CentMesh Mobile Node

The CentMesh Mobile Node is designed to house sensing and actuating capabilities, offer portability and mobility, while allowing connectivity to the CentMesh fixed infrastructure. The nodes can be mounted on a "vehicle". The vehicle can be anything capable of moving a node around, e.g., a student backpack, a bus, a car or a hexcopter. When the vehicle is capable of complying with MAVLink, a standardized interface, the CentMesh Mobile Node can also control the motion of the vehicle.

We realize the CentMesh Mobile Node as an embedded Linux board - we chose the ​Beaglebone Black, due to its relatively low cost, reliability, excellent software support and flexibility: with a host of exposed interfaces, A/D and D/A connections, the platform can be extended almost indefinitely. The main communication links with the ground stations and inter-drone communications are achieved using standard high power USB WiFi cards and TCP/IP protocols.

Programming guide

​Drone Parts List (as of Jan. 2014 - a few things changed in the mean time, e.g. the RC transmitters).

Main Hardware Modules:

• Beagle Bone Black
  • OS Setup details
  • MAVProxy Setup details
  • Startup Script for configuring WiFi and MAVProxy during system boot details

• WiFi cards
  • ​TP-LINK TL-WN722N Wireless N150 High Gain USB Adapter,150Mbps, w/4 dBi High Gain Detachable Antenna, IEEE 802.1b/g/n, WEP, WPA/WPA2. Choose the high gain antenna and N150 option.
  • ​TP-LINK TL-WN7200ND Wireless N150 High Power USB Adapter, 500mw, 5dBi High Gain Detachable Antenna, 802.1b/g/n, WEP, WPA/WPA2. Choose the N150 option.
  • Air802 ADG-2 ​drivers

• USB Hub (connecting the autopilot and the WiFi card (potentially more devices, as there are two available ports for expansions) to the single USB port on the Beagle Bone Black.
  • Model and link
• Power Setup (for the autopilot, mobile node and LEDs) details (see HardWare/Drones)