Hi @the_engineer ,

Please see the responses to your questions below:

Is the drone suitable for such an application, or is there a drone better suited for this kind of application?

Starling 2 Max can be equipped with two global shutter tracking cameras, two high resolution (IMX412) cameras and a TOF sensor, providing the most sensing that our platforms offer.

Is such indoor autonomous operation is feasible with the Starling 2 Max?

dual-camera VIO can be used for indoor navigation (using our integration with Open Vins software) please note that we cannot guarantee performance in your environment and you would like to achieve reliable operation, you would need to become very familiar with the software components and test and address the issues that may come up in your environment depending on how narrow the aisles are, you may consider Starling 2 (not Starling 2 Max)

To what extent can this drone be programmed and extended for research or development purposes?

majority of ModalAI software that runs on VOXL2 is open source : https://gitlab.com/voxl-public/voxl-sdk/

Is the drone programmable with Python or a similar programming language?

Voxl2 runs Ubuntu 18.04 OS and you can use any standard programming languages. Most of voxl2 apis for data access (camera, imu, etc) are in C/C++ which can be extended to python via bindings. ROS is also supported.

What charge time can be expected?

Typical recommended charge rate for Li-Ion batteries is 1C, so about one hour, maybe a bit more. You are free to explore other battery vendors if you need faster charge times.

Is a docking station/ induction charging retrofit possible?

we do not support this feature, but it should be possible with additional design. You would probably need to have your own power management board that allows seamlessly disconnecting the old battery (to be charged) and applying a DC power supply.

Is the drone capable of navigating in subpar lighting conditions?

you would need to test in your specific environment and address any issues that come up. Lighting is not the only factor, but also amount of useful features, etc

What is the expected maximum flight time at maximum takeoff weight?

see this thread : https://forum.modalai.com/topic/3732/starling-2-max-payload-capacity-and-flight-time-impact additional recommended payload up to 500g

What are the operational temperature limits of the drone?

Starling 2 Max can operate in reasonable temperatures. However, you would need to monitor your CPU usage - if it hits 95C, automatic throttling will occur and the system may not be able to keep up with all the tasks. ESC is rated to run at least 100C (MCU temperature), so that should not be an issue for this particular drone, which is not significantly loaded in terms of motor power).

Does visual obstacle avoidance also work during remote controlled manual flight?

please take a look at voxl-vision-hub, but remember that this will be a starting point and you will need to develop your own application based on your requirements and testing : https://docs.modalai.com/voxl-vision-hub/

What is the expected delivery time for the system to Germany?

Expected to ship within 60 business days from San Diego, CA, as stated on our web site https://www.modalai.com/products/starling-2-max

@Anthony-Kang , we are looking into this. However, initial attempts to enable Intra Refresh on VOXL2 via the OMX api did not succeed either for h264 or h265. Also h265 does not work with fixed Macro Blocks (Coding Tree Units instead), so it seems the OMX structures for this param would not work with h265.

Alex

Flat builds should be available now!!

@Alan_S The voxl-vtx repository is currently private, the source code for both voxl-vtx and voxl-vrx are contained within.

Hello @Ryan-Min,
As far as I know, there is no specific CAD model file for the GPS mast. You should use the complete CAD model of the Starling 2 Max drone, which is available for download in the developer download section. You will need to create an account.
Here is a direct link to the most recent version of the model, the version V3 : D0012-4-V3-C28-M36-T7-K0-Starling2-Max-V3-20260317.step
The latest changes to the model are intended to improve GNSS performance. You can consult the documentation page EMI Mitigation for GNSS Applications for more information on this topic and to see their recommendations.

@RoyAzriel , we were temporarily out of stock on some components and C29 configuration of Starling 2 Max is available again.

The TOF sensor kit (M0177 + M0171 + TOF Sensor) will plug in directly into M0173 camera front end and the Front camera mount already has a spot to mount for the TOF sensor. So you should be able to turn C28 into C29. See C27 here for reference how the TOF sensor is connected : https://docs.modalai.com/voxl2-coax-camera-bundles/#kit-pictures-and-descriptions

Alex

@spiff You'll likely need to reach out to Sierra Wireless directly for debug help.

Hi @Jetson-Nano
The connectors between VOXL 2 and M0173 are DF40's. They are rated for 30 cycles:
04a17618-1ea9-4b38-8552-804d68ecda65-image.png
The uCoax image sensor cables are also from Hirose, and are much more fragile. They are rated for 20 cycles, but to be honest, I break them after 3-5 cycles personally if I am not using a tool. With the use of the proper tool we specify here, you should get to 10-20 cycles.
https://docs.modalai.com/micro-coax-user-guide/
8cd3250a-ffcc-497a-ae4f-d2cdb9f2d346-image.png

FCv2 uses a bunch of JST GH connectors. On the flip side, I've never broken one of those! 🙂
JST sadly does not specify the cycle count. So, any number we provide would be a guess. We use it due to DroneCode compliance intentions. They are pretty robust and never experienced any issues.

Hope this helps.

@minhthinh The params are in our voxl-px4-params repo. For example: https://gitlab.com/voxl-public/voxl-sdk/utilities/voxl-px4-params/-/blob/master/params/v1.13/Platforms/M500_FCV2.params?ref_type=heads

@SKA ,

Most of the supported cameras (except for Boson, Hadron) have their reset signal connected to VOXL2, so when the cameras are not in use, they are shut down via the reset pin. This means that the camera modules may still get power, but they are shut down.

There are many power rails and interposers - some power rails remain on all the time (5.0, 3.8V) and others may be shut down by PMIC when not in use. Different cameras use different power rails for their operation, so it is hard to answer this question without knowing the specific use case.

Alex

Hi @Nikola-Rudjer ,

The forum is for technical support -- for sales questions, please reach out to us via https://www.modalai.com/pages/contact-us

Alex

Adding onto this, is there a way to get the server to log out which operations/how many operations were delegated to the CPU? I believe its something that the tflite interpreter can spit out and would be super useful when trying to figure out why a model isnt loading correctly.

@Aniruddha , we currently do not have an option to order this via our online shop, but you have some other options:

email us using contact form and request a custom order of those parts : https://www.modalai.com/pages/contact-us download the CAD model (https://developer.modalai.com/asset) and 3D print the part(s) yourself or order them to be printed. We use MJF material for these parts.

Sorry for the inconvenience. We will look into making the spare part ordering process easier.

Alex

@Myles-Levine , the VOXL2 SoC is not designed to run at full power for a long time without cooling.

The maximum operating temperature is around 95 deg C, at which point, the CPU will being automatically throttling (reducing) operating frequency.

It is common to rely on air flow from propellers when the drone is flying, however some implementations may have a small fan as well.

Since you mentioned bench testing, installing a small fan next to VOXL2 to get airflow over the board should help. No specific recommendations, you can start with a standard 12V fan used in PC power supplies.

It can be relatively easy to overheat VOXL2 without cooling, because it has quite a powerful processor and the heat is concentrated in such a small package. You can spend more time optimizing the code (if possible) or add passive and / or active cooling.

Alex