CubePilot Cube Yellow Flight Controller

WARNING

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

The Cube Yellow flight controller is a flexible autopilot intended primarily for manufacturers of commercial systems.

The controller is designed to be used with a domain-specific carrier board in order to reduce the wiring, improve reliability, and ease of assembly. For example, a carrier board for a commercial inspection vehicle might include connections for a companion computer, while a carrier board for a racer could includes ESCs for the frame of the vehicle.

Cube includes vibration isolation on two of the IMU's, with a third fixed IMU as a reference / backup.

TIP

The manufacturer Cube User Guide contains detailed information, including an overview of the Differences between Cube Colours.

Key Features

• 32bit STM32F777VI (32bit ARM Cortex M7, 400 MHz, Flash 2MB, RAM 512 KB).
• 32 bit STM32F103 failsafe co-processor
• 14 PWM / Servo outputs (8 with failsafe and manual override, 6 auxiliary, high-power compatible)
• Abundant connectivity options for additional peripherals (UART, I2C, CAN)
• Integrated backup system for in-flight recovery and manual override with dedicated processor and stand-alone power supply (fixed-wing use)
• Backup system integrates mixing, providing consistent autopilot and manual override mixing modes (fixed-wing use)
• Redundant power supply inputs and automatic failover
• External safety switch
• Multicolor LED main visual indicator
• High-power, multi-tone piezo audio indicator
• microSD card for high-rate logging over extended periods of time

Where to Buy

• Reseller list

Assembly

Cube Wiring Quickstart

Specifications

• Processor:
  • STM32F777VI (32bit ARM Cortex M7)
  • 400 MHz
  • 512 KB MB RAM
  • 2 MB Flash
• Failsafe co-processor:
  • STM32F100 (32bit ARM Cortex-M3)
  • 24 MHz
  • 8 KB SRAM
• Sensors: (all connected via SPI)
  • Accelerometer: (3) ICM20948, ICM20649, ICM20602
  • Gyroscope: (3) ICM20948, ICM20649, ICM20602
  • Compass: (1) ICM20948
  • Barometric Pressure Sensor: (2) MS5611
• Operating Conditions:
  • Operating Temp: -10C to 55C
  • IP rating/Waterproofing: Not waterproof
  • Servo rail input voltage: 3.3V / 5V
  • USB port input:
    • Voltage: 4V - 5.7V
    • Rated current: 250 mA
  • POWER:
    • Input voltage: 4.1V - 5.7V
    • Rated input current: 2.5A
    • Rated input/output power: 14W
• Dimensions:
  • Cube: 38.25mm x 38.25mm x 22.3mm
  • Carrier: 94.5mm x 44.3mm x 17.3mm
• Interfaces
  • IO Ports: 14 PWM servo outputs (8 from IO, 6 from FMU)
  • 5x UART (serial ports), one high-power capable, 2x with HW flow control
  • 2x CAN (one with internal 3.3V transceiver, one on expansion connector)
  • R/C inputs:
    • Spektrum DSM / DSM2 / DSM-X® Satellite compatible input
    • Futaba S.BUS® compatible input and output
    • PPM-SUM signal input
  • RSSI (PWM or voltage) input
  • I2C
  • SPI
  • 3.3v ADC input
  • Internal microUSB port and external microUSB port extension

Pinouts and Schematics

Board schematics and other documentation can be found here: The Cube Project.

Ports

Top-Side (GPS, TELEM etc)

Serial Port Mapping

UART	Device	Port
USART2	/dev/ttyS0	TELEM1 (flow control)
USART3	/dev/ttyS1	TELEM2 (flow control)
UART4	/dev/ttyS2	GPS1
USART6	/dev/ttyS3	PX4IO
UART7	/dev/ttyS4	CONSOLE/ADSB-IN
UART8	/dev/ttyS5	GPS2

Debug Ports

USB/SDCard Ports

Building Firmware

TIP

Most users will not need to build this firmware! It is pre-built and automatically installed by QGroundControl when appropriate hardware is connected.

To build PX4 for this target:

make cubepilot_cubeyellow

Issues

CAN1 and CAN2 silk screen on the Cube are flipped (CAN1 is CAN2 and vice versa).

Further Information/Documentation

• Cube Wiring Quickstart
• Cube Docs (Manufacturer):
  • Cube User Guide
  • Mini Carrier Board