software - nortd/lasersaur GitHub Wiki
Lasersaur Software
Home | Current Release | Github
Lasersaur's software stack is called DriveboardApp. It comprises 3 parts: backend, frontend, firmware. This allows for a variety of different setups but typically you just launch it on your computer and control the Lasersaur with its graphical user interface.
| DriveboardApp Binaries |
|---|
| DriveboardApp for Linux v18.07 |
| DriveboardApp for OSX v18.07 |
| DriveboardApp for Windows v18.07 |
If you have Python installed on your system you can also launch the app directly from the source files. In this case we recommend checking out the DriveboardApp Github Repository as this allows for easy updating.
Note on Firmware
Whenever switching versions make sure to firmware-flash the controller. This can be done in one click from the UI.
Installation Beaglebone Black
If you are running a Driveboard v14.03 (or earlier) then DriveboardApp is meant to be installed on the Beaglebone Black and accessed with a browser via http://lasersaur.local. This requires the Lasersaur being connected to the same local network.
- Setup Linux on BeagleBone Black (BBB)
- Setup DriveboardApp on BBB
- Setup LasaurApp on BBB(legacy)
- Setup LasaurApp firmware
Prerequisites
- A modern web browser with HTML5 support
- A local network connection between user and Lasersaur
- A zeroconf client to resolve
lasersaur.local.- On OSX this is called Bonjour and part of the OS.
- On Linux this is typically part of the OS and named Avahi.
- Windows does not have this out of the box but many popular apps (Skype, iTunes and Adobe Photoshop) install one. You can also install Bonjour Print Services for Windows to make the local domain names work.
Connecting via USB
The Driveboard's Beaglebone can emulate a network adaper via USB. Simply plug in the BBB into your laptop with a mini-USB cable and follow the Adafruit BBB ssh over USB guide. The zero-conf domain should work out of the box on OSX and Linux (for windows see notes above). If not you can discover all the local devices with sudo arp-scan -l.
Installation on Dedicated Computer
You can install DriveboardApp on pretty much any computer and then control the Lasersaur from your laptop's browser over the network. This dedicated computer can be RaspberryPi, Beaglebone, Fanless Windows mincomputer, etc.