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Run your first mission

First choose Nix, Docker, or a manual installation. Run these commands inside that environment, from the repository root.

Select the mission

This exercise uses the compiler and array-based model library pinned by the checkout. The selected source is the same model you will read and edit in this walkthrough.

fastdyn-config --base configs/copter462.toml --output out/copter.toml

Expect Created out/copter.toml. The generated TOML records tool locations, model sources, separate RAM files, a QMP socket, and the mission log path. Its model_file is modelica/FastDyn/Copter.mo; the FMU is out/fmi3/Copter/FastDyn_Copter.fmu. Keep your settings in source TOML overlays, because rerunning fastdyn-config replaces the generated run TOML.

Fly the mission

fastdyn run -c out/copter.toml -o out/copter/work

The first run compiles the FMU. The mission helper loads the ArduPilot simulation parameters, waits for GPS and the state estimator (EKF) to become ready, uploads the waypoints, arms, flies, and exits after landing. Look for:

[mission] ArduPilot ready with GPS and EKF initialized
[mission] armed
[mission] final landing confirmed near ground

Open http://127.0.0.1:5000/mavcesium/ for the live map. In Docker, port 5000 must be published as shown in the setup chapter. Run one vehicle or experiment at a time: these examples share MAVLink ports and the viewer port.

The MAVLink log is out/copter/mission.tlog. A successful mission reaches the final waypoint and receives the firmware’s on-ground report near the ground; being below one meter while still descending is insufficient. An armed vehicle or a moving map alone does not establish completion. Ctrl-C stops a run you want to interrupt.

Save and inspect the result

python -m fastdyn.mission_report --log out/copter/mission.tlog \
  --mission virtuals/physics/flight_controllers/courbet/mavlink/copter_mission.waypoints \
  --vehicle copter --output out/copter-summary.png

Expect trajectory and altitude plots plus machine-readable report files. Compare them with the recorded Copter result. Keep the TOML and telemetry together when comparing model or gain changes.

Regenerate the run TOML after changing tool builds. Keep your own settings in a versioned TOML overlay and pass it with --overlay. Next, read the Modelica model that produced this flight. For additional vehicle examples, see other models.