drone News - CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

July 7, 2024July 9, 2024 by Tomisin Olujinmi - 10 Comments

SkyByte Mini Wi-Fi-controlled drone runs the open-source ESP32-Drone firmware (Crowdfunding)

The SkyByte Mini is a simple, miniature drone powered by the ESP32-WROOM-32 WiFi and Bluetooth module, and comprised of an MPU6050 inertial measurement unit, coreless motors, and plastic propellers. The Espressif ESP32-WROOM-32 module on the board provides a wireless connection that can be used to control the drone from a mobile app. The printed circuit board uses an “all-in-one” design that removes the need for 3D-printed parts and makes for a more compact final product. The drone’s functionality can be extended with external sensors to suit desired applications. It can be used for hobbyist and educational purposes. SkyByte Mini drone specifications: Wireless Module – ESP32-WROOM-32 module, dual-core Tensilica processor, with integrated Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 4.2 LE Motor control – 4x SI2302 N-Channel 20V MOSFET USB – USB-C port for power and programming Sensor – TDK Invensense MPU6050 IMU 3-axis gyroscope and 3-axis accelerometer Misc- 3x debugging LEDs, 1x power LED, […]

June 25, 2024June 24, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

NDAA-compliant NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX and Nano bundles target drones

ARK Electronics has recently introduced NDAA-complaint NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX and Nano bundles designed for drones with the company’s Jetson PAB (Pixhawk Autopilot Bus) carrier board, an ARKV6X flight controller, and an SSD preloaded with NVIDIA Jetpack and the ARK UI. I’ve come across the board following a post on X pointing to an article on Tom’s Hardware about the US passing a bill called “Countering CCP Drones Act” that would effectively ban DJI drones in the US. DJI is supposed to have a 90% market share of the U.S. hobby market, a 70% market share of the industrial market, and an over 80% market share of the first responder market, so not everybody will be happy if the bill passes in the senate and becomes enacted by the US president. But US companies making NDAA-compliant hardware and drones may bit mind, and that’s how I discovered ARK Electronics NVIDIA […]

June 7, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

PiWings 2.0 is a tiny drone based on Raspberry Pi Pico and ESP8266 WiFi module (Crowdfunding)

PiWings 2.0 Raspberry Pi Pico drone variants

SB Components’ PiWings 2.0 is a small drone combining a Raspberry Pi Pico with an ESP8266 WiFi module (ESP-12E) for wireless connectivity, and designed for STEM education and drone enthusiasts. The PiWings 2.0 board supports up to six motors and four servos, includes a 6-axis IMU for auto-leveling, and features I2C, SPI, UART, and GPIO expansion ports for custom sensor and/or actuator support. The drone itself is offered with three, four, or six rotors. PiWings 2.0 key features and specifications: Microcontroller board – Raspberry Pi Pico with Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ microcontroller, 264KB SRAM Wireless module – ESP-12E (ESP8266) WiFi module for iBus support Motor Drivers – 6 channels (3A DC) Servo Motors – 4 channels USB – 1x micro USB port (on Raspberry Pi Pico) Expansion – I2C, SPI, UART, GPIO ports Sensor – On-board 6-axis IMU (MPU6050) for auto-leveling Misc – 4x RGB LEDs Power Supply 3V […]

May 30, 2024May 29, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Ochin V2 tiny Raspberry Pi CM4 robotics carrier board gets micro HDMI port, Fast Ethernet support

Ochin V2 CM4 robotics carrier board and USB-C board

Ochin V2 is an update to the tiny Ochin Raspberry Pi CM4 carrier board for robotics applications and drones that adds a micro HDMI port, support for Fast Ethernet through pads or a GHS connector (no RJ45 connector), two user LEDs, and a few other changes. The form factor remains the same at just 55 x 40 x 4.7mm, or about the size of a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4, which in combination with a range of USB, UART, I2C, and SPI interfaces, makes it an ideal candidate for space-constrained applications such as robotics system or UAVs. Ochin V2 specifications (differences against Ochin v1 shown in bold or strikethrough): Supported modules – Raspberry Pi CM4 with Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 processor, up to 8GB RAM, up to 32GB eMMC flash (the CM4 Lite is not supported since there’s no microSD card on the board), 4Kp60 H.265 decode, 1080p30 H.264 encode, […]

April 12, 2024April 11, 2024 by Debashis Das - 5 Comments

8devices TobuFi SoM is designed for drones, robotics, and advanced audio systems

8devices has recently introduced TobuFi, a Qualcomm QCS405-powered System-on-Module (SoM) featuring dual-band Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 5 capabilities. The device also features 1GB LPDDR3, 8GB of eMMC storage, and multiple display resolutions. It also offers various interfaces, including USB 3.0, HDMI, I2S, DMIC, SDC, UART, SPI, I2C, and GPIO. In previous posts, we covered 8devices product launches like the Noni M.2 WiFi 7 module, Rambutan and Rambutan-I modules, Habanero IPQ4019 SoM, Mango-DVK OpenWrt Devkit, and many more innovative products. If you’re interested in 8devices, feel free to check those out for more details. 8devices TobuFi SoM specifications: SoC – Qualcomm QCS405 CPU – Quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 at 1.4GHz; 64-bit GPU – Qualcomm Adreno 306 GPU at 600MHz; supports 64-bit addressing DSP – Qualcomm Hexagon QDSP6 v66 with Low Power Island and Voice accelerators Memory – 1GB LPDDR3 + 8GB eMMC Storage 8GB eMMC flash SD card – One 8-bit (SDC1, 1.8V) and one […]

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

DIY ESP32 drone costs about $12 to make

The team at Circuit Digest has designed a low-cost DIY drone controlled by an ESP32 module, based on a custom PCB and off-the-shelf parts that costs around 1000 Rupees to make, or $12 at today’s exchange rate. The DIY ESP32 drone was designed as a low-cost alternative to more expensive DIY drones that typically cost close to $70. The result is a WiFi drone that fits in the palm and controlled over WiFi using a smartphone. Interestingly it does not include any 3D printed parts as the PCB forms the chassis of the device. DIY ESP32 drone key features and components Wireless module – ESP32-WROOM-32 for WiFi control using a smartphone. Storage – MicroSD card slot Sensors – MPU6050 IMU for stability control. Propulsion 4x 720 coreless motors 2x 55mm propeller type A(CW) 2x 55mm propeller type B(CCW) USB – 1x USB-C port for charging and programming (via CP2102N) Power […]

December 28, 2023 by Debashis Das - 1 Comment

This New X-Fly drone mimics a bird’s flight (Crowdfunding)

x fly the drone designed to soar like a bird

Aeronautical engineer Edwin Van Ruymbeke has introduced X-Fly, a drone that emulates the flight pattern of a bird. The drone communicates via Bluetooth using the STM32WB15CC microcontroller, has a range of 100 meters, and can fly for 8-12 minutes with a swappable battery system. The company mentions that they have collaborated with the French military to develop the flapping wings mechanism, which incorporates gyroscopes and g-sensors, ensuring a stable flight. The drone can be controlled with a smartphone app or an attachable optical joystick and It’s also durable against crashes, has a quick-swap battery system, and improved wing mechanics for longer flights. We’ve previously covered drones such as the Qualcomm Flight RB5-based drone Kudrone Nano Drone and some drone kits like Qualcomm Flight Pro. Feel free to explore these if you’re interested. Key Features and Specification of X-Fly Drone: Control Board – The PCB features an STM32WB15CC Bluetooth microcontroller, motor […]

December 4, 2023December 4, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

Orange Pi AIPro SBC features a 20 TOPS Huawei Ascend AI SoC

Orange Pi AIPro is a new single board computer for AI applications that features a new (and unnamed) Huawei Ascend AI quad-core 64-bit processor delivering up to 20 TOPS (INT8) or 8 TOPS (FP16) of AI inference performance. The SBC comes with up to 16GB LPDDR4X and a 512Mbit SPI flash but also supports other storage options such as a microSD card, an eMMC flash module, and/or an M.2 NVMe or SATA SSD. The board also features two HDMI 2.0 ports, one MIPI DSI connector, and an AV port for video output, two MIPI CSI camera interfaces, Gigabit Ethernet and WiFi 5 connectivity, a few USB ports, and a 40-pin GPIO header for expansion. Orange Pi AIPro specifications: SoC – Huawei Ascend quad-core 64-bit (I’d assume RISC-V) processor delivering up to 20 TOPS (INT8) or 8TOPS (FP16) AI performance and equipped with an unnamed 3D GPU System Memory – 8GB […]