A few weeks ago I launched a brand new modular flight control system. Instead of taking the all-in-one approach, Polystack introduces an open hardware design for stacking mods on top of a base control board. At its core is a high density 80 pin connector which can carry up all of the microcontroller IO to the mods that need it. They are now available from the Chickadee Tech website.
There are a variety of mods available to start and more will be developed over time. Launch mods include FrSky X4R-SB and D4R-II cradles, a Receiver Breakout, a MicroMinimOSD cradle, Dual Serial Breakout and MicroSD. Two flight control boards are available at launch also. One is based on an STMF303 and the other is an STM32F405. Both run Betaflight and have MPU-6000s on board. I'd love to support other flight software in the future too. Unlike Arduino shields, Polystack can stack up to seven mods worry free. So, you can mix and match to achieve the functionality you want.
Right now Polystack is in its early days. My hope is that people can learn how to fix and develop Polystack boards to build a diverse community of boards. Some designs that are being brainstormed are a native PDB, an autonomous flight mod, a native OSD and native VTX.
Boards are now available from Chickadee Tech. They are perfect for building your own custom rig the way you want or developing a ready to fly with tiered functionality. Feel free to email support@chickadee.tech with any questions or comments. Thanks!
Comments
Very nice, glad to see someone thinking outside the box!
That looks interesting! And seems like a lot of work, from your blog.
But is it really necessary to separate out common features which you can easily get in a single packaged autopilot? Is there any special configuration required at basic autopilot state?
This will surely become interesting idea when autopilots will be interfaced with companion computers and stuff, but until then is there any real modular configuration which is not possible with off the shelf autopilots?
And also with modularity there is increased connector failure chance, but you seem to have taken good care of them with those solid connectors.
Are you planning to port px4 or apm to your boards?
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