#11042 KAKUTE F7 HDV

Overview

The HolyBro Kakute F7 HDV is designed to work with the DJI FPV VTx module. The GH port available on the board makes it much more convenient to connect the HolyBro Kakute F7 HDV to the DJI FPV VTx for both signal and power supply.

Features

• Supports Betaflight.
• High-performance / low-noise IMU: MPU6000 with 6-axis gyro and accelerometer.
• Ready for autonomous flight: Integrated BMP280 barometer and SCL/SDA for use with external GPS/magnetometer units.
• Dedicated bootloader button for easy firmware flashing.
• Low-profile design fits into even very compact frames.
• Input voltage 7v to 42v. Power the board directly from the flight pack, up to 6S (on “B+” pad only).
• Automatic voltage monitoring. No need to run a separate vBat wire for voltage monitoring; the KAKUTE F7 HDV monitors voltage directly from the power supply.
• Filtered voltage output for clean, noise-free video. Two on-board regulators output 5V and 8V. 5V output up to 1.5A to power peripherals such as receiver, FPV camera, or LED strip. 8V output up to 2A to DJI FPV VTx.
• Supports BLHeli pass-through for easy ESC upgrade and configuration.

Specifications

• MCU: STM32F745 32-bit processor
• IMU: MPU6000
• Barometer: BMP280
• USB VCP Driver (all UARTs usable simultaneously; USB does not take up a UART)
• 6 hardware UARTS (UART1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7)
• All UARTS support hardware inversion. SBUS, SmartPort, and other inverted protocols work on any UART without “uninvert hack”.
• Supports serial receivers (SBUS, iBus, Spektrum, Crossfire) only. PPM and PWM receivers are not supported.
• TF card for Blackbox logging
• Dimensions: 35x35mm
• Mounting Holes: Standard 30.5mm square to center of holes
• Weight: 8g

Pinout Diagram

The following diagrams illustrate the pinouts for the Kakute F7 HDV flight controller.

Installing Betaflight Configurator

Betaflight is managed using the Betaflight Configurator application, also known as the Betaflight GUI. Download the Betaflight Configurator application from: https://github.com/betaflight/betaflight-configurator/releases. This is a standard application package for Windows, MacOS, or Linux. After downloading, install and run it like any other application.

On MacOS, you must grant the application permission to run and access the network. The simplest way is to right-click the installer and choose Open. A security prompt will appear asking, “Are you sure you want to open it?” Click Open on this prompt, and relevant configuration changes will be made automatically.

Visual description: A screenshot shows the macOS security prompt asking if the user is sure they want to open the Betaflight Configurator application downloaded from the internet.

Flashing New Firmware

To update your firmware, you must connect the board in “bootloader mode”. Bootloader mode means the board is ready to accept new programming. To enter bootloader mode, hold down the bootloader button while plugging in the USB cable. Keep the button pressed for a moment after plugging in the USB cable to ensure it is recognized.

If your Kakute F7 is in bootloader mode, “DFU” will appear in the pulldown menu in the upper-right of the configurator.

Visual description: A screenshot shows the Betaflight Configurator interface with a pulldown menu in the upper-right corner displaying “DFU” as an option, indicating the board is in bootloader mode.

If “DFU” is not visible, the board may not have detected the bootloader button press, or your drivers may not be installed correctly. Without “DFU” in the pulldown menu, you cannot flash new firmware.

For advanced users, an alternative method to enter bootloader mode is to use the CLI (Command Line Interface) and type “bl”. This command reboots the board into bootloader mode, which is useful if the board is installed in a copter where pressing the button is inconvenient. In rare cases, the “bl” command may not work, requiring the physical button press.

The following are the steps to flash firmware:

1. Go to the “Firmware Flasher” tab.
2. Select “KAKUTEF7HDV(HBRO)” in the “Choose a board” pulldown menu. Flashing a different board type will prevent the Kakute F7 from functioning correctly until the correct firmware is flashed.
3. Select the latest version of Betaflight in the “Choose a firmware version” pulldown menu.
4. Click the “Load Firmware (Online)” button. It will change to “Downloading”. The “Flash Firmware” button will turn orange.
5. Click the “Flash Firmware” button. The status bar will fill with orange as the flashing process completes.
6. The process will be followed by “Verifying”. Verification may sometimes fail, but this is usually not a problem if the flash completes successfully.
7. Unplug the board, then plug it back in again without holding the bootloader button.
8. On Windows, the pulldown menu will show a COM port (e.g., COM3). On MacOS and Linux, it will start with /dev/tty. If it reads “Manual Selection”, the board is not detected, possibly due to an incorrect target selection or missing VCP drivers.

Visual description: A screenshot of the Betaflight Configurator's Firmware Flasher tab, showing options to select the board, firmware version, and buttons for loading and flashing firmware.

Initial Configuration

The full configuration of Betaflight can be extensive. This section covers specifics for this board and points to external resources for further guidance.

Connect to The Board

Plug the board into USB and start Betaflight Configurator. The upper-right menu should display a COM port (e.g., “COM3”). Click “Connect”.

Visual description: A screenshot of the Betaflight Configurator showing the connection interface, with a pulldown menu for selecting the COM port and an “Auto-Connect” and “Connect” button.

Ports

Click on the “Ports” tab on the left side of the window.

The Kakute F7's UARTs are versatile, allowing any UART to be used for any function, unlike the Kakute F4 where specific functions were tied to certain UARTs. Recommendations for wiring are provided, but flexibility exists.

Guideline for Ports configuration: Each UART can only be used for one function at a time. Enabling multiple functions may lead to configuration rejection or unpredictable results.

Identify which UART number you connected each peripheral to. For example, connecting a receiver signal wire to pad R3 means it's connected to UART3. The number following 'R' (RX) or 'T' (TX) indicates the UART number.

On each row in the Ports tab, enable the single function connected to the TX and/or RX pads for that UART. Common options include:

• USB VCP (Virtual COM Port) / MSP (Multi-protocol Serial): This is the communication protocol between the Kakute F7 and the Configurator GUI. Disabling MSP on USB VCP will prevent communication, requiring a re-flash. It is strongly advised not to disable MSP on the USB VCP line.
• FrSky SmartPort Telemetry: In the Telemetry Output column, select “SmartPort”.
• Serial RX: Enable this for the UART where the receiver signal wire is connected. For SBUS or Spektrum receivers, this is typically the RX pad. For Crossfire receivers, both TX and RX pads of the same UART are used.
• RunCam Digital Camera Control: In the Peripherals column, choose “RunCam Device”.
• ESC Telemetry: On the UART7 line, in the Sensor Input column, choose “ESC”. The R7 pads are specifically located for this purpose.
• SmartAudio or ImmersionRC Tramp Telemetry: In the Peripherals column, choose “TBS SmartAudio” or “IRC Tramp” based on your video transmitter.

Visual description: A screenshot of the Betaflight Configurator's Ports tab, displaying a table with columns for Identifier, Configuration/MSP, Serial Rx, Telemetry Output, Sensor Input, and Peripherals, with various settings configured.

Configuration

Navigate to the “Configuration” tab. Scroll down to the “Other Features” section.

• Enable TELEMETRY if using any kind of telemetry (SmartPort, Crossfire, etc.).
• Enable LED_STRIP if using a programmable LED strip.
• Air Mode: Increases authority when the throttle is low. Recommended to be left enabled.
• Enable ESC_SENSOR if using ESC telemetry.
• ANTI_GRAVITY: Increases stability when the throttle changes rapidly. Recommended to enable this option and set Anti Gravity Gain to 3.0 in the PID Tuning tab. This default setting is suitable for most quads.

Next, go to the “Receiver” section of the “Configuration” tab. Since the Kakute F7 only supports serial-type receivers, configuration is straightforward:

• Set the Receiver Mode to “Serial-based receiver”.
• Set the Serial Receiver Provider to match your receiver type:
  • FrSky and SBUS receivers: SBUS
  • Spektrum Satellite receivers: SPEKTRUM2048 or SPEKTRUM1024 (depending on DSM2 or DSMX)
  • FlySky receivers: iBus
  • Crossfire receivers: CRSF

Visual description: Screenshots showing the “Other Features” and “Receiver” sections within the Betaflight Configurator's Configuration tab, highlighting options like TELEMETRY, LED_STRIP, AIRMODE, ESC_SENSOR, ANTI_GRAVITY, Receiver Mode, and Serial Receiver Provider.

Blackbox

If the Blackbox feature is enabled, go to the Blackbox tab. Set the Blackbox logging device to “SD Card” (default) and the Blackbox Logging Rate to 2 kHz. Insert a FAT-formatted SD card (32 GB or smaller) into the Kakute F7's SD card slot to use Blackbox logging. The Betaflight Blackbox Log Viewer app can be used to examine logs.

Visual description: A screenshot of the Betaflight Configurator's Blackbox tab, showing settings for the logging device (SD Card) and logging rate (2 kHz).

Saving Your Configuration

It is recommended to back up your configuration after building, configuring, and tuning your multirotor. This is useful for restoring settings if the quad is lost, the flight controller is damaged, or access is lost.

Avoid using the “save configuration” and “restore configuration” buttons found in some configurators, as they have significant drawbacks.

The correct method for saving your configuration is:

1. Connect your Kakute to your PC via USB.
2. Start the Betaflight GUI app.
3. Go to the CLI tab.
4. In the text box at the bottom of the CLI, type “diff all” and press Enter. This displays all configuration options changed from default values.
5. In the lower-right corner of the configurator, click “Save to File”.
6. Save the file in a secure location.

To restore your configuration:

1. Open the saved text file in a text editor.
2. Highlight all the text.
3. Right-click and choose “Copy”.
4. Connect your Kakute to your PC via USB.
5. Start the Betaflight GUI app.
6. Go to the CLI tab.
7. Click in the text box at the bottom of the CLI to place the cursor.
8. Right-click in the text box and choose “Paste”.
9. Press Enter. The pasted text will scroll rapidly.
10. Type “save” in the text box and press Enter. The flight controller will reboot and restore the configuration.

Additional Reference

Here are links to helpful videos for building your quadcopter:

• Betaflight 3.3 Ultimate Setup Guide
  Visual description: A QR code is displayed next to the title.
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vJCrHj9s6s
• How to Calibrate Your ESCs
  Visual description: A QR code is displayed next to the title.
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3Mg-9M0l24

  Note: Calibrating ESCs is mandatory for analog protocols like Oneshot or Multishot. Dshot protocol, supported by most ESCs, allows skipping this step.

• Failsafe
  Visual description: A QR code is displayed next to the title.
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dikr9oDzQqc

Failsafe is crucial for preventing a lost quad or crashes if the receiver disconnects or the flight is too far. Ensure failsafe is verified.

To verify failsafe: Remove props, plug in battery, arm the copter, then turn off the transmitter. Motors should stop within 1-3 seconds. If motors do not stop, do not fly the multirotor under any circumstances.