Does anyone know if the SparkFun Razor IMU M0 is compatible with Flowbotics Studio?
I’m referring to this [RB-Spa-1394].
I’m shopping for an IMU and this board is exactly half the cost of the PhidgetSpatial 3/3/3 Basic IMU.
Hi,
The best option here would most likely to use the COM port component from FBS to access data from the RB-Spa-1394. We are unsure at this point, but it is possible that this product already offers information through its USB connection (through a VCP: Virtual COM Port). If it does not with the default firmware installed, it is possible to change it (Arduino-compatible) according to the manufacturer. If so, you can possibly have a custom firmware with one small change: output data through a VCP. Since it is Arduino-compatible, it most likely already has a VCP interface since that is what the Arduino IDE typically uses for programming compatible boards. That being said, it may not currently send data out.
You can find the example firmware here. According to its description, it already sends the data over the serial port by default. You may also want to check the manufacturer’s full guide available here.
Sincerely,
Hey,
Since you want to use it with FlowBotics Studio, the simplest is to ensure the IMU has a way to obtain have a COM port and transfers data through it.
It is very possible that most that have a USB port would be able to do that. If it has a USB port but does not create a COM port, than the manufacturer most likely offers a wrapper of some kind (ex: a DLL) that could also be used directly in FBS.
Alternatively, you can use any IMU (that matches your requirements) with a UART interface in combination with a USB <> TTL UART converter, which will create a COM port that you can use in FBS to access the device (send/receive data).
We have some very inexpensive 6 & 9 DoF modules available (under 15 USD), and a simple converter would range around 5-10 USD.
We hope this helps.
Sincerely,
Pardon my lack of knowledge here. I’m considering the MPU9250 (RB-Spa-1356) or MPU9255 (RB-Wav-110) but it seems they communicate over i2c (only?). Would I need a USB-i2c bridge for these? Or perhaps an Arduino (Nano) would be better suited?
Hey,
Typically, you can get USB <> I2C converters (find some here). That being said, you will still need to speak “I2C” to the device in a way.
Since most of these sensors are meant to be used with microcontrollers (such as Arduino-compatible microcontroller boards), we recommend instead that you use a small, low-cost Arduino-compatible board to access the sensor and transfer data from it to a USB interface. What would most likely be the easiest way to integrate it in your system while leveraging the largest amount of work already done by the community, manufacturer examples, etc.
Sincerely,