3D Robotics

New IMU board for Paparazzi--but is it open source?

3689391142?profile=originalThe Paparazzi team have released a new IMU board called Asprin. It's just the accelerometers, gyros and magnetometer sensors (no processor) and is available for $110 at Joby Robotics.

Strangely, I can't find any mention of it being open source. Is it actually possible that Paparazzi is no longer supporting open source hardware? That would be sad if true. They seem to have deleted the Hardware folder from their repository. [Correction: the hardware repository is here. It only has the schematic of Lisa (no board file) and no files at all for Asprin]. I've asked for clarification, but haven't heard back yet.

Remember that Paparazzi's tagline is "Bringing freedom to UAV since 2003". Maybe it should be "Bringing freedom to UAVs, 2003-2010" ;-)

 

[UPDATE: The official statement: "For the time being the Eagle files for Aspirin are not released in a OSHW definition compatible way. We at Joby Robotics would love to be able to release the files. But we don’t feel comfortable with that at the moment. It is a continuing discussion here at Joby Robotics, so let’s hope for the best! :)

P.S. Aspirin is not a “Paparazzi” design as such, it was developed at Joby Robotics with close collaboration with Paparazzi community. It may have not been reflected by the article properly for some readers."]

 

[UPDATE2: On March 3rd, the Joby team did decide to release the files and open source the boards. Lisa is here and Asprin is here. Good news!]

 

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Comments

  • 3D Robotics

    Eric, to answer your (rhetorical) question: no, I do not contribute to the Paparazzi project. Are you suggesting that only contributors have a right to comment? Apparently your commitment to openness does not extend to free speech.

     

    You seem to think that I have some "motive" other than those we've articulated here: sharing information of interest to this community and supporting the growth of open source hardware. So rather than make insinuations, why don't you come right out and say what you think my motive is, so everyone can evaluate it here in public? It would be the open thing to do.

  • @Eric, As this is a community that thrives on open source hardware and software, open-ness is important to everyone.  Your first question to Erez R regarding his Pipo was,

     "Hi, Is the board open source ? where can I get the eagle files ?"

    Nobody questioned your motives....it is expected around here.  No big deal.

     
  • Developer
    Popcorn.. I need to make some popcorn for this...
  • Chris, If you have relegated your Paparazzi setup to status of paper weight I still fail to see your concern with the with how the Paparazzi community conducts itself and note that you have only answered one of the 5 questions I posed to you.

     

    The bizarre suggestion in this blog that Paparazzi no longer supports open source hardware (given the hundreds of existing open source platforms using Paparazzi which continue to function) and the totally misleading URL to a location that has never hosted the Paparazzi hardware files are an illustration of the lack of this boards primacy as an information source regarding Paparazzi.

     

    Your claim to having a "journalistic interest" implies you consider yourself a journalist. Do you not consider that this role comes with the responsibility to do some fact checking before publishing fallacious claims ?

     

    I would suggest the tag line for this article gives a more accurate indication to the underlying motives for your article.

     

     

  • 3D Robotics
    Eric, as John says I'm an open source hardware evangelist and encourage it everywhere. We were glad to count Paparazzi in our camp and I sang its praises for this in many speeches. I'd be sorry to lose that.

    As it happens I do own a Paparazzi setup, although I don't fly it. But this community has many Paparazzi uses, so the future of that platform is of journalistic interest to me, too, in our role as an information resource.
  • I have had no response from Chris yet so I don't think anything is obvious. That is why my post above contained 5 questions. None of which either you or Chris have yet answered. Perhaps you can spell it out for me ? because I certainly don't see a connection between Paparazzi and Chris that would lead him to be so concerned.
  • Developer
    Eric, I think that should be obvious considering Chis is one of the driving forces behind the whole open hardware movement.
  • Chris,

    I am interested why you are so interested in this IMU ? Do you fly Paparazzi ? Do you contribute to Paparazzi ? or is open in this case just a one way street for you ? (ie more a case of Download It Yourself drones rather than Do It Yourself drones).

    If you don't have any stake in Paparazzi why the apparent concern in how the Paparazzi community conducts itself ?

  • 3D Robotics
    David, thanks for the clarification. I was just confused because the announcement was made on the official Paparazzi blog and wiki. Are you saying that there will be other IMU hardware coming from the official Paparazzi team that will be open source? Or will it be more like Linux, where the Paparazzi team gets out of hardware entirely and the project become just open source software?
  • Actually that's a great point. That IMU would likely work quite well with the DCM code in Paparazzi. Several people are flying with the SparkFun sensor board since there is now a DCM module in Paparazzi to use sensor boards with Paparazzi.
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