Two new documents to drive the Sprint 1 approval cycle when the user reviews in the morning. NO firmware code touched -- this is planning material only, per brief rule #1 "Antes de cada sprint, me presentas plan detallado y esperas mi OK. No improvises features." docs/sprint-1-plan.md - Sprint 1 objective (firmware boot + STANDBY + Modbus slave + NMEA 2000 consume of PGN 127250/127251 + watchdog). - 4 explicit technical decisions awaiting the user's go/no-go: 2.1 Framework: Arduino-as-ESP-IDF-component (recommended) 2.2 New libraries: NMEA2000-library, NMEA2000_esp32, eModbus (asked per brief rule #4 "No agregues dependencias sin preguntarme") 2.3 FreeRTOS core/priority mapping (PID isolated on Core 1) 2.4 Logging: ESP_LOG via UART0 - 7-phase breakdown over 3-4 weeks (mirrors brief's Sprint 1 scope). - Acceptance criteria, risks, and the inputs needed from the user before kickoff (hardware availability, schematic, NMEA 2000 bus). docs/firmware-libraries-research.md - Detailed rationale for each library choice with comparison tables. - Pinout / hardware references aligned with the existing firmware/ar_autopilot_v1/src/hal/pinout.h. - Draft platformio.ini outline (NOT yet written to the firmware directory -- needs user OK first). - All external sources cited for traceability. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
AR-Autopilot
Professional marine autopilot for vessels in the 30-40 m range (motor yachts, motor sailboats, fishing vessels, small ferries, coastal patrol boats).
Part of the AR Suite alongside AR-ECDIS, VMS-Sailor, AR-ShipDesign, AR-ElecArrangement, and AR-StabCol. Sold standalone or bundled with AR-ECDIS.
NOT Dynamic Positioning. NOT joystick docking. This is a classic heading-and-track autopilot with intelligent drift compensation, controlling rudder actuators (hydraulic or electric).
Status
Sprint 0 — Foundations (in progress).
This sprint delivers the repository structure, core data model, seed library, and a passing test suite. No functional firmware, Studio GUI, or display yet — those start in Sprint 1.
See docs/AR_Autopilot_brief.md for the complete project brief, scope, and roadmap.
Components
| Component | Tech | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
Studio (arautopilot/studio/) |
Python 3.11 + PySide6 | Project configurator (integrator-side, not shipped to customers). Generates per-vessel .appack packages |
Firmware (firmware/ar_autopilot_v1/) |
C++ on ESP32 via PlatformIO | Real-time PID control, NMEA 2000 + Modbus, safety logic. Runs on the AR-NMEA-IO v1.0 board (shared with VMS-Sailor) |
Display (display/) |
Flutter Desktop (Win + Linux) | Dedicated bridge cockpit-feel touch display with rotary knob input |
Core models (arautopilot/core/) |
Pydantic v2 | Shared data model (vessel config, PID config, actuator config, alarms, modes, knob state) |
Library (arautopilot/library/) |
YAML + JSON | Curated seed: actuator profiles, default tunings per vessel type |
Requirements
- Python 3.11 or newer
- Git
- (Later sprints) PlatformIO, Flutter SDK, WiX Toolset
Quick start (Sprint 0)
# Create venv and install
python -m venv .venv
.\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
python -m pip install -U pip
pip install -e ".[dev]"
# Run tests
pytest
# Run the Sprint 0 demo (creates, saves, reloads a project config)
python examples/sprint0_demo.py
Repository layout
AR-Autopilot/
├── arautopilot/ # Python package (core models, library, studio stubs, tests)
├── firmware/ # ESP32 firmware (Sprint 1+; only pinout.h in Sprint 0)
├── display/ # Flutter dedicated display (Sprint 4+)
├── examples/ # Runnable demos
├── docs/ # Brief + per-sprint design docs
├── installer/ # WiX MSI scripts (later)
└── tools/ # Helper scripts (later)
See docs/architecture.md for a one-page architecture overview.
Sprint roadmap
| Sprint | Focus |
|---|---|
| 0 | Foundations: repo structure, core data model, seed library, tests |
| 1 | Firmware base (I/O, Modbus, NMEA 2000 read, STANDBY mode) |
| 2 | PID inner loop (rudder position control) |
| 3 | PID outer loop + Heading Hold (with ROT feed-forward & gain scheduling) |
| 4 | Studio + basic dedicated display |
| 5 | True Course + Track Keeping (smooth XTE correction) |
| 6 | Safety, alarms, NMEA 2000 publish, VMS alarm consumption |
| 7 | Knob + commissioning + offline auto-tuning |
| 8 | EKF + adaptive tuning + telemetry + VPN |
| 9 | Hardening + integrated testing |
| 10+ | Phase 2 (wind modes for sailboats) and beyond |
Full detail in the brief.
License
Proprietary. All rights reserved. See LICENSE.txt.
Commercial deployment requires a per-vessel license bound to the installation HWID. Contact alro65@gmail.com for licensing.