Software · Firmware · Tools · v1.2.0

Open Source.
All of It.

The ground station application, Pico firmware, and CC1110 firmware are all fully open source on GitHub. Download, modify, extend, and share. No license required to fly.

Windows Application

SCK Ground Station · v1.2.0

A full-featured Windows ground station application built in C# .NET 8. Live GPS map, flight recorder, flight replay, OTA firmware updates, and remote file management. No prerequisites — the installer bundles everything.

Windows 10/11 · x64 · v1.2.0

Ground Station v1.2.0

💻

Self-contained installer — includes .NET 8 runtime. No prerequisites required. Installs per-user, no admin rights needed.

⬇ Download Installer (.exe · ~50MB)

Windows 10 version 1809 or later required

Free Download · Real Flight Data

Mission V1 Flight File

Load a real stratospheric balloon flight into the ground station before you buy a kit. Install the app, open Flight Replay, load this file, press Play.

Mission V1 Flight Data →
Open Source · GPLv3

View Source Code

Full Visual Studio 2022 solution on GitHub. Fork it, extend it, build on it.

View on GitHub →

Application Features

📡
Home Tab

Live telemetry — uptime, RSSI, LQI, ADC readings, packet counters. Auto-polls every 5 seconds.

⌨️
Commands Tab

Get telem, reboot, get/set time, get/set callsign. Direct access to all standard OpenLST commands.

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Custom Commands Tab

Send any opcode with any payload. JSON-persistent. Pre-loaded with Pico imaging and telemetry commands.

🗺️
GPS / Map Tab

Live fused GPS + baro on Google Maps. Autonomous beacon every 10 seconds. 8 stat panels. Altitude display with ascent rate. Flight recorder → .sckflight + KML. Flight Replay launcher.

📁
Files Tab

List, download, and delete files from remote Pico SD card — all over RF. Progress bar, retry logic, auto-opens Images folder.

Firmware Tab

Build, sign, and flash firmware OTA over RF. AES-CBC-MAC signing. Page-level progress, retry, and cancel.

🔑
Provision Tab

Flash bootloader onto fresh CC1110 boards via TI CC Debugger + SmartRF Flash Programmer.

New in v1.2.0

Flight Replay — Experience Any Flight Again

Open any .sckflight file and watch the entire mission play back — animated GPS track on Google Maps, altitude profile chart, event timeline, and all 8 telemetry channels updating in real time.

◈ Flight Replay — FLT-Mission-V1
▶ Play  |  Speed: 10x  |  t: 01:22:04  |  Packet: 492/814
BARO ALT
18,440m
TEMP °C
−41.2°C
t+8s     ● LAUNCH
t+4920s ● APOGEE 30,847m
t+4988s ⚡ BURST
Load Mission V1 Flight File →
🗺️
Animated GPS Track

Position marker moves on Google Maps as playback runs. Launch, apogee, and landing pins always visible.

📈
Altitude Profile Chart

Baro alt (cyan), GPS alt (blue dashed), temperature (orange dotted). Vertical cursor tracks current playback position.

Variable Speed

1x, 5x, 10x, 30x, 60x playback. Watch a 2-hour flight in 2 minutes. Scrub bar to jump anywhere.

📋
Event Timeline

LAUNCH, APOGEE, BURST, LANDING automatically detected with timestamps. Max altitude, flight duration, burst status.

⬇️
Try Before You Buy

Download the free ground station, load Mission V1, and watch a real stratospheric flight — before you spend a dollar on hardware.

Pico Firmware

Raspberry Pi Pico MicroPython

MicroPython firmware for the Raspberry Pi Pico. Handles ESP framing, fused GPS + barometric telemetry beacon, camera capture, SD card file management, and chunked RF file transfer.

MicroPython · Raspberry Pi Pico · v1.2.0

main.py

Main pipeline firmware. Fused GPS + MS5611 barometric beacon every 10 seconds. All sub-opcode handlers: PING, TEMP, SNAP, LIST, GET_INFO, GET_CHUNK, DELETE, GET_GPS, GET_BARO. Camera init, SD card management, GPS airborne mode (50km rated).

⬇ Download main.py
MicroPython · SPI SD Driver

sdcard.py

MicroPython SPI SD card driver. Required dependency for main.py. Must be installed on the Pico filesystem before main.py.

⬇ Download sdcard.py
💡
Installation

Use Thonny to copy both files to the Pico. Install sdcard.py first, then main.py. The Pico runs main.py automatically on power-up. See the Pico Project page for full setup instructions.

CC1110 Firmware

Radio Firmware Source

The CC1110 radio firmware is based on the OpenLST project with our custom PICO_MSG command handler and 915MHz CC1190 RF front end support. Build with SDCC on Windows.

Custom Firmware Source

board.c, board.h, Board.mk — CC1190 PA/LNA control, 915MHz registers, PICO_MSG handler, bootloader OTA support. Clone and build with SDCC.

View on GitHub →
🔨

Build Instructions

Full build instructions including SDCC setup, mingw32-make configuration, and signing/flashing workflow in the Developer Guide.

Developer Guide →
🗂️

Inno Setup Script

Rebuild the installer from source. The Inno Setup 6 script is included in the repository with full build instructions.

View Installer Files →
Required Tools

Third-Party Tools

These free tools are required for firmware development and board provisioning. Not needed for basic kit operation.

Firmware Compiler

SDCC

Small Device C Compiler for the CC1110 8051 core. Required for building the radio firmware.

Download →
Flash Programmer

SmartRF Flash Programmer

TI tool for flashing the bootloader onto fresh CC1110 boards via CC Debugger.

Download →
RF Studio

SmartRF Studio 7

TI tool for deriving CC1110 register values for custom frequencies. Used to configure 915MHz RF parameters.

Download →
GNU Make

mingw32-make

GNU Make for Windows. Required to run the OpenLST build system on Windows.

Download →
Pico IDE

Thonny

MicroPython IDE for loading firmware onto the Raspberry Pi Pico.

Download →
Installer Builder

Inno Setup 6

Free Windows installer builder. Only needed to rebuild the ground station installer from source.

Download →