OpenMarine
Dumb questions - Printable Version

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+--- Thread: Dumb questions (/showthread.php?tid=2303)

Dumb questions - MikeNT - 2020-02-06

Hi,
I would like to get pypilot working for a boat I recently bought (Holland 30). I have looked through the threads here and the wiki and have not found answers to some questions I have (possibly too dumb to understand them). So I thought I would just go ahead and ask them here as I come to them.

Given that I have already ordered a pi4 and a Moitisseir hat 2 and leaving aside cost, is there any advantage to running a tinypilot as well, or are the sensors in the Moitesseir hat sufficient? Looking for best possible setup not just adequate. Found my answer, needed better googlefu. Blush

Are there any setup guides for simpletons like me available?

I will no doubt be asking more dumb questions when my hardware arrives and I try to make it work.
My apologies if these questions have been addressed elsewhere but I could not find them after several hours of looking.

Thanks and regards, Mike

RE: Dumb questions - emilecantin - 2020-02-06

Hi Mike,

I agree, the documentation isn't really pypilot's strong point. I'm also in the process of getting it working, so I feel your pain.

I'll try to find the time to start writing some documentation with what I've figured out, perhaps some other people here could help.

Also, what did you find about tinypilot?

Thanks, Emile

RE: Dumb questions - MikeNT - 2020-02-06

(2020-02-06, 04:55 AM)emilecantin Wrote: Hi Mike,

I agree, the documentation isn't really pypilot's strong point. I'm also in the process of getting it working, so I feel your pain.

I'll try to find the time to start writing some documentation with what I've figured out, perhaps some other people here could help.

Also, what did you find about tinypilot?

Thanks, Emile

I found that the moitisseir hat uses the same imu as the tinypilot so the tinypilot is not needed.

Thanks for the reply, I will try to do the same re documenting as I go.
I am just trying to get the hardware together to begin setting this up and its not easy to work out which is the best way to go before laying down the cash.

Mike

RE: Dumb questions - emilecantin - 2020-02-06

Quote:I found that the moitisseir hat uses the same imu as the tinypilot so the tinypilot is not needed.

Haha, okay, I was afraid that you'd found some deeper reason I didn't know about, but so far the Moitessier HAT does seem to do the trick.

Quote:I am just trying to get the hardware together to begin setting this up and its not easy to work out which is the best way to go before laying down the cash.

I'm going at it from the software side first, messing around with some hardware I have laying around while I wait for parts to show up. Today I managed to make a servo-motor wiggle. It's kind of hard to test properly when I'm not on an actual boat!

One important software "issue" you need to know is that you need a connection from OpenCPN to pypilot it you want GPS mode to work. Otherwise you'll be restricted to compass mode. It needs the GLL sentences for it to work, and you could probably get them direct from the GPS, but I think OpenCPN also adds some sentences for route following.

RE: Dumb questions - MikeNT - 2020-02-06

(2020-02-06, 05:15 AM)emilecantin Wrote:
Quote:I found that the moitisseir hat uses the same imu as the tinypilot so the tinypilot is not needed.

Haha, okay, I was afraid that you'd found some deeper reason I didn't know about, but so far the Moitessier HAT does seem to do the trick.

Quote:I am just trying to get the hardware together to begin setting this up and its not easy to work out which is the best way to go before laying down the cash.

I'm going at it from the software side first, messing around with some hardware I have laying around while I wait for parts to show up. Today I managed to make a servo-motor wiggle. It's kind of hard to test properly when I'm not on an actual boat!

One important software "issue" you need to know is that you need a connection from OpenCPN to pypilot it you want GPS mode to work. Otherwise you'll be restricted to compass mode. It needs the GLL sentences for it to work, and you could probably get them direct from the GPS, but I think OpenCPN also adds some sentences for route following.

I was kind of hoping that if I run the Motissier version of openplotter with the pypilot plugin that the software would work out of the box. I hope to get the wind data from the Tactic system into openplotter with the tactic plugin. Then all I would need to do is connect the motor controller correctly .
Wishful thinking probably.

RE: Dumb questions - CapnKernel - 2020-02-07

(2020-02-06, 02:14 AM)MikeNT Wrote: I would like to get pypilot working for a boat I recently bought (Holland 30).
I will no doubt be asking more dumb questions when my hardware arrives

I too found it hard to get started.  But I now have a working PyPilot, which is driving the helm motor from a Raymarine Autohelm 3000.  Here's some pics of my hardware:

  http://forum.openmarine.net/showthread.php?tid=2228

I'm very happy to answer questions about what I did.  Just add them to that thread.