Parrot ARDrone/Quadrocopter: Need help for new Project:

[schimanski]

I want to start a new Project, for which I need some help. I have read a lot of quadrocopter, the different systems and settings, but there is no board, which can programed in Android. I have also read much about the ARDrone from Parrot and the lot of kinds to increase the range of the wlan-connection with repeater and so on, but there is no useful solution.

The idea is, that it is an option to connect the ardrone with any cheap android-device over the wlan and fix it solid with the drone. If it is now possible to regulate the rotational speed of the motors over android, it is possible to use all the sensors like accelerometer, compass, gps etc. of the device to operate the drone. A device is much cheaper as a board with all the function of a device and it is full b4a-kompatible.
The fist step is to program the drone to different gps-locations. Later it could be possible to operate the drone live by using a second android-device with remote to the device of the copter over gsm. If that is possible, there is no rangelimit to steer the copter.

The only problem is: I’m not able to make a library out of the Android SDK

Parrot AR.Drone - Game Developer Zone - Start building applications compatible with AR.Drone!

and I don’t have any idea, how much outlay it is to make a b4a-lib. I think, that it is enough to regulate the enginespeeds, the rest could be made over the software…


Thanks for every support…

 

[warwound]

Hi.

Did you get any offers to help creating the library?
I may be able to help and was gonna download the SDK to get an idea of how complicated the project would be but cannot see where the Android SDK can be downloaded from.

The downpage page says to contact them if you want to develop for Android.

Have you got an Android SDK - if i could take a look i can let you know if this is a project i can offer to do.

Martin.

 

[schimanski]

Hello Martin!

Very much thanks for your efforts. I have downloaded the last SDK from here:

https://projects.ardrone.org/attachments/download/434/ARDrone_SDK_2_0.tar.gz

In the documentation I have read this:

The AR.Drone 2.0 SDK allows third party developers to develop and distribute new games
based on AR.Drone 2.0 product forWifi, motion sensing mobile devices like the Apple iPhone,
iPad, iPod touch, personal computers or Android devices.

and this:

This SDK allows you to easily write your own applications to remotely control the drone :
• from any Linux personal computer withWifi connectivity;
• from an Apple iOS device;
• from an Android device1.

So I thought, that it is the right SDK. In this SDK there are actually no examples in android, but I have an old version of the SDK Version 1.8 with an android-example. Perhaps the following attachment is a needfull thing:

 

[warwound]

As you said the official latest SDK contains nothing at all related to Android.

The sample you uploaded looks more promising, its a native C library which needs to be compiled.
Then the sample java files seem to define a java interface to that compiled C library.

Leave me to take a look at it all tomorrow and i'll post again with my findings.

Martin.

 

[warwound]

Hi.

No success here yet compiling the ARDrone demo project.
The demo looks like it contains a ready to build native C library BUT after reading the install notes it's far more complicated then simply running the 'ndk-build' command to create the library...

The install notes are over 2 years old and detail how to build the library for android using linux only, the notes being so old also don't take into account the changes in the android NDK in those 2 years.
So compiling the demo you attached to your previous post is a non-starter.
A search on Google shows many others complaining that the only android source available is out of date and uses an old version of the ARDrone SDK as well as an old version of the android NDK.

Searching also led me to https://github.com/UnknownGuardian/ARDrone-on-Android which seems to be an updated version of the project that can be found here javadrone - AR.Drone Java API - Google Project Hosting.
These two projects are an attempt to control ARDrone using java only - no native C involved and no official ARDrone SDK used.
Sounds promising, until i read the FAQs where it looks like it does not work with ARDrone version 2.0.
Presumably there been various versions of the ARDrone and this code was written to work with older versions and has not been updated, typical of so many projects to sound like they'll do what you want them to do but then you find that the project is out of date and un-maintained.

What version of ARDrone do you have - is it an older version, older than 2.0?

It could be that javadrone is older than ARDrone-on-Android and that ARDrone-on-Android supports newer versions of ARDrone.
(The ARDRone-on-Android source code looks to have been last updated July 2011 so that might tell you what version of ARDrone it was written for?)

If you can take a look at the links and let me know what version of ARDrone you need the library to support then we can take things from there.
It might be worth your time contacting Parrot and asking them whatever happened to them supporting Android with newer versions of the ARDrone.

Martin.

 

[schimanski]

Hello Martin,

thanks for your efforts, that are a lot of informations you`ve got.

As I know, until now there are only two different versions of the ardrone, 1.0 and 2.0. The differences are:

- better camera (HD)
- save videos on usb
- better control
- new software update

For me, it is indifferent, which ardrone I get. My purpose is to bulit a drone, which is fully programmable. I want to fly it complete autarchically and I think, that the parrot is the only quadcopter, which can do it. If it is possible to get a library, I will sell the matching drone as first step and set later the mainboard in a bigger frame with powerful engines.

I will try to contact someone of the Parrot Ar.Drone Team for more informations....

Edit:

I have send an email to the ARDrone Team.....I`m still waiting...

 

[schimanski]

Hello Martin!

Up to date there is no answer from Parrot, :BangHead:

I have looked every ardrone-shop and there are only two mainboards, the 1.0 and 2.0 board. For me, it is indifferent, which board i use, because I only need one, on which it is possible to control the engines speed. I have a simple quadrocopter with a KK-board, but powerful engines and a more stable frame. If I have understand you right, a library is perhaps possible for the old ardrone..??
This could be an advantage, because the electronic of the 1.0 is much cheaper and if it is successful, I can post the construction manual for everyone who is interessted at a cheap full programmable quadrocopter

Greetings....

 

[warwound]

Hi schimanski.

I think it'd be a good idea to give Parrot a few more days to reply to your email.
Surely we haven't got to assume that they have no time to reply to customer queries and also have no intention to release an up to date Android library!

As you don't already own an ARDrone i'm reluctant to say go ahead and buy an old version 1 ARDrone - just in case the 3rd party ARDRone library does not work.

What do you think, how long is reasonable to expect them to reply within?

Martin.

 

[schimanski]

Thanks, Martin. I think you are right and it is better to wait a little bit more for an answer from parrot. An ardrone 1.0 is bought quickly in a few days....

 

[warwound]

Thanks, Martin. I think you are right and it is better to wait a little bit more for an answer from parrot. An ardrone 1.0 is bought quickly in a few days....

Hi again.

It's now 17th November - did you get any response from Parrot about an Android SDK?

Martin.

 

[schimanski]

No, sorry! There is no response from Parrot....
:banghead:

 

[warwound]

No, sorry! There is no response from Parrot....
:banghead:

Looks like there's plenty of interest in an Android SDK for the newer version 2 ARDrone but no feedback whatsoever from Parrot.

This thread on the ARDrone forum is interesting and probably sums up the current position: https://projects.ardrone.org/boards/1/topics/show/5153#message-5159.
It confirms that the Javadrone project is for the old version of ARDRone only.
Unfortunately it seems as though all of the 3rd party libraries have problems with the ARDRone freezing/failing to respond to new commands.
The last post in that thread is less than 24 hours old so i'd suggest you put your project on temporary hold and hope that Parrot releases an SDK (seems unlikely) or that a 3rd party will create a stable working library.

Martin.

 

[javiman6969]

Help

I need help to use ARDrone API from B4A, is it possible?
Thanks!!!!

Looks like there's plenty of interest in an Android SDK for the newer version 2 ARDrone but no feedback whatsoever from Parrot.

This thread on the ARDrone forum is interesting and probably sums up the current position: https://projects.ardrone.org/boards/1/topics/show/5153#message-5159.
It confirms that the Javadrone project is for the old version of ARDRone only.
Unfortunately it seems as though all of the 3rd party libraries have problems with the ARDRone freezing/failing to respond to new commands.
The last post in that thread is less than 24 hours old so i'd suggest you put your project on temporary hold and hope that Parrot releases an SDK (seems unlikely) or that a 3rd party will create a stable working library.

Martin.