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Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Try using 2 arduinos

So here we are in 2012.

Ever since the cold weather set in my flights have fallen off the radar.  However, this January seems to be dishing out the Chinooks with associated good temperatures in the double digits above zero C!

Dusting off my old planes, arduinos and programs.

In my last post I was up to IMUlander_05 and have since progressed to IMUlander_09.  The groundstation software written in processing does a nice job of visualizing flights and recording data
Location > Old Vaio > USB16G\Arduino\Arduino-0018

  This is a stable version as far as keeping my Radian platform level.  I decided to save some hassle by using Ardupilot 2.3.1 code and grabbing the Rudder control in walkaround mode

Met some keen folks in Athabasca who are FPV and aerial photography enthusiasts.  Researched the "Ruby" platform on their lead.

DIYDrones has a new TTT due in March which is also motivating me to get my stuff working.


Da Plaaaan:

- use the Radian Pro (version with ailerons and flaps)
- control ailerons and elevator with my stuff (ArduIMU control)  6 Feb
- control rudder with ArduPilot 2.3.1 in walkaround mode
- experiment with Throttle and Flaps for H control (modify AP code)
- try for TTT entry

Yahoo!


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Weekend update  2/5/2012

Built my Radian Pro platform

Trying to use 2 Ardupilots as described above but... one is burnt, at least the MUX chip.  I've got this working by using D6, D7, and D8 as outputs with D11 as an input - this maxed out the available pins apart from ADIO

Had some fun reviving the Ardupilot 2.3.1 software.  2 lessons
1. The EM406_tester program should be used to reset the GPS
2. This version of Legacy Ardupilot 2 uses the "Remove before fly" plug !! (D6 and D7 jumper)

Anyhow, it's a good start to using the Walkaround mode as a navigation option.  I don't want to use AP2.7 because of the lack of walkaround mode and steep learning curve to re-writing code.  Perhaps as a last ditch option if I want to try just one AP instead of 2.

The basic problem is that the Legacy AP has 2 timers so to have more than 2 outputs I need to go to APM.

TODO
 - try Arduino0018 with several servos and inputs
 - build a model for walkaround mode
 - rewrite my IMULander code and remove the restriction that waits for GPS - pure stabilization
 - work out communication between the 2 AP's
 - modify AP231 software to accept sentances from IMU or AP1

Not sure if I should have separate goals

A) Build planes for beginner, FPV and other markets
B) get and entry for TTT in Mar 4

If I'm lucky I can do both??

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