PX4 User Guide (v1.14)

# Remote ID (Open Drone ID)

Experimental

Remote ID support is experimental in PX4 v1.14.

Remote ID is a government mandated technology for UAVs in Japan, the United States of America and the European Union, designed to enable safe sharing of airspace between UAVs and other aircraft. The specification requires that UAVs broadcast data such as: real-time location/altitude, serial number, operator ID/location, status, etc.

# Supported Hardware

PX4 integrates with Remote ID hardware that supports the Open Drone ID (opens new window) MAVLink protocol (Open Drone ID is an open source implementation of Remote ID).

It has been tested with the following devices:

Note

  • Other devices that support the MAVLink API should work (but have not been tested).
  • PX4 does not support Remote ID over CAN in PX4 v1.14.

# Hardware Setup

Remote ID devices can be connected to any free/unused serial port on the flight controller. Most commonly they are connected directly to the TELEM2 port (if it is not being use for some other purpose) as this is already configured for MAVLink "by default".

# Cube ID

Cube ID (opens new window) can be connected using its serial port (DroneCAN cannot be used). It comes with a 6-pin JST-GH 1.25mm cable that can be connected directly to the TELEM ports on most recent Pixhawk flight controllers.

If using a different port, or a flight controller that has different connector, you may need to modify the cable. The pinout of the serial port is shown below. The TX and RX on the flight controller must be connected to the RX and TX on the Remote ID, respectively.

# Cube ID Serial Port

Cube ID serial port

Pin Signal Volt
1 (red) VCC_5V 5V
2 (blk) TX (OUT)
3 (blk) RX (IN)
4 (blk) GND 0

# BlueMark Db201/Db202mav

Db201 (opens new window) or Db202mav (opens new window) can be connected using their serial port (DroneCAN cannot be used). They come with a 6-pin JST-GH 1.25mm cable that can be connected directly to the TELEM ports on most recent Pixhawk flight controllers.

If using a different serial port (i.e. with fewer pins), or a flight controller that has different connector, you may need to modify the cable. Information on the port pinout can be found in the User Guide (opens new window).

The beacons come preinstalled with recent ArduRemoteID (opens new window) firmware. The User Guide (opens new window) explains how you can update firmware via the web interface, if needed.

More general setup, including how to mount the beacon, is also covered in the User Guide (opens new window)

# Holybro Remote ID Module

The Holybro Remote ID Module (opens new window) can be connected using the serial port (DroneCAN cannot be used in PX4 v1.14). It comes with a 6-pin JST-GH 1.25mm cable that can be connected directly to the TELEM ports on most recent Pixhawk flight controllers such as the Pixhawk 6C/6X or Cube Orange.

The module comes preinstalled with recent ArduRemoteID (opens new window) firmware. The User Guide (opens new window) explains how you can config and update firmware via the web interface, if needed.

# Holybro Pinouts

Note that CAN port not supported in PX4 v1.14

Holybro Remote ID Pinouts

# PX4 Configuration

# Port Configuration

Remote ID hardware is configured in the same way as any other MAVLink Peripheral.

Assuming you have connected the device to the TELEM2 port, set the parameters as shown:

Then reboot the vehicle.

You will now find a new parameter called SER_TEL2_BAUD. The required baud rate depends on the remote ID used (for Cube ID it must be set to 57600).

# Enable Remote ID

There is no need to explicitly enable Remote ID (supported Remote ID messages are either streamed by default or must be requested in the current implementation, even if no remote ID is connected).

# Prevent Arming based on Remote ID

To only allow arming when a Remote ID is ready, set the parameter COM_ARM_ODID to 2 (it is disabled by default).

Parameter Description
COM_ARM_ODID Enable Drone ID system detection and health check. 0: Disable (default), 1: Warn if Remote ID not detected but still allow arming, 2: Only allow arming if Remote ID is present.

# Implementation

PX4 v1.14 streams these messages by default (in streaming modes: normal, onboard, usb, onboard low bandwidth):

  • OPEN_DRONE_ID_LOCATION (opens new window) (1 Hz) - UAV location, altitude, direction, and speed.

  • OPEN_DRONE_ID_SYSTEM (opens new window) (1 Hz) Operator location/altitude, multiple aircraft information (group/swarm, if applicable), full timestamp and possible category/class information.

    • Implementation assumes operator is located at vehicle home position (does not yet support getting operator position from GCS). This is believed to be compliant for broadcast-only Remote IDs.

The following message can be streamed on request (using MAV_CMD_SET_MESSAGE_INTERVAL (opens new window)):

PX4 prevents arming based on Remote ID health if parameter COM_ARM_ODID is set to 2. The UAV will then require HEARTBEAT messages from the Remote ID as a precondition for arming the UAV. You can also set the parameter to 1 to warn but still allow arming when Remote ID HEARTBEAT messages are not detected.

The following Open Drone ID MAVLink messages are not supported in PX4 v1.14 (to be added by PX4#21647 (opens new window)):

# Compliance

PX4 may not be compliant with the relevant specifications in version 1.14 (which is why this feature is currently experimental). A working group has been established to evaluate the gaps.

Some known issues are:

  • Vehicles must arm conditional on receiving the Remote ID OPEN_DRONE_ID_ARM_STATUS (opens new window) message, with a status that indicates the Remote ID hardware is ready to broadcast.
    • PX4 v1.14 does not process OPEN_DRONE_ID_ARM_STATUS, and arming is only conditional on the Remote ID device HEARTBEAT.
  • Health of the Remote ID depends on both receiving a HEARTBEAT and the OPEN_DRONE_ID_ARM_STATUS. When flying, a non-armed status for the Remote ID must be published in OPEN_DRONE_ID_LOCATION.status (opens new window) as a Remote ID malfunction.
    • PX4 v1.14 does not yet receive OPEN_DRONE_ID_ARM_STATUS.
  • OPEN_DRONE_ID_ARM_STATUS must be forwarded to the GCS, if present for additional error reporting.
  • OPEN_DRONE_ID_BASIC_ID (opens new window) specifies a serial number in an invalid format (not ANSI/CTA-2063 format).
  • The vehicle ID is expected to be tamper resistent.

PX4-Autopilot/21647 (opens new window) is intended to address the known issues.

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