ModalAI Flight Core v1

:::warning PX4 does not manufacture this (or any) autopilot. Contact the manufacturer for hardware support or compliance issues. :::

The ModalAI Flight Core v1 (Datasheet) is a flight controller for PX4, made in the USA. The Flight Core can be paired with ModalAI VOXL (Datasheet) for obstacle avoidance and GPS-denied navigation, or used independently as a standalone flight controller.

FlightCoreV1

Flight Core is identical to the PX4 Flight Controller portion of VOXL Flight (Datasheet) which integrates the VOXL Companion Computer and Flight Core into a single PCB.

:::note This flight controller is manufacturer supported. :::

Specification

Feature	Details
Weight	6 g
MCU	216MHz, 32-bit ARM M7 STM32F765II
Memory	256Kb FRAM
	2Mbit Flash
	512Kbit SRAM
Firmware	PX4
IMUs	ICM-20602 (SPI1)
	ICM-42688 (SPI2)
	BMI088 (SPI6)
Barometer	BMP388 (I2C4)
Secure Element	A71CH (I2C4)
microSD Card	Information on supported cards
Inputs	GPS/Mag
	Spektrum
	Telemetry
	CAN bus
	PPM
Outputs	6 LEDs (2xRGB)
	8 PWM Channels
Extra Interfaces	3 serial ports
	I2C
	GPIO

:::note More detailed hardware documentation can be found here. :::

Dimensions

FlightCoreV1Dimensions

PX4 Firmware Compatibility

Flight Core v1 is fully compatible with the official PX4 Firmware from PX4 v1.11.

ModalAI maintains a branched PX4 version for PX4 v1.11. This includes UART ESC support and improvements in VIO and VOA that are planned to be upstreamed.

More information about the firmware can be found here.

QGroundControl Support

This board supported in QGroundControl 4.0 and later.

Availability

• Flight Core Complete Kit
• Flight Core integrated with VOXL Companion Computer on a single PCB
• Flight Core integrated with VOXL Companion Computer and Obstacle Avoidance Cameras (VOXL Flight Deck) (Datasheet)
• Flight Core assembled with VOXL and cameras

Quick Start

Orientation

The diagram below shows the recommended orientation, which corresponds to ROTATION_NONE starting with PX4 v1.11 (and on the ModalAI-maintained PX4 v1.10 branch)

FlightCoreV1Orientation

:::warning For PX4 v1.10 stable releases from QGroundControl use ROTATION_YAW_180 for the above orientation. :::

Connectors

Detailed information about the pinouts can be found here.

FlightCoreV1Top

Connector	Summary
J1	VOXL Communications Interface Connector (TELEM2)
J2	Programming and Debug Connector
J3	USB Connector
J4	UART2, UART ESC (TELEM3)
J5	Telemetry Connector (TELEM1)
J6	VOXL-Power Management Input / Expansion
J7	8-Channel PWM Output Connector
J8	CAN Bus Connector
J9	PPM RC In
J10	External GPS & Magnetometer Connector
J12	RC input, Spektrum/SBus/UART Connector
J13	I2C Display (Spare Sensor Connector) / Safety Button Input

FlightCoreV1Bottom

User Guide

The full user guide is available here.

How to Build

To build PX4 for this target:

make modalai_fc-v1

Serial Port Mapping

UART	Device	Port
USART1	/dev/ttyS0	GPS1 (J10)
USART2	/dev/ttyS1	TELEM3 (J4)
USART3	/dev/ttyS2	Debug Console (J2)
UART4	/dev/ttyS3	Expansion UART (J6)
UART5	/dev/ttyS4	TELEM2, Primary VOXL Communications (J1)
USART6	/dev/ttyS5	RC (J12)
UART7	/dev/ttyS6	TELEM1 (J5)
UART8	/dev/ttyS7	N/A

Support

Please visit the ModalAI Forum for more information.