ArduFlyer ArduPilot Mega APM2.6 Arducopter multicopter Flight Control Board
Descriptions
The ArduPilot Mega 2.6 is a complete open source autopilot system and the bestselling technology that won the prestigious 2012 Outback Challenge UAV competition. It allows the user to turn any fixed, rotary wing or multirotor vehicle (even cars and boats) into a fully autonomous vehicle; capable of performing programmed GPS missions with waypoints. Available with top or side connectors.
This revision of the board has no onboard compass, which is designed for vehicles (especially multicopters and rovers) where the compass should be placed as far from power and motor sources as possible to avoid magnetic interference. (On fixed wing aircraft it’s often easier to mount APM far enough away from the motors and ESCs to avoid magnetic interference, so this is not as critical, but APM 2.6 gives more flexibility in that positioning and is a good choice for them, too). This is designed to be used with the 3DR uBlox GPS with Compass (see option below), so that the GPS/Compass unit can be mounted further from noise sources than APM itself.
APM 2.6 requires a GPS unit and compass for full autonomy. If you are using APM 2.6 with a GPS module that does not have an onboard compass sensor, you must use a stand-alone external compass.
Tech Specs
Arduino compatible
Includes both right angle and straight pins for I/O, allowing user to customize as needed
Includes 3-axis gyro, accelerometer and magnetometer, along with a high-performance barometer
Onboard 4 MP Dataflash chip for automatic data-logging
Digital compass powered by Honeywell’s HMC5883L-TR chip
Optional off-board GPS, Mediatek MT3329 or uBlox LEA-6H module. Mediatek MT3329 included in base price
One of the first open source autopilot systems to use Invensense’s 6 DoF Accelerometer/Gyro MPU-6000
Barometric pressure sensor upgraded to MS5611-01BA03, from Measurement Specialties
Atmel’s ATMEGA2560 and ATMEGA32U-2 chips for processing and USB functions respectively
Development Tools
ArduPilot Mega is built around Arduino technology and requires the free Arduino IDE to edit and upload code to the board.
Resources
You can view the ArduPilot Mega online manual: ArduPlane for fixed-wing, and ArduCopter for rotary, which includes information on how to build, code, setup and tune your ArduPilot Mega.