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Open-Source Firmware For Your Toy Drone

Posted by timothy on from the plenty-of-it-to-go-around dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Since now you're going to either register your drone or have to be flying your [small drone] indoors anyway in the USA, you might as well celebrate the one freedom you still have: the freedom to re-flash the firmware with open source! The Eachine H8 is a typical-looking mini-quadcopter of the kind that sell for under $20. Inside, the whole show is powered by an ARM Cortex-M3 processor, with the programming pins easily visible. Who could resist? Garagedrone takes you through a step-by-step guide to re-flashing the device with a custom firmware to enable acrobatic mode, or simply to tweak the throttle-to-gyro mapping for the quad. The firmware author silverxxx from RCGroups.com even got the code up on GitHub if you're interested in taking a peek. Next step, Skynet!

1 of 32 comments (clear)

  1. Err - no. by queazocotal · · Score: 4, Informative

    The above class of toy drone weighs 20 grams or so.
    In order to be required to register under the proposed new regulations, the limit is 250g.

    Mostly these are >>$100, not $20.