Neros

APEX — Adaptive Payload EXchange

APEX is Neros Technologies' open, MIT-licensed plug-and-play protocol for connecting drone platforms (hosts) and payloads (devices) over a standard 10-pin connector. The core protocol is class-agnostic — COBS framing, a 4-byte outer header, CRC-16/CCITT-FALSE, baud negotiation, a three-leg discovery handshake (DEVICE_INFO to CONFIG_REPLY to CONFIG_ACK), capability exchange, and a device lifecycle the host tracks — while payload behavior is defined in separate device-class specifications (Activation, Analog HMI, Wayfinding, Repeater; USB_FS_HUB reserved). It is a UART wire protocol, not an HTTP API: there is no base URL, no authentication scheme, and no hosted endpoint.

GitHub

Other Resources

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SourceCode
https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX
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Specification
https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX/blob/main/spec/APEX_Core.md
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License
https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX/blob/main/LICENSE
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APIsJSON
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/neros/refs/heads/main/apis.yml

API entry from apis.yml

apis.yml Raw ↑ 
aid: neros:apex
name: APEX — Adaptive Payload EXchange
description: 'APEX is Neros Technologies'' open, MIT-licensed plug-and-play protocol for connecting drone
  platforms (hosts) and payloads (devices) over a standard 10-pin connector. The core protocol is class-agnostic
  — COBS framing, a 4-byte outer header, CRC-16/CCITT-FALSE, baud negotiation, a three-leg discovery handshake
  (DEVICE_INFO to CONFIG_REPLY to CONFIG_ACK), capability exchange, and a device lifecycle the host tracks
  — while payload behavior is defined in separate device-class specifications (Activation, Analog HMI,
  Wayfinding, Repeater; USB_FS_HUB reserved). It is a UART wire protocol, not an HTTP API: there is no
  base URL, no authentication scheme, and no hosted endpoint.'
humanURL: https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX
x-transport: uart
x-protocol-version: V0
x-spec-version: v0.8.0
x-status: draft
tags:
- Protocol
- Drones
- Payloads
- Embedded
- Interoperability
properties:
- type: SourceCode
  url: https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX
- type: Specification
  url: https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX/blob/main/spec/APEX_Core.md
- type: License
  url: https://github.com/Neros-Technologies/APEX/blob/main/LICENSE