Meet DEXI‑5.
Autonomy, unlocked.
DEXI‑5 is where students stop flying and start building autonomy, PX4 + ROS 2, onboard computer vision, and optical-flow positioning that works indoors and out. Every DEXI‑5 is a full developer kit: companion computer, camera, vision, and the open DEXI OS, in the box.
Built for the field.
DEXI‑5 is the autonomy platform. Optical flow holds it steady over an indoor floor with no GPS; a GPS module takes it outside for real waypoint missions. On board, a Linux companion runs a full ROS 2 stack and computer vision, the same open PX4/ROS 2 platform research labs build on.
One of three Official PX4 Developer Kits
DEXI‑5 sits alongside ModalAI and Holybro as a kit certified by PX4 and the Dronecode Foundation.
Indoor AND outdoor
Optical flow gives GPS-denied flight indoors; the GPS module unlocks outdoor missions over open ground.
Full ROS 2 autonomy
A complete ROS 2 stack with a micro-XRCE-DDS bridge to PX4, the exact pattern professional autonomy teams use.
Computer vision on board
A Pi camera plus the open-source dexi_yolo / AprilTag packages run natively on the companion computer.
Research-grade
The same open PX4 / ROS 2 platform used in university labs, nothing locked, nothing proprietary.
Grows from DEXI‑3
Same curriculum spine and code, students level up to autonomy, they don't start over on a new platform.
The autonomy step
on the flight path.
DEXI‑5 is introduced at Flight Deck, the step above Hover Lab. Students who learned to build and fly indoors keep their DEXI‑3 and add autonomy: ROS 2, onboard vision, and autonomous missions outdoors on optical flow.
DEXI‑3
An aircraft they build, Python and ROS 2, flown indoors, GPS-free.
DEXI‑5
ROS 2 autonomy, computer vision, and optical-flow flight indoors and out.
DEXI‑10
Larger airframe for applied research and industry work.
Everything a student learned on DEXI‑3 carries up the flight path, the same code, the same curriculum spine, the same open platform, now flying autonomous missions.
One kit. Fully loaded.
Unlike DEXI‑3, DEXI‑5 has no flight-only tier: every DEXI‑5 ships as a full developer kit, with the companion computer, camera, vision, and the open DEXI OS included. Choose how it arrives and how many.
| What's in every DEXI‑5 | Included |
|---|---|
| Flight stack | |
| ARK Pi6X Flow flight controller (PX4 1.17) | ✓ |
| PAW3902 optical flow + range sensor | ✓ |
| GPS module (add-on, coming soon) | , |
| 6S Li-ion battery + charger | ✓ |
| Code stack | |
| Raspberry Pi CM4 companion | ✓ |
| Camera | ✓ |
| Open DEXI OS (ROS 2 + vision) | ✓ |
| Capability, every unit | |
| DroneBlocks / Python / ROS 2 from day one | ✓ |
| AprilTag + YOLO computer vision | ✓ |
| Optical-flow hover, indoors and outdoors | ✓ |
Everything is included, there is no flight-only tier and no code upsell. Every DEXI‑5 is a full developer kit.
What arrives in the box.
The drone is the airframe.
DEXI‑5 is the platform.
A DEXI‑5 student finishes the term writing ROS 2 nodes, detecting objects with onboard vision, and flying autonomous waypoint missions outdoors, on a real, open, research-grade drone.
ROS 2 + autonomy
A full ROS 2 stack on the companion computer with a micro-XRCE-DDS bridge to PX4: the same pattern professional autonomy teams use. Deploy your own packages, mission scripts, and offboard control over Wi-Fi.
Computer vision & AI (AprilTag + YOLO)
A Pi camera plus the open-source dexi_yolo package, YOLO object detection and AprilTag tracking running natively on the companion. Precision landing, follow-the-tag, and AI-vision missions ship as reference demos.
Outdoors on optical flow
DEXI‑5 ships configured for indoor positioning and flies outdoors on optical flow today, running the same scripts either way. Outdoor waypoint missions arrive with our GPS add-on, coming soon.
Research & industry
An open PX4 / ROS 2 platform with nothing locked down: the foundation for multi-drone coordination, custom autonomy, and the applied research that university labs run today.
Same Python script.
Sim today. Real DEXI‑5 tomorrow.
No drone. No toolchain. No install.
Students open code-server in their browser, write a MAVSDK Python script, and fly an autonomous mission in the Unity sim. No drone. No toolchain. No install.
One line of config different.
The exact same file runs against a DEXI‑5 on the classroom Wi-Fi. Same takeoff, same waypoints, same land, just one line of config different.
address = "udpin://0.0.0.0:14540" # sim
address = "udpout://192.168.x.x:14540" # real DEXI-5
The whole bridge is one line. That promise is what lets a Flight Deck subscription deliver value the day a teacher buys it, weeks before the drone arrives, while batteries charge, when one drone has to serve thirty students. The simulator is not a toy version of the curriculum; it is the curriculum.
Flight Deck subscription +
DEXI‑5 hardware
The full path is the DEXI‑5 developer kit plus a Flight Deck subscription on my.droneblocks.io: one PO, one curriculum spine, students starting in the simulator on day one and flying real autonomous missions the day the drone arrives.
Sim → Code → FlyNothing about DEXI‑5
is a black box.
The drone firmware, OS image, 65+ open ROS 2 packages, and 3D-printable parts are all public. Fork them, modify them, contribute back.
Pre-built Linux OS image for the companion computer, bundled with the full ROS 2 stack and PX4 link.
github.com/DroneBlocks/dexi-osROS 2 offboard flight control: takeoff, land, position and velocity setpoints.
github.com/DroneBlocks/dexi_offboardSTL files for replacement and customization parts, the same parts shipped on the production drone.
github.com/DroneBlocks/dexi-3d-printsThe fine print, on demand
Open any panel for the engineering detail: the software stack, how the layers talk, the full bill of materials, and the complete hardware spec.
Open by design, the software stack
DEXI OS is a Linux build pre-loaded with the autopilot link, ROS 2 bridge, and DroneBlocks bring-up. No proprietary cloud, no closed SDK, no hidden firmware, every layer is inspectable and forkable.
- Python, first-class, the same language as Ground School & Hover Lab.
- ROS 2: the full stack on the companion computer: topics, services, and actions.
- PX4 1.17, a custom DroneBlocks branch on the ARK Pi6X. Tune params, modify modules, build custom firmware.
- Custom Code: ship your own packages, neural networks, and mission scripts over SSH/Wi-Fi.
How the layers talk
| PX4 ↔ ROS 2 | micro-XRCE-DDS bridge, PX4 uORB topics published into the ROS 2 graph on the companion. |
|---|---|
| PX4 ↔ QGroundControl | MAVLink Router on the companion computer. |
| Pilot ↔ Drone | RC link. |
| Developer ↔ Drone | Wi-Fi to the companion, SSH, ROS 2 networking, file deploy. |
Bill of materials
| Flight Controller | ARK Pi6X Flow (NDAA, US-made), PX4 1.17 |
|---|---|
| Flow & Distance | PAW3902 optical flow + downward range finder |
| Companion | Raspberry Pi CM4 |
| GPS | Add-on, coming soon |
| Battery | 6S Li-ion |
| Frame | Carbon fiber, enclosed |
| Motors | Brushless ×4 |
| Camera | Pi Camera v2.1 (IMX219) · one camera |
Technical specifications
| Flight controller & autopilot | |
|---|---|
| FC | ARK Pi6X Flow (NDAA, US-made) |
| Firmware | PX4 1.17, custom DroneBlocks branch |
| Positioning | |
|---|---|
| Optical flow | PAW3902, downward |
| Range finder | Downward ToF |
| GPS | Add-on, coming soon |
| Companion computer | |
|---|---|
| Module | Raspberry Pi CM4 |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 802.11ac dual-band · Bluetooth 5.0 |
| Power | |
|---|---|
| Battery | 6S Li-ion |
| Flight time | 15 min hovering, stock configuration |
| Comms | |
|---|---|
| PX4 ↔ ROS 2 | micro-XRCE-DDS bridge |
| Ground station | QGroundControl over MAVLink Router |
| Software stack | |
|---|---|
| OS | DEXI OS |
| Middleware | ROS 2 |
| Autopilot | PX4 1.17 |
| Programming | DroneBlocks, Python, ROS 2 |
Where the code gets tested.
Teams fly this aircraft at the Advanced Vertical Robotics Competition: an autonomous course, a payload, and a clock. The curriculum on this site is what gets a team ready for it.