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PX4 Configuration Checklist

After assembling the vehicle, the PX4 autopilot running on the flight computer must be configured. Here is a general checklist of what needs to be done before the first flight. All of these configurations can be done using the QGroundControl application. It should be noted that this checklist is based on the PX4 documentation and more detailed instructions are available there.

  1. Sensor orientation on vehicle;
  2. Compass calibration;
  3. Gyroscope calibration;
  4. Accelerometer calibration;
  5. Radio setup (button mapping and calibration);
  6. Flight mode configuration (map radio button for manual/offboard mode change and safety hold/kill switch button);
  7. Battery (configure battery parameters for charge estimation);
  8. Configure failsafes;
  9. Actuators (configure geometry of motors and verify correct direction of spinning);

After this process the vehicle should be ready for manual flight and it is now a good idea to check if the PID controllers' gains need to be adjusted.