Nordic Semiconductor announces that a Swedish startup called Bitcraze has developed a miniaturized, open source four rotor quadcopter kit that is designed for academics and hobbyists to order, build, and customize/hack themselves.
The quadcopter kit – which retails for $149 – comprises the tiny 19g quadcopter itself called Crazyflie and on-board control board and battery, plus a separate USB dongle (called Crazyradio) that is compatible with all major OS platforms (including Windows, Linux, and OS X) and any regular PC-compatible gaming controller.
The Crazyflie – which measures just 9cm rotor-to-rotor and is small enough to fly under tables and chairs – is highly controllable and maneuverable and includes an altimeter, automatic in-air electronic stabilization system to make it easier to pilot based on a 3-axis MEMS gyro and 3-axis accelerometer from Invensense (MPU-6050), plus optional barometer and magnetometer (additional $24).
The development platform is completely open source which means firmware and source code can be downloaded from Bitcraze's website and any new user-developed firmware enhancements can be shared with other Crazyflie users within the open source community. Firmware updates can also be sent wirelessly to a bootloader on the Crazyflie which means no additional hardware is required.
In operation, a Nordic nRF24LU1+ transceiver embedded into a PC dongle sends set-point data – roll, pitch, yaw, and thrust – 100 times per second to an nRF24L01+ embedded into the Crazyflie. The PC dongle can also receive logging data such as telemetry from the Crazyflie.
The ultra low power characteristics of the Nordic nRF24L01+ enable the Crazyflie to operate from a tiny on-board lithium polymer 170mAh rechargeable battery that can be re-charged via a regular microUSB cable between flights.
Bitcraze says it has already sold over 1,300 kits and is planning to add a wide range of exciting new features and enhancements in the future, and has already adapted the Crazyflie to carry an on-board streaming video, LEDs, and a wireless inductive charger.
The Crazyflie kit is available to order now direct from Bitcraze's Chinese open hardware manufacturing partner, Seeedstudio.
