System Startup (BlueROV)

The Omnitrack system comprises three major subsystems: the ROV Locator, the Tracker 650 DVL, and the ROV. The ROV Locator has three subsystems of its own: The transmitter/transponder, the receiver/transceiver, and the GNSS compass. The ROV has two subsystems of its own that are relevant to our discussion: the autopilot software (ArduSub) and the interface between the network and the autopilot software (MAVLink).

Each subsystem starts up at different rates. There are inter-dependencies between the subsystems that require start-up synchronization. Omnitrack was designed to be very tolerant of start-up order and of subsystems dropping off and rejoining the system (for example, when one part of the system is power-cycled and the others are not).

This section briefly describes the startup of each subsystem, so you know what to expect.

This section can be skipped until your are scratching your head wondering why the system isn't starting the way you expect it to.