This is a smart directional antenna for drones and robotics. It comes pre-assembled as a 5.8GHz antenna or as core board so you can add your own directional antennas (x4). It works with any antenna from 10KHz-6GHz.
The Pharos Antenna can be used on both the drone and the Ground Control Station (GCS) sides. When used at the GCS side it works as a solid state 360 degrees tracking antenna but without moving parts i.e. motors.
It is compatible with the Pixhawk autopilot so its plug and play on the drone side. On the GCS side it can either use a Pixhawk or a Teensy board as a controller.
We have developed a custom firmware version for both the Pixhawk and the Teensy board that works with Mission Planner. It is open source and will be available by the end of the campaign at GitHub. We have also developed a custom 3D mapping software application that adds more functionality and control over the antenna that we offer for free for the duration of the campaign.
Geo-Registered Pharos Antenna Control
Drone Version Pharos Antenna
GCS Version Pharos Antenna
We are eager to launch this technology and we are always open to suggestions for improvement and additional features!
Comments
Any <6GHz antennas can be used with the Pharos controller boad, I favor the "crosshair" type antennas because of its high front/back ratio and uniform beam that put radiated energy where it matter most. You may check www.truerc.ca for videoaerialsystem.com for them.
-Hugo
@ Chris, We had the option of either put explanatory text in the video or audio and we selected the text option. It was not intentional, we just didn’t thought it will make a difference. All videos have explanatory notes appearing at the right moment to emphasize the functionality and also titles with explanation under the video frame. Which video are you referring to? The first animation one? We can definitely add audio to make the concepts more comprehensible if that helps. Thanks for the heads up.
MAGnet: I've heard from a few people that the lack of audio on your Kickstarter video undermines their confidence in the project. Is that intentional? If so, would you considered doing a voiceover to explain what's going on in that video?
@ Vladimir, I’m sure they do as most drone part manufacturers do. We are buying their products in the US and EU by providing an End User Statement though and we didn’t face other restrictions. I’m not sure what their policy is with other parts of the world.
Nevertheless, the Pharos antenna is not export restricted and we did a very thorough legal research for compliance with ITAR regulations before releasing it.
Hi Chris, Tnx for backing us at kickstarter! For the links you asked, I did a quick google search and I found the following. I’m sure there are plenty more. Also, as I said previously, we will look with Hugo on making a custom miniaturized antenna that will fit the Pharos controller at least for 2.4 GHz as we had request for these frequencies from other users as well.
2.4 GHz
Small helical: https://fpvlr.com/store/product/rhcp-half-sphere-helix-2-4ghz/
Small PCB antennas: http://www.wa5vjb.com/products1.html Here you can find various styles i.e. PCB yagi, PCB log periodic, etc.
Relatively small patch: http://www.l-com.com/wireless-antenna-24-ghz-8-dbi-round-patch-ante...
915 MHz
Small PCB antennas: http://www.wa5vjb.com/products1.html Same link as above for 2.4 GHz but look at the 900 MHz category
5dBi Ceramic Antenna: http://www.chafontech.com/rfid-antenna/uhf-rfid-antenna/uhf-5dbi-ce...
Nice, but Microhard has a export restriction, you know?
Great. Do you have links to suitable 915 or 2.4ghz directional antennas?
@ Chris, Yes it can. You will have to connect the antenna output of the 915MHz radio to the Pharos antenna controller unit (the square PCB) and then plug 4 x directional 915MHz antennas to it. Connect the controller with the Pixhawk AUX2 port (adjustable port number) and the multi-directional 915 MHz antenna will operate seamlessly as shown on the animations above or the kickstarter videos.
The same set up applies for the 2.4 GHz WiFi radios and antennas or any other radio/antenna within the 10KHz-6GHz range. We selected a specific antenna switching chip that provides huge versatility on the frequencies the controller can be used. That’s why we claim that the Pharos antenna (controller) is futureproof and suitable for any type of drone (aerial, ground based or sea based) for extending its range. There is virtually no limitation on the radio frequency or antenna type.
Be aware though that a careful selection of antennas shall be made so each one of them shall cover at least 90 degrees of beam-width (so the combined beam-width of the 4 antennas will cover all 360 degrees around the drone with no blind spots). This is the optimum set up.
Our partner Hugo from TrueRC is an antenna designer guru. If we have requests for other antenna frequencies for the Pharos controller we’ll do our best to satisfy them.
And how about 2.4 ghz Wifi?
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