Before going to the field, you have to charge the batteries for the WingtraOne drone and the tablet. The following sections describe how to charge the drone batteries. See Charging accessories for details about how to charge the tablet.
Lithium ion batteries
The WingtraOne is powered by a pair of 4S3P lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. For the charging manual see below.
Lithium-Ion battery packs may get hot, explode or ignite, and cause serious injury if exposed to abusive conditions. Be sure to follow the safety warnings listed below.
- Do not pierce the battery with nails, strike the battery with a hammer, step on the battery, or otherwise subject it to strong impacts or shocks
- Do not expose the battery to water or salt water, or allow it to get wet
- Always use the correct charging mode (LiIo CHARGE)
- Do not leave battery packs unattended during charging, and make sure to place them away from highly flammable environments, such as wood or carpet; it is recommended to charge batteries in a fire-proof container
- Keep batteries within 10°C to 40°C (50°F to 104°F) before they are used—do not leave them in the sun or in a hot car
- Do not leave your batteries connected to the drone for a prolonged period of time (e.g. overnight) as this can deplete the batteries below recharge point.
We expect all users of Li-ion batteries to be professionals and to have the capability to handle emergency cases.
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Charging Li-ion 4S3P batteries
Always use and charge the 4S batteries in pairs as they are labeled (pairs have the same number and color), i.e., do NOT fly with two batteries that have different color labels. Different numbers with the same color is tolerable
Charge with the flight battery charger V2
The Ultracharge+ can extend the flight by 10% and it can be purchased as an add on. It operates identically to the standard charger.
You can attach the included charging system to a power outlet. Set up your charging system as shown below:
To charge your batteries:
- Plug the batteries into the charging cables; the battery voltage will be displayed on the charger's screen
- Press and hold the middle button on the side the battery is connected for one second. Make sure that the task is set to Charge
- Press the lower button and again the middle button to start the charging
Charging empty batteries takes approximately one hour. Once the charging is finished, you'll get an audio confirmation, the screen turns blue and the charging current on display is 0 A. You can now disconnect the batteries.
Never connect the battery to the port at the back of the charger. The battery might be discharged to a level that it cannot recover.
For more information about charging the batteries in the field check the article Charge Wingtra tablet and drone batteries in the field.
Charge with the V1 drone battery charger
Attach the included charging system to a power outlet. Set up your charging system as shown below, and mind the following instructions:
- Select the mode by clicking on Batt Type, navigate to LiIo mode with the Dec and Inc buttons, and confirm with the Start/Enter button
- Set the charging current to 7.5A, which corresponds to 1C. To do this, press Enter to start changing this setting, and press Enter again to confirm
- Confirm your settings by pressing the Enter button for two seconds
- Check the settings (LiIo CHARGE mode, 7.5A), and confirm by pressing Enter
Charging empty batteries takes approximately one hour. Once the charging is finished, you'll get an audio confirmation, and you can see the message Finish on the display (16.4 Volt corresponds to fully-charged batteries). Press Stop before you disconnect the batteries.
Charger setup (office)
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Charger setup (car battery)
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For more information about charging the batteries in the field check the article Charge Wingtra tablet and drone batteries in the field.
Storing Li-ion 4S3P batteries
In case you anticipate a long pause in your operations, batteries should be stored in a secure, cool, ventilated environment. Do not store the batteries in areas receiving direct sunlight. The temperature of the area should not be higher than 25 °C.
The batteries should not be deeply discharged when they will be stored for a long period. Empty batteries might not be able to be charged again. For long-term storage, please follow the instructions below:
- If you plan to store the batteries for more than 30 days:
- Activate the "Storage" Mode on your V2 charger.
- This sets the battery to about 50% State of Charge (SoC).
- Storing batteries at this level helps prevent deep discharge and reduces long-term degradation.
- If you plan to store the batteries for more than 90 days:
- To maintain battery health during extended storage, perform the following maintenance cycle every 90 days:
- Switch to "Charge” Mode (100% SoC at 2.5A charge).
- Wait until charging is complete, then let the batteries rest for 2 hours.
- Switch to "Storage” Mode (50% SoC at 1A discharge).
- Wait until storage SoC has been reached, then let the batteries rest for 2 hours.
- Repeat this cycle every 90 days as long as the batteries remain unused.
- To maintain battery health during extended storage, perform the following maintenance cycle every 90 days:
- Before using the batteries after long-term storage:
- If your batteries have been stored for 90 days or longer, perform one maintenance cycle (as described above) before fully charging and using them again. This serves as an activation cycle, ensuring optimal performance and readiness for flight. Note: If the batteries were used immediately after the last 90-day maintenance cycle, this extra activation cycle can be skipped.
The batteries can be discharged using the same charging system and following the instructions.
Store batteries with the V2 drone battery charger
- Press and hold the middle button for one second. Set the task to Storage
- If you want to interrupt the process, press and hold the middle button for one second and press Stop
Store batteries with the V1 drone battery charger
- Instead of the default charging setting Lilo charge, choose Lilo storage. Change this setting by pressing the Inc button
- Start the process by pressing and holding the Start button for two seconds, until it beeps, and press Start again
The batteries will be discharged until the most suitable level for storage is reached. Please note that the discharge current is limited, therefore discharging the batteries requires a significantly longer time than charging. The quickest way to discharge the battery to the desired level is by flying WingtraOne and hovering before landing until the storage level is reached.