FlySpark F4 - hwdef for ArduPilot / AP_HAL_ChibiOS
The FlySpark F4 flight controller is sold by FlySpark
Features
- STM32F405 Microcontroller (168 MHz, 1 MB Flash)
- ICM-42688-P 6-axis IMU (Gyro + Accel)
- DPS310 Barometer
- MAX7456 OSD chip
- MicroSD card slot
- USB-C port for firmware flashing and telemetry
- 6 UART ports (UART1-UART6), UART4 is blocked is only for bluetooth which does not work with ArduPilot
- 8 PWM motor outputs (M1-M8)
- I2C port
- 5 V (3 A) and 9 V (3 A) regulated power outputs
- 3.3 V (500 mA) and 4.5 V (1 A) aux rails
- Buzzer pads (BZ+ / BZ−)
- RSSI input pad
- BOOT button for DFU mode
- 3 S - 6 S LiPo input voltage range
- 30.5 x 30.5 mm mounting pattern (⌀4 mm holes)
Mechanical
- 41.6mm x 39.4mm x 7.8mm
- 10.5g
- Mounting: 30.5mmx30.5mm (4 mm holes)
Wiring / Pinout
| Function | MCU / Pin | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ESC / motor outputs | M1-M8 | M1-M4 bottom, M5-M8 front side |
| UART1 | TX1 / RX1 | DisplayPort |
| UART2 | TX2 / RX2 | For RC. SBUS pins are inverted and connected directly to to RX2. |
| UART3 | TX3 / RX3 | Spare |
| UART4 | TX4 / RX4 | Bluetooth, NOT supported by ArduPilot |
| UART5 | TX5 / RX5 | ESC telemetry |
| UART6 | TX6 / RX6 | GPS |
| I2C | SDA / SCL pads | Magnetometer, Rangefinder, etc. |
| SPI | SPI pins | IMU |
| ADC / analog | Current sensor input | |
| Buzzer | BZ+ / BZ− | 5 V buzzer support |
| RSSI | RS pad | RSSI voltage input |
| Boot button | BOOT | Forces DFU mode |
| SD | SD card slot | |
| OSD | Via VTX,CAM,CC pins |
UART Mapping
| Port | UART | Protocol | TX DMA | RX DMA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | USB | MAVLink2 | ✘ | ✘ |
| 1 | USART1 | DJI_FPV | ✘ | ✘ |
| 2 | USART2 | RCIN | ✔ | ✔ |
| 3 | USART3 | None | ✘ | ✘ |
| 4 | UART4 | None | ✘ | ✘ |
| 5 | UART5 | ESCTelemetry | ✘ | ✘ |
| 6 | USART6 | GPS | ✔ | ✔ |
RC Input
RC input is provided for SBUS on the SBUS pads, or RX2/TX2 for other protocols, see the ArduPilot RC documentation for more information. Note FPort will work on SBUS inputs but not provide telemetry. To obtain FPort telem a bi-directional inverter will need to be used. SBUS pins are inverted and connected directly to to RX2.
PWM Output
The FlySpark F4 supports 8 PWM outputs (M1-M8). All outputs support PWM and DShot, Outputs 1-4 support bi-directional DShot. In addition a ninth output is defaulted to serial LED.
PWM groups:
| Group | Channels |
|---|---|
| 1 | PWM1, PWM2 |
| 2 | PWM3, PWM4 |
| 3 | PWM5, PWM6 |
| 4 | PWM7, PWM8 |
| 5 | PWM9 |
All channels within a group must share the same output rate. If any channel in a group uses DShot, all channels in that group must also use DShot.
Battery Monitoring
The board includes a built-in voltage and current sensor connected to ADC pins. Default configuration:
- :ref:
BATT_MONITOR<BATT_MONITOR>4 - :ref:
BATT_VOLT_PIN<BATT_VOLT_PIN__AP_BattMonitor_Analog>10 - :ref:
BATT_CURR_PIN<BATT_CURR_PIN__AP_BattMonitor_Analog>11 - :ref:
BATT_VOLT_MULT<BATT_VOLT_MULT__AP_BattMonitor_Analog>11.0 - :ref:
BATT_AMP_PERVLT<BATT_AMP_PERVLT__AP_BattMonitor_Analog>25.0
Supports direct 3 S-6 S LiPo voltage measurement.
Compass
There is no onboard compass. ArduPilot automatically probes for external I2C compasses on I2C1.
Camera Control (CC) Output
The CC pin is controlled as a standard GPIO via RELAY2.
OSD
Analog OSD is supported via the internal AT7456 chip.
Simultaneously, DisplayPort HD OSD is available by default via UART1,
RSSI Input
Analog RSSI input is supported through RSSI_ANA_PIN = 15. Connect your receiver’s analog RSSI output to this pad to enable RSSI display in OSD and telemetry.
Loading Firmware
Firmware can be downloaded from the ArduPilot firmware server, by going into the right vehicle directory/version and looking for "FlysparkF4".
Initial firmware load can be done with DFU by plugging in USB with the bootloader button pressed. Then you should load the "with_bl.hex" firmware, using your favorite DFU loading tool.
Once the initial firmware is loaded you can update the firmware using any ArduPilot ground station software. Updates should be done with the *.apj firmware files.