Some of you might be familiar with the Black Magic Probe, but some might not. As you know most UAV autopilots these days use one of the many STM32 microcontrollers. They are based on the ARM Cortex-M core family. Most of the boards also have either a JTAG or at least an SWD interface exposed. What you might not know or be familiar with is how useful these interfaces are.

If you connect a Black Magic Probe to your autopilot you can connect the GDB (GNU Debugger) directly to it and you can read, write memory, inspect the status of registers, manipulate peripherals, load a new firmware into flash and much much more. This will make debugging your autopilot firmware much easier, than adding print statements or blinking an LED. For those more familiar with JTAG/SWD debugging Black Magic Probe does not require a man in the middle software like texane/stlink or OpenOCD. This decreases the amount of setup complexity. Also we have put a lot of effort into making the target interface circuitry robust, using dual supply transceivers, adding a target supply switch and a built in USB to serial adapter.

If you are still not convinced that you need this tool, you should read the Hackaday article, and take a look at the Pixhawk website you will also see that the Black Magic Probe is their tool of choice too. (if you are interested in Drone Code development, 1BitSquared sells ARM Cortex 10pin connector to Drone Code connector adapter)

In this Kickstarter we are introducing the new version of Black Magic Probe V2.1. It has a more robust target front end, making sure the JTAG/SWD signals are solid and you will be able to debug your target device even if you are using long wires. (especially useful when your autopilot is buried deeply in the fuselage of your aircraft. Additionally you can also get a matching STM32F415 based development board, that you can learn and test the use of Black Magic Probe and GDB on. This is the same CPU that can be found on the Elle0 autopilot that we have featured here in the past.

I hope you will consider taking a look at our Kickstarter and decide to support us. The revenue from this project will go directly back into the open-source projects that made it all possible. We will be able to spend more time developing more software and hardware making open-source ARM development easier.

Cheers,

Piotr Esden-Tempski

Hi Everyone,

I made a new video describing the details of the G0 Paparazzi UAV GPS receiver module. In the video I go through and describe the several design decisions we made to ensure high Signal to Noise Ratio, good multi path GPS signal rejection and overall reliability of the GPS for use in airborne robotics applications.

I hope this video is helpful. If you think so too please let me know in the YouTube comments. If you enjoyed the video make sure to like it on YouTube and subscribe to the channel.

Check out the G0 paparazzi wiki page for more information about the GPS.

G0 is now available for purchase in the 1BitSquared store together with the Elle0 autopilot. It is available in both of our stores; the US Store and the German Store. So if you live in the European union, you can now buy Elle for your next UAV project without having to worry about customs and shipping time. :)

Cheers, and successful flights,
Esden and the 1BitSquared team

Hi Everyone,

I made a new video describing the details of the Elle0 Paparazzi UAV autopilot. Elle0 is now available for purchase in the 1BitSquared store together with the G0 companion GPS receiver. In the video I go through and describe every IO pin as well as some of the design differences to the Lisa/MX Autopilot that I designed before the Elle0. Additionally, I describe how you can add a battery voltage monitor to your Elle0 using a voltage divider circuit, and how it fits together with the new G0 GPS receiver.

I hope this video is helpful. If you think so too please let me know in the YouTube comments. I am planning to make many more videos describing different aspects of Paparazzi UAV, not only hardware but also flight videos and Paparazzi software tutorials and tips. If you think it will be useful for you make sure to subscribe and tell me in the comments what you would like to see.

Also, check out the Elle0 paparazzi wiki page for more information about the autopilot itself and diagrams of the system. Additionally to the Elle0 and G0 boards we have also released a matching R0 radio board and UU0 UART to USB adapter boards. We will be making videos describing more parts of the modular system we are working on soon. Whereas the Elle0 and G0 are already in stock, the R0 & UU0 are available for Pre-Order in our US store.

Cheers, and successful flights,

Esden and the 1BitSquared team

1BitSquared has just launched their German online store. This is the first dedicated Paparazzi UAV hardware supplier in Europe.

Paparazzi UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) is an open-source drone hardware and software project encompassing autopilot systems and ground station software for multicopters/multirotors, fixed-wing, helicopters and hybrid aircraft that was founded in 2003. Paparazzi UAV was designed with autonomous flight as the primary focus and manual flying as the secondary. From the beginning it was designed with portability in mind and the ability to control multiple aircraft within the same system. Paparazzi features a dynamic flight plan system that is defined by mission states and using way points as “variables”. This makes it easy to create very complex fully automated missions without the operators intervention. For more project information, see here.

With a store in Europe they can provide faster delivery times of Paparazzi UAV hardware for all the European users and developers. Now you can purchase Lisa/M(X), Lisa/S, Elle0 autopilots and accessories for Paparazzi UAV within Europe without having to pick up your order at your customs office. We hope this will make the entry into Paparazzi and working with the system easier, knowing that you can get new parts and hardware faster from a local supplier.

Check out the 1BitSquared DE store, if you have any questions or suggestions let us know in the Paparazzi UAV Gitter channel, esden is always there to answer your questions regarding the 1BitSquared products and online store. You can also reach 1BitSquared through their contact form, and the 1BitSquared Gitter Discuss channel.