PIPO32 - Monster ISU :)

[erazz]

I thought it would be better to have a thread dedicated to this unit.

OK guys,

Time to spell out the specs. No april fools this time:
1) MCU is a high density STM32. 512k of SRAM. Lotsa lotsa room. Lotsa IO's too. You will not outgrow this one. (Heck, there are LINUX versions that can run on that.... )
2) On board we have a MPU-6050 for gyro and accel. Once the 9050 with the magnetometer will be available I might make a version with that (if sufficiently prodded).
3) Also on board we have an altimeter. Useful for alt. hold.
4) There are 19(!) general purpose IO's on the board. You can have up to 11 of them be inputs, the rest are outputs. Outputs can be either standard servo (1..2ms), plain PWM(0..100 duty cycle) or binary (on,off).
5) Programming is via a dedicated USB port. You only need a standard USB cable with a micro usb plug on it. No more programmers.
6) There are 2 (yes 2) UART ports on the board. What they will be used for I don't know but I'm sure we'll find uses for them. (BT? GPS? BOTH?)
7) One SPI port and one I2C port. (You can add your GPS to this as well , motor control, external lighting, etc...)
8) 3v operation. I invested in a very good LDO so operation is possible down to 3v. This means that 1S micro crafts will be able to use this.

The MCU is 32 bit and runs @ 72MHz (really really fast). Better yet, the MPU takes care of the AHRS and the internal timers of the PWM so you can have high resolution PWM with no jitter! All this leaves time for the core to do the important stuff like making tea and going for a nap. Seriously, this will not be limited no matter what you try to do with it.

The big issue I learned from PIPO8 is to have the SW ready. I'm happy to report that I have! The initial release will be based on multiwii but as time progresses I'll add more and more of my touches. The even nicer thing about this is that I am able to port back some changes to PIPO8 for increased usability. Also, since I'm using a known platform, porting SW from MWI and Openpilot will be pretty easy for those who want to.

The size of the board is 45mmX45mm. The mounting holes are 3mm in diameter and are 30.5mm apart. I don't know what it will weigh yet but it won't be a lot.

And the price. Yes, saved the best for last.
This isn't cheap to do, the big shiney components cost a lot. Since I do not have a large financial backing I can only do small batches and the cost, therefore will be significantly higher than I expected at first.
For those interested I am willing to take preorders @ $95 + S&H ($7-US, $18-INTL). I can promise to send them within 3 weeks - probably less.
To buy, please visit my webshop:
PIPO32
PIPO32 Expansion Board


I should say thanks to Groot for draging me kicking and screaming to 2012. He helped a lot with the specs. (so you can blame him if it's not to your liking)


Size of the board relative to the 9x:

[erazz]

Look at what just arrived in the mail....

[cre8tiveleo]

I just got 12 static bags too!

[erazz]

Static bags? I hope not. We need less static not more. Unless you mean the type that don't move... Those are better than the ones who do.

[gohsthb]

Ohhhh shiny stuff! I like shiny stuff!

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk

[cre8tiveleo]

I call them static bags, *anti static bags* Not like I stick a board in a sandwich bag and ship it, and wonder why they don't work.

[erazz]

Taking me seriously? Who are you and what have you done with cre8tivleo?


Anyway, I'd draw your attention to whats in the bag and not the bag itself. There's a nice label on it

[jhsa]

I'd say you got some ITG3200/3205 in that bag.. Am I wrong??

[erazz]

Yes you are
Zoom in

[jhsa]

Oh yes, I can see now.. MPU-6050
well, I was half right then.. there is a 3 axis gyro in it.. And also an accelerometer.. All in one chip.. Nice

[cre8tiveleo]

I don't see that, I blew it up..

[jhsa]

Muuaahhhaaaahhaaahhaaaa Good one

[erazz]

Now we have a conundrum... What would I like to have, 6050's or sandwiches...

Hungry....


Going for food!

[erazz]

I've done 90% of the work needed on pipoFig.

This program will be used to configure pipo and pipo32. Should look familiar to you all

Windows Installer
Ubuntu 32bit installer
Ubuntu 64bit installer


Autoupdates, notes, switches and simulation do not work yet but you can get a general idea of the working of the mixer.

Basically you have 20 "dest" channels and 6 pid channels. The pid channels hold values that will go into the pid loop. Generally you would have the gyro, command and perhaps the attitude command there. I'm also leaving room for AP commands though I'm not sure how to implement them yet.

After the PID loop those values get distributed to the mixer where you can choose what value goes to what output. It's somewhat different from er9x in a sense that there are "wider" ranges to choose from.

Also interesting is the "limits" tab. You can set a minimum pulse, maximum pulse, period, and invert. This lends itself to an endless variety of options.

For example, for standard servo PWM you would choose:
min: 1.2mSec
max: 1.8mSec
period: 18mSec

For an esc you would generally go with:
min: 1.2mSec
max: 1.8mSec
period: 5mSec

UltraPWM would look like this:
min: 0.2mSec
max: 0.8mSec
period: 2.5mSec

Plain PWM (light dimming and such) would look like this:
min: 0mSec
max: 2mSec
period: 2mSec

The period is exactly the same as max so you can reach 100% duty cycle.

ON/OFF will be exactly the same as plain PWM but you would feed in either 0 or 100% via the mixer.

Simple, isn't it?


As in er9x the choices are endless. This is really simple to do on PIPO32 and most features will be available on PIPO8.

[Kilrah]

I like more and more...

Now I'm hesitating... Should I also get a couple of 8s first or wait for the 32...
What I don't like on the 32 is the lack of servo headers, not fun for quick plug and play stuff...

[erazz]

I wanted to keep the size down.

I might make a servo expansion board once the unit is going.... Actually I think I'll design one now

I think you would be happier with the 32bit. It's just a lot more powerful. I'm not sure I can port everything to the 8-bit platform.

[Kilrah]

I'm thinking about it right now...
IMO I'd see he PIPO as a "companion" to many kind of models - as you could use it for much more than multicopters, also to handle onboard mixes, stabilisation also for airplanes or whatever like what some (Eflite anyone?) are now integrating in their models...

So use a small receiver with no servo plugs but a PPM out like an FrSky D4FR, feed that to the PIPO, and then connect the servos to it. Create the special mixes you want, and simple in->out mappings for other "normal servos". So the PIPO would replace the receiver's servo header

What about 10 servo plugs, that can be used either as inputs or outputs? So this setup with PPM in allows you 9 servos, and those who want to use non-PPM receivers can still have 5 ins and 5 outs?
Would be best on the "main" board instead of an add on one... RX -> PIPO -> expansion board makes a lot of wire mess, and as you need to connect servos in most cases...

[erazz]

Took me long enough...

The expansion board is ready. I like how it came out. You can install it on top of the original board like a shield. (no, I will not install male-female headers)

And there are 19 IO's. That means you can have 8 inputs and 11 outputs. Or perhaps 1 input and 18 outputs.... The options are... well... expansive.
Just need to figure out how to do it in the SW (it can be done I just need to figure out what's the best way).



I'll say this to anyone who is thinking about this unit. Remember, the SW is not complete yet. It will take a bit of time. If you are not sure you might want to wait for the SW.

[Kilrah]

OK, looks good. Is the ISP connector available on the expansion board (would that be the bottom left unmarked 6-pin header)?

As I see it the main PIPO32 board will be very thin, so if access to the main board isn't needed anymore one could permanently solder the expansion board to it with very short pins in order to only have ~3mm spacing between the boards. Nice and small

[erazz]

That's the general idea

Boards this small are pretty stiff, I'm not worried about flexing. But soldering the top board down will make it super stiff. There might be a case available as well (not from me).

[Kilrah]

Then thanks to the added rigidity you can save 1mm thickness by going for 1mm PCB

[erazz]

I'll leave that to V2.0.

[Kilrah]

So... you haven't yet finished PIPO8, 32 is just started, and you're already talking about V2.0?

Someone needs to cut his ber supply, he's getting hyperactive

[gohsthb]

I find increasing the beer supply slows me down.
Gohst

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk

[jhsa]

yeah, scotch has that effect on me.. hhmmm talking about that...

[erazz]

I'm not dropping down to your level...

Just got a 1.5L bottle of blue Bombay Saphire. Don't expect any kind of thinking from me anytime soon.

[gohsthb]

Ahh I see you are taking easter weekend off then.
-Gohst

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[Kilrah]

Just got a 1.5L bottle of blue Bombay Saphire. Don't expect any kind of thinking from me anytime soon.

Dang, I knew I was forgetting something at the shop this afternoon...

Oh well, I have beer, and now I've finished those I can happily treat myself to one

[erazz]

I find beer necessary for doing stuff like this.


Easter? I thought it was Passover.

[erazz]

Boards are to be delivered by Thursday.
Beer or no Beer the boards will be shipped out by Friday. (going on vacation - must get away from the hobby!)