On this tutorial, I’ll show easy methods to cut back throttle sensitivity in Betaflight in addition to on radios working EdgeTX. The following pointers aren’t simply helpful for newbies; skilled pilots and racers can even profit when flying in tight areas that require exact throttle management at slower speeds. In case you’re struggling to handle altitude in your FPV drone—maybe your quad feels too highly effective, jumpy, or twitchy on throttle—this information is for you! This can be a widespread subject amongst newbies flying in Acro mode, the place there’s no automated altitude maintain. Thankfully, there are efficient methods to make your throttle simpler to handle with out negatively impacting general drone efficiency.
How Throttle Scale Helps New Pilots
Throttle scaling may be particularly helpful for FPV newbies. A typical FPV drone has a particularly excessive thrust-to-weight ratio, hovering round 20% to 30% throttle. Freshmen typically discover this difficult, as they’re nonetheless growing exact management, leading to problem sustaining secure altitude as a result of tiny throttle stick vary they’re comfy utilizing.
Advantages of decreasing your drone’s throttle output:
- Reduces twitchiness and overcorrection.
- Offers finer management and elevated decision on the throttle stick.
- Helps develop muscle reminiscence for easy throttle management.
Nonetheless, relying closely on throttle scaling may restrict your skill to develop as a pilot. Ideally, it is best to embrace this problem by step by step growing your throttle restrict as your expertise enhance. Finally, mastering your drone at its full 100% throttle vary is the aim.
That stated, if extreme energy negatively impacts your enjoyment or creates frustration, throttle scaling could be a invaluable instrument. Finally, prioritize your flying expertise and development as a pilot, however don’t draw back from incrementally difficult your self.
Skilled pilots and racers additionally profit from throttle scaling. By decreasing most throttle, you possibly can enhance precision in difficult environments, akin to technical race programs or tight flying areas the place most throttle isn’t wanted, however nice management is crucial. Throttle scaling maximizes stick decision exactly the place it issues—making it a flexible addition to your FPV toolkit.
Utilizing Throttle Scale in Betaflight
The simplest approach to cut back drone energy and pace is thru Betaflight’s throttle scale setting:
- Go to the “PID Tuning” tab.
- On the high, change to the “Rateprofile Settings” part.
- Discover “Throttle Restrict” and “Throttle Restrict %”.
- Within the dropdown, select “SCALE” – That is the setting you need. It scales your full throttle vary right down to a share.
- In Throttle Restrict (%), set it to one thing lower than 100%, like 80%. This implies full throttle in your stick will now solely command 80% motor output.
- Click on “Save”.
Betaflight presents an alternative choice known as “CLIP”. Slightly than scaling your complete throttle vary, CLIP cuts off throttle above sure share. For instance, setting CLIP to 80% means your throttle stick works usually as much as 80%, after which no extra throttle is offered. The profit is the hover level stays the identical as earlier than, however the downside is you lose throttle stick decision, probably leading to much less exact management. CLIP may be helpful in sure purposes, however for many FPV pilots, SCALE is usually the really helpful choice for decreasing energy of your drone.
Totally different Throttle Scales per Fee Profile
Betaflight helps as much as 4 separate fee profiles, every with its personal throttle scale settings. You’ll be able to change between these profiles by way of the Betaflight OSD menu or assign a change in your radio (configured in Betaflight’s Adjustment tab).
Contemplate setting totally different throttle scales for numerous flying situations—indoor versus out of doors, freestyle versus racing, and many others.
Motor Output Restrict (Not Really helpful)
It’s possible you’ll discover one other setting in Betaflight known as Motor Output Restrict below the PID Tuning tab.
I don’t suggest utilizing Motor Output Restrict to easily gradual your drone down. This setting is meant primarily for limiting motor KV to cut back ESC present or utilizing higher-voltage batteries for high-KV motors.
Unnecessarily limiting Motor Output could make your drone sluggish as a result of motors gained’t obtain full pace when required, resulting in decreased responsiveness and even instability. For basic throttle administration, Throttle Scale stays the superior and safer selection.
Throttle Expo in Betaflight
Other than throttle scaling, one other widespread technique to handle throttle sensitivity is utilizing Throttle Expo in Betaflight. Throttle Expo flattens a portion of the throttle curve across the hover/cruising level, offering finer management decision in that space, whereas nonetheless preserving 100% throttle vary.
Though this technique may be helpful in sure conditions, I personally don’t suggest it for newbies. Throttle Expo could make throttle response much less predictable, because the hover level might shift relying on battery voltage, propeller effectivity, and payload weight and many others. As a substitute, I strongly suggest utilizing Throttle Scale, as mentioned earlier, for extra predictable and constant throttle response.
Throttle Scaling on EdgeTX Radios
In case you’re unable or want to not use Betaflight for throttle scaling, you are able to do an analogous factor in your EdgeTX radio. This technique is simple and is particularly useful should you fly a number of drones, as it may possibly apply universally throughout fashions.
Go to Mixer in your radio. Discover the Throttle channel, maintain down the Enter button, and choose Edit.
The default Weight worth is 100 (representing 100% throttle). Cut back this to your required throttle share (e.g., 80 for 80% throttle).
Throttle channel worth begins from -100 to 100 (0% to 100%), so it’s a must to modify the Offset worth to make sure the throttle vary begins appropriately at -100. For instance, should you set Weight to 80 (20% lower than default), your Offset needs to be set to -20.
That’s it! Your drone will now have a scaled throttle output.
You’ll be able to even configure a knob or slider in your radio to dynamically modify throttle scaling throughout flight. This may be notably helpful for pilots incessantly flying each indoors and open air or racers who want various throttle limits for various tracks.
Superior Setup: Dynamic Throttle Scaling with Potentiometer
Wish to dynamically change throttle scaling on-the-fly utilizing a knob in your EdgeTX radio? Listed here are two highly effective methods to perform this: Mixer Multiplex and International Variables.
Technique 1: Mixer Multiplex
On this instance, I’ll use a knob (potentiometer) to range throttle scaling from 50% to 100%.
Within the Mixer menu, discover the throttle channel.
Insert a brand new line under your current throttle channel by holding down Enter and choosing Insert After.
Edit this line, select a knob or slider because the supply, I’ll use S2 on this instance. Set Weight to 25, Offset to 75.
Scroll down in the identical web page and set Multiplex to “Multiply”.
Now add one other line below the one we simply created. Once more, choose the identical knob/slider because the supply (S2 in our instance), and set Weight to 25 and Offset to -25.
However this time you wish to choose “Add” within the Multiplex setting.
And it is best to find yourself with this:
This needs to be working now!
Lastly you possibly can setup a change to allow/disable this characteristic. Merely add a change place in these two traces, so the max throttle stays at 100% and unaffected by the knob when the change shouldn’t be energetic. Do that for each *= and += traces.
To set totally different most throttle vary, like 0% to 100% as a substitute of fifty% to 100%, you solely have to mess around with the Weight and Offset of the 2 traces below throttle. Listed here are two examples, 50% to 100% and 0% to 100%.
50% to 100% Max Throttle
- *= S2 Weight 25, Offset 75
- += S2 Weigh 25, Offset -25
0% to 100% Max Throttle
- *= S2 Weight 50, Offset 50
- += S2 Weight 50, Offset -50
Technique 2: International Variables
This method is extra complicated however demonstrates the flexibility and energy of EdgeTX’s International Variables (GV) characteristic. It achieves the identical consequence because the Mixer Multiplex technique however may encourage different inventive setups.
Go to Inputs.
Create two new inputs. Use the identical slider or knob of your selection because the Supply. We’ll use S2 in our instance.
We’ll use the values of those inputs because the Weight and Offset of the our throttle, due to this fact I identify these inputs TWgt (Throttle Weight) and TOfs (Throttle Offset) respectively.
It would sound a bit complicated now, no worries, simply maintain following what I’m doing right here, it doesn’t matter what you name them so long as you realize which is which.
And set the Weight and Offsets values in response to the diagrams under. These values will enable the throttle cap to alter from 50% to 100% as we flip the slider from 0% to 100%.
It’s best to find yourself with 2 new inputs like this.
Now go to the Particular Perform web page.
Create two “ON” features to regulate GV1 and GV2 base on the inputs we beforehand created. What these principally do is to show the slider worth into “international variables” so we are able to entry it in this system freely;
TWgt = GV1, and TOfs = GV2.
Don’t neglect to allow these features by checking the bins on the proper.
Right here is the ultimate step. Go to the Mixer web page, and edit the Throttle channel.
Use GV1 because the Weight of the Throttle channel, and GV2 because the Offset. You’ll be able to really do that within the Inputs Web page too, both method is ok.
That’s it! It needs to be working now.
If you want, you possibly can assign a change to allow/disable this characteristic. Go to Particular Capabilities.
Assign two features to a spare change you wish to allow/disable this characteristic, and use “Alter GV1 100”, and “Alter GV2 0”. That is principally setting the throttle channel weight and offset within the mixer again to the default values.
To make use of totally different max throttle vary, merely mess around with Weight and Offsets within the two slider inputs. Listed here are some examples:
50% to 100% Max Throttle
- TWgt (Weight 25, Offset 75)
- TOfs (Weight 25, Offset -25)
0% to 100% Max Throttle
- TWgt (Weight 50, Offset 50)
- TOfs (Weight 50, Offset -50)
Closing Throughs
Throttle scaling can considerably enhance your management over FPV drones, benefiting newbies and skilled pilots alike. Whereas scaling by way of Betaflight is simple, EdgeTX radios supply versatile, dynamic strategies to go well with totally different flying situations. Experiment with these settings to search out your ultimate stability of responsiveness and management, enhancing your FPV flying expertise.
