Qualcomm Flight™ RB5 5G Platform, Now VOXL 2
What Happened to the Qualcomm Flight RB5 5G Platform
In August 2021 ModalAI and Qualcomm launched the Qualcomm Flight RB5 5G Platform, the world's first 5G and AI-enabled drone platform and reference design. Built on the Qualcomm QRB5165 with the fifth-generation Qualcomm AI Engine, it condensed autonomous AI, computer vision and 5G connectivity into a compact system for drone developers and OEMs. It has since reached end of life and is no longer sold. Its documentation stays online for existing owners.
What to Use Now
| If you wanted RB5 for | Look at |
|---|---|
| The QRB5165 processor as an autopilot | VOXL 2 runs the same Qualcomm QRB5165 with 8 GB LPDDR5 and 15 TOPS, and adds a PX4 or ArduPilot flight controller on the sensors DSP, in a 16 g board on the Blue UAS Framework list. |
| 5G connectivity | The M0090 5G add-on carries a Sierra Wireless EM9291 modem on VOXL 2's board-to-board connector. The M0130 LTE add-on covers 4G where 5G coverage is thin. |
| A ready-to-fly reference drone | Starling 2 Max: VOXL 2 inside, GPS-denied flight, 5G-capable, 500 g of payload capacity. |
| The smallest possible airframe | VOXL 2 Mini, the same stack at 11 g. |
Why 5G Still Matters for Drones
5G raises throughput and lowers latency compared with 4G/LTE, which is what lets a drone stream video and take commands beyond visual line of sight over a carrier network rather than a range-limited point-to-point link. Our 5 things to know about 5G drones covers what changes in practice, and connected drones compares the 4G and 5G add-ons.
Where RB5 Fits in the Lineage
RB5 was the fourth generation of Snapdragon-based flight controller from the team that built Snapdragon Flight and Qualcomm Flight Pro at Qualcomm. VOXL 2 took its processor and integrated the flight controller onto the same board. The full story is on the VOXL page.
Qualcomm® is a registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. Qualcomm Flight RB5, Qualcomm® Artificial Intelligence, Qualcomm® Hexagon™ Tensor Accelerator (HTA), and Qualcomm® Spectra are all products of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.
5G-enabled VOXL 2 Drones
Price: from $3,199.99
Size: 322mm diagonal
Takeoff Weight: 500g
Flight Time: >55 minutes
Payload Capacity: 500g
Compute: QRB5165
Flight Controller: PX4
Image Sensors: Dual AR0144 fisheye CV image sensor, dual IMX412 color image sensor, PMD ToF, Optional FLIR Lepton
Connectivity: WiFi, Microhard, 5G, ELRS
