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Navio+ now available!
All tutorials are made available on our website, as well as source code for drivers.
Features
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The idea
For the past three years we have been professionally working on a commercial microcontroller based autopilot. Development tools were bulky and debugging was complicated. At the same time the ease of use and development for Raspberry Pi was phenomenal, so the idea to create Raspberry Pi autopilot came naturally.
Raspberry Pi is a more advanced and flexible platform than a microcontroller:
Runs fully featured operating system
Easy to extend - just plug in camera, Wi-Fi dongle, LTE modem, etc.
Support for virtually any programming language
Multiple available libraries for computer vision and video processing
Great community support
But autopilot is more than just a computer - it needs ways to sense the world, determine it's position and control actuators. We created Navio to give Raspberry Pi all these capabilities.
What's included
If you pledge for a Navio board:
Navio board
Active GPS\GLONASS patch antenna
Pack of wires with DF13 connectors
SD card image of modified Raspbian with real-time kernel.
A set of open-source drivers for all sensors and controllers.
Example applications and tutorials.
There are several autopilot software projects, based on different technologies, that could be used with Navio. For example ArduPilot team has already made a large effort to make a Linux port. Even though at the moment of shipment there may not be a fully functional autopilot code, we will work on making our drivers compliant with open source projects. Navio will help autopilot developers streamline the delivery of code for Linux to the UAV enthusiasts.
Help us by sharing
For an open source project building a community is the key. We are constantly getting feedback from developers all around the world. But many still do not know about the possibilities that Navio brings, please help us spread the word about project by clicking on share buttons. Together we can create the next generation of autopilot platforms.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Navio and Navio Raw?
Navio has u-blox NEO-7M multi-GNSS receiver and preferred for navigation.
Navio Raw has u-blox NEO-6T which is GPS only, but provides raw data that can be used for real-time kinematics (RTK) processing. RTK requires second static GPS receiver with raw data or a source of RTCM corrections from a reference station. A proper antenna is required to achieve good results.
Choose Navio Raw if you want GPS processing, otherwise choose Navio.
Is Raspberry suitable for real-time tasks?
Yes! Default Raspbian kernel provides soft real-time. For more demanding applications it is possible to use Linux kernel with RT-Preempt patch or Xenomai - a real-time development framework cooperating with the Linux kernel that provides hard real-time. Also, it is possible to run other operating systems on Raspberry, for example - ChibiOS RTOS.
What Raspberry Pi model Navio is compatible with?
Navio shield is compatible with both model A and model B. Connection to B+ is also possible, but due to the different position of display connector the board is not fully plugged leaving 1-2mm.
Can Navio be used with other boards?
While we primarily target Raspberry Pi there are a couple of boards that duplicate it's form-factor and are pin-to-pin compatible with it - these boards are Banana Pi and HummingBoard and they are quite powerful. Navio can be connected to them, but may require some small modifications to these boards and different mount.
