Is I2C control supported for Mikrokopter BL-Ctrl ESCs?

Hello,
I am considering using some Mikrokopter BL-Ctrl ESC (v2, and v3) I have here, with a Pixhawk 2.1 and the Copter firmware, for a hexacopter.

Having searched the forums far and wide, I am unclear if running them via the I2C bus is even possible on Ardupilot. Apparently there is a driver mkblctrl, mentioned e.g. here, but it is unclear to me, if this is supported in the latest release.

Is it possible to use those ESCs with I2C? Or if not, is there a reliable way to use them via PWM? Anything particular to look out for if going that route?

Any input/ guidance/ pointers/ experiences shared would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you.

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The MK Esc can be controlled by PWM directly as a normal Esc

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Thanks for the pointer. I had hoped for an I2C/ bus solution (less cables, less points of failure, less complexity), but I guess I’ll try out the PWM route.

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Well considering how bad some Pixhawk clone boards manage I2C bus , I do not think it is a good idea to have Esc by I2C in Pixhawk environment.

Mikrokopter is a close system so it is more easy to control how good is the I2C bus.

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Thanks for sharing this insight. I am using the Pixhawk 2.1, not a clone. Don’t know if any inferior handling of I2C also applies here. Yet if no I2C support is available for those ESCs anyways, I will have to revert to the PWM route.
Ultimately I am looking forward to UAVCan-controlled ESCs gaining traction and FC-support soon!

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I could ask you which pins of the BL-ctrl I use to control it by PWM I can’t find information about it. My brother has sent me some from Germany and I want to use them with pixhawk or a pwm receive

It may depend on which MK ESC you exactly have - but you should see pads for “PPM” (=for orange lead), “5V” (red lead) and “gnd” (brown lead).

Note that if using PPM, the jumper 4-5 may NOT be closed.

Hope this helps.

Hi, you’re talking about the PPM pads, can I just connect to the PWM output of the Pixhawk?
I have the mkblctrl 2.0 esc are with the jumpers 4-5 the address pads meant? Or still others?

I vaguely recall having played with this and that I had some struggles, but don’t remember if I ever really got those ESCs going again… sorry.