@Michael_Brooks I think this is what you are looking for:
http://www.hex.aero/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/DRS_Pixhawk-2-17th-march-2016.pdf
Feed the power from a BEC like @ardisd david did
Hi,
I think I can connect to serial 5 with the cable I have used to update the firmware (shown in my post above) because serial 5 has pin headers, unlike the other serial ports. The only complication might be that the grounds of the serial 5 and servo connectors might not be common (I’m not sure). If they are commoned I can probably just plug the red wire into the +5v servo rail and the other wires into the serial 5 pin headers. If the grounds are not common I can modify the cable to be more like David’s with two ground connections.
The issue I have is that the picture in the manual does not label the pin numbers. It just says Serial 5: See below:
Actually thinking about it, I think I can see a tiny “-” symbol on the pin to the far right. This must mean that the other two pins are RX and TX (and I will not damage anything if I get them the wrong way around). So maybe I can just figure it out with trial and error?
I don’t think @ardisd is using a BEC, I think he is plugging the servo connector into the servo rail? (He can probably correct me here if I am wrong)!
Thanks
Cant really help you on the PX2, I dont have one, but I would use a known working port for tests.
I strongly recommend that you use a clean source of power like a dedicated BEC with filtering.
Servo rails is not a good place to be when you are using this type of device.
Michael
Hope this helps
I am using a 5v BEC to power the servo rail as its not power as standard on the Pixhawk 2.1. I assume that your speed controllers don’t have internal BEC’s if you are not sure remove the red wires from the speed controllers and as mentioned in an earlier post tie all the grounds together.
David Ardis
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David & ppoirier,
Yes that is really helpful. Exactly what I’ve been looking for. I’m starting to think I should’ve gone for standard pixhawk as there’s more documentation around. I went straight to 2.1 from APM 2.6!
Right so I understand now. Servo rail not independently powered and (David) you are actually using BEC. I do have a clean filtered power supply available already so I’ll modify the cable.
And (ppoirier) I take your point about using a working telemetry port first. Makes sense if I run into problems for fault finding.
Thanks again for your help.
I have written a blog on how to connect I2C using an Adruino:
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It`s very useful.Thank you very much.
Does anyone know the connector type used in the 4 pin socket on the Benewake TF mini LiDAR please? I mislaid my cable and need to replace it.
Cheers,
A
Hi,the connector type used in the 4 pin socket on the Benewake is GH1.25-4p.
Hi,the connector type used in the 4 pin socket on the Benewake is GH1.25-4p.
@Asterion_Daedalus Hello, hope you see this. If you need to make a cable for TFmini by yourself, you could check this picture with the connector wire order. The connector model number is GH1.25-4p, pin spacing is 1.25mm. It’s easy to make a cable by yourself or weld wires to the connector.
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Hello David and thank you for your post.
I have a tf mini installed also as a forward sensor, only in my case so far i had taken power from the GPS cable hack.
In this post TF-Mini-Obstacle Avoidance Issue 3.5.5 i have described an issue i have had with it in GPS navigated mode.
Have you come across anything like that?
Dear Siya, i hope you can look into my post also.
Thanx in advance for your time!
Hi, MerkaTony, excuse me but I’m afraid we are only able to support for TFmini questions. For GPS issues, it’s really not our familiar part.
Hello @Siya,
a. My issue is not with the GPS but with the Lidar giving 1m signal when its over its limit. This means that it measures ok and when its limit its exceeded it goes down to 1m and UAV instantly stays in place.
b. In this Thread How to make the TFMINI rangefinder talk I2C @ppoirier tested and with an arduino mod on I2C managed to give proper signal. My issue was that i was going for a serial connection and not I2C.
c. Can Benewake verify what is the signal output when the Sensor its over its limit?
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Hi,
I’ve been trying to get the TF Mini working with a PixRacer, but without success so far.
If I use a FTDI connector and plug it into a PC it works fine in the GUI program, but not with the PixRacer.
This are the parameters I’ve set to connect it to the TELEM2 port
SERIAL2_BAUD 115 (for 115200)
SERIAL2_PROTOCOL 9 (Lidar)
RNGFND_TYPE 8 (LightWareSerial)
RNGFND_SCALING 1
RNGFND_MIN_CM 30
RNGFND_MAX_CM 1000
With QGroundcontrol I don’t see any values in Rangefinder.distance except 0.0.
I have also checked the “Pix Mode” in the GUI, but I’m not sure if it sticks. If I unplug the FTDI adapter and plug it back in, the TFmini seems to be in regular mode again.
What am I missing?
Thanks
I think the pix mode on the TF mini is the problem here, there are multiple versions of the tf-mini software I’ve had to try a couple before everything worked.
Hm,
so today I used the GUI tool from the website, and with the command
42 57 02 00 00 00 04 06
and directly unplugging (not pressing the disconnect button) it is working now.
Before that I also added an external power supply, which didn’t change anything initially, but might also have helped in the end.
¯_(ツ)_/¯
Hi,
I just found this thread, also found thread where it explains how to use pro mini board to produce I2C signal from this Lidar.
Could anybody explain - where does this unit stand in regard of the current 3.6 RC1 code? Is it still needed to compile a custom build in order for this sensor to work or is there some plan to include it into a standard build?
There seems to be several threads on this device topic and they somewhat contradict one another. I see a way to use dedicated serial port for this device - it is not the intent, i want that connected to I2C next to mro SAM GPS. I cannot find any indication of what should be done where on ardupilot side in order for that to work, and what, if anything, needs to be done to the TFMini unit. If anybody got it all working - could you pls elaborate step by step what the process should be?
Also, do i understand correctly that even 3.6 RC1 build still does not allow to use GPS concurrently with Lidar? I think i saw it was no longer the issue, but some other thread stated that GPS had to be disabled - and it is quite confusing.
Hello Paul,
The new drivers allow to use the TFMINI natively on ArduPilot using Serial Port.
If you need I2C , you can look at my blog, but you need some knowledge of Arduino.
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Awesome news, thx for the confirmation.
Is it required to alter lidar’s firmware or configuration with gui or
serial interface commands?