Custom Power Setup

This page describes how to power Skynode in a system where the Auterion Power module or the with it provided wires is not an option.

Building a custom power setup comes with an increased risk of damaging Skynode. Skynode warranty is voided by the use of any described power setup on this page. This page serves to inform the knowledeable system integration engineer.

Considerations for Wiring

Customizing the provided cable between the power module and the Skynode is not recommended. If needed we recommend the following:

• keep the cable as short as possible

• if extending the cable length increase the wire thickness (e.g. for >50cm a 22AWG wiring is appropriate)

Analog sensing via ADS1115

This workaround is supported with AuterionOS 2.5 and later

To enable and configure it, keep the BAT1_SOURCE value at default (Power Module). Set the parameter ADC_ADS1115_EN to 1 and then configure it like a regular analog voltage/current sensor in PX4. Typically the voltage dividers and amps-per-volt values are given by the power module manufacturer, and the channel mapping depends on your wiring. For example, with a PM06 from holybro the following settings would be appropriate

BAT1_SOURCE = Power Module (default) ADC_ADS1115_EN = 1 reboot (and restart AMC) BAT1_I_CHANNEL = 1 BAT1_V_CHANNEL = 0 BAT1_V_DIV = 18.182 BAT1_A_PER_V = 36.364 BAT1_N_CELLS = 6

Wiring example

CUAV CAN PMU setup

This workaround is supported with AuterionOS 2.5 and later

The CAN PMU from CUAV is a drone power management module that supports input voltage from 6 to 62V and currents up to 110A. It uses advanced CAN bus communication and supports the standard UAVCAN protocol.

Wiring

The CAN PMU connector has 6 pins:

1. (Red cable) - 5V

2. (Red cable) - 5V

3. (Yellow cable) - CAN P

4. (Blue cable) - CAN N

5. (Black cable) - GND

6. (Black cable) - GND

CUAV CAN PMU connector wiring

Pins 1, 2, 5, 6 can be directly connected to pins 1, 2, 5, 6 of J5 or J6 on Skynode:

Pins 3 and 4 instead needs to be connected respectively to pins 2 and 3 of J14 (CAN1) on the Pixhawk Adapter Board:

Pixhawk Adapter Board

Once the CAN PMU is connected to Skynode, just set the parameter UAVCAN_ENABLE to 2 (Sensors Automatic Config) and reboot.\

Custom power cables from the CAN PMU connector to J5 or J6 on Skynode could introduce voltage drops. It is highly recommended to cut the cables and solder the wires together.