Skybotix is offering their CoaX helicopter complete with basic ROS setup so customers can use ROS right out of the box.
The CoaX helicopter is a micro UAV targeted at the research and educational markets. The small 320g helicopter includes an IMU, a downward-looking and three optional sideward-looking sonars, pressure sensor, color camera, and Bluetooth, XBee, or WiFi communication. In addition to two DSPs (dsPIC33), the CoaX has an optional Gumstix Overo computer that can run ROS. You can see more of the specs on their hardware wiki page.
Skybotix fully supports open source with the CoaX. The CoaX API, including low-level firmware and controller, is available open source under a GNU LGPL license. Their Gumstix Overo setup comes with a basic ROS installation. They include a ROS publisher for the CoaX state, a demo application for transmitting video data, and a GUI for visualizing both. Although the CoaX comes with minimal additional ROS libraries, there is a growing community of micro-UAV developers using ROS, including the micro-UAV-focused ccny-ros-pkg repository.
The CoaX was developed in collaboration with ETH Zurich. The Skybotix Youtube channel has videos of ETH Zurich student projects. Skybotix released recently a speed module for CoaX based on optical sensor, which enables indoor speed control as well as indoor hovering (video).
Leave a comment