New $200 palm sized hackable quadcopters!

John Board · 2013-08-08 04:54

G'day,

A "company" called Bitcraze has been developing a palmsized, 18g quadcopter for the last few years, and they are finally able to release it to the public! From what I hear, the pre-release orders will be getting shipped August the 25th. These quadcopters cost anywhere from $150-$170, and with that you basically get a PCB. battery, wireless interface, 4 motors + propellers + mounts, and a few spares. You solder the motors in, stick the battery on and you're ready to fly!

This quadcopter has been designed to be 100% hackable by the community. The designers say that they've used opensource software and designs in designing this 'copter, so they are opensourcing all their work!

What's fantastic about this platform is, compared to most quads, it's very cheap, along with the fact that everything (including the software) is all open sourced. You can program it using either a USB MIcro cable, or over it's wireless interface (as far as I know). There is a "pre-made" (for lack of a better word) python GUI that has been designed for it, it displays telemetry data which it gets from the copter over wireless, and it can also take the input of a joystick, and then you can remote-control the copter that way.

Anyway, enough of me talking, time for a picture!

There are quite a few good articles written on it:

http://www.radiolocman.com/news/new.html?di=148321
http://www.linuxuser.co.uk/reviews/crazyflie-6-dof-review-fly-away-now-fly-away
http://www.wired.com/design/2013/02/crazyflie-nano/
Promo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WBUVYZkODI
Home Page: http://www.bitcraze.se/

I think the small hackable cheap-ish flying-robot revolution is about to take off, and I can't wait!

-John

prof_braino · 2013-08-08 09:01

Can anyone offer comparison vs hubsan micro quad? i order one of those but have not recievedit yet

rjo__ · 2013-08-08 19:37

I too have ordered a hubsan and am in the mandatory 60 day waiting period. Both of these use hollow core dc motors... of different specs.

I'm not sure about the hackability of the above mentioned craft. A quick search of their web and forum didn't reveal any "open" information. It might
be open, but it sure is hidden:)

For cheap, I like the Chinese... but there is a domestic diyer, who seems to have a handle on cheap... not exactly open... but $18 is pretty cheap http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1710948

I think what we need is a very cheap gateway quadcopter... something with a Prop2, hollow core dc motors and quad^2rature encoding... then the next step would be Ken's heavy duty Proptocopter.

If we really want "open," we are going to have to do it ourselves:O)

Rich

David Betz · 2013-08-08 19:57

This design makes me nervous because of my poor piloting skills. The arms that hold the motors are part of the circuit board. I'm afraid a hard crash might snap one off. Otherwise it looks like a nice product. What processor does it use?

Edit: I see it uses an ST ARM processor with 128k of flash and 20k of RAM.

prof_braino · 2013-08-08 19:59

I think $18 wins in my book.

Bitcraze is doing a bunch with a leap motion interface, and raspberry pi I can't imagine what; but one bitcraze or a small fleet of DIY quads is not a hard choice.

I think if you can get or make the parts yourself, such that we are not tied to any proprietary reference, that counts as open, and hackable, no?

John Board · 2013-08-08 22:53

G'day,

Please remember that Bitcraze is just getting started, so they are still setting up their site (with links to the docs, etc).

I took a look at a video of that $18 copter... I have to admit it is pretty sweet... I'll take a look into that!

Anyway, this thread wasn't (although can be) about comparing what copter to what copter, but more mentioning a new copter that's on the market

I've never really had the chance ot play around with a quad, or any kind of robotic flying thing, so I'm really nervous making my own, because I just lack the experience.

-John

John Board · 2013-08-08 23:00

rjo__ wrote: »

I too have ordered a hubsan and am in the mandatory 60 day waiting period. Both of these use hollow core dc motors... of different specs.

I'm not sure about the hackability of the above mentioned craft. A quick search of their web and forum didn't reveal any "open" information. It might
be open, but it sure is hidden:)

For cheap, I like the Chinese... but there is a domestic diyer, who seems to have a handle on cheap... not exactly open... but $18 is pretty cheap http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1710948

I think what we need is a very cheap gateway quadcopter... something with a Prop2, hollow core dc motors and quad^2rature encoding... then the next step would be Ken's heavy duty Proptocopter.

If we really want "open," we are going to have to do it ourselves:O)

Rich

Just found a page with construction notes, apis, firmware, and schematics:

http://wiki.bitcraze.se/projects:crazyflie:index

prof_braino · 2013-08-09 07:19

Didn't mean to hijack the thread. I don't understand stuff unless I get some perspective.

I realize any company is in business to make money to support the owners, and I love to support new start ups. But what about this device makes it worth the extra $150 over the Hubsan, or $182 over the DIY?. Obviously there is an advantage to get one whose design is proven and pre-built.

Is there something about the batteries, or charger, or radios, or control software, that offer a definitive advantage over the other options? My wallet wants to know!!!

John Board · 2013-08-09 19:26

G'day,

Meh, don't worry about "Hijacking" the thread!

For a guy like me who has little to no experience with making quad copters, or even programming them, or modifying existing ones, having a pre-made one, with software already on it, sensors and electronics majorly assembled on it, has a huge advantage, especiall if it's open source. It means that I can tweak and tune the craft, but if I do anything wrong (software wise at any rate), all I have to do is just flash on the original software and try again.

Althougn MYO multiprops and Hubsans (and equivalents) are really cool, for me, I have close to no clue how to modify them.... Well, I do, but I'm not "game" to try on a platform that's not designed to be modified. I'd feel much better about getting a pre-existing craft, which has the code on it, but allows me to modify that code, then I can write my own, test what works and what doesn't, then once I get a hang of that, I can move onto other more advanced "hacking".

All in all, for someone like yourself it probably doesn't offer too much advantage, as you have the skill it requires to modify it - for a guy like me who knows not nearly as much, it's advantagious as it gives me a platform to start on, to modify, see what works, and what doesn't, before moving onto the other stuff.

Having said that, for $18....

NWCCTV · 2013-08-09 22:12

mandatory 60 day waiting period.

What's this about? Are you saying you ordered one from China and it will take 60 days to arrive or what?

Paul K. · 2013-08-09 22:39

I've seen this quad and it looks great. The few things I really dis-like. I need a computer running when I fly it. I also need to buy a USB compatible joystick. I then need to plug in the controller into the laptop and their USB antenna. So the cost just jumped $500.00 if I don't own a laptop. I could see the Hubsan flying like in the demo videos if its possible to turn off the trick/roll feature in expert mode.

This quad has more options than the cheaper models, I completely agree. Its really not a platform as its so small you really can't add anything to the quad in the first place.

In regards to a Hubsan. Guys spend the 10 bucks more and buy a Husband from a US seller. I received mine with-in 3 days. I would rather spend 10 bucks more and get it 50 days sooner. I have a few of them as I push them to their limits and have wrecked a few.

New $200 palm sized hackable quadcopters!

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