Cannot see skid steer type in mission planner

ArduRover
1

Hi everyone,

I’m new to ArduPilot and currently setting up my RC lawnmower using Mission Planner. Everything is working well so far, but I’ve run into a few questions that I’d like to get some guidance on.

My setup is configured as follows:

  • Servo 2 output: Throttle Left (note: not using the default Servo 1 and 3 setup as shown in most examples)
  • Servo 3 output: Throttle Right

With this configuration, the left stick controls throttle, and the right stick controls turning, which works fine.

Questions

  1. Single Stick Control:
    How can I configure my rover so that it can be driven using only the right stick (both throttle and steering combined)?
  2. Skid Steer Mode Missing:
    I don’t see any skid steer options in the parameter list. My FRAME_CLASS is set to Rover, but FRAME_TYPE only shows Omni variants no skid steer listed. I’ve confirmed I’m running Rover firmware. Is there another parameter or configuration I’m missing?
  3. RTK Corrections:
    What’s the difference between sending RTK corrections through Mission Planner versus sending them directly from the base station to the rover? Which approach is more efficient and reliable? I assume the direct link method would require an additional telemetry module.
  4. Telemetry Range Options:
    What’s the best radio communication setup (other than cellular) for maintaining a reliable link up to ~600 meters from the base station? The area has very few trees (it’s a new neighborhood), so the only obstacles would be houses and parked cars.
  5. Power Setup / Battery Input:
    My flight controller supports up to a 6S battery. Is it safe to assume I can power the FC directly from my 26V LFP battery, while powering all 5V peripherals (GPS, telemetry, lidar, etc.) from a separate 24V → 5V DC-DC buck converter?
    I’d like to have battery voltage monitoring available in Mission Planner, but currently the FC is powered only through USB.

Current Hardware Setup

  • Flight Controller: MicroAir H743
  • Motor Driver: Cytron MDS30 Dual 30A
  • GNSS: u-blox F9P with RTK
  • Telemetry: Generic 915 MHz radio
  • RC System: FlySky 6-channel receiver
  • Battery: 25.6V 50Ah LiFePO₄ (LFP)
  • Power Converter: 24V → 5V 10A DC-DC buck converter
  • Planned Add-ons: RPLIDAR 360 and ZED 2i depth camera (paired with NVIDIA SBC)

Here is my current params
working_params_v1.param (19.2 KB)

2

Top 1: RC input and Servo outputs are completly independet. You can use each rc channel for each function. So you only have to assign the function you want to use to the channel you want to use.
For the simple functions roll, pitch, throttle, yaw this is done by th RCMAP parameters. So if you exchange your pitch and your throttle channels the functions moves to the other stick.
Top 2 FRAME_TYPE = 0 is ok for all normal (not omni) types
Top 3 If the Base is always near to the PC running Mission Planner RTK can routed through Mission Planner. But this needs always that Mission Planner is running. If you want to run the rover in an auto-mode independent from Mission Planner than ou need a direct link between Base and Rover for RTK. But yes in that case the base must be connected via some kind of link to the rover.
Top 5 Why not also drive the FC through your DC-DC converter. I don’t know the absolute maximum ratings of your FC but a just fully loaded LFP 8S battery has upto 28V. The maximum charge cut off voltage is 28,8V. A LiPo 6S has only maximum 25,2 V