• Towards = GPS Mode if GPS equipped,

Attitude Mode otherwise

e. Switch G: Forward Flight Controller Mode (APM, if equipped)

• Away = Manual Mode

• Center = Training Mode

• Towards = FBWA Mode

# Special Considerations

1. Because the Taranis is an 8+ channel system, when equipping an APM 2.6 for forward flight control we recommend that you use Ch8 for your forward flight controller mode switch, leaving your hover controller mode indep endent on Ch7.

2. To change the Ch5 travel in order to make fine adjustments of motor tilt angles during FireFLY6

Bench Checks, navigate to the SERVOS screen by pressing MENU, then PAGE six times. Use the (

- ) button to select CH5. Press ENT, then (

- ) twice to select the CH5 Min (which controls the hover mode tilt angle). Press ENT and this value should begin blinking and allow you to adjust the travel value via the (+) and (

- ) buttons. When you are satisfied with the motor angle in hover, press the ENT but ton, slide the left slider all the way forward to forward flight mode, and press the (

- ) button to select the CH5 Max (which controls the forward flight mode tilt angle). Press ENT and this value should begin blinking and allow you to adjust the travel va lue via the (+) and (

- ) buttons. When you are satisfied with the motor angle in forward flight, press the ENT button to end editing, then press the EXIT button a few times to take you back to the radio home page. 3. When using the Taranis with the APM 2.6, you should find the Radio Calibration process (described in detail in the APM 2.6 Supplemental available on

our Manuals page) to produce values similar to this:

TIP : When performing an APM 2.6 radio calibration,

make sure that your flight controller mode switch is towards you and that Mission Planner confirms that you are in FBWA mode. This will ensure that your control throws are correct in Manual and Training modes.