Fixed bug in BLHeli Atmel ESC data. Excluding BLHeli SiLabs 14.7 and BLHeliS 16.3 from write configuration procedure over bootloader. Fixed bug in TAQX box, could not connect using servo-wire direct mode. Fixed compiled hex size did not fit for some small boxes into 7680 byte flash. All standalone boxes should be updated to rev. Download and run the latest BLHeli Suite from this link Connect your normal battery to the ESC Connect the ESC to the USB linker as on the picture (notice the - + and s) Connect a standard mini usb cable to the linker and plug into pc (drivers might install automatically the first time) Select option C for the bootloader: Load values from ESC. File Name: BLHeli32. App Version: 1.0.12. Update: 2019-06-25. How To Install BLHeli32 on MAC OSX. To install BLHeli32 2020 For MAC, you will need to install an Android Emulator like Bluestacks or Nox App Player first. With this android emulator app you will be able to Download BLHeli32 full version on your MAC PC and iOS/iPAD. Betaflight supports nearly all flight controllers on the market having at least an STM32F4 Processor. The Betaflight Configurator runs on Windows, Mac OS, Linux, and Android. The Betaflight Firmware supports all major Remote Control manufacturers like FrSky, Graupner and FlySky. ESCs are directed using PWM, OneShot, MultiShot, DShot or even. Apple Mac A useful article for running BLheli suite on Mac; User Info. Welcome to Multi-Rotor UK. Please login or sign up. Thursday,November 26, 2020, 02:22:44.
Update 2/10/2017 – We have put together a new guide which walks you through this same set-up process using the newer, infinitely nicer BLHeli Configurator Chrome app. Click here to check it out.
If you want the best performance out of your miniquad racer, we highly suggest you use BLHeli ESCs. This is because these ESCs have been developed solely with quadcopter performance in mind. They integrate with your flight controller software to provide some really neat functionality and the software that runs on these ESCs is constantly being improved.
This article provides step-by-step instructions on how to configure freshly-flashed BLHeli ESCs so that they all have the correct settings and so that your props are spinning in the correct direction. If you've just finished building your quad, we recommend you start out by flashing your flight controller and ESCs. This is outlined in the previous article in this series. Now lets get started!
- Remove your props. You will be spinning your motors up and down throughout this process. Remove your props so you don't hurt yourself or break your quadcopter.
- Close Betaflight Configurator or Cleanflight Configurator, if open.
- Plug your quadcopter's flight controller into your computer using a micro USB cord.
- Plug a flight battery into your quadcopter.
- Launch BlHeliSuite.exe on your computer.
- Open the 'Select ATMEL / SILABS Interface' menu and select the highlighted option:
Note: This is saved when you close BLHeliSuite – you only have to do it the first time. - Click 'Connect'
- Click 'Read Setup'
- The BlHeliSuite window will reconfigure to only show fields appropriate for your ESC. For BLHeli_S ESCs, the color scheme will change so the window looks like this:
- If you have the PWM Frequency / Damped option available in BLHeli, press the right arrow until it reads 'Damped Light'. This is one of the most important features to enable, as we described in our intermediate pilots article.
Note: This option is enabled by default on BlHeli_S ESCs and therefore is not available in the BlHeliSuite GUI for those ESCs. - Change PPM Min Throttle and PPM Max Throttle. I like to use a value of 1016 for my min throttle and 2000 for my max throttle. The reason for doing this is to give you a larger throttle range for your ESC to work with, which improves precision of flight. If you configure it this way it also means you can follow our flight controller set-up instructions later.
- Click 'Write Setup' to save your settings.
- Go to the 'Motors' tab. Your ESCs will immediately arm.
- Click the 'I understand the risks' checkbox to enable motor control.
- Spin up each motor individually by raising the throttle bar:
- Verify the motor order matches this diagram:
If they do not, change around the ESC signal wire plugs into the flight controller until they do. - Next, power up each motor and check the rotation direction. Write down which motors rotate in the wrong direction.
Tip: An easy way to remember motor/prop direction is to remember that the props always rotate inwards towards the center of the quadcopter when looking at it from the front or rear. - Go back to the 'SiLabs ESC Setup' tab.
- BlHeliSuite had to disconnect in going to the Motors tab. Reconnect by pressing 'Connect' and 'Read Setup'.
- Deselect all of the motors by clicking each number in the numbered buttons adjacent to the 'Disconnect' button.
- For each motor that was spinning in the wrong direction in step 17:
- Click the button for the motor number.
- Change the 'Motor Direction' value to the opposite that it is currently set to. e.g. if it is 'Normal', change it to 'Reversed'.
- Click 'Write Setup' to save the change.
- Click the button for the motor number to de-select it.
- Repeat steps 13-17 to verify all motors are now spinning in the right direction.
That's it. Once you've completed these steps, your ESCs are configured and you are ready to configure your flight controller.
If you run into any problems or have questions, please drop us a comment below. We love getting feedback so that we can keep our content as relevant as possible.
Related Posts
SimonK is most widely recognized ESC firmware in multicopter world. But there is a second option, in many ways much better than SimonK firmware. It is called BLHeli. It supports many different ESC, including both Atmel and SiLabs based. Plus, it has a cool software that allows you to configure you ESC without programming card. Just connect your ESC via serial-to-USB interface and you are ready to go.
Blheli Suite For Mac Desktop
AfroESC were supposed to be state of the art controllers, SimonK out of the box, easy to flash thank to special USB interface/programmer. And ready to accept different software, BLHeli included. There is only one huge 'but'. You can buy them, you can buy Afro USB Linker (Turnigy USB Linker is exactly the same), but nobody will tell you how to do it. Number of articles is very limited, and the only useful I've found is this one. So, here we go, now there will be a second one!
How to flash BLHeli to AfroESC
What you will need:
If you want the best performance out of your miniquad racer, we highly suggest you use BLHeli ESCs. This is because these ESCs have been developed solely with quadcopter performance in mind. They integrate with your flight controller software to provide some really neat functionality and the software that runs on these ESCs is constantly being improved.
This article provides step-by-step instructions on how to configure freshly-flashed BLHeli ESCs so that they all have the correct settings and so that your props are spinning in the correct direction. If you've just finished building your quad, we recommend you start out by flashing your flight controller and ESCs. This is outlined in the previous article in this series. Now lets get started!
- Remove your props. You will be spinning your motors up and down throughout this process. Remove your props so you don't hurt yourself or break your quadcopter.
- Close Betaflight Configurator or Cleanflight Configurator, if open.
- Plug your quadcopter's flight controller into your computer using a micro USB cord.
- Plug a flight battery into your quadcopter.
- Launch BlHeliSuite.exe on your computer.
- Open the 'Select ATMEL / SILABS Interface' menu and select the highlighted option:
Note: This is saved when you close BLHeliSuite – you only have to do it the first time. - Click 'Connect'
- Click 'Read Setup'
- The BlHeliSuite window will reconfigure to only show fields appropriate for your ESC. For BLHeli_S ESCs, the color scheme will change so the window looks like this:
- If you have the PWM Frequency / Damped option available in BLHeli, press the right arrow until it reads 'Damped Light'. This is one of the most important features to enable, as we described in our intermediate pilots article.
Note: This option is enabled by default on BlHeli_S ESCs and therefore is not available in the BlHeliSuite GUI for those ESCs. - Change PPM Min Throttle and PPM Max Throttle. I like to use a value of 1016 for my min throttle and 2000 for my max throttle. The reason for doing this is to give you a larger throttle range for your ESC to work with, which improves precision of flight. If you configure it this way it also means you can follow our flight controller set-up instructions later.
- Click 'Write Setup' to save your settings.
- Go to the 'Motors' tab. Your ESCs will immediately arm.
- Click the 'I understand the risks' checkbox to enable motor control.
- Spin up each motor individually by raising the throttle bar:
- Verify the motor order matches this diagram:
If they do not, change around the ESC signal wire plugs into the flight controller until they do. - Next, power up each motor and check the rotation direction. Write down which motors rotate in the wrong direction.
Tip: An easy way to remember motor/prop direction is to remember that the props always rotate inwards towards the center of the quadcopter when looking at it from the front or rear. - Go back to the 'SiLabs ESC Setup' tab.
- BlHeliSuite had to disconnect in going to the Motors tab. Reconnect by pressing 'Connect' and 'Read Setup'.
- Deselect all of the motors by clicking each number in the numbered buttons adjacent to the 'Disconnect' button.
- For each motor that was spinning in the wrong direction in step 17:
- Click the button for the motor number.
- Change the 'Motor Direction' value to the opposite that it is currently set to. e.g. if it is 'Normal', change it to 'Reversed'.
- Click 'Write Setup' to save the change.
- Click the button for the motor number to de-select it.
- Repeat steps 13-17 to verify all motors are now spinning in the right direction.
That's it. Once you've completed these steps, your ESCs are configured and you are ready to configure your flight controller.
If you run into any problems or have questions, please drop us a comment below. We love getting feedback so that we can keep our content as relevant as possible.
Related Posts
SimonK is most widely recognized ESC firmware in multicopter world. But there is a second option, in many ways much better than SimonK firmware. It is called BLHeli. It supports many different ESC, including both Atmel and SiLabs based. Plus, it has a cool software that allows you to configure you ESC without programming card. Just connect your ESC via serial-to-USB interface and you are ready to go.
Blheli Suite For Mac Desktop
AfroESC were supposed to be state of the art controllers, SimonK out of the box, easy to flash thank to special USB interface/programmer. And ready to accept different software, BLHeli included. There is only one huge 'but'. You can buy them, you can buy Afro USB Linker (Turnigy USB Linker is exactly the same), but nobody will tell you how to do it. Number of articles is very limited, and the only useful I've found is this one. So, here we go, now there will be a second one!
How to flash BLHeli to AfroESC
What you will need:
- AfroESC (obvious)
- Afro USB Linker / Programmer
- Windows machine with drivers (keep reading)
- LiPo battery, the same you use on your drone
How To Use Blheli Suite
Afro / Turnigy USB Linker (USB to UART CP2102) Windows driver can be downloaded from this site. Here I have additional, quite important remark: BLHeli Suite works inside virtual machines (tested on VirtualBox with Windows 7 32bit). So, Mac and Linux users: virtualization software can be used to program your ESC. If you have Windows license, start your virtual Windows machine, connect Afro / Turnigy USB Linker and create a filter to pass it through to Windows. Like that:
When everyting is prepared:
Blheli Suite For Mac 10
- Start BLHeliSuite and select correct interface (ATMEL SK Bootloader (Afro/Turingy USB Linker)
- Temporary remove middle wire from ESC connector (+5V) and connect it into Afro USB Linker
- Connect USB Linker to your PC, install driver and so on
- Select correct COM interface in BLHeliSuite. In my case it was COM3. It will be called 'Silicon Labs CP210x USB to UART Bridge' so that should not be a problem
- Click 'Connect'.Window will appear saying that you have to power ESC up. Do it by connecting battery.
- Software will tell you, that there is not BLHeli on ESC (what is good sign in our case) or that it failed to connect completely. If so, recheck driver and wiring and go back to step 1
- Click 'Flash BLHeli'
- Select correct firmware. In my case it was Afro 20A Multi (Multi is for multirotor)
- Click 'OK', and confirm with 'Yes' on next screen
- Aproximately 30 seconds later your ESC will be programmed with BLHeli firmware and you will be able to brag about it! Of course, you should program all ESC in your multirotor with the same firmware and the same settings. But that is simple
