[MultiBen]

I'm finding it hard to get a descent full size Revo, what would be a good FC to use a reference board going forward or what FC are currently being worked on so I don't look at replicating efforts.

Sparky 2, Brain RE1, Quanton, Falcon F4.  I'd like to make sure the option of using OPlink or similar is available.

Ben

[hwh]

Of the ones you listed if you want to run LP only the Sparky2 and Falcon F4 are choices.    Both have been tested by people in the forums and both are reported to work well.  Sparky2 has a radio built in, with the Falcon F4 you'd have to hook up an external oplink.   The Sparky2 has a faster processor and more ports.   The Falcon F4 is essentially a revo nano but not in the small form factor.

[Mateusz]

I am flying with Sparky2, Cliff's has a branch for it. It's likely it will be merged before next release into next.
It has the same micro-controller as Revo, a bit newer IMU sensor (which does not change anything in flight performance). The great thing is that it has OPlink and more ports than Revo.
I build from here
https://bitbucket.org/TheOtherCliff/librepilot/branch/shared%2FLP-72_Sparky2_support

[MultiBen]

Hank for the Falcon F4, would an external oplink just hook to a serial port, if so which oplink would work?

Thanks for the feedback!

Ben

[hwh]

There's only one actual oplink, it's real name is actually oplink-mini.  It has not only the radio module but a STM32F103CBT6 processor that handles the protocol.  Real oplinks have two 4 pin serial port connectors, a micro usb, and a connector for the antenna. Some have a 4 pin debugging connector but about half the clones I've seen don't bother to put it on.  Some have a "bind" push button, some don't.  It doesn't matter because it's not used.  The ones used on the ground end of the link are the same as the ones used on the quad, there really isn't an "oplink ground" as the Chinese call it.  That one is just another oplink-mini clone.

The Chinese "oplink-air" isn't really an oplink, it's just a RFM22b radio module and a voltage regulator.  All of it's processing is done by the mini-revo it's attached to.  And that's the only thing it can be attached to.  It has a 7 pin connector and a connector for the antenna.

The oplink-mini just plugs into a serial port that's set as telemetry.  It would work on the Falcon F4, a revo nano, or even a cc3d.

[MultiBen]

Hank, that is awesome info that I haven't been able to find!

so the oplink-air is tied to the revo mini because it is really just some components left off as optional for the revo mini and only works with the mini.

if you use an oplink-mini you could connect to the falcon f4, could you use the 2nd serial port on the oplink-mini for say, OSD?

[hwh]

...if you use an oplink-mini you could connect to the falcon f4, could you use the 2nd serial port on the oplink-mini for say, OSD?

I don't know, it sounds like a good idea.  The wiki never mentions that configuration and I've never tried it myself.  I remember someone saying the flight controllers wouldn't send telemetry to more than one port but no one ever said anything about the oplinks.

I've sent the question on to others more knowledgeable on the subject and I'll post here when I find out.  If no one knows I'll wire that config up and test it next week.

[MultiBen]

Thanks Hank, I am hoping it's possible, would be nice to have another serial port available.

Ben

[f5soh]

That not possible, the Oplink cannot duplicate the serial port.
For OSD i think you can made a derivation from Tx wire from board to the OSD.

FlexiIO (receiver port) also has one serial port.

[MultiBen]

Looking at the code for oplink, it looks like it sets either main or flexi as a telemetry port for serial.  The handler in RadioComBridge.c then uses PIOS_COM_TELEMETRY.

It looks like it could be setup to use all, when I get my radios I'll play around with it.

Thanks for the replies!

Ben