Ground Station

A modular, Raspberry Pi–based ground station system designed to aggregate telemetry from multiple flight and tracking devices and present it through a live, multi-user web interface.

The system runs on a Raspberry Pi configured in Access Point (AP) mode, allowing users to connect directly via Wi-Fi and view real-time telemetry without requiring external network infrastructure.

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Features

• 📡 Multi-Device Telemetry Collection
• 🌐 Live Web-Based Dashboard
• 📶 Raspberry Pi Access Point Mode
• 🔌 USB and LoRa Device Support
• 🧩 Easily Expandable Architecture
• 👥 Multiple Simultaneous Users

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Supported Devices

The ground station currently supports the following devices:

Custom Flight Computer (LoRa)

• Communicates via LoRa
• Receives real-time flight telemetry
• Designed to integrate seamlessly with the ground station’s radio interface

Fluctus Flight Computer (USB)

• Direct USB serial connection
• Automatically detected and parsed
• Supports live telemetry streaming
• Protocol documentation

PTR GPS Tracker (USB / LoRa)

• USB serial support
• Optional LoRa support (configurable)
• Provides GPS position, altitude, and tracking data

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System Architecture Overview

flowchart TB
    U["User Devices (Laptop / Phone)"]
    W["Wi-Fi Access Point"]
    R["Raspberry Pi Ground Station"]
    T["Telemetry Manager"]
    D["Device Interfaces"]
    S["Web Server"]
    USB["USB Devices: Fluctus FC, PTR GPS"]
    L["LoRa Devices: Custom FC, GPS"]

    U --> W --> R
    R --> T
    R --> D
    R --> S
    D --> USB
    D --> L

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Web Interface

• Accessible via any device connected to the Raspberry Pi’s Wi-Fi network
• Displays:
  • Live telemetry data
  • Device status and connection health
  • GPS location (when available)
• Supports multiple concurrent users
• No internet connection required

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Expandability

This project is designed to make adding new devices straightforward.

To add a new device:

1. Implement a new device interface module
2. Define:
   • Connection type (USB / LoRa / other)
   • Data parsing logic
3. Register the device with the telemetry manager

The rest of the system (web UI, data distribution, logging) will automatically handle the new data source.

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Requirements

Hardware

• Raspberry Pi (recommended: Pi 4 or newer)
• USB ports for connected devices
• LoRa module (for wireless devices)
• Supported flight computers / trackers

Software

• Linux (Raspberry Pi OS recommended)
• Python 3.x
• Web browser (client-side)

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Setup Overview

1. Configure the Raspberry Pi in Wi-Fi Access Point mode
2. Connect supported devices via USB or LoRa
3. Start the ground station software
4. Connect to the Pi’s Wi-Fi network
5. Open the web interface in a browser

Detailed setup instructions will be provided in the /docs directory.

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Project Goals

• Provide a reliable, portable ground station
• Reduce setup complexity during launches
• Support multiple teams and devices simultaneously
• Enable future expansion without major refactoring

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Contributing

Contributions are welcome from club members!

• Follow the modular device interface pattern
• Document new devices and protocols
• Test changes with real hardware when possible

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License

GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE