Releasing the shackles - how far do you want to go?
Since I got into building my own drones I have been fascinated with the prospect of extremely long range drones that are not restricted by the limits of point to point wireless technology.
The public cell network seems like the perfect solution for long range drones as it covers most countries and now supports extremely high bandwith.
I've done some experimenting with the dronecell and various other options but they have all missed the mark somewhat in some way.
I stumbled across this solution the other day and it seems like the perfect solution for larger very long range drones.
The FATBOX GPRS2 is a wireless DTU with a few extra bits of trickery that lend it as the perfect long range solution for our needs.
- Serial port - The serial port can be interfaced to the APM mavlink port (the same one used by the XBee) with the simple addition of a TTL level converter.
- Dynamic DNS - it has a built in Dynamic DNS client, this means when you turn it on, it automatically connects to the internet via the builtin GPRS modem and registers its IP address with a DDNS provider. This means you can simply type in the DNS name into the mission planner to connect to the APM without needing to know the IP address.
- Transparent - unlike most GPRS modems, the Fatbox can be setup to be a transparent serial router. When you turn it on, it exposes the serial port over UDP on its IP interface. As the APM mission planner supports UDP, it should be plug and play.
- Dual SIM - if coverage is an issue, you can insert two SIMs from different providers, if it loses its connection, it will automatically connect with the other SIM and register its new address with DDNS. You will get a brief dropout on your APM planner but can then just reconnect.
- Ethernet interface - this is the kicker for me, it has a built in ethernet interface that can be used at the same time as the serial port. This opens the door for video or any other ethernet based device you might want to add to your drone. You could also add a wifi link for redundancy and access the serial port via wifi and fall back to GPRS if you go out of range.
The only downside is that out of the box it weights 420 grams.
It comes in a steel case and the board itself only weigh 120 grams so I am going to look at other case options or perhaps just fly it naked.
Mine should be here soon so watch this space for the results of my testing.
* note: In some countries, by default your SIM card is on a firewalled APN which means you can't contact the IP address over the internet. This is usually just a case of ringing your provider and asking for the name of a non firewalled APN.
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Comment by Tomas Soedergren on December 1, 2011 at 1:41pm -
Wow Toby! Coool!
Keep us posted :)
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Comment by DaveyWaveyBunsenBurner on December 1, 2011 at 1:46pm -
Nice find!
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Moderator Comment by Sgt Ric on December 1, 2011 at 1:53pm -
This is great!
The same day as APM 2.0...
...wow, it really is Christmas!
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Moderator Comment by Sgt Ric on December 1, 2011 at 1:58pm -
The quoted weight probably includes the wall wart adapter, ...thats another thing we can leave on the ground!
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Comment by Toby Mills on December 1, 2011 at 2:05pm -
excellent, I still don't really want to be carting around a steel case in the air so definately a weight saving opportunity.
the guy who makes them is really cool so if it works as I expect, I might talk to him about a custom case for drone use and we could perhaps get in a supply at a lower cost and get them stocked in one of the stores.
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Comment by robert mcintosh on December 1, 2011 at 5:27pm -
very cool!
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Comment by wifigod on December 1, 2011 at 5:37pm -
$250, huh? Why not spend $30 on a DD-WRT compatible router that can support a WWAN (cell modem) over USB AND has TWO serial ports along with 4 switched Ethernet ports. Seems like you would save a lot more money and it would be running Open Source software that you can freely edit and redistribute/share. Plus, I have a sneaking suspicion that it would be lighter to boot.
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Comment by Toby Mills on December 1, 2011 at 5:42pm
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@wifigod.. yes that could be an option. I suppose from my point of view, I've sunk a lot of cash on various bits and peices to see if they 'might' work without a lot of success. I'm at the point now where I want something that will work.
can you recommend any DD-WRT routers that have 2 serial ports and ethernet and compatible USB WWAN modems?
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Comment by wifigod on December 1, 2011 at 5:43pm
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Correction, 1 serial port is available on the Asus WL-520gu, which can technically run more serial ports via USB, if needed.
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