Article directory
Preface
SiK Telemetry Radio is one of the easiest ways to establish a telemetry connection between the autopilot and the ground station. This article provides a basic user guide on how to connect and configure the radio.
3DR Radio v2 ( consumer version of SiKRadio )
！Note
The previous name of this page was 3DR Radio ( Version 2 ), which stood for 3DRobotics' trusted high-quality implementation of SiK Radio. Since this radio is no longer available from 3DR , this page has been renamed to reflect the underlying open source radio platform.
1 Overview
SiK Telemetry Radio is a small, lightweight, and inexpensive open source radio platform with an " out-of-the-box " range that typically exceeds 300m (the range can be extended to several kilometers by using a patch antenna on the ground) ). The radio uses open source firmware that is specifically designed to work well with the MAVLink data package and integrates with Mission Planner , Copter , Rover and Plane .
The radio can be 915Mhz or 433Mhz , you should buy the model appropriate for your country/ region .
Since the platform is open source, implementations can be purchased from many different sources, including ArduPilot partners:
- Search EBay for SiK Telemetry Radio ( note that many of the " clone " products have incorrect analog modules, they interoperate just fine with each other, just with reduced range, but are not the same as the original " 3DR " design Not compatible. The following OEM versions do not have this issue);
- mRo SiK Telemetry Radio (mRobotics)；
- Holybro SiK Telemetry Radio (Holybro)。
！Tip
If you're looking for an alternative, many community members highly recommend the RFD900 Radio Modem ( the SiK platform is based on the RFD900 , and both platforms are constantly evolving). Its battery life is much better.
2 features
The main functions of the SiK radio device are as follows (see Advanced Configuration for more information ) :
- Very small size;
- Light weight (less than 4g without antenna );
- Available in 900MHz or 433MHz ( v2 only ) models;
- Receiver sensitivity reaches -121 dBm ;
- Transmit power up to 20dBm ( 100mW );
- Transparent serial link;
- Over-the-air data transmission rate up to 250kbps ;
- MAVLink protocol framing and status reporting;
- Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum ( FHSS );
- Adaptive time division multiplexing ( TDM );
- Support LBT and AFA ;
- Configurable duty cycle;
- Built-in error correction code (can correct up to 25% data bit errors);
- Demonstration distances up to several kilometers using small omnidirectional antennas;
- Can be used with a bidirectional amplifier for longer transmission distance;
- Open source firmware;
- AT commands for radio configuration ;
- RT commands for remote radio configuration ;
- Adaptive flow control is available when used with APM ;
- Based on HM-TRP radio module, equipped with Si1000 8051 microcontroller and Si4432 radio module.
3 status LED lights
The radio has two status LEDs , one red and one green. The meanings of different LED states are as follows:
- Green LED flashes - searching for another radio device;
- Green LED light is always on - a connection has been established with another radio device;
- Red LED light flashes - transmitting data;
- Red LED light is always on - enter firmware update mode.