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3D Robotics

ArduPilot Mega Now Available!

Posted by Chris Anderson on April 28, 2010 at 1:00pm


It's available now from Sparkfun! $59.95.


And cool home page promo on the Sparkfun site here.


Here's a quick FAQ for people just now coming to the site, or hearing about ArduPilot Mega for the first time:

  • It is designed to work with an IMU "shield" (board that fits on top) that contains all the sensors. That board will be available by the end of May. The latest info on the shield is here.
  • You'll need two right-angle 3x8 connectors to attach your RC gear.
  • The ArduPilot Mega code will build on ArduPilot 2.6 and be available in about a month.

We recommend this board just for people who want to beta test or tinker. For regular users who want a plug-and-play (ish) experience, it's best to wait a few weeks for us to release the IMU shield, code and documentation. (The Sparkfun board will also be tweaked a bit, with mostly cosmetic changes to make some pin labeling clearer, in the next batch.)

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Comments

  • Luis Ramos May 3, 2010 at 8:13am
    Boas Pedro eu comprei o meu material lá e duas semanas depois tinha cá tudo sem os problemas de alfandega que normalmente tenho!! agora mando vir o material de uma loja na alemanha que envia por UPS maravilha!
  • 3D Robotics
    Chris Anderson May 2, 2010 at 3:18pm
    @Roger. Jordi has said that the only non-cosmetic differences is that the production version has a fuse to prevent reverse polarity burnouts. So you shouldn't have to change anything (just be careful plugging in power)
  • Roger A May 2, 2010 at 3:12pm
    I had bought two beta versions of the board - can someone define what changes need to be made to the beta boards to bring them in-line with the release versions?
  • Diymaker May 2, 2010 at 12:30am
    Wow, wish like to get one and build my own quadcopter
  • Admin
    Morli April 30, 2010 at 11:46pm
    In addition , you may use following female headers ( assuming you will use male headers in the shield to come)
    8 x 2 : 4 numbers
    6 x 2 : 2 numbers
    5 x 2 : 2 number ( buy 6 x2 and snip one pin )
    2 x1 : 12 numbers
    Adding one extra of each of the above is good idea.
    Male -female servo extension cables : 12 or more
    Use your imagination to choose the cable types and lengths
  • John Ihlein April 30, 2010 at 10:39am
    Thanks Chris, got the RC connectors. I was more interested in the headers that will be used to connect to the IMU shield, if that's known at this time. Only want to solder once if I can. Thanks.
  • 3D Robotics
    Chris Anderson April 30, 2010 at 10:19am
    @John. Post now updated with link to needed connectors.
  • Bryce Wilkinson April 30, 2010 at 10:14am
    Thanks everyone. @Ryan, I don't think It's expensive. I'm going to be ordering a ton for me and my friends. I was just curious why it cost's more.
  • John Ihlein April 30, 2010 at 8:40am
    Just ordered 2 boards from Sparkfun. Is there a list of headers somewhere that need to be purchased for connecting to the upcoming IMU shield? I've got a pretty good idea of what is needed, just wanted to cross check before ordering.

    John
  • Moderator
    Alex April 30, 2010 at 6:11am
    Great news that its finally released!!! but I read on sparkfun that it says code supports autoland and auto takeoff, is this something that is going to be added to the next code release? or is it just saying we have the option to write our own autoland code for the board since IMU shield has pressure sensor?
This reply was deleted.