AgEagle user manual 

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Non Manual Mode Overview

To prevent the accidental switching of the mode switch to manual mode, the manual mode has been 

removed from the AgEagle and hand-held controller. Also it is no longer necessary to click the mode 

switch 3 times to land or 4 times to hand over control to the computer. 

The three position mode switch now logically progresses from the bottom to the top positions. The 

three positions are: 

Bottom = Launch (assisted flight) 

Middle = Automatic /return to home 

Top = Land 

Differences of the non-manual mode switch: 

• Because there is no manual control and total control is done by the autopilot, 

the control surfaces will no longer move until GPS lock is accomplished by the 

autopilot. This reduces the potential of launching before GPS lock is 

accomplished. 

TIPS: 

• It is a good idea to confirm that these modes are active in your AgEagle after 

converting to the non-manual configuration. To do this, connect your AgEagle 

to the ground control program on the laptop computer. With the AgEagle on 

the ground, flip the mode switch to the appropriate three positions while 

observing on the instructions on the top right hand side of the ground control 

screen. Just check to make sure that when you flip the mode switch down, that 

MANUAL does not appear. 

• Consider placing a label on the bottom of your handheld transmitter with the 

above instructions on it. 

• When installing the non-manual mode firmware for the first time, it is important 

that you observe the desired mode on the screen on the ground control to 

confirm that the desired mode is displayed when moving the mode switch. 

Quick fly steps

1. Operator assumes all responsibility for safe operation

2. Never fly over populated areas or within 5 miles of any airport

3. Face launcher into the wind

4. Use fully charged batteries

5. Set home / landing position (R stick / click 5 times)

6. Mount camera and turn on

7. Pre-launch check (R stick / click 3 times)

8. Mode switch to assisted - bottom position

9. Move elevons right and left

10. Remove launcher safety pin

11. Apply FULL power with throttle - allowing motor to reach full power

12. Release launcher 
Preparing to capture aerial images

1. Set Home/Landing Position and checking failsafe Switch 5 times with right stick

• Set plane down in the spot and direction you wish to land. This would typically 

be with the nose of the plane pointing into the wind. Crosswind landings can be 

done but NEVER with the wind (down wind)

• Check to make sure approach pattern is clear of obstacles. If not see changing 

approach direction.

• Power up transmitter. Power up plane and wait 30 seconds for the GPS to 

acquire satellite data.

• Hold the right stick in the lower left-hand corner flip the switch 5 

times. (Beginning in the lower position move the switch to the mid position and back 

down = 1 time). 

• Elevons will acknowledge your request and run a diagnostic test. Within 15 

seconds elevons will either confirm by moving up and down together or elevons 

will move up and down opposite each other meaning systems are NOT ok to fly.

• If elevons move opposite each other wait 30 seconds and then hold stick to 

lower left corner and flip switch 5 times again. This typically happens if GPS has 

not had time to lock on yet.

• When elevons respond by moving up and down together, home has been set.

• Check failsafe

• With the AgEagle still turned on, move the mode switch to the bottom 

position (launch/assisted flight) on the hand held. Hold the right stick in 

the bottom right corner. While holding the right stick there, turn off the 

transmitter. (This simply puts the elevons at an unusual position allowing 

you to see that they return to normal position if the fail-safe functions 

properly.

• The elevons should move back to normal position when the transmitter is 

turned off.

• Pick the plane up and rotate it like it would be rolling in a turn. Watch 

the elevons to ensure that they are moving when the AgEagle is 

rotated. If the elevons are responsive when the handheld is turned off, 

the fail safe is set

• Power off plane. Power off transmitter.

• Confirm on laptop that home has been set and is in the location that you set 

home.

• Launcher set up

• ALWAYS FACE LAUNCHER INTO THE WIND

• Slide the two sections together

• Attach the legs and secure with pins.

• Inspect all fasteners including launch arms. Arms must swing freely when not 

under tension, but should not be overly loose.
• Carriage should move easily roll from the top to the bottom on the guide rail. If 

not, determine cause and correct.

• Inspect steel cable for cuts or signs of fraying.

• Attach stretch tubing by holding onto the pulley ring while at the same time 

stretching the tube and attach the stretch tube to the pulley ring

• The number of tubes is related to wind velocity. In mild winds (0-12 

MPH) attach 

• Pre-launch Sequence - Switch 3 times with right stick set launch direction, zero 

airspeed, and set ground level. 

• Set plane on launcher.

• Power up transmitter. Power up plane

• Hold the right stick in the lower left-hand corner and flip switch 3 times.

• Elevons will acknowledge your request and run a diagnostic test. Within 15 

seconds elevons will either confirm by moving up and down together or 

elevons will move up and down opposite each other meaning systems are 

NOT ok to fly.

• If the conditions are windy, after you flip the mode switch three times, hold 

your finger over the pitot tubes (front and under the wing) to prevent wind 

from entering. Hold your finger over the tubes until you get the second 

acknowledgment of the elevons moving. Release your fingers when the 

elevons cease moving.

• If elevons move opposite each other wait 30 seconds and then hold stick to 

lower left corner and flip switch 3 times again. This typically happens if GPS has 

not had time to lock on yet. Also, repeat holding your fingers over the pitot 

tubes as before.

• When elevons respond by moving up and down together Pre-Launch is set.

• Allow the AgEagle to measure the wind for fifteen seconds and move switch to 

the middle / launch position and move right stick left and right and note that 

the elevons move appropriately.

• After the three clicks preflight has been started, release the right stick and DO 

NOT MOVE ANY SWITCH OR STICK UNTIL AFTER THE ELEVONS HAVE MOVED 

THE SECOND TIME! If the sticks are moved when the calibration sequence is 

started the system can be caused to go out of calibration. This is CRITICAL!

2. Preflight check 

• Ground control checks

• No big X should be displayed on the ground control screen indicating 

NO GPS

• The small green bar in the top left hand corner should be filled with 

green, not just outlined. A filled green bar indicates a good GPS lock on 

the AgEagle

• Check that you have live telemetry with the ground computer

1. Bottom left hand side of screen should say “Receiving data from 

plane”
2. Bottom right hand side of screen should show numbers counting 

up

• Confirm home / landing position is in the correct location

• Check switch is in the bottom position

• Check pitot tube is clear and vent tube

• Check that elevons respond to right stick moved left and right

• Check that launcher hammer is pulled securely forward. No tubes are tangled or 

cable is twisted.

• Clear everyone from the launch area

3. Camera 

• Set light for camera 

• Install camera in AgEagle 

• Turn on camera 

4. Pre-launch quick check

• Home set

• Camera installed, on and operating

• batteries fully charged

• Radio modem communicating with computer

5. Launch sequence/Laptop control 

• Check that the mode switch is in the lower position

• Remove safety pin.

• Move left stick (throttle) all the way up allowing the motor to reach full speed 

which usually takes 10-15 seconds

• Step on launcher release. And watch plane climb out to altitude

• When plane reaches altitude flip switch to the middle position (this will tell plane 

to circle over the home spot)

• Check to see that laptop tab on the upper right corner of the screen is flashing. If 

flashing check box to hand over control of aircraft to laptop. If not flip the mode 

switch all the way down and back up to the middle position.

• Right click anywhere on map and select fly to first waypoint.

6. Bring plane back to home spot and circle 

• Move the mode switch all the way down then back to the middle position

• It is a good idea to observe on the ground control (top right hand corner 

of the screen) that you are in the desired mode

7. Resume a Mission Flip the mode down and back to middle

• Check to see that laptop tab is flashing on ground control. If flashing check box 

to hand over control of aircraft to laptop. If not flip the mode switch all the way 

down and back to the middle then click the LAPTOP check box in the upper right 

hand corner.

• Select the waypoint you wish fly to.

• Right click anywhere on map and select fly to selected waypoint.

8. Landing sequence Move the mode switch to the top position

• Confirm the AgEagle is in landing mode by observing the LAND mode indicated in 

the top right hand corner of ground control.
• Watch plane circle down wind and turn back into wind on its final approach

• When plane is on its final approach and nearing the landing spot prepare to cut 

throttle 

• As plane is nearing landing spot and is approximately 20 ft above the ground cut 

throttle to zero. (move left stick all the way down) and watch plane float to the 

ground.

When Things Go Wrong

1. Locating a downed plane

• Coordinates from PC

• If the wing lands somewhere you did not intended for it to land, 

you can use the last reported position on the ground control to find 

it. In this case do NOT shut off the ground control. Look for the 

AgEagle on the ground control, it should be reporting its position 

via the radio link. Simply move the mouse over the top of the 

outline of the AgEagle displayed on the screen (the large red 

triangle). Make note of the coordinates of its location and enter 

them into a handheld device. Use the handheld GPS device to 

locate the AgEagle.

• It is important to not turn off the PC so that if the AgEagle is 

damaged and not able to report its position, you will want to make 

note of where the AgEagle was last reported. This is most likely 

near where the AgEagle is located at.

• RSS from hand held

• The Taranis handheld transmitter can be used like a reverse 

direction finder to locate a downed AgEagle. To locate a downed 

AgEalge with the handheld radio, point the antenna out on the 

Taranis radio. Hold the PAGE button down to display the RSS 

(Radio Signal Strength) bar graph. The bar graph shows the 

signal strength of the radio signal emanating from the 

AgEagle. Because the tip of the antenna is the poorest receptor 

of radio signals while the side of the antenna is the best, when the 

antenna of the handheld is pointed directly towards the AgEagle, 

the RSS bar graph will indicate a weak signal. However, when the 

transmitter is turned where the side of the antenna is facing the 

AgEagle, the RSS bar graph will be the highest. So, in a reverse 

sense, this method can be used to locate a downed AgEagle.

2. Loss of power in handheld

• Landing from the ground control - If your hand held radio fails and you 

want to land, simply go to the ground control PC. On the top right hand 

side of the screen, select from the pull down menu “Auto Land Plane.”

• (details are pending)

3. Loss of power to computer 

• (details are pending)

4. When you forget to set home

• If you forget to tell the AgEagle where to land it will either land where you 

last told it to land if that location was within a 1⁄2 mile of where you 

powered it up again, or if the last landing location you programed the 

AgEagle to land was more than a 1⁄2 mile it will try to land at the location 
you powered it up and in the direction you had the nose pointed at that 

time.

• So if the AgEagle seeks to land where you powered it up, it is best to flip 

the mode switch three times and go ahead and initiate an auto 

landing. Instead of allowing the AgEagle to land where you powered it 

up, assuming that the area is not ideal, just allow the AgEagle to head 

toward the sight but cut the power with the throttle prior to reaching the 

intended location.

9. Changing Approach Direction for landing site

· This is done when setting home/landing spot

· Set plane down in the spot and direction you wish to land. This would typically be with the 

nose of the plane pointing into the wind. Crosswind landings can be done but NEVER with the 

wind (down wind)

· Stand with nose of plane facing you

· Survey the area to your right. If obstacles are in this area you must change approach 

direction to your left

· Power up transmitter Power up plane

· Hold the right stick in the lower left-hand corner and flip switch 5 times

· As soon as elevons acknowledge your request, but before they confirm by moving up and 

down together. Shift tail of plane to your left and nose of plane to your right.

· When elevons confirm by moving up and down together the approach pattern will be set to 

your left. Left hand approach will remain until home is set again and then will revert back to 

default of right hand approach.

Installing the AgEagle / Uthere Ground Control and testing

• Before beginning installation of the AgEagle ground control software, turn off 

ALL virus scanning software on your computer

• If you have previously installed a prior version of the ground control software, 

first uninstall it by using the windows uninstaller

• Download the latest version of the ground control from:

http://uthere.com/ageagle/download

username: ageagle

password: tractortuff

• After the ground control is installed, restart the computer

• Plug in the ground base antenna with the USB cable while your computer is 

attached to the Internet. Once you plug in the antenna transceiver, your 

computer should automatically download necessary drivers. Be sure your 

computer is set to automatically install new drivers. Otherwize it will not work.

Troubleshooting USB ground antenna installation:

I have found that two issues can cause big problems in preventing your computer from automatically 

installing drivers when the USB is plugged into the antenna and computer.

1. The "automatic detection of new hardware and installation in windows" is 

turned off. 

2. Virus software conflicts with the automatic detection and installation of new 

hardware and drivers.

The driver for the ground transceiver will normally download automatically once the transceiver USB 

cable is plugged in, but if not, here's a link to download the driver:

http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm
Or click here for an executable: 

** Note: The AgEagle aircraft should not be powered when the transceiver is plugged in for the first time / 

installing firmware. Packets coming in from the Ruby transceiver during install might confuse windows.

Creating a flight plan

• (to be created)

Camera set up 

SD Card

CAUTION! – Do NOT FORMAT the SD card! Formatting it will destroy the special coding 

imbedded in it, which causes the camera to do special functions.

It is important that the camera be allowed to acquire GPS signal before you launch the 

AgEagle. A few extra moments should be allows for the first flight of the day or at a new 

location for the GPS to get a LOCK on the GPS constellation. 

Canon S100 settings

Initial set up of camera: (AgEagle sets the follow steps on the camera. These steps are 

documented for your records)

· SD card is especially formatted for use with your camera

· SD lock = slide to ON

· Shutter speed is set to 1/2000 of a second

· Digital zoom = off

· AF assist beam = off

· MF point zoom = off

. Preview = off

· IS mode = continuous

· Mute = on

· GPS = on

· Time update = on

· GPS logger = off

· Create folder = daily

· Red eye lamp = off

· ISO = 200

· 

Normal sunny conditions:

· Set to Cloudy (yes – even when it is sunny!)

· ISO 200

· Shutter speed 1/2000

· Adjust aperture so that the needle on the right side of the screen is two lines below the 

center.
Partly cloudy conditions:

· Change from manual mode to shutter priority (TV)

· Set the ISO as needed

· Adjust aperture so that the needle on the right side of the screen is two lines below the 

center.

 

Photo stitching 

Agisoft work flow and standard settings 

• Under “Workflow” add photographs 

• Disable oblique, low altitude, and poorly focused photographs (cameras as they call 

them) by right clicking and disable 

• Under “Workflow” Align Photos 

• Accuracy: "High" 

• Pair selection: "Generic" (or set to Disable to align difficult images but MUCH longer 

processing time) 

• This process may take several hours depending upon the point variance of the 

photographs and the quantity of photos

• Under “Build dense cloud” 

• Quality: Medium 

• Depth filtering” Aggressive 

• Under “Workflow” Build Mesh 

• Surface type: “Height field”

• Source data: “Sparse cloud”

• Polygon count: “Medium (30 000)”

• Build Texture / Parameters 

• Mapping mode: "Orthophoto" 

• Blending mode: "Mosaic" 

• Texture size/count: “8192” 

• Tools / Export Texture 

• • Export the texture in TIFF or JPG 

 

AgPixel work flow instructions: 

 

1. Open imagery 

2. Specify the camera being used AgEagle typically uses MaxMax – NIR/Green/Blue 

3. Click “Zoom to Fit” on the top ribbon 

4. Perform pre-processing task (It may be necessary to click zoom to fit after any of the following 

options) 

a. Crop image 

b. Flip image 

c. Specify areas of interest (mask the crop area) 

5. Add new view -> vegetation index. Typically +/- 2.0 SD for auto limits is good most of the time. 

a. On the upper left corner of the pop up window you will see “Algorithm:” 

 i. Generally the top two options are the most common 
b. Go to the right hand side of the pop up window that shows the Colorization options. Click on the 

bottom option that shows black on the left and green on the right. (This will show the plants with the 

most chlorophyll in green and dead ground in black.

6. Now click “Create View” on the bottom of the window. 

7. The resulting image should be an overview of the area of interest where green is the areas of the 

most chlorophyll and black is the least. 

 

Nice to know, but not critical 

The meaning of the lines, arrows and colors around the triangle on the ground control

The red triangle shows the plane's heading. 

The colored vectors emanating from the center are:

• actual heading and airspeed: dark red

• target heading and airspeed: light red

• course and speed over ground: dark green

• target course and speed: light green

• wind direction and speed: blue

The red circle is to give scale to the vectors. It represents the default airspeed of the plane (i.e. 25 

knots). If a vector length = the radius of that circle, its magnitude / speed is 25 knots.

The purple arrow from the center of the scan area shows the general progression of the scan. Typically 

you'll point that into prevailing wind.

Tips and tricks 

• Turning the AgEagle on: Considering the fact that sometime you may forget to set HOME 

position, consider always pointing the AgEagle into the wind. If you get into this habit - when 

you forget to set home, the AgEagle will automatically land into the wind. Although, it will try to 

land wherever you may have turned on the AgEagle you can simply reduce the throttle to force 

it to land at your desired location 

• Avoiding manned aircraft: If a low flying aircraft enters your operating area, you can avoid it by 

either leaving in the area where it is at, returning it to home or allowing it to land away from 

home. To allow it to land away from home, simply pull the throttle back and the AgEagle will 

simply land. 

• Calibration panels : The grey panels we have been using had too much reflectance in the blue 

band. The target in the attached images was made by painting particle board with Behr exterior 

flat Italian Olive (S-H-390), available from the Home Depot. The balance between NIR, green and 

blue is close to perfect

• SOS beacon: A new feature being added as of 05/24/14 to production systems is the SOS 

beacon. So, in the event your AgEagle lands in tall crops and is not easily visible, just flip the SC 

switch to the up position and an audible beacon will sound off SOS. 

• Effects of wind on the landing pattern: When the AgEagle is signaled to land by flipping the 

mode switch up, it begins to measure the wind velocity. By knowing the wind velocity the 

AgEagle determines the altitude it will fly just before it lands. So it is important to know 

that during windy conditions that on the base leg just before landing it flies higher higher than it 

does under calm conditions. The reason it is important to understand this is that you may find 

that in a narrow landing area that the AgEage flies over the top of obstacles just before 

landing. However if you fly the same area and land in the same location / direction under no 

wind conditions, the landing pattern will be much lower and may fly into the obstacles that it 
previously had flown over in windy conditions. So be aware of this when you set your landing 

area and direction for landing.

• AgEagle flies home early or does not complete the scan pattern: When this occurs it is possible 

that strong radio interference from another source on the 900 Mhz band is causing 

interference. When this happens you can fly a scan pattern by loading a scan pattern into the 

micro SD card on the autopilot. The results of doing this is that when you flip the switch to the 

middle position, the AgEagle will fly the scan pattern on the SD card and ignore any signal from 

the ground control. This can easily be do by saving the a scan pattern created on the ground 

control computer and saving it by clicking on Waypoint, create UTWPB file. Remove the micro 

SD card on from the autopilot, install it in a micro SD card adaptor into a computer, transfer 

UTWPB file to the SD card under the “ruby” folder. Reinstall the SD card into the autopilot, 

check connection with the ground control computer, ensure the red triangle is pointing the 

direction that the AgEagle is pointing on the ground. Now, after launch and the mode switch is 

flipped to the center position the AgEagle will follow the flight plan on the SD card. Be sure to 

remove this file when you are done.

• Launches that don’t work: If the AgEagle leaves the launcher but only goes a few feet then onto 

the ground, check:

• Do you have fully charged batteries. Undercharged batteries do not produce enough 

power for good launches.

• Is your propellor on backwards? The writing on the front of the propellor should face 

toward the front of the plane. There should be no writing on the back side of the prop 

that faces the back of the plane.

• Is the correct propellor installed? Right diameter and pitch for your motor?

• Did you allow the motor to reach full power before releasing? 

• Did you have enough bungees installed? If you are launching with no or little wind, you 

need more bungees. In no or light wind conditions use 8-9 bungees.

• Are you launching into the wind? Never launch with the wind. Even slight tail winds will 

cause difficulty.

• Hi altitude and calm winds are both difficult. Be sure you follow all of the above checks 

for good launches at high altitude and hot weather.

• The AgEagle talks to you with the movement of the elevons. Here is what the movements 

mean:

• If elevons wags, OK TO FLY:

• 3 wags: plane is currently more than 30 feet from home / landing 

target.

• 5 wags: plane is less than 30 feet from home / landing target.

• If elevons wags to left , DO NOT FLY:

• 4 wags: Battery very low. You probably don't have enough power 

remaining for a safe flight.

• 8 wags: No radio link. Be sure transmitter is on and bound to receiver 

(light appears on receiver).

• If aileron / rudder wags to right , DO NOT FLY. 

• 2 wags: GPS invalid. First fix may take up to 2 minutes, so you may 

simply need to try Preflight again. Be sure GPS is clear of wires, antenna 

pointing up,

• 3 wags: Battery somewhat low. You may just have enough power for a 

short flight.

• 5 wags: Magnetometer distorted. Be sure that the plane is away from 

car, tools, watch, etc..
• 6 wags: Preflight never completed because plane never stopped 

moving. The plane must be absolutely stationary during preflight.

• 7 wags: Misc. sensor or other issue. If problem persists.

• 8 wags: Radio link poor. Be sure transmitter is on and bound to 

receiver, and receiver and antenna is clear of wires, far from video 

transmitter, and at least a few inches away from switching BEC, ESC, 

and other sources of interference, and antenna wire is not broken.)

• 9 wags: Sensor orientation hasn't been set

Software:

Agisoft and AgPixel

• Both Agisoft and AgPixel can only be installed on one computer at a 

time.

• If you want to remove either AgPixel or AgiSoft from a computer and 

reinstall it on a new machine, you can do this. HOWEVER, be sure to 

uninstall it either from the programs uninstaller or windows 

uninstaller. By using uninstalling it this way, the license key will be 

released allowing the program to be installed on a different machine.

Configuring the magnetometer:

The procedure:

First, be sure that there are no ferrous or magnetic items in the airframe near the airspeed / magnetometer sensor. A 

steel screw, control rod, or servo less than an inch away or a canopy latch magnet less than a foot away will both 

produce an unacceptable level of distortion. You might use a hand compass to scan the area around the sensor. (Be 

sure you're not wearing a steel watch or jewelry.)

You'll need to tell the AgEagle auto pilot to record extra information to SD Flash that can be used for configuration of 

the magnetometer:

Insert the SD Flash chp into your PC and open the "ruby" directory.

Move the existing ".utms" file outside of the "ruby" directory temporarily.

Replace it with the file "calibration_data_recording_settings.utms" (click to download).

Insert the SD Flash chip back into the autopilot.

Now, take your AgEagle with outside away from large ferrous items (i.e. 20 feet from automobile). 

Throughout this entire ritual you will hold plane by the nose, with tail pointed away from you.

1. Face towards magnetic north. Up to about +-20 degrees error is allowed, but preferably you'll have 

a compass.

2. Keeping the wings level and yourself facing north, dip the tail so that the tail is pointed straight 

down / nose pointed straight up.

3. Smoothly raise the tail until it the tail is pointed straight up / nose is pointed straight down.

4. Face magnetic south and repeat steps 2-3.

5. Face magnetic west, with tail of plane pointed to magnetic west.

6. Keeping the fuselage parallel to the ground, rotate the plane so that it is rolled 90 degrees to the 

right, then smoothly rotate until it is -90 degrees to the left

7. Flip the plane upside down and repeat (still facing west).

Send the data.utd file that was generated during this ritual to BretC@AgEAgle.com.

You'll soon receive an updated configuration file containing new calibration data. Remove any existing ".utcfg" file 

from the "ruby" directory and drop in the new .utcfg file that you receive from us..

Remove the "calibration_data_recording_settings.utms" file and put the original .utms file back in the "ruby" directory.

What Not to do! 

• Changing the transmitter - Do not make any changes to the Taranis transmitter. Although it is 

tempting to push the buttons surrounding the LCD display to explore the inner workings of the 

device, please do not explore. If you accidently change one setting, the results can be very 

disappointing. 
• Damaged transmitter - Do not fly if you drop the transmitter until you do a very careful 

preflight. It is possible that if a switch was broken when the transmitter was dropped, that a 

failed launch may result. 

• Trim buttons- Do not move the trim switches to make adjustments to the elevons. If it is 

necessary to recenter the elevons it must me done mechanically by adjusting the push 

rods. (See adjusting the elevons section) 

Rigging and set up of systems 

• Elevon alignment (coming) 

• GPS (coming) 

• Airspeed / magnetometer (coming) 

• Launcher (coming) 

Symptoms and solutions: 

Below are symptoms and possible solutions 

• Weaves back and forward along course: 

• Need to calibrate magnetic west 

• Magnetometer is not seated flat in the pocket and not straight 

• 

• Comes off the launcher but does not fly: 

• Wrong prop? 

• Prop on backwards? Numbers should face toward the FRONT of the palne 

• Carriage on launcher binding? 

• Batteries are not fully charged? 

• Elevons are not set with at least 10 degree of washout (reflex) 

• Launching down wind 

AgEagle Updated 06/27/14