Out of telemetry ports? MavPorter adds four.
MavPorter is a 5 g MAVLink hub. Plug it into one serial port on your Cube-class autopilot and it adds four new ports, each with its own message filters and baud rate, plus a forwarding matrix that sets which port talks to which. It routes messages rather than copying the signal.
More serial ports for an autopilot that’s run out.
A gimbal, a geotagger, an RTK GPS and a companion computer can easily need more serial ports than a Cube-class autopilot has free. MavPorter connects to one of them, adds four new ports, and routes messages so each device gets the traffic meant for it.
Four new ports
Connect the flight controller to PRT1, and PRT2–5 are free for a gimbal, geotagger, RTK GPS or companion computer. Nothing upstream needs rewiring.
Coin-sized, 5 grams
28×22×9 mm and 5 g, small enough to heat-shrink into a wiring harness.
Per-port filtering, not fan-out
Up to 5 message-ID filters per port, switchable between allow-list and block-list mode, plus rate limiting per port. Use it to stop a chatty gimbal from filling up a low-baud radio port.
Independent baud rate per port
Standard rates up to 1,500,000 bps. An older device fixed at 57,600 bps and a fast GCS radio each get their own port on the same MavPorter, at the rate each one needs.
Configurable forwarding matrix
Forwarding between any two ports can be switched on or off individually, so traffic doesn’t have to go to every port.
Configures like a native MAVLink device
MavPorter announces itself as a UART_BRIDGE with its own parameters, and QGroundControl and Mission Planner detect it automatically. There’s no separate configuration app.
Sensible defaults, and every setting adjustable.
Smart Routing is on out of the box. Targeted messages go only to the port where that device's Heartbeat was seen, while broadcast traffic and MavPorter's own heartbeat reach every port unless you filter them. Default baud rates differ per port (PRT1 & PRT2 at 921,600 bps, PRT3 at 500,000 bps, PRT4 at 115,200 bps, PRT5 at 230,400 bps), and you can change each one.
- ✓Smart routing: sends targeted messages only to the port with that device's Heartbeat. Disable it to send them to multiple ports.
- ✓Allow-list mode: block everything on a port except up to 5 named message IDs.
- ✓Block-list mode: forward everything on a port except up to 5 named message IDs.
- ✓Rate-limit any filtered message ID instead of blocking it outright.
- ✓Disable forwarding between any two specific ports.
- ✓Convert to MAVLink v1 on a port, for a legacy device or GCS that doesn't speak v2.
- ✓Silence MavPorter's own heartbeat and parameters on a port that needs a clean single-source stream.
Two parameters, real examples
PRT2_FLT_A_SPD : 0
PRT2_FLT_MODE : 0 (block-list)
Allow only HEARTBEAT (0) + GLOBAL_POSITION_INT (33) on PRT4PRT4_FLT_A_ID : 0
PRT4_FLT_A_SPD : 0
PRT4_FLT_B_ID : 33
PRT4_FLT_B_SPD : 0
PRT4_FLT_MODE : 1 (allow-list)
Five filter slots per port (A–E), set directly as MAVLink parameters.
Splice it into a link just to see what's on it
MavPorter is useful even when you don't need more ports. Put one inline on a MAVLink link (flight controller to radio, a bench setup, a link you're troubleshooting) and let the data pass straight through while the free Mission Planner plugin shows what's on it.
Set up like any other component on your autopilot.
MavPorter shows up as a MAVLink device with its own parameters. Connect QGroundControl or Mission Planner to your drone as usual and its settings are there. If ENTIRE is on the same system, you can also reach MavPorter's settings from ENTIRE's web configuration page. Firmware updates also go over MAVLink, from a PC app. A button on the case handles recovery: it gets a unit out of a stuck bootloader or resets it to default settings.
OEM-friendly configuration options
- ✓EMIT_PARAMS: lock end users out of reconfiguring a finished integration. MavPorter becomes invisible to them.
- ✓PRTx_MODE: disable an unused port entirely.
- ✓PRTx_NO_OWN_DTA: stop MavPorter injecting its own heartbeat and parameters onto a port.
- ✓PRTx_FORCE_MV1: convert a port's output to MAVLink v1 for a device that doesn't speak v2.
Connecting in Mission Planner
Connect to your drone as normal, open the device selector and pick UART_BRIDGE. The parameters download automatically.
In QGroundControl: connect, open Vehicle Configuration → Parameters and select Component 241.
A free Mission Planner plugin that shows you the traffic.
Built to answer one question during payload bring-up: what's clogging this port? Switch between PRT1–5 and see the top 5 message IDs by traffic on each, RX and TX separately, with packets-per-second and total input/output rate.
PRT1, live, last second
GIMBAL_DEVICE_ATTITUDE_STATUS (285) : 10/s
RAW_IMU (27) : 10/s
MOUNT_STATUS (158) : 5/s
HEARTBEAT (0) : 2/s
TX — top 5 message IDsHEARTBEAT (0) : 2/s
TUNNEL (385) : 1/s
Example from the plugin's documentation: a gimbal-heavy PRT1 that would be hard to diagnose without it.
Jobs MavPorter is suited to
Each card names the MavPorter feature that makes the job possible.
Cube ran out of ports
A gimbal, a geotagger, an RTK GPS and a companion computer all need a serial connection, and the autopilot has one spare UART. MavPorter adds four new ports to that one.
Isolating a noisy gimbal from a thin telemetry link
Block or rate-limit MOUNT_ORIENTATION, GIMBAL_DEVICE_ATTITUDE_STATUS and RAW_IMU on the radio's port only, while the companion-computer port still gets everything.
One flight-controller connection, many device baud rates
A legacy rangefinder that only talks at 57,600 bps and a telemetry radio that wants 921,600 bps both get their own dedicated port, each at exactly the rate it needs.
Fleet-standard wiring
Because MavPorter is configured entirely through MAVLink parameters, an OEM can bake a port layout into a standard parameter file and reproduce it across every unit on a production line.
Locking a finished integration
Ship a product with the port layout fixed and EMIT_PARAMS disabled, so end users can't accidentally break the wiring configuration by poking around in the parameter list.
Payload bring-up and field support
Use the Mission Planner plugin's live per-port, per-message-ID packet-rate view to find out why the gimbal isn't talking without probing wires.
Real-world MAVLink diagnostics tap
Splice a MavPorter into one MAVLink link purely to see what's on it: live message IDs and packet rates, no extra ports involved.
Firmware updates on deployed fleets
Push a firmware fix to drones already in the field over the existing telemetry link, with a documented recovery procedure if it goes wrong. You don’t have to open the enclosure.
Ground-station and bench testing
Split one MAVLink source, such as SITL or a telemetry radio, to feed QGroundControl, a custom logger and a diagnostic tool at the same time.
Retrofitting a budget or older flight controller
Add a gimbal and a geotagger to a controller with only one spare serial port, without replacing the autopilot just to get more UARTs.
Production lines and one-off builds.
Drone manufacturers
A parameter-configurable, coin-sized part you can design into a production wiring harness once and reproduce across a fleet. Standard MAVLink integration means your customers see it in tools they already use, and it works with any MAVLink device, not only AirPixel's.
Custom & DIY builders
Ran out of serial ports on a budget flight controller? MavPorter adds four, and you configure it entirely from QGroundControl or Mission Planner. No companion computer or custom code required.
Specifications
Ports & wiring
- ✓5× JST SH, 4-pin ports (PRT1–5)
- ✓3.3 V logic, 5 V-tolerant
- ✓All ports share GND and 5V pins across the unit
- ✓Box includes 2× JST SH→JST GH (Cube Orange) + 3× JST SH→JST SH (universal) cables
Configuration & diagnostics
- ✓MAVLink parameter protocol: QGroundControl & Mission Planner auto-detect (Component 241 / UART_BRIDGE)
- ✓Free Mission Planner plugin for live per-port diagnostics
- ✓Firmware updates over MAVLink, MAVLink-speaking recovery bootloader
- ✓ArduPilot & PX4 compatible; deep integration with AirPixel ENTIRE
Four more serial ports for €79.
MavPorter costs €79 and ships with cables for the Cube. If you’re wiring it into a production platform, talk to us.