INAV + Raspberry Pi 5 Drone with Optical Flow Sensor

A quadcopter build using DJI FPV frame, INAV 9.0 firmware, MTF-01 optical flow + rangefinder sensor, and Raspberry Pi 5 companion computer connected via UART for future autonomous tasks.

Hardware

Component	Model
Flight Controller	ORBITF435
IMU	ICM42605
Barometer	SPL06
Magnetometer	QMC5883 (CW270FLIP)
Optical Flow + Rangefinder	MTF-01 (MSP, connected to FC)
Companion Computer	Raspberry Pi 5 (UART, for future tasks)
Receiver	CRSF (Crossfire/ELRS)
Motor Protocol	DSHOT600
Frame	DJI FPV

Features

• GPS + Optical Flow (MTF-01) position hold for indoor/outdoor flight
• Raspberry Pi 5 connected via UART for future autonomous capabilities
• Dead reckoning enabled for GPS loss recovery
• Terrain following up to 2m altitude
• RTH altitude: 2m
• 3 control profiles (freestyle, general, navigation-optimized)
• Blackbox logging for PID tuning analysis

Project Structure

├── README.md
├── map.png                          # System architecture diagram
├── config/
│   └── inav_cli_dump.txt            # Full INAV CLI configuration backup
└── docs/
    ├── INAV_CONFIGURATOR_GUIDE.md   # Step-by-step configurator settings
    └── images/                      # INAV Configurator screenshots

Quick Start

1. Flash Firmware

Flash INAV 9.0.0 to the ORBITF435 flight controller.

2. Load Configuration

Open INAV Configurator CLI tab and paste the contents of config/inav_cli_dump.txt.

3. MTF-01 Sensor Setup

Connect the MTF-01 optical flow + rangefinder sensor to the flight controller via MSP serial port.

4. Raspberry Pi 5 Setup

Connect Raspberry Pi 5 to the flight controller via UART (RX/TX) for power and serial communication. The Pi is reserved for future autonomous tasks.

5. Sensor Calibration

Note: The optical flow sensor is mounted inverted. Sensor orientation is corrected in software via board alignment settings (align_board_yaw = 1800).

INAV Configurator Settings

Detailed screenshots of every INAV Configurator tab are documented in the Configurator Guide.

Key Configuration Details

Navigation Parameters

Parameter	Value	Description
nav_auto_speed	50 cm/s	Autonomous flight speed
nav_max_auto_speed	100 cm/s	Maximum autonomous speed
nav_rth_altitude	200 cm	Return-to-home altitude
nav_land_slowdown_minalt	50 cm	Start landing slowdown
nav_land_slowdown_maxalt	500 cm	End landing slowdown
opflow_scale	4.898	Optical flow sensor scale factor

Active Control Profile (Profile 3 - Navigation)

Parameter	Value
nav_mc_vel_z_p	150
nav_mc_vel_z_i	250
nav_mc_vel_z_d	25
nav_mc_pos_xy_p	80
nav_mc_vel_xy_p	50
nav_mc_vel_xy_i	40
nav_mc_vel_xy_d	60

Motor Mixer (Quad X)

Motor	Throttle	Roll	Pitch	Yaw
1	1.000	-1.000	-1.000	1.000
2	1.000	-1.000	1.000	-1.000
3	1.000	1.000	-1.000	-1.000
4	1.000	1.000	1.000	1.000

References

• INAV Optical Flow & Rangefinder Setup Guide
• INAV Wiki
• MSP Protocol Documentation

License

This project is open source. See individual component licenses for details.