Penguin project : Introduction and started the developer enrolment

[Roberto Navoni]

Dear Friends,

in Laser Lab and inside Virtual Robotix community we're starting to discuss about the new hardware and firmware platform for the next year. 

So basically our idea is to develop a new hardware platform that is an expansion for VBRAIN and enable our drone to meet the Linux advanced functionality.

The hardware is under development , the first release will be available in the next months before the end of the year.

The Code name is : "VR Pinguin Project"

The Processor will be an ARM :)

The OS will be Debian Embeed Linux

The first application will be a MavProxy Platform available directly on board and available by a wireless ip connection .

More info about the project will be available in the next weeks.

So if some guys have experience and competence for join the project is welcome :)

Best

Roberto

[Oyvind Amundsen]

Sounds interesting. Is this a new controller based on VBRAIN, or a new module that can be connected to the VBRAIN controller.

 

Best

Oyvind

[Roberto Navoni]

Hi Oyvind,

this will be a new module add on for improve the vbrain experience . The actual vbrain  and mp32 platform will be compatible with this module and will be connect by telemetry port.

Best

Roberto

[Oyvind Amundsen]

Great !

I can help testing stuff if you need that :-)

Oyvind

[Roberto Navoni]

I found this interesting document about the linux driver architecture :

http://free-electrons.com/doc/training/linux-kernel/slides.pdf

If other have interesting learn material are welcome. Our target is to have a core of developer that can work on linux driver.

Best 
Roberto

[Roberto Navoni]

A good website where there are a lot of usefull info about linux embedded

http://free-electrons.com/

[Roberto Navoni]

A usefull example for compile kernel module - device :

http://www.cyberciti.biz/tips/compiling-linux-kernel-module.html

this is another link with some detailed info :

http://www.tldp.org/LDP/lkmpg/2.6/html/

Best

Roberto

[Guillaume Helle]

Hello Roberto!

 

I am afraid that this name is copyrighted... :-)

http://fpvlab.com/forums/showthread.php?7959-Announcing-Finwing-Uni...

Or perhaps have you a version of ArduPlane on your penguin? ;-)

 

Best

Guillaume

[Roberto Navoni]

Eh Eh ...

Penguin Project is only a early code name of project the official name will be change .. :)

So we can also call Project "PINGUINO" is italian translation of Penguin :)

Pinguino Project sound nice ... or not ?

[Roberto Navoni]

News about the kernel available in Penguin project :

Check this link :

https://github.com/kikcho/archlinuxarm-olinuxino

and also that for compile driver for wifi dongle

https://www.olimex.com/dev/OLINUXINO/iMX233-OLINUXINO/SOFTWARE/Arch...

I'm testing and could be working :)

With Debian Embedded i had some problem to found right kernel.

[Roberto Navoni]

Some news about the project , in these week i doing a lot of test , compile the kernel a lot of time and produce a lot of .ko file for test my hardware on USB.

I'm very happy of this first result , i learn a lot of things :)

So the next hardware the first that could be use linux will be called MP32LX233 .

Multipilot32

LX = Linux OS

233 = first micro that i will be use for MP32 will Frescale imx.233

Basically in my test i use 4 Gbyte Flash 64 Mbyte ram , a cheaper wifi dongle for lan connection , cheaper webcam for enable video functionality to MP32LX

With the first test that i doing i understand that i can use MP32LX as :

Conversion from rs232 connection to TCP/IP server , that what mean that i can connect directly VBRAIN by MP32LX using Mission Planner connection with TCP/IP connection . I doing first test and all work great.

MJPeg video streaming  : I doing a lot of test , search and compile the necessaries driver and now is possible to connect by usb a UVC standard camera and send it as MJPEG streaming to Mission planner .

The great news is that i need only 8 % of cpu for 640x480 streaming video.

I starting to do also some test on Internet key , so in this case i had a problem with PPP_Generic module when is acctive and i try to connect the network , the usbserial towards the internet key is yet up, the stack fail so i need some time ago to understand what happen exactly in the stack.

Best

Roberto

[Guillaume Helle]

Hello Roberto,

 

in the case of use a camera, do you think we can use image processing libraries on board like OpenCV?

I was thinking about target recognition or to follow an other UAV by example...

Best

Guillaume

[Roberto Navoni]

This is the first prototype pcb that will be in production next week ... after a long work i'm happy to present VR NEURON ... that's is the result of Penguino Project.

Do you like it ?

Best

Roberto