Getting Your Discovery 2 in the Air
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      2. Getting Your Discovery 2 in the Air

      Updating the QGroundControl Application on Herelink

      Due to Airmap shutting down their elevation servers, QGC v.4.0.8 is no longer compatible with terrain following. Here we will walk through the process for installing QGC v4.3.0, so you can continue to use terrain following.

      Using the Old QGroundControl:

      Installing QGC v4.3.0 will not remove the old version from the controller.

      If you find that you don't need to use terrain following, and prefer to use the old version of QGC, it will still be installed on the controller. To use the old version...

      1. Click the Apps icon at the bottom right of the home screen

      2. Click the first QGC in the list 
      3. This will have all of the functionality of the prior QGC

      QGC v4.3.0 is an initial release that was built to solve this new terrain following compatibility issue. While in the near future we expect QGC to improve v4.3, it currently has some bugs. You may experience the application crashing upon initial boot up. This may be a reason you will decide to continue to use the old version when terrain following is not needed.

      To help prevent issues with the new app, allow each process to complete before beginning another:

      1. Allow the drone to fully boot up before turning the controller on
      2. Open the Herelink Settings App and and wait until the RID tab reads "Yes" and "True" (for RID equipped drones only)
      3. Open the QGC App and allow parameters to fully load (green bar complete)
      4. Then you can begin clicking around in QGC

      Important Note:

      You will lose all saved missions on the controller when you install the new QGC app! Here’s how to keep them…

      When you install the new version of QGC, any saved missions will be overwritten. If you want to save any missions you have saved on the hand controller, you will need to connect the hand controller to the computer so you can copy the missions from the memory on the hand controller to a temporary location on your computer.

      Then, after you have installed the new version of QGC on the controller, you will copy them back over into the "QGroundControl" > "Missions" folder. You will learn about how to transfer files between your computer and controller within this process.

      After you complete Step 5, you can transfer the missions back onto the hand controller from your computer. However, these missions will only be usable within the old version of QGC, therefore, you will need to re-create your saved missions within the new QGC app.


      Step 1: Prepare Hand Controller for Download

      1. Turn on the Herelink hand controller and open "Settings" by swiping down from the top of the screen and clicking the setting icon 
      2. Scroll to the bottom and click "About Phone"
      3. Scroll to the bottom again and click "Build Number" several times until the controller goes into "Developer Mode"
      4. Click the triangle on the top left of the screen to go back to the previous menu and click on "Developer Options"
      5. Scroll down and click on the "USB Debugging" toggle to turn it on
      6. Plug the controller into a computer using the micro USB cable you use for charging
      7. Swipe down from the top of the screen and tap on "USB options" (you may have to drag the dropdown menu up a little to see the "USB options" box)
      8. Select "Transfer files", and you will see the hand controller begin to install on your computer similar to when you plug in a USB thumb drive

      Step 2: Download QGC v4.3.0

      1. Download the QGC version below:

        LINK TO DOWNLOAD

      2. Extract the zip file

      3. In the File Explorer, open "Optimus" > "Internal Storage"

      4. Drag the .apk file you just downloaded into the "Internal Storage" folder

      Step 3: Install on Controller

      1. On the hand controller, go back to "Settings" > "Storage" > "Explore"
      2. Click the QGroundControl.apk file
      3. Click "Install"

      Step 4: Setting the Home Screen

      1. Go to the home screen and hold on the QGC app that is preloaded
      2. Click "Disable Launch on Boot"
      3. Click and hold on the QGC app again and click "Remove from Favorites"
      4. Click the Apps icon at the bottom right of the home screen
      5. There will be an additional QGC app at the bottom, click and hold the icon and click "Add to Favorites"
      6. Reboot the Controller

      Step 5: Setup Drone Communication & Other Settings

      1. Turn on the Controller 
      2. Turn on your drone 
      3. Boot the new QGC on the controller
      4. Select "Allow" for all of the popups
      5. Enter the units you would like to use (we will reboot the app later to enable this change)
      6. Select Ardupilot and Multi-rotor in the two dropdowns
      7. Click the top left and select the Q
      8. Select "Application Settings"
      9. Click "General" on the left side
      10. Scroll down to the "AutoConnect to the following devices" section and uncheck all options
      11. Click on "Comm Links" in the left-side menu and click "Add"
        1. Set the name to "Discovery"
        2. Select "Automatically Connect on Start"
        3. Set "Type" to UDP
        4. Set the UDP address to 14551 and click "OK"
      12. Reboot the app by swiping from the left of the screen, clicking the square, then swiping the app to close. Then reopen the app
      13. Click on "Q" > "Application Settings" > "Mavlink"
      14. Check the box "All Streams Controlled by Vehicle Settings"
      15. Reboot the QGC app by clicking the square on the left-side swipe out menu, then swiping the app to close it
      16. Open QGC from the home screen
      17. If the drone does not automatically connect
        1. Click the "Q" > "Application Settings" > "Comm links" 
        2. Click on "Discovery" then click "Edit"
        3. Check "Automatically Connect on Start"
        4. Reboot the app again
        5. If the drone connects but the app freezes up, reboot one more time
      18. Once the Drone downloads the params, click the "Q" in the corner
      19. Click "Vehicle Setup"
      20. On the left-side menu, select "Joystick
      21. Ensure "Enable Joystick" input is checked 
      22. Click "Button Assignment"
      23. Make sure each number corresponds to the mode as shownScreenshot 2024-04-30 094532

      24. Click "Back" at the top left of the screen and turn off the controller and drone

      25. Power on the drone and hand controller and wait for boot up
      26. Open QGC and check that everything connects
      27. You're finished updating the hand controller. You can power the drone and hand controller down.

      NOTE: If you do experience issues with the app, you can reboot it by swiping from the left side of the screen and swiping the app to close it. Then start the app again.

      Step 6: Update QGroundControl on Your Computer

      Lastly, you will need to update your computer QGC  so you can plan missions on the computer. Missions planned with the previous QGC version will not be compatible with the one you just installed on your hand controller. 

      Click this link to download QGC 4.3.0 for Windows, then delete your old QGC.

      UPDATE COMPLETE!