Fathom-X Required?

Hello all,

I have been doing a lot of research and starting my build based off of ROV2. So far I have a RPi2, Pixhawk and some miscellaneous motors and ESCs I have been testing with before I buy more parts. I would like to homebrew as much as I can and learn about everything in the process.

Anyways, regarding the Fathom-X interface. I will be powering my ROV with an onboard battery and was planning on just running Cat5 through hallow-braid poly for my tether. I am trying to figure out what the real purpose of the interface is. Can I not just run the Cat5 based tether from the ROV straight to my laptop (or wifi AP)?

Any help would be appreciated as I decide what my next round of purchases are going to be.

Hi Brian,

Thanks for the post! The Fathom-X interface is used to the Ethernet signal to be sent over a single twisted pair of wires and to allow it to go further than the standard distance limit of Ethernet, 90m. Most of the tether lengths we use with the BlueROV2 are longer than 90m so the Fathom-X makes the connection faster and more robust up to the 300+m length.

The Fathom-X also has some power + Ethernet capabilities that we may take advantage of in the future to send power through the tether.

It’s definitely not required, particularly if you are using a shorter tether. You can also get started without it and then add it later if needed.

-Rusty

Thanks for the quick reply Rusty! That makes sense. I’ll probably just continue to roll with the standard cat5 for my testing and once my ROV is proven out I will swap it with the Fathom-X.

 

Keep up the great work here! I’m exciting to keep building.