Should you’ve ever confronted the irritating problem of your FPV drone refusing to arm, you’re in the fitting place. I’m right here to information you thru troubleshooting and fixing this downside, particularly in case your drone makes use of Betaflight firmware. By understanding what prevents a drone from arming and studying how you can diagnose and repair these points, you’ll be again within the air very quickly.
New to Betaflight? No worries—right here’s a tutorial to get you began on setting it up for the primary time: https://oscarliang.com/betaflight-firmware-setup/
The First Issues to Examine
Alright, let’s dive into the primary steps to diagnose why your drone isn’t arming.
Unplugging USB Cable
Betaflight has a security characteristic the place your motors gained’t spin up if the flight controller is linked to the configurator. So, disconnect the USB and provides it one other go.
Radio Receiver Examine
Guarantee your radio receiver is certain and dealing accurately in Betaflight. Head over to the receiver tab to see if the channel responses match your stick actions accurately. Oh, and ensure you’ve obtained the newest Betaflight configurator downloaded: https://oscarliang.com/download-betaflight-configurator/.
Arm Mode Project
Did you assign a swap in your radio for ARM mode? It ought to gentle up yellow when activated, signaling all the things’s set accurately. Unsure how to do this? See my tutorial on establishing Arm swap: https://oscarliang.com/betaflight-modes/#How-to-Setup-Arm-Change
Nonetheless no luck? Let’s dig a bit deeper.
Find out how to Examine for Arming Points in Betaflight
OSD
Should you’ve obtained Betaflight OSD, allow “Warnings” in your display with “Arming Disabled” chosen. It’ll provide you with clue on what’s stopping the drone from arming.
You don’t have Betaflight OSD? There are different methods to examine for the “Arming Disable Flag” in Betaflight, let me clarify.
Betaflight Configurator
If in case you have entry to a pc, you possibly can simply examine the Arming Disable Flag within the Setup Tab within the Betaflight configurator.
CLI
Alternatively, you possibly can examine within the CLI by getting into the command “standing”, the final line is the listing of arming prevention flags.
Additional Studying: Find out how to use CLI in Betaflight?
Buzzer Beeping
Should you don’t have a pc, however your quad has a buzzer, the beeping also needs to point out the disarm flags. Right here’s how you can decipher the beeping sample:
- 5 brief beeps for simply consideration, which might be ignored
- Numerous lengthy beeps
- Numerous brief beeps with lengthy intervals
Every lengthy beep represents 5, whereas every brief beep represents 1. The ultimate flag quantity might be calculated as 5 x <the variety of lengthy beeps> + <the variety of brief beeps>.
For instance:
- 0 lengthy beep and a pair of brief beeps = 2
- 1 lengthy beep and three brief beeps = 8
- 2 lengthy beeps + 0 brief beeps = 10
Arming Prevention Flags Lookup Desk
When you’ve discovered the arming disabled flag numbers or names, match them with this useful desk to decode the difficulty. The information is from the Betaflight wiki.
| Identify | Description | Beep code | Required Actions |
| NOGYRO | A gyro was not detected | 1 | You’ll have a {hardware} failure, if a earlier firmware model works then it might be a firmware problem. Otherwise you might need flashed a unsuitable goal. |
| FAILSAFE | Failsafe is lively | 2 | Rectify the failure situation and check out once more. |
| RXLOSS(1) or RX_FAILSAFE | No legitimate receiver sign is detected | 3 | Your receiver is both defective or has no hyperlink to the transmitter. |
| BADRX(1) | Your receiver has simply recovered from receiver failsafe however the arm swap is on | 4 | Change the arm swap off. |
| BOXFAILSAFE | The ‘FAILSAFE’ swap was activated | 5 | See FAILSAFE |
| RUNAWAY | Runway Takeoff Prevention has been triggered | 6 | Disarm to clear this situation. |
| CRASH | Crash Restoration has been triggered | 7 | Disarm to clear this situation. |
| THROTTLE | Throttle channel is simply too excessive | 8 | Decrease throttle beneath min_check. |
| ANGLE | Craft isn’t stage (sufficient) | 9 | Stage craft to inside small_angle levels (default 25). |
| BOOTGRACE | Arming too quickly after energy on | 10 | Wait till pwr_on_arm_grace seconds (default 5) have elapsed. |
| NOPREARM | Prearm swap isn’t activated or prearm has not been toggled after disarm | 11 | Toggle the prearm swap. |
| LOAD | System load is simply too excessive for secure flight | 12 | Revisit configuration and disable options. |
| CALIB | Sensor calibration remains to be ongoing | 13 | Anticipate sensor calibration to finish. |
| CLI | CLI is lively | 14 | Exit the CLI. |
| CMS | CMS (config menu) is Energetic – over OSD or different show | 15 | Exit the CMS (or OSD menu). |
| OSD | OSD menu is lively | Exit OSD menu. | |
| BST | A Black Sheep Telemetry system (TBS Core Professional for instance) disarmed and is stopping arming | 16 | Confer with the guide to your {hardware}. |
| MSP | MSP connection is lively, most likely by way of Betaflight Configurator | 17 | Terminate the Betaflight Configurator connection (disconnect). |
| PARALYZE | Paralyze mode has been activated | 18 | Energy cycle/reset FC board. |
| GPS | GPS rescue mode is configured however required variety of satellites has not been fastened | 19 | Anticipate GPS repair, allow arming with out GPS repair, or disable GPS rescue mode. |
| RECOVERY | (wiki incomplete) | (wiki incomplete) | (wiki incomplete) |
| RESCUE_SW | GPS Rescue swap is in an unsafe place | 20 | Flip off the GPS Rescue swap to arm. |
| RPMFILTER(2) | Motor RPM-based filtering isn’t functioning | 21 | A number of ESC’s usually are not supplying legitimate RPM telemetry. |
| REBOOT_REQD | Reboot required | 22 | Reboot the flight controller for settings adjustments to take impact. |
| DSHOT_BBANG | DSHOT Bitbang isn’t working | 23 | (3) |
| NO_ACC_CAL | Accelerometer calibration required | 24 | Calibrate the accelerometer or disable options that use it |
| MOTOR_PROTO | ESC/Motor Protocol not configured | 25 | Choose the ESC/Motor protocol to make use of on the Configuration tab. |
| ARMSWITCH | Arm swap is in an unsafe place | 26 | Toggle the arm swap to arm. |
Different Frequent Points
If Betaflight reveals no arming disabled flags, the issue may be one thing else. Listed below are a number of extra issues to examine:
Accelerometer Points
If the Most Arm Angle in Configuration tab is ready beneath 180 (default worth 25), your quad should be beneath this angle so as to arm. In that case, guarantee your quad is on a stage floor, and calibrate the ACC on a stage floor.
If you want to have the ability to arm the drone regardless the angle it’s in, you possibly can disable Most Arm Angle by getting into 180. Some folks favor to do that because it permits them to arm the quad when they’re caught in bushes they usually may be capable of shake it out. However clearly this might be a security concern, so do that at your personal danger.
A defective accelerometer may additionally contribute to the difficulty, attempt disabling accelerometer within the Configuration tab in case you don’t usually fly in Angle/Horizon/Rescue modes.
CPU Utilization
When CPU load is simply too excessive, Betaflight will refuse to arm. Yow will discover out the CPU load on the backside of Betaflight Configurator.
Preserve the CPU load beneath 80% (since BF4.3) by adjusting settings, comparable to reducing PID loop frequency, and disabling pointless options comparable to LED and delicate serial.
Throttle Points
Guarantee your throttle is accurately calibrated. When your throttle channel’s lowest worth is simply too excessive, Betaflight will refuse to arm. Ideally your channel endpoints ought to be 1000 and 2000. 10-12 beneath 1000 and above 2000 is normally high-quality, comparable to 988/990 – 2010-2012, however undoubtedly not above 1000 and beneath 2000, that’s dangerous, during which case you may wish to calibrate your radio endpoints.
Betaflight doesn’t arm in case your minimal throttle is simply too excessive (increased than the setting “Min_Check”). This can be a security characteristic in order that the quad doesn’t all of a sudden spin up the motors and damage you when it’s armed. You need to make sure that your throttle is decrease than min_check when it’s within the lowest stick place. Min_Check is 1050 by default.
Moron threshold
Some FC might need extra delicate gyro’s and the drone would refuse to calibrate and initialize after energy up, and due to this fact you possibly can’t arm it. By improve “gyro_calib_noise_limit” (initially referred to as Moron Threshold) in CLI can scale back gyro sensitivity throughout initialization. Strive setting it to 100 and even 120.
Conclusion
I hope you discovered this information useful! Let me know within the remark in case your arming downside was attributable to one thing else that wasn’t coated on this tutorial. In case you are nonetheless having issues arming your quad after following this information, please submit your query on our discussion board, our neighborhood is at all times right here to help and be taught collectively. Comfortable flying!
Edit Historical past
- Jun 2018 – Tutorial created.
- Feb 2024 – Up to date.
