PX4 User Guide
  • Introduction
  • Getting Started
    • Basic Concepts
    • Vehicles/Frames
    • Flight Controllers
    • Sensors
    • Radio Systems
    • Flight Modes
    • Vehicle Status Notifications
      • LED Meanings
      • Tune/Sound Meanings
      • Preflight Checks
    • Payloads & Cameras
    • Flight Reporting
  • Basic Assembly
    • Mounting the Flight Controller
    • Mounting the GPS/Compass
    • Vibration Isolation
    • Cable Wiring
    • CUAV Pixhawk V6X Wiring QuickStart
    • CUAV V5+ Wiring Quickstart
    • CUAV V5 nano Wiring Quickstart
    • Holybro Pixhawk 6C Wiring Quickstart
    • Holybro Pixhawk 6X Wiring Quickstart
    • Holybro Pixhawk 5X Wiring Quickstart
    • Holybro Pixhawk 4 Wiring Quickstart - Discontinued
    • Holybro Pixhawk 4 Mini Wiring Quickstart - Discontinued
    • Holybro Durandal Wiring Quickstart
    • Holybro Pix32 v5 Wiring Quickstart
    • Cube Wiring Quickstart
    • Pixracer Wiring Quickstart
    • mRo (3DR) Pixhawk Wiring Quickstart
  • Standard Configuration
    • Firmware
    • Airframe
    • Sensor Orientation
    • Compass
    • Gyroscope
    • Accelerometer
    • Airspeed
    • Level Horizon Calibration
    • Radio Setup
    • Joystick Setup
    • Flight Modes
    • Battery
    • Safety
      • Failsafe Simulation
    • ESC Calibration
    • Actuators
    • Autotune
  • Vehicle Types & Setup
    • Multicopters
      • Multicopter Config/Tuning
        • MC Filter/Control Latency Tuning
        • MC PID Tuning (Manual/Basic)
        • MC PID Tuning Guide (Manual/Advanced)
        • MC Setpoint Tuning (Trajectory Generator)
          • MC Jerk-limited Type Trajectory
        • Multicopter Racer Setup
      • X500 v2 (Pixhawk 6C)
      • X500 v2 (Pixhawk 5X)
      • X500 (Pixhawk 4)
      • S500 V2 (Pixhawk 4)
      • DJI F450 (CUAV v5+)
      • DJI F450 (CUAV v5 nano)
      • QAV250 (Pixhawk4 Mini) - Discontinued
      • DJI F450 + RTK (Pixhawk 3 Pro)
      • QAV250 (Pixhawk Mini)
      • QAV-R 5" Racer (Pixracer)
      • Omnicopter
    • Planes
      • Fixed Wing Config/Tuning
        • Fixedwing PID Tuning Guide
        • Fixedwing Advanced Tuning Guide
        • Fixedwing Trimming Guide
      • Reptile Dragon 2 (ARK6X)
      • Turbo Timber Evolution (Pixhawk 4 Mini)
      • Wing Wing Z84 (Pixracer)
    • VTOL
      • VTOL Config/Tuning
        • QuadPlane Configuration
        • Back-transition Tuning
        • VTOL w/o Airspeed Sensor
        • VTOL Weather Vane
      • Standard VTOL
        • FunCub QuadPlane (Pixhawk)
        • Ranger QuadPlane (Pixhawk)
        • Falcon Vertigo QuadPlane (Dropix)
      • Tailsitter VTOL
        • Build: TBS Caipiroshka Tailsitter Build (Pixracer)
      • Tiltrotor VTOL
        • Build: Convergence Tiltrotor (Pixfalcon)
    • Airships (experimental)
    • Autogyros (experimental)
      • ThunderFly Auto-G2 (Holybro pix32)
    • Balloons (experimental)
    • Helicopter (experimental)
      • Helicopter Config/Tuning
    • Rovers (experimental)
      • Traxxas Stampede
    • Submarines (experimental)
      • BlueROV2
    • Airframes Reference
  • Flying
    • First Flight Guidelines
    • Flying 101
    • Missions
      • Package Delivery Mission
    • GeoFence
    • Safety Point Planning
    • Flight Modes
      • Position Mode (MC)
      • Altitude Mode (MC)
      • Manual/Stabilized Mode (MC)
      • Acro Mode (MC)
      • Orbit Mode (MC)
      • Position Mode (FW)
      • Altitude Mode (FW)
      • Stabilized Mode (FW)
      • Acro Mode (FW)
      • Manual Mode (FW)
      • Takeoff Mode
      • Land Mode
      • Return Mode
      • Hold Mode
      • Mission Mode
      • Follow Me Mode
      • Offboard Mode
    • Terrain Following/Holding
  • Flight Log Analysis
    • Log Analysis using Flight Review
    • Log Analysis using PlotJuggler
  • Advanced Configuration
    • Finding/Updating Parameters
    • Full Parameter Reference
    • ECL/EKF Overview & Tuning
    • Flight Termination Configuration
    • Bootloader Flashing onto Betaflight Systems
    • Land Detector Configuration
    • Prearm/Arm/Disarm Configuration
    • IMU Factory Calibration
    • Sensor Thermal Compensation
    • Compass Power Compensation
    • Advanced Controller Orientation
    • Static Pressure Buildup
    • Serial Port Configuration
    • MAVLink Telemetry (OSD/GCS)
    • PX4 Ethernet Setup
    • Bootloader Update
  • Hardware (Drones&Parts)
    • Complete Vehicles
      • ModalAI Starling
      • PX4 Vision Kit
      • MindRacer BNF & RTF
        • MindRacer 210
        • NanoMind 110
      • Holybro Kopis 2
      • Bitcraze Crazyflie 2.1
    • Flight Controllers (Autopilots)
      • Pixhawk Series
        • Silicon Errata
      • Pixhawk Standard Autopilots
        • CUAV Pixhawk V6X (FMUv6X)
        • Holybro Pixhawk 6X (FMUv6X)
        • Holybro Pixhawk 6C (FMUv6C)
        • Holybro Pixhawk 6C Mini(FMUv6C)
        • Holybro Pix32 v6 (FMUv6C)
        • Holybro Pixhawk 5X (FMUv5X)
        • Holybro Pixhawk 4 (FMUv5) - Discontinued
        • Holybro Pixhawk 4 Mini (FMUv5) - Discontinued
        • Drotek Pixhawk 3 Pro (FMUv4pro)
        • mRo Pixracer (FMUv4)
        • Hex Cube Black (FMUv3)
        • mRo Pixhawk (FMUv3)
        • Holybro Pixhawk Mini (FMUv3) - Discontinued
      • Manufacturer-Supported Autopilots
        • AirMind MindPX
        • AirMind MindRacer
        • ARK Electronics ARKV6X
        • CUAV X7
        • CUAV Nora
        • CUAV V5+ (FMUv5)
        • CUAV V5 nano (FMUv5)
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        • CubePilot Cube Orange (CubePilot)
        • CubePilot Cube Yellow (CubePilot)
        • Holybro Kakute H7v2
        • Holybro Kakute H7mini
        • Holybro Kakute H7
        • Holybro Durandal
        • Holybro Pix32 v5
        • ModalAI Flight Core v1
        • ModalAI VOXL Flight
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        • ThePeach FCC-K1
        • ThePeach FCC-R1
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      • Discontinued Autopilots/Vehicles
        • Drotek Dropix (FMUv2)
        • Omnibus F4 SD
        • BetaFPV Beta75X 2S Brushless Whoop
        • Bitcraze Crazyflie 2.0
        • Aerotenna OcPoC-Zynq Mini
        • CUAV v5
        • Holybro Kakute F7 (Discontinued)
        • Holybro Pixfalcon
        • Holybro pix32 (FMUv2)
        • mRo AUAV-X2
        • 3DR Pixhawk 1
        • Snapdragon Flight
        • Intel® Aero RTF Drone (Discontinued)
      • Pixhawk Autopilot Bus (PAB) & Carriers
        • ARK Electronics Pixhawk Autopilot Bus Carrier
    • Flight Controller Peripherals
      • ADSB/FLARM (Traffic Avoidance)
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      • Camera
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        • TeraRanger
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        • Avionics Anonymous Laser Altimeter UAVCAN Interface
      • ESCs & Motors
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        • DroneCAN ESCs
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        • VESC
      • TBS Crossfire (CRSF) Telemetry
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      • GPS/Compass
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        • Hex Here2
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      • Grippers
        • Servo Gripper
      • Optical Flow
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        • PMW3901
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      • Precision Landing
      • Parachute
      • Power Modules/PDB
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      • Satellite Coms (Iridium/RockBlock)
      • Telemetry Radios
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        • Microhard Serial Telemetry Radio
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        • CUAV P8 Telemetry Radio
        • HolyBro XBP9X - Discontinued
      • RTK GPS
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        • RTK GPS Heading with Dual u-blox F9P
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      • Flight Controller Reference Design
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On this page
  • Using Parachutes
  • Parachute Setup
  • Enable Flight Termination
  • Parachute Output Bus Setup
  • MAVLink Parachute Setup
  • Parachute Testing
  1. Hardware (Drones&Parts)
  2. Flight Controller Peripherals

Parachute

PreviousPrecision LandingNextPower Modules/PDB

Last updated 1 year ago

PX4 can be configured to trigger a parachute during .

The parachute can be connected to a free PWM output or via MAVLink.

:::note During flight termination PX4 turns off all controllers and sets all PWM outputs to their failsafe values (including those connected to PWM outputs) and triggers any connected MAVLink parachutes.

You can therefore use this feature to activate multiple complementary safety devices connected to different outputs. For more information see . :::

Using Parachutes

Below are a few considerations when using parachutes:

  • A parachute does not guarantee that the vehicle will not be destroyed or cause harm! You must always fly with safety in mind.

  • Parachutes require careful usage to be effective. For example, they must be folded correctly.

  • Parachutes have a minimum effective altitude.

  • A parachute may trigger while the vehicle is upside down. This will increase the time required to slow, and may result in the drone collapsing the parachute.

  • The parachute will only deploy if the flight controller is powered and PX4 is running properly (unless it is triggered independently of PX4). It will not deploy if something causes the flight stack to crash.

Parachute Setup

Flight termination (and hence parachute deployment) may be triggered by safety checks such as RC Loss, geofence violation, and so on, from attitude triggers and other failure detector checks, or by a command from a ground station. During flight termination PX4 sets PWM outputs to their "failsafe" values (failsafe values turn off motors, but may be used to turn on/trigger the parachute). If a MAVLink parachute is connected and healthy, a command will be sent to activate it.

Parachute setup therefore involves:

  • Configuring as the appropriate action for those safety and failure cases where the parachute should be deployed.

  • Configure PX4 to deploy the parachute during flight termination (set PWM output levels appropriately or send the MAVLink parachute deploy command).

  • Configure PX4 output levels to disable motors on failsafe. This is the default so usually nothing is required (for servos it's the center value).

Enable Flight Termination

To enable flight termination:

Parachute Output Bus Setup

If the parachute is triggered by a PWM or CAN output then it must first be connected to an unused output. You will probably also need to separately power the parachute servo. This is might be done by connecting a 5V BEC to the Flight Controller servo rail, and powering the parachute from it.

You then need to ensure that the parachute pin will be set to a value that will trigger the parachute when a failsafe occurs:

  • Assign the Parachute function to any unused output (below we set the AUX6 output):

  • Set appropriate PWM values for your parachute. The output is automatically set to the maximum PWM value when a failsafe is triggered.

MAVLink Parachute Setup

  • SYS_STATUS.onboard_control_sensors_present_extended: MAVLink parachute present (based on heartbeat detection).

  • SYS_STATUS.onboard_control_sensors_enabled_extended: ?

  • SYS_STATUS.onboard_control_sensors_health_extended: MAVLink parachute healthy (based on heartbeat detection).

Parachute Testing

:::warning For the first test, try on the bench, without the props and with an unloaded parachute device! :::

:::note There is no way to recover from a Termination state! You will need to reboot/power cycle the vehicle for subsequent tests. :::

Set action to Flight termination for checks where you want the parachute to trigger.

Set pitch angles, roll angles and time triggers for crash/flip detection, and disable the failure/IMU timeout circuit breaker (i.e. set ).

:::note You can also configure an for failure detection. :::

Open in QGroundControl

:::note For the spring-loaded launcher from the minimum PWM value should be between 700 and 1000ms, and the maximum value between 1800 and 2200ms. :::

PX4 will trigger a connected and healthy parachute on failsafe by sending the command with the action.

MAVLink parachute support is enabled by setting the parameter . PX4 will then indicate parachute status using the bit in the extended onboard control sensors fields:

A MAVLink parachute is required to emit a with HEARTBEAT.type of .

The parachute will trigger during .

The easiest way to test a (real) parachute is to enable the and tip the vehicle over.

You can also simulate a parachute/flight termination: .

flight termination
Flight Termination Configuration
flight termination
Safety
Actuators
Fruity Chutes
MAV_CMD_DO_PARACHUTE
PARACHUTE_RELEASE
HEARTBEAT
MAV_TYPE_PARACHUTE
flight termination
MAV_SYS_STATUS_RECOVERY_SYSTEM
SYS_STATUS
external Automatic Trigger System (ATS)
failure detector attitude trigger
Failure Detector
Actuators - Parachute (QGC)
Gazebo Classic > Simulated Parachute/Flight Termination
CBRK_FLIGHTTERM=0
COM_PARACHUTE=1