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ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

discuss.ardupilot.org

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Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#11

Post by spiritplumber »

itgoon wrote: post #5
spiritplumber wrote: post #3

Cool, but what does it do that the HoverflyOpen doesn't already?

I've known about ArduPilot for a long time, never even heard of HoverflyOpen. The only reference I found for HoverflyOpen is this: https://www.parallax.com/product/31500 Comparing that to the ArduBee isn't really much of a comparison. The only advantage I see is that HoverflyOpen currently exists, while ArduBee looks like they are still in the preparing-to-Kickstart phase. If there's more out there for HoverflyOpen,…

That's really it: you can grab all the code and schems from there. There was a community but it shut down when the FAA regs about drones >250grams came out.

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#12

Post by chrisdalke »

Looks cool, it's great to have another good open source ready-to-fly option.

I have some concerns about larger PCB quadcopter designs because I can imagine that fatigue due to flexing on the PCB over long-term use could cause issues with the PCB delaminating or solder joints failing. On the ArduBee particularly, you can see a lot of surface-mount components mounted on the arms. I'd love to read more about any lifetime testing they've done on the PCB.

Of course there's always the risk of just crashing your drone and breaking it, but that's no different than other drone designs!

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#13

Post by fxj »

m5stack, the company which puts esp32 and esp8266 into nice boxes has recently teased a m5stack atom drone (atomfly).

https://twitter.com/M5Stack/status/1244209693045567488?s=20

the m5stack atom is a little esp32 in a box.

https://m5stack.com/products/atom-lite-esp32-development-kit...

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#14

Post by TooSmugToFail »

bri3d wrote: post #10
gdsdfe wrote: post #6

so is this like the only programmable drone out there? or is this the only one that is open source ? how much something like would cost? anyone have an idea ?

No and not even close. Look up Betaflight (racing oriented) and iNav (navigation oriented). Ardupilot is more integration/mission oriented, but it's far from the only game in town. A small The all-in-one PCB integration strategy is cute, but I really don't think it's a great approach from a crash-recovery point of view.

> The all-in-one PCB integration strategy is cute, but I really don't think it's a great approach from a crash-recovery point of view.

Spot on.

However, it's a nice way to lure you into building a quad: just put some motors on, and you're good to go.

Fly once, crash, and then go actually build a proper quad.

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#15

Post by chrisdalke »

bri3d wrote: post #10
gdsdfe wrote: post #6

so is this like the only programmable drone out there? or is this the only one that is open source ? how much something like would cost? anyone have an idea ?

No and not even close. Look up Betaflight (racing oriented) and iNav (navigation oriented). Ardupilot is more integration/mission oriented, but it's far from the only game in town. A small The all-in-one PCB integration strategy is cute, but I really don't think it's a great approach from a crash-recovery point of view.

I agree -- and beyond a catastrophic crash, I wonder how practical the PCB frame is for longevity of the quad, vibration dampening, etc.

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#16

Post by gdsdfe »

bri3d wrote: post #10
gdsdfe wrote: post #6

so is this like the only programmable drone out there? or is this the only one that is open source ? how much something like would cost? anyone have an idea ?

No and not even close. Look up Betaflight (racing oriented) and iNav (navigation oriented). Ardupilot is more integration/mission oriented, but it's far from the only game in town. A small The all-in-one PCB integration strategy is cute, but I really don't think it's a great approach from a crash-recovery point of view.

I don't know much about the drone space to be quite honest but I always wondered what it would cost to mess around with swarm algorithms, on actual drones, without breaking the bank. Any pointers?

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#17

Post by gdsdfe »

chrisdalke wrote: post #9
gdsdfe wrote: post #6

so is this like the only programmable drone out there? or is this the only one that is open source ? how much something like would cost? anyone have an idea ?

The ArduPilot software platform is used very commonly across the drone industry and this is definitely not the only programmable drone available! The ArduPilot site has a list of some ready-to-use drones that have ArduPilot installed: https://ardupilot.org/copter/docs/common-rtf.html . A lot of the time ArduPilot is installed with a flight computer (separate from the flight controller) which sends control signals inl…

Ah so if I understand this correctly : on the software side I'm most probably gonna land on ArduPilot, and for the hardware that's were the bulk of decisions will be?

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#18

Post by gdsdfe »

khancyr wrote: post #7
gdsdfe wrote: post #6

so is this like the only programmable drone out there? or is this the only one that is open source ? how much something like would cost? anyone have an idea ?

I don't remember what was the price range but it was cheat. I think we speak about it in the end of their talk in the ArduPillot unconference. Check on ArduPilot YouTube channel for their talk. What is impressive it the integration on this drone : that give a good flight time with low weight. That is a big advantage against current weight based regulation in numerous country. And of course ArduPilot integration give…

Excuse my noob question but : what do you mean by integration? And why is it important?

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#19

Post by RealityVoid »

gdsdfe wrote: post #16
bri3d wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No and not even close. Look up Betaflight (racing oriented) and iNav (navigation oriented). Ardupilot is more integration/mission oriented, but it's far from the only game in town. A small The all-in-one PCB integration strategy is cute, but I really don't think it's a great approach from a crash-recovery point of view.

I don't know much about the drone space to be quite honest but I always wondered what it would cost to mess around with swarm algorithms, on actual drones, without breaking the bank. Any pointers?

IMO, a lot. Moving things are hard, and drones especially, are _very_ damn hard. One mistake and the drone goes poof! It gets frustrating after a while.

Just some pointers if you want to do this:

- you need some companion computer on your drone.

- GPS alone is not precise enough, you'll get wierd drifts from it all the time, you want something like RTK GPS to be able to keep stuff together.

- If you want your positioning to relie on vision, get a global shutter camera, a rolling shutter will make your life harder than it needs to be.

Re: ArduBee – A micro drone for open source development

#20

Post by foobarian »

bri3d wrote: post #10
gdsdfe wrote: post #6

so is this like the only programmable drone out there? or is this the only one that is open source ? how much something like would cost? anyone have an idea ?

No and not even close. Look up Betaflight (racing oriented) and iNav (navigation oriented). Ardupilot is more integration/mission oriented, but it's far from the only game in town. A small The all-in-one PCB integration strategy is cute, but I really don't think it's a great approach from a crash-recovery point of view.

Speaking of transmitters, what is a good entry level transmitter/receiver combo to get into for hacking servo-based RC projects? So far I like a Spektrum DX6 controller best I just wish it was a bit smaller for my kid's hands.
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