ROScopter

This repository contains the ROS packages associated with flying a multirotor on the ROSflight autopilot stack. The roscopter ROS package contains a high-level multirotor autopilot while the roscopter_sim package is used for simulation.

Running Simulation

Simplified Dynamics Model

Clone this repo, the ROSflight_plugins repo, and the ROSflight repo into catkin_ws/src, you can run the Gazebo simulator with

$ catkin_make
$ source devel/setup.bash
$ roslaunch roscopter_sim multirotor.launch

This simulation does not simulate the firmware and does not require a joystick. It has the same API as the SIL stack, and can be useful for developing high-level algorithms, however it makes some simplifying assumptions in the dynamics which reduces the fidelity of the simulation.

Software In The Loop

To run the rosflight SIL simulation information with the full roscopter stack, clone the ROSflight repo, connect a joystick or transmitter and run

$ catkin_make
$ source devel/setup.bash
$ roslaunch roscopter copter_sil.launch

Core Autopilot Components

EKF

The EKF estimates the position of the multirotor given GPS (or MoCap if indoors) and IMU measurements.

Controller

A PID controller is used.

Waypoint Manager

Velocity manager and commander.

TODO:

1. Improve GPS estimation performance using Ublox GPS
2. Support additional altitude sensor support (laser/sonar)
3. Heading calibration routine (magnetometer)
4. Include wind estimation