I am putting something together that is very similar to the boogie board boat. I have built the hardware and was in the process of installing/configuring the elecs. The hardware is a dual pontoon arrangement where each pontoon hosts a DC motor with a prop.
However, I struck an issue with the Pixhawk 2.4.8 units i had previously configured with an old version of Rover. In loading the new Rover f/w, i am really struggling getting these configured properly.
To get things going I have decided to abandon the 2.4.8 units, in favour of a newer FC.
All i want is for the vessel to be capable of autonomously heading to a waypoint, loiter for a period of time, and then return to launch position when requested. Am thinking of configuring the system with Mission Planner, but using QGroundControl in the field. So, from what i can gather, its a fairly simple operational task.
I am trying to be cost efficient with this project, so would be grateful for any suggestions as to a modern FC that would be sufficient to carry out the above objective. Also, suggestions as to where to buy such a FC to avoid clones/copies, would be much appreciated. I’m from Australia, and resellers of good compatible FCs seem to be scarce. I’m suspicious of AliExpress and Bangood for sourcing this type of equipment - but i defer to your good judgement.
Thanks in advance for your time/effort in assisting with this query.
I generally stay out of discussions on which autopilot hardware is best but in any case, I think the older Pixhawk should still work fine. You can wipe all the parameters pretty easily if you haven’t already (see wiki here) to get it back to “factory” defaults.
I have run Rover 4.0, 4.1.0, 4.1.1, and 4.2.0-dev on an fmuv3 based “Pixhawk” flight controller of dubious branding (it says Holybro…but I can’t be sure that’s the case), and I’ve had no issues with it. Your existing boards shouldn’t be problematic.
If you’re after more recent hardware, the Cube Orange has become pretty popular. I usually end up getting mine from Amazon. There’s a strong following for ArduPilot in Australia, so it shouldn’t be too tough to source hardware.
I’m always wary of Ali and BangGood. There are reputable sellers there for many things, but I’m unaware of one to trust for autopilot hardware.
… alright … so far so good … not sure what i did different but i am now believing the heading data … looks like at least 1 2.4.8 is back in action.
the impulse to post here could have saved me some cash!
Dan,
I’ve used 3 different Pixhawk 2.4.8 controllers over a couple of years from at least 2 different sources. All worked OK, but I did have one that rebooted randomly once in a while. This was after I had run it many hours in very hot weather, though. It is great that you seem to have it working now. It should do you a good job, as mentioned above.
I have also used a Kakute F7 AIO 1.5 with good success. It was a little bit of a pain to use as you have to solder many of the connections to small SMT pads on the board rather than pin headers. It also only has 1 MB of Flash, so some features (such as GPS for Yaw) are not installed by the precompiled firmware.
The Mateksys H743-Wing looks like a great low-cost controller with 2MB of Flash. But Yuri talked me into going with the Cube Orange, and I have not looked back. It is pricey, though.
I’ve been a mouse click away from ordering a Matek H743 about 10 times in the past month. I don’t have a project for it yet, but my brain works faster than my hands, and I’m sure I’ll come up with a reason to try one out. There are a few issues reported with them at times, but the price is hard to beat for the functionality you get.
I have been really happy with the Mini version of it. I suppose I would buy the H743-Wing V2 if I was building a new craft if it didn’t require a small footprint. There does seem to be an issue with those IMU related but like every other issue it will get resolved. Indeed a lot of bang for the buck.