ESP-FC Flight Controller

The mini, DIY, Low cost, ESP32 based, high performance flight controller for hobbyists.

Features

Espressif targets (ESP32, ESP32-S3)
ESC protocols (PWM, Oneshot125/42, Multishot, Brushed, Dshot150/300/600 bidirectional)
PPM, SBUS, IBUS and CRSF Receivers
Builtin ESP-NOW receiver and WiFi configuration read more...
SPI and I2C gyro modules support (MPU6050, MPU9250, ICM20602, BMI160)
Flight modes (ACRO, ANGLE, AIRMODE)
Frames (Quad X)
Betaflight configuration tool compatible (v10.10)
Configurable Gyro Filters (LPF, Dynamic Notches, dTerm, RPM)
Blackbox recording (OpenLog/OpenLager/Flash)
Up to 4kHz gyro/loop on ESP32 with SPI gyro
MSP and CLI protocol interface
Resorce/Pin mapping
In flight PID Tuning
Buzzer, Led and voltage monitor
Failsafe mode

Documentation

In this repository you can find firmware code that allows you to build your own flight controller. For convenience it mimics Betaflight 4.2 compability, so that it can be configured using betaflight-configurator. Also online blackbox-log-viewer can be used to analyze blackbox logs. In most aspects it is similar to Betaflight, so that many configuration and tuning advices are helpfull here too. But you must be aware, that this software is not the same as Betaflight, there are some limitations and differences in functionality and performance.

[!IMPORTANT]
Before you begin, read the following documentation carefully first!.

Join our Discord Channel to get help

Quick Start

Requirements

Hardware:

ESP32 or ESP32-S3 board
MPU9250 SPI or MPU6050 I2C gyro (GY-88, GY-91, GY-521 or similar)
PDB with 5V BEC
Buzzer and some electronic components (optional).

Software:

Betaflight Configurator (v10.10)
CH340 usb-serial converter driver

Flashing

Download and unpack selected firmware from Releases Page
Visit ESP Tool Website
Click "Connect" and choose device port in dialog
Add firmware file and set Flash Address to 0x00
Click "Program"
After success power cycle board

ESP-FC Flashing

Setup

After flashing you need to configure few things first:

Configure pinout according to your wiring, especially pin functions, you can find more information in CLI Reference
Connect to Betaflight Configurator and setup to your preferences,
Test motors without propellers
Have fun ;)

[!NOTE]
Not all functions displayed in configurator are avalable in firmware. The rule of thumb is if you cannot change specific option in Betaflight Configurator, that means it is not supported. It usually rolls back to previous value after save. It is strongly recommended to follow setup guide.

Wiring diagrams

Supported Modules

ESP32 - recommended
ESP32-S3 - recommended
ESP32-S2 - experimantal
ESP32-C3 - experimantal, lack of performance, no FPU
RP2350 - experimantal, partially works
RP2040 - experimantal, lack of performance, no FPU
ESP8266 - obsolete, no longer developed

Supported Sensors and Protocols

Gyro: MPU6050, MPU6000, MPU6500, MPU9250, ICM20602, BMI160
Barometers: BMP180, BMP280, SPL06
Magnetometers: HMC5883, QMC5883, AK8963, QMC5883P
Receivers: PPM, SBUS, IBUS, CRSF/ELRS
Esc Protocols: PWM, BRUSHED, ONESHOT125, ONESHOT42, MULTISHOT, DSHOT150, DSHOT300, DSHOT600
GPS: M8, M9, F9 & M10(dual band, all constellations configurable by cli)
Other protocols: MSP, CLI, BLACKBOX, ESPNOW

Issues

You can report issues using Github tracker.
You can also join our Discord Channel

Development

Visual Studio Code
PlatformIO extension
Git

Todo

Altitude Hold
GPS Navigation
MS5611 barometer
Balancing robot controller

Licence

This project is distributed under MIT Licence. Bear in mind that:

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
SOFTWARE.