Poll NEW! QuadCopter platform - QuadPowered

[Nobert]

You're doing a great job.
Thanks,
Neal

[S11D336B]

Hey guys, what do you think about the constraint of having to have at least one ESC connected to the board that has a 4.8v or higher bec? I need the 5v source for the Accelerometer and Magnetometer. A side effect is that we could power the board from the same source. Also, I could add a header to use that power for other things as well. Most escs have at least a 1amp capacity on their becs. So thats a minimum of 4amps of 5v capacity. I'll filter the power pretty good on the board too so it'll be clean for use on the board and when it comes out of the header. You'll have to have ESCs anyway and it's been a long time since I saw one that didn't have a BEC. Make sense to you guys?

[Nobert]

I would suggest that you provide your own 7805 reg on board.
Neal

[S11D336B]

Originally Posted by Nobert

I would suggest that you provide your own 7805 reg on board.
Neal

Yeah, I'm starting to agree. BECs may introduce alot of noise. . . The only way I can do this is to use surface mount regulators. Which I have implemented already.

[microkites]

so I am looking to make the smallest 3d quad I can

but will probably do a build between 12 and 18 inches if a can

can you give me an idea of some small (>10 g?) bl motors and esc you wou recomend

wanted to try and do a very light 3d capable 2s if it can be managed

been researching the threads etc

but am no electronics mavin

will order one as soon as I know it will work for a noob like me

also I assume you are using seperate rx?

sorry if asking the obvious

but want a decent small bl quad and the options make my head spin



mk

[bob.titus]

Originally Posted by Nobert

I would suggest that you provide your own 7805 reg on board.
Neal

same here, that would be the best way... What stops you, is it lack of space?

[S11D336B]

Originally Posted by bob.titus

same here, that would be the best way... What stops you, is it lack of space?

It's lack of space But like I said before, I did already place pads on the board for the 2 SMT regulators required. I'll play with it tonight. I might be able to tighten the tolerances on the regulator object a bit and make the through hole regulators fit.

[lazer155]

With your board, I think a fully gps capable 12in quadcopter would be very reasonable.

[S11D336B]

Originally Posted by microkites

so I am looking to make the smallest 3d quad I can

but will probably do a build between 12 and 18 inches if a can

can you give me an idea of some small (>10 g?) bl motors and esc you wou recomend

wanted to try and do a very light 3d capable 2s if it can be managed

been researching the threads etc

but am no electronics mavin

will order one as soon as I know it will work for a noob like me

also I assume you are using seperate rx?

sorry if asking the obvious

but want a decent small bl quad and the options make my head spin



mk

I would say the hardest part is going to be finding variable pitch motors that are small enough. I would take a look at these. They seem to be cost effective. I don't have any experience with these, but I plan on buying the 10" version for a variable pitch test bed.

http://cgi.ebay.com/4D-Variable-Pitc...3A1%7C294%3A50

[S11D336B]

Ok guys. After much toil I was able to get 3.3v and 5v power sources on the board using through hole regulators . It's basically done. All I need to do is add the GPS unit to it which I have reserved space for.

[bob.titus]

Originally Posted by S11D336B

Ok guys. After much toil I was able to get 3.3v and 5v power sources on the board using through hole regulators . It's basically done. All I need to do is add the GPS unit to it which I have reserved space for.

just can't wait!

[datapolo]

Nice project - count me in, but.....if you are going to do GPS hold how will you determine orientation without a compass module? The GPS bearing only gives the bearing of the GPSs movement, not the orientation of the aircraft - or have I missed something?

Cheers,
Mike

[S11D336B]

Originally Posted by datapolo

Nice project - count me in, but.....if you are going to do GPS hold how will you determine orientation without a compass module? The GPS bearing only gives the bearing of the GPSs movement, not the orientation of the aircraft - or have I missed something?

Cheers,
Mike

I'm hoping to compute orientation based upon a little algorithim I am developing. But incase that doesn't work, I have provided a space for a compass sensor to be placed on board .

Just for some clarity here's the deal.

The base board uses the following sensors:
Roll Gyro
Pitch Gyro
Yaw Gyro.

You can opt to add these sensors in the following order to gain additional functionality. The same board has space allocated for these devices so all you need to do is purchase the sensor:

Pressure Sensor (Altitude hold)
Accelerometer (Auto leveling)
Compass Sensor (Orientation hold)
GPS (Position hold and maybe one day waypoint navigation)
USB datalogger (for getting data / providing waypoints for nav)

SHHH! I haven't talked about that last one yet .

Oh yeah, new board photo. I'm on track to order it tomorrow.

[datapolo]

If the algorithm works I would be surprised because if you are relying on the GPS data then there is no indication there of orientation and I cannot conceive where it would come from other than maybe a second GPS on the UFO or from a compass. I have thought long and hard about this because a tilt compensated compass is expensive ($150ish?) and makes a big difference to the price of the system and with all the other add ons (sensor boards) we are starting to get expensive again possibly close to the Mikrokopter which is 'proven' technology AND open source.

So yeah your idea sounds great and I am ready to support it but I would need to know where its going from a point of view of both technology and cost.

Cheers,
Mike

[S11D336B]

Originally Posted by datapolo

If the algorithm works I would be surprised because if you are relying on the GPS data then there is no indication there of orientation and I cannot conceive where it would come from other than maybe a second GPS on the UFO or from a compass. I have thought long and hard about this because a tilt compensated compass is expensive ($150ish?) and makes a big difference to the price of the system and with all the other add ons (sensor boards) we are starting to get expensive again possibly close to the Mikrokopter which is 'proven' technology AND open source.

So yeah your idea sounds great and I am ready to support it but I would need to know where its going from a point of view of both technology and cost.

Cheers,
Mike

The point isn't to rely on the algorithm I haven't tested yet. I am planning on using the compass for now but I hope to eliminate it to save costs. Just so you know you don't need a tilt compensated compass to know your orientation. Uncompensated compasses are perfectly capable of giving reasonable results when reasonably level. Once you know your inital orientation the drift on the gyro is small enough that you only need to reorient every so often. Additionally you only need to know your orientation with an accuracy of +- 45 degrees to hold a position reasonably. Though these are planned features, lets not forget the primary goal (design of a cost effective remote control quadcopter). You can expect that the quadcopter will be remote control capable only when it is first released. Height hold and autoleveling will be released soon after (week or two later). Position hold and possibly waypoint navigation will take much longer to be ready for release. But in the mean time you don't have to pay for that capability or for the sensors that drive it.

Base board is $210 in the configuration I have now (it probably won't change much):
Comes with basic remote control capability and free upgrades for any new software that I release for this board.

Other Sensors:
Pressure Sensor: $55
Accelerometer: $35
Compass: $30
GPS: $50 - $100
USB Datalogger: $35

So thats:

$210 for basic remote control capability
$300 for everything but position hold
$405 (may vary based upon GPS used) for everything but waypoint nav
$440 for everything including waypoint nav

You really can't beat that by much. The only thing that could make it cheaper is buying parts in bulk. If I get enough orders the cost on the parts drops very quickly. The thing I really like about this setup is the extensability. You can start cheap and build your way up. The guy who just wants a relatively cheap quad to have fun with can only get the base board. More fun / features are only a sensor away and the sensors are really quite reasonable in price.