Add automated MAVLink log collection to drones_postflight workflow

ansible/drones_postflight.yml

@@ -37,6 +37,23 @@
   remote_user: lis
   gather_facts: true
   tasks:
+    - name: Copy MAVLink log collection script to drone
+      ansible.builtin.template:
+        src: scripts/get_mavlogs.py
+        dest: /tmp/get_mavlogs.py
+        mode: '0755'
+
+    - name: Download MAVLink logs from flight controller
+      ansible.builtin.shell: python3 /tmp/get_mavlogs.py
+      register: mavlink_log_result
+      failed_when: false  # Don't fail the whole playbook if MAVLink logs unavailable
+      changed_when: false
+
+    - name: Log MAVLink collection result
+      ansible.builtin.debug:
+        msg: "MAVLink log collection: {{ mavlink_log_result.stdout_lines | default(['No output']) }}"
+      when: mavlink_log_result is defined
+
     - name: Pull latest log contents from each drone into its hostname subfolder
       ansible.posix.synchronize:
         mode: pull

ansible/scripts/get_mavlogs.py

@@ -0,0 +1,166 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+"""
+MAVLink log collection script for swarm-nxt drones.
+Uses pymavlink to download flight logs from the flight controller.
+"""
+
+from pymavlink import mavutil
+from loguru import logger
+import os
+import sys
+import time
+from datetime import datetime
+import signal
+import threading
+
+# Configure logging
+os.makedirs("{{ drone_base_path }}/logs/scripts/get_mavlogs", exist_ok=True)
+logger.add(f"{{ drone_base_path }}/logs/scripts/get_mavlogs/{datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S')}.log")
+
+# Global shutdown event
+shutdown_event = threading.Event()
+
+def signal_handler(signum, frame):
+    """Handle shutdown signals gracefully"""
+    logger.info(f"Received signal {signum}, initiating shutdown")
+    shutdown_event.set()
+
+def get_mavlink_logs(connection_string, log_dir):
+    """
+    Download available MAVLink logs from flight controller
+
+    Args:
+        connection_string (str): MAVLink connection string (e.g., "/dev/ttyTHS1:921600")
+        log_dir (str): Directory to save downloaded logs
+
+    Returns:
+        bool: True if successful, False otherwise
+    """
+    try:
+        logger.info(f"Connecting to flight controller at {connection_string}")
+        conn = mavutil.mavlink_connection(connection_string)
+
+        # Wait for heartbeat to confirm connection
+        logger.info("Waiting for heartbeat...")
+        conn.wait_heartbeat(timeout=10)
+        logger.info(f"Connected to system {conn.target_system}, component {conn.target_component}")
+
+        # Request log list
+        logger.info("Requesting log list...")
+        conn.mav.log_request_list_send(
+            conn.target_system,
+            conn.target_component,
+            0,  # start
+            0xffff  # end (all logs)
+        )
+
+        # Collect log entries
+        log_entries = []
+        start_time = time.time()
+        timeout = 10  # seconds
+
+        while time.time() - start_time < timeout and not shutdown_event.is_set():
+            msg = conn.recv_match(type=['LOG_ENTRY'], timeout=1)
+            if msg:
+                if msg.get_type() == 'LOG_ENTRY':
+                    log_entries.append(msg)
+                    logger.info(f"Found log {msg.id}: {msg.num_logs} total logs, size: {msg.size} bytes")
+
+        if not log_entries:
+            logger.warning("No logs found on flight controller")
+            return True  # Not an error, just no logs available
+
+        logger.info(f"Found {len(log_entries)} log entries")
+
+        # Download each log
+        for log_entry in log_entries:
+            if shutdown_event.is_set():
+                break
+
+            log_id = log_entry.id
+            log_size = log_entry.size
+
+            if log_size == 0:
+                logger.warning(f"Skipping log {log_id} (size is 0)")
+                continue
+
+            logger.info(f"Downloading log {log_id} ({log_size} bytes)...")
+
+            # Create output filename
+            timestamp = datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S')
+            log_filename = os.path.join(log_dir, f"mavlink_log_{log_id}_{timestamp}.bin")
+
+            # Request log data
+            conn.mav.log_request_data_send(
+                conn.target_system,
+                conn.target_component,
+                log_id,
+                0,  # start offset
+                log_size  # count (entire log)
+            )
+
+            # Collect log data
+            log_data = bytearray()
+            bytes_received = 0
+            data_timeout = 30  # seconds
+            data_start_time = time.time()
+
+            while bytes_received < log_size and not shutdown_event.is_set():
+                if time.time() - data_start_time > data_timeout:
+                    logger.error(f"Timeout waiting for log data for log {log_id}")
+                    break
+
+                msg = conn.recv_match(type=['LOG_DATA'], timeout=2)
+                if msg and msg.get_type() == 'LOG_DATA' and msg.id == log_id:
+                    # Append the data
+                    data_chunk = msg.data[:msg.count]  # Only use the valid bytes
+                    log_data.extend(data_chunk)
+                    bytes_received += msg.count
+
+                    if bytes_received % 1024 == 0:  # Log progress every KB
+                        logger.debug(f"Received {bytes_received}/{log_size} bytes for log {log_id}")
+
+            if bytes_received == log_size:
+                # Save log to file
+                with open(log_filename, 'wb') as f:
+                    f.write(log_data)
+                logger.info(f"Successfully downloaded log {log_id} to {log_filename}")
+            else:
+                logger.error(f"Incomplete download for log {log_id}: {bytes_received}/{log_size} bytes")
+
+        conn.close()
+        return True
+
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.error(f"Error downloading MAVLink logs: {e}")
+        return False
+
+def main():
+    """Main function"""
+    # Set up signal handlers
+    signal.signal(signal.SIGINT, signal_handler)
+    signal.signal(signal.SIGTERM, signal_handler)
+
+    # Configuration
+    connection_string = "{{ drone_fcu_url }}"
+    log_dir = "{{ drone_base_path }}/logs/latest/mavlink"
+
+    # Create log directory
+    os.makedirs(log_dir, exist_ok=True)
+
+    logger.info("Starting MAVLink log collection")
+    logger.info(f"Connection: {connection_string}")
+    logger.info(f"Log directory: {log_dir}")
+
+    # Download logs
+    success = get_mavlink_logs(connection_string, log_dir)
+
+    if success:
+        logger.info("MAVLink log collection completed successfully")
+        sys.exit(0)
+    else:
+        logger.error("MAVLink log collection failed")
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()

docs/flying.md

@@ -30,3 +30,27 @@ This will update apt repositories, pull the latest version of ros packages, and
     "file": "/swarm-nxt/demos/drones_update.cast"
 }
 ```
+
+## Post-Flight Procedures
+
+### Log Collection
+
+After completing flight operations, collect all flight data and logs using:
+
+```bash
+cd /path/to/swarmnxtrepo/ansible
+ansible-playbook -i inventory.ini drones_postflight.yml -K
+```
+
+This will automatically:
+- Download MAVLink logs from each drone's flight controller
+- Collect ROS bag files and system logs from all drones  
+- Consolidate logs into timestamped directories on the host computer
+- Create convenient symlinks for accessing the latest flight data
+
+Collected data includes:
+- **ROS bag files**: High-level flight data, sensor readings, commands
+- **MAVLink logs**: Low-level flight controller data, parameters, system status
+- **System logs**: Service status, error messages, performance metrics
+
+For more details on log analysis and data handling, see [Data Logging with ROS Bag](software-common-tasks.md#data-logging-with-ros-bag).

docs/software-common-tasks.md

@@ -207,6 +207,42 @@ ros2 run plotjuggler plotjuggler --buffer-size 100000
 # Then: File -> Load Data -> Load ROS2 bag
 ```
 
+### Postflight Log Collection
+
+The SwarmNXT system includes automated postflight log collection that gathers all relevant flight data from drones into a centralized location. This includes both ROS bag data and MAVLink flight controller logs.
+
+#### MAVLink Log Collection
+
+In addition to ROS bag data, the system automatically downloads MAVLink logs directly from each drone's flight controller using pymavlink. These logs contain:
+- Low-level flight controller data
+- Parameter changes
+- System status and error messages
+- Detailed flight performance metrics
+
+MAVLink logs are saved to:
+- **Location**: `${drone_base_path}/logs/latest/mavlink/` on each drone
+- **Format**: Binary `.bin` files (standard ArduPilot format)
+- **Naming**: `mavlink_log_{id}_{timestamp}.bin`
+
+#### Running Postflight Collection
+
+```bash
+# Collect logs from all configured drones
+cd /path/to/swarmnxt/ansible
+ansible-playbook -i inventory.ini drones_postflight.yml -K
+```
+
+This will:
+1. Download MAVLink logs from each drone's flight controller
+2. Collect all log files from each drone
+3. Consolidate them into timestamped directories on the host computer
+4. Create symlinks for easy access to latest logs
+
+Collected logs are stored in:
+- **Host location**: `${host_base_path}/consolidated_logs/latest/`
+- **Structure**: `{hostname}/` subdirectories for each drone
+- **Contents**: ROS bags, MAVLink logs, and system logs
+
 ## Check EKF Tracking
 
 To check EKF tracking, perform the following steps: