What was accomplished

●       The first software prototype was a simple desktop mission generator that allowed the operator to enter waypoint latitude and longitude values and select the required number of laps.

●       The program organized the entered waypoints and generated a mission file for the planned flight using the configured mission altitude and route settings.

●       At this stage, the application was not connected directly to ArduPilot, so the generated mission file had to be manually imported and uploaded into Mission Planner before each simulation test.

Challenges and solutions

The prototype successfully proved that waypoint entry and mission-file generation worked, but the manual export, import, and upload process added unnecessary operator steps and slowed repeated testing. This limitation motivated the next development stage: establishing direct communication between the custom software and ArduPilot.

Next steps plan

Develop a direct communication layer with ArduPilot and validate command execution safely using SITL before connecting the software to the real aircraft.