G-Wiz HCX-50G User manual

F
Fi ir rs st t F Fl li ig gh ht t
Learning to Use Your
G-Wiz HCX Flight Computer
Version 1.0

First Flight Version 1.0 Printed: 1/26/2008
Limited Warranty and Disclaimer
G-Wiz Partners warrants the G-Wiz HCX Flight Computers to be free from defects in materials
and workmanship and remain in working order for a period of 180 days. If the unit fails to operate
as specified, the unit will be repaired or replaced at the discretion of G-Wiz Partners, providing the
unit has not been damaged, modified, or serviced by anyone except for the manufacturer.
G-Wiz HCX Flight computers are sold as an experimental accessory only. Due to the nature of
experimental electronic devices, especially when used in experimental carriers such as rockets, the
possibility of failure can never totally be removed. The owners, employees, vendors and
contractors of G-Wiz Partners shall not be liable for any special, incidental, or consequential
damage or expense directly or indirectly arising from the customer or anyone’s use, misuse, or
inability to use this device either separately or in combination with other equipment or for personal
injury or loss or destruction of other property, for experiment failure, or for any other cause. It is
up to the user, the experimenter, to use good judgment and safe design practices and to properly
pre-test the device for its intended performance in the intended vehicle. It is the user or
experimenter’s responsibility to assure the vehicle will perform in a safe manner and that all
reasonable precautions are exercised to prevent injury or damage to anyone or anything.
WARNING: Do not use this device unless you completely understand and agree with all the
above statements and conditions. First time use of the G-Wiz HCX Flight Computer
signifies the user’s acceptance of these terms and conditions.
How to contact G-Wiz Partners
Please see our website at: http://www.gwiz-partners.com. Our web site has the latest versions of
all our user manuals, device firmware, and FlightView software updates, as well as email contact
information.
© 2008 by Marjorie Lynch-Freshner and G-Wiz Partners
Photographs © 2008 by David Randall
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Important Safety Precautions
Use a checklist when you set up your flight computer and when you mount it in your rocket.
Dangers from ejection charges – Make safe the ejection charges, or disconnect the power
whenever you transport the flight-prepped unit.
Electrostatic discharge - Static electricity can damage or destroy components on your flight
computer. Keep it in an antistatic bag when not in use. Ground yourself before handling the flight
computer. Be especially cautious when using it in low humidity environments.
The flight computer must be mounted in the correct orientation to operate. The “nose” end is
indicated on the board, but to confirm the orientation, make sure the terminal block is at the aft, or
rear end of the flight computer.
Make sure the flight computer is rigidly installed in the rocket payload bay.
The computer must be protected from ejection gasses. Ejection gasses are corrosive and will
damage the flight computer. Damage from ejection gasses will void your warranty.
Use good batteries – We recommend using Duracell batteries if you are using non-rechargeable
batteries. Many lower cost batteries have press fit contacts. Vibration and sudden acceleration can
cause these contacts to come loose, resulting in an open circuit during flight. This momentary or
permanent break in your power connection will cause a catastrophic flight failure. Similarly, make
sure your batteries are properly secured to prevent them from pulling wires out of the terminal
block pins.
Recommended Battery Sizes:
Minimum Optimum Maximum
CPU 7.5 volt 9 volt 12 volt
Pyro 7.5 volt 9 volt 15 volt
•Using too small a battery can cause a low voltage failure and will reduce your operating
time and risk a low-voltage failure.
•Using too large a battery on the Pyro circuit has the potential of damaging the MOSFET
switches, due to excessive current flow.
Do not mix uses on the Mini-SD memory card. The flight computer needs large continuous
blocks of memory space on the card to record your flight data. If you use your flight computer’s
Mini-SD card for other uses, it will quickly become fragmented and unable to allocate the required
space. At that point, you will get a power-on self-test error, down-checking the Mini-SD card.
You must reformat the card to clear all the data before it can be used.
If you hear the breakwire-launch error code, power the unit off before attaching the break wire.
This unit has had limited testing with hybrid motors at this time, and is not yet fully qualified.
Please see our website at: http://www.gwiz-partners.com, where we will post further updates.
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Table of Contents
Introducing the G-Wiz HCX.........................................................................................................................1
Components..............................................................................................................................................3
Product Features.......................................................................................................................................4
Flying your HCX Flight Computer...............................................................................................................7
Setting up your Hardware.........................................................................................................................7
Mounting the Flight Computer in your Rocket ......................................................................................10
Getting Ready for Launch ......................................................................................................................12
Recovering your Rocket.........................................................................................................................13
Analyzing your Flight Data with the FlightView Program ....................................................................14
Conclusion..............................................................................................................................................17
Using the G-Wiz Flight Computer for More Advanced Flights.................................................................18
Using FlightView to Change the Configuration of your HCX...............................................................18
Cookbook for Launch Setups.................................................................................................................22
Appendix A – Product Specifications.........................................................................................................34
Appendix B – Flight Computer Status Codes.............................................................................................35
Normal Status Code................................................................................................................................35
Non-Fatal Error Status Codes.................................................................................................................35
Fatal Error Status Codes.........................................................................................................................36
POST Failure Code Lookup Charts........................................................................................................37
Appendix C – Mechanical Drawing............................................................................................................38
Appendix D –Installing USB Drivers on Macintosh ..................................................................................39
Appendix F – Installing USB Drivers on Windows XP .............................................................................40
Appendix F – Installing USB Drivers on Windows Vista..........................................................................42
List of Procedures
To Set Up the On-Board Hardware...............................................................................................................8
To Wire Up Your Power Connection ...........................................................................................................8
To Test the Setup..........................................................................................................................................9
If You Do Not Hear the Correct Sequence ...................................................................................................9
If You Hear the Correct Sequence, Your Setup is Complete........................................................................9
To Prepare Your Flight Computer for Launch............................................................................................12
To Read the Data from your Mini-SD Card ...............................................................................................14
To Save the Flight Data to your Personal Computer ..................................................................................16
To Connect your Flight Computer to your Personal Computer..................................................................20
To Change your Configuration...................................................................................................................20
To Correct the Setup, If You Want a Breakwire Flight..............................................................................36
To Correct the Setup, If the Breakwire Mode was Configured by Mistake................................................36
To Install the USB Drivers on a Macintosh................................................................................................39
List of Setups
Dual Parachute Deployment Using One Nine Volt Battery........................................................................24
Dual Parachute Deployment using Two Batteries......................................................................................26
Two Stages plus Dual Parachute Deployment using Two Batteries...........................................................28
Single Parachute Deployment at Apogee with a Single Nine Volt Battery................................................30
Cluster Ignition, Single Parachute Deployment at Apogee Using Two Batteries ......................................32

First Flight Version 1.0 Date Printed: 1/26/2008
Introducing the G-Wiz HCX
Congratulations on purchasing your new G-Wiz HCX Flight Computer! The G-Wiz HCX is a
very robust, safe and reliable unit that will support a wide variety of rocketry needs. If this is your
first altimeter-based flight computer, you can rest assured that the G-Wiz HCX will grow with you.
The G-Wiz HCX is more than just an altimeter. If you’re familiar with altimeters and have
experience flying rockets with electronics, you’ll be excited at the flexibility that the HCX offers,
no matter what type of rocket you’re flying.
You can configure HCX for many different types of flight plans. Using FlightView, our flight
computer communication and data analysis software, you can fly many different setups on your
HCX. For example you can:
•Fly a single stage rocket and deploy a chute at apogee.
•Fly a single stage rocket where you deploy a drogue at apogee, and then deploy your main at
a preset altitude of your choosing.
•Initiate air start of clustered motors within one second after the rocket has cleared the launch
pad.
•Fly multi stage rockets where you choose how long after the booster motor burns out before
you ignite the sustainer motor.
•Fly extreme altitude flights, where the HCX can measure barometric altitude as high as
100,000 feet above sea level (ASL).
•Fly very-high-G short-burn-time motors, when you configure the G-Wiz HCX Flight
Computer to use a break wire for launch detection.
•Record user-provided sensor data during flight when you use the BreakWire/Analog input
port to feed sensor data into your flight computer.
•Fly the HCX as a redundant backup flight computer in any flight. Since all of the output
events can be configured to fire at a delay of your choosing, you can use a second G-Wiz
flight computer as a redundant backup. Because HCX fires all the events independently, it
can be useful on those mission critical flights, such as a High Power certification flight.
You can also combine these setups to fly an extremely intricate flight plan.
What makes the G-Wiz HCX Flight computer so much more than just an altimeter? The HCX has
dual sensors – an accelerometer as well as a barometer – which continually feed data to the RISC
processor at the heart of this third-generation flight computer. Using this data and the onboard
programming, the flight computer determines the key events in a rocket’s trajectory, including:
•Launch.
•Booster burn-out.
•Sustainer ignition.
•Sustainer burn-out.
•Inertial apogee.
•Barometric apogee.
•Deployment
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•Landing.
HCX has four independent high-current output ports. Each one can independently control a flight
event. This allows you create a flight plan with up to four separate flight operations. While the two
parachute pyro ports are single tasked for recovery deployment, the third pyro port can be used for
either sustainer ignition or for cluster ignition. The fourth pyro port is programmable in
FlightView, our flight computer program, for a myriad of possible events. You can program four
possible events into your flight plan including these options:
•Apogee deployment.
•Low altitude deployment.
•Very high, below apogee deployment.
•Air-start of a cluster of motors.
•Mid-air ignition of sustainer motors.
•Event activation based on data from a user-provided sensor.
In addition to the inputs from the accelerometer and barometer, the HCX can also record data from
the analog input port. This port can be used for:
•Mechanical detection of launch using a break wire.
•Data recording from a user-provided analog sensor.
The standard model, the HCX/50 unit, can accurately measure up to 56G of positive or negative
acceleration, while other models can accurately measure up to 224G.
The unique pyro port shunt plug in the HCX prevents the pyro ports from accidentally firing while
you are working on, or transporting, your rocket.
The on-board beeper starts to read out the peak altitude upon landing. It continues until after your
recover your rocket and you turn it off.
HCX keeps track of multiple flights by recording the accelerometer and barometric sensor data
into a file on a Mini-SD memory card.
Our FlightView software, which runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux platforms, reads the
files from the Mini-SD card. This program analyzes your flight data, presents it in graphical
format, and allows you to save the data to your personal computer.
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Components
Here are the major components of the G-Wiz HCX flight computer. More information on each of
these components is in the Using your Flight Computer chapter of the HCX User Manual.
•CPU – The RISC processor that controls the Flight Computer.
•Mini-SD Card Socket – Insert a Mini-SD card to record your flight data.
•Accelerometer – Continually measures acceleration during the flight.
•Pressure Sensor – Continually measures barometric pressure to calculate altitude.
•JP1 & JP3 Safety Shunt – Always use the safety shunt when your flight computer is
controlling pyrotechnic events.
•JP2 Pyro Current Jumper – Sets high or low current operation for the pyro ports.
•JP7 Cluster/Stage Mode Jumper –Defines when pyro port 1 is activated.
•JP6 Communications Interface Socket – Attach a G-Wiz Interface Card here when you
want to connect to your personal computer.
•JP5 Breakwire Bypass Jumper – Sets electrical connections to utilize information from
the Breakwire/Analog input.
•Beeper – Audibly indicates status.
•Status LED – Visually indicates status.
•TB1 & TB2 Terminal Blocks – Connect wires to the flight computer here.
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Product Features
Here are some of the great features you’ll find in your new G-Wiz HCX state-of-the-art flight
computer. For more detailed information on using these features, please see the G-Wiz HCX
User Manual.
Robust Hardware
•Integrated barometer and accelerometer work together for very precise and accurate altitude
detection.
•The barometric sensor is capable of accurate altitude sensing as high as 70,000 feet MSL
•The 12-bit A to D converter, plus the third generation 8 MIPS RISC processor, provides
reliable operation, flight after flight.
•Continuous CPU, pyro battery, and continuity monitoring prior to launch instantly alerts
you if an electrical problem occurs in your rocket before flight.
•The HCX flight computer has three models. This chart shows the model numbers and the
maximum acceleration each model can measure.
Model Number Maximum Acceleration
HCX/50 +/- 56 G
HCX/100 +/- 112 G
HCX/200 +/- 224 G
Interactive Hardware Features
•Integrated speaker and bright blue LED, that is visible in bright daylight conditions,
indicate configuration and operational status before the flight.
•The beeper and LED read out peak altitude after landing. You can configure the unit to
beep out the maximum airspeed too.
Configuring your Flight Computer
Interface cards are available in either RS-232 or USB formats. These cards attach to the 8 pin
communications interface socket (JP6) and allow you to connect with a personal computer. Once
connected with your personal computer you can use the FlightView software to:
•Upload configurations to your flight computer.
•Bench test electric matches and other accessories,
•Upgrade your flight computer’s firmware.
The FlightView program allows you to change the configuration of your flight computer to match
your flight plan.
•You can configure the beeper to read out in either Metric or English units.
•You can configure pyro channel 1 for staging, and program it to operate a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd
stage event.
•You can configure pyro channel 1 to ignite a cluster of motors immediately after launch.
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•You can configure pyro channel 2 to fire at either barometric or inertial apogee.
•You can configure pyro channel 3 to activate the low-altitude event at either a set altitude or
a specified time after inertial apogee.
•You can configure the flight computer to record in either Metric or English units.
•You can configure pyro channel 4 to:
oActivate an event based on data from a 3.3v or 5.0v user-provided sensor.
oActivate an additional event based on data from the barometer or accelerometer.
oTurn off the same or a different event.
•You can choose to delay activating any channel’s event. The delays can be set in 0.1 second
increments with the range of 0 to 25 seconds.
•You can set the recording rate to 66.67 samples per second to 500 samples per second in 6
user selectable settings. Recording bit depth is 12-bits per sample.
Data Storage
•The firmware is stored in flash memory, and can be conveniently upgraded by the user
when new versions are released by G-Wiz Partners.
•The flight computer’s configuration is stored in non-volatile EEPROM.
•The flight computer records its data on a removable Mini-SD memory card.
•The flight computer records acceleration, pressure, and events during the flight.
•The Mini-SD card can record multiple flights between downloads without risk of data loss.
•The included SD card adapter allows convenient download of flight data to your personal
computer
•Flight data is analyzed using FlightView software
•Flight data can be stored on a personal computer in gwiz format, for review using
FlightView, or in txt, csv, or xml formats for use in other analyses.
FlightView Software
•Available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux systems.
•Use it to:
oDownload flight data recorded during the flight from the Mini-SD memory card.
oAnalyze and chart the recorded and calculated data from your flight
oSave the flight data to your personal computer.
oConfigure your HCX flight computer.
oBench test your HCX flight computer.
Power
•In low current mode, a single battery powers both the flight computer’s CPU and the pyro
ports.
•In high current mode, two batteries can provide up to 8 amps of continuous current to each
pyro port, to reliably fire igniters and/or electric matches.
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Safety
•An on-board safety shunt prevents arming of HCX pyro ports while you are transporting or
working on your rocket. It is designed to be quickly and easily removed once the rocket is
on the pad and ready for launch
•The on-board safety shunt is wired in parallel with the terminals of an optional external
shunt. This allows you to place the pyro safety switch at whatever location is most
convenient for the configuration of your rocket.
•High current, open drain, power MOSFET switches safely initiate the pyrotechnic events.
•A reverse-protection diode protects your flight computer from the damage that could be
caused by accidentally connecting a battery backwards.
•The firmware prevents pyro port 1 from firing a sustainer motor if the rocket has already
passed apogee.
•If you have configured your flight computer for breakwire detection, the firmware checks
the port’s continuity at power-on and sounds an alert if the break wire’s circuit is open.
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