I'm pleased to announce that we've joined forces with the other Arduino-based powerhouse in the aerial robotics world, the AeroQuad quadcopter team, to extend the ArduPilot platform to whirlybirds of all kinds. The project, called ArduCopter, will use the ArduPilotMega and IMU shield hardware along with a low-cost custom platform that will be available commercially to provide a full quad UAV with both stabilization and GPS waypoint navigation. It builds on the awesome work of Jose Julio in ArduPilot quad development, with the excellent full-systems integration of the AeroQuad team. We expect that first code and hardware will be available this summer.
And here's the impressive work of the AeroQuad team:
Another team is also extending this to traditional helis, starting with the Trex 450 heli (and its equivalents), which should be ready for release this fall. Along with Blimpduino, this should make for 100% coverage of all aerial robotics platforms on the Arduino platform, with shared libraries and ground stations across projects. Go Arduino!
We'll be setting up a proper microsite here, along with dedicated tab, for the project in the next few days.
If you haven't already seen this preview of what the ArduPilot/ArduIMU combo can do with quads, check this out:
And here's the impressive work of the AeroQuad team:
Here's the announcement from the AeroQuad team:
ArduCopter - The Full Featured UAV Multicopter!
Hey guys, as many of you know the AeroQuad has teamed up with DIY Drones on developing a very full featured multicopter! Chris from DIY Drones has proposed the name of this new effort to be called the ArduCopter! It will be based on the ArduPilot Pro Mega (APM) and the APM sensor board currently nicknamed the Oil Pan. Here's an initial feature list and software road map. Please chime in! Your input is valuable! I'll keep updating this front page until we agree on the first version of the ArduCopter's capabilities.
ArduCopter Feature ListSoftware Roadmap
- 6 Degree of Freedom IMU stabilized control
- Gyro stabilized flight mode enabling acrobatics (loops and barrel rolls)
- GPS for position hold
- Magnetometer for heading determination
- Barometer for altitude hold
- IR sensor integration for obstacle avoidance
- Sonar sensor for automated takeoff and landing capability
- Automated waypoint navigation
- Motor control using low cost standard PWM Electronics Speed Controllers (ESC's)
- On board flight telemetery data storage
- Mounted camera stabilization capability
- Wireless command & telemetry for long distance communication
- Capability to fly in "+", "x", hexa and octo configurations
- Battery level detection
- User configurable LED flight pattern
- Capability to use any R/C receiver
- ArduCopter Configuration and Ground Control Software
- Realtime graphs of flight data
- GUI for configuration of PID and other flight parameters
- On Screen Display integration
- Waypoint programming using Google Maps
- Mixertable view to auto configure "+", "x", hexa and octo configurations
- Initial baseline using Jose Julio's v3 software
- Provides absolute angle PID flight control
- Obstacle avoidance
- Waypoint navigation
- Generalize basic ArduCopter functions (ie. Separate PPM receiver input and motor control functions into separate libraries. Allows future coding of PWM vs. I2C ESC's)
- Emphasis on developing new capability into easy to use C++ libraries
- Integrate user defined EEPROM storage capability
- Develop/optimize AeroQuad serial real-time command/telemetry for ArduCopter
- Integrate AeroQuad Configurator for external software configuration of ArduCopter
- Rename Configurator to Ground Control Station and integrate graphical programming of waypoint navigation
- Integrate AeroQuad rate PID control
- Integrate mixertable configuration for multicopter configurations
- Integrate AeroQuad camera stabilization
- Integrate I2C motor control
- Develop capability to wirelessly control ArduCopter directly from Ground Control Station (USB joystick controller from laptop or through waypoint programming)
Comments
Besides it's our responsibility to break them first as many time as needed, so you all as users do not need to break it :)
And if I break it, i don't run out of spare parts ;)
Just like I never had any problems with my electric helicopters in scandinavia but when I took them in here, 3rd flight and I crashed one of them due ESC got too hot.
So I planned to go again on extreme and to see how much they can handle, also to see if they can handle me.. One of the motors did not like me and it burned/got stuck middle in air after 7-8 mins of flying. That resulted rather violent crash from altitude around 7-9 meters. I was flying behind our home building and just before motor failed I was above 3rd floor of our bulding (frst 4 floors are for car parking).
Spinned down to empty parking area behind our building with few rather nasty bumps, ended on upside down and damage was:
- 2 mildly bended Landing Gear fins (took 10 secs to straighten them)
- 3 LG screw nuts flew away (found 2 of them and mounted back)
- 1 motormount polucarbonate screw broken
- 1 motormount mildly damaged, tiny piece got cracked
- 1 arm bended down a bit after LG (another 10 secs to straighten it)
- DomeCenter, one arch popped out of it's holes (popped it back)
- end of aluarm got squished a bit (those rubber crash pillows works great)
So total lost and replacement needs:
- 1 polycarbonate screw
- 1 polycarbonate nut
- 1 motor
Estimate cost 17$ where motor is 16$ :)
Repair time: how quick you can change your motor??
Even tho it might sound bizarre, overall I am really happy about it and how well frame can take heavy hits and protect electronics.
(btw. it took 5 mins to get it back up. And yes we are not gonna use those motors on retail set :) )
Peter
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