Replies to This Discussion

3D RoboticsPermalink Reply by Chris Anderson on September 15, 2010 at 8:44pm

ArduPilot 1 was retired long ago, I'm afraid; we're at ArduPilot 2.7/2.8 now. The current code should automatically program your EM406 into the right mode/serial speed.

Please use the ArduPilot manual.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by JD Warren on September 15, 2010 at 9:09pm

OK, then is there anything that I need to do to put the Ardupilot in Walkaround mode in 2.7? And the waypoints are programmed into the EEprom using the config tool, correct?

• ▶ Reply

3D RoboticsPermalink Reply by Chris Anderson on September 15, 2010 at 9:14pm

All those legacy modes from 1.0, such as Walkaround, are long gone, replaced by better test modes. Where do you find these old refs?

• ▶ Reply

DeveloperPermalink Reply by jasonshort on September 15, 2010 at 9:17pm

Walkaround mode is dead. You can use the config tool to run everything or you can use the waypoint writer to manually upload using a sketch.

Please use the tuning tips from the wiki to get your ardupilot up and running smoothly. This includes the use of FlyByWire mode to test the setup of Ardupilot.

Jason

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by JD Warren on September 16, 2010 at 6:05am

I was under the impression from reading the Ardupilot home-page, that Walkaround mode was what needed to be used to work for a Car or Boat. I read this was because otherwise it would try to gather sensor data from the X,Y,Z sensors that are obviously not installed on a car or boat.

I would like to only use the rudder as directional control from the Ardupilot, controlling throttle directly.

Did the support for surface vehicles disappear after ver 2.4, or can I just use the rudder control as needed and leave the other inputs disconnected?

I have everything installed, connected, waypoints loaded, and ready to test - but cannot get the rudder to respond.

• ▶ Reply

3D RoboticsPermalink Reply by Chris Anderson on September 16, 2010 at 9:49am

JD: Thanks for catching that old text and ref to the walkabout mode on the home page; I've now removed it, since that mode is no longer supported.

We have not focused on surface vehicles in the current code, and I've never tested it without any attitude sensors. I can't see any reason why it couldn't work, however, so it might be worth testing. Meanwhile, we will be releasing a version designed for ground rovers over the next year.

In the meantime, the old 1.0 software is still there to be used and should run on the current board, but none of the current developers had anything to do with it, so I'm afraid they can't answer questions on it.

You might want to check out the work of Harald Molle, who did the most work on using ArduPilot on a ground (well, water) vehicle. He did customize the 1.0 code and you might be able to use his.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by JD Warren on September 16, 2010 at 12:03pm

Thanks Chris,

I have been in contact with Harald, and tried his code, but I had been having trouble getting any movement out of the rudder, so I decided to load 2.7 code and see what happens. I have yet to test it, but if it doesn't work I'll be back to Harald's code.

• ▶ Reply