Question about AP_GPS_MAVLINK and Auto missions

Good day to you all.

We are currently making our own ROV using a four thruster setup with a Pixhawk and Raspberry Pi loaded with the ArduSub firmware. There is some progress achieved since the ROV is currently manually operational, complete with video feed via an RPi camera. The ROV works with the Manual and Stabilize flight modes, and we’re about to test the DepthHold flight mode once the depth sensor arrives.

Now, we are attempting to make the ROV have autonomous capabilities, and we came across this article about the merging of the ArduSub code into the main ArduPilot repository back in February, and there is a bit of discussion with the addition of the AP_GPS_MAVLINK class, which enabled short autonomous missions via QGC. However, the link to the class, AP_GPS_MAVLINK, seems to be empty. We would like to know more about the options to have the capability to do autonomous missions with the ROV, even simple motions like diving, going from point A to B, etc. Does the ArduSub platform currently support autonomous missions for users, or is still in development?

Thank you!

Auto mission functionality has been implemented, but is still under development, not all MAV_CMDs will be accepted. You will need an external underwater positioning system (a GPS antenna won’t work) to use any of the auto functionality of ArduSub.

-Jacob

Thank you for the reply. What positioning system do you recommend to integrate into the system? We are currently looking into short baseline acoustic positioning. Also, where can I find a list of the MAV_CMDs that are functional with the autonomous functionality?

I would recommend that you keep a close eye on our store in the coming weeks :). Otherwise, you will need to make sure that whatever system you buy will be capable of integration with the BlueROV2, this basically means that it needs to use a documented protocol and a modern communication interface.

As to a list of MAV_CMDs that are supported or unsupported, there is not a reference available for this functionality in ArduSub yet, as it is still under development, and changes day to day. This will be documented with the release of ArduSub-3.5 (hopefully before the end of April). I can let you know the current status of development if you are interested in any functionality in particular.

-Jacob


Edit: I mentioned the BlueROV2, but meant that you need a system that will be compatible with ArduSub.

I see. I guess we’ll wait for the updates in the store :).

Yes, we appreciate knowing some of the functionalities’ current status of development. Particularly, we are interested with forward/backward motions and turning motions or yaw.

How much space will this positioning thingy take in which housing? Also how much should we plan to budget for it?