According to Ken Booth, Administrator of the Facebook Official DJI RoboMaster S1/EP Discussion Forum declared that the EP and S1 robots would not be compatible and that they would have different enough interface capabilities to make the swap of the Gripper from one robot to the other impossible.
This declaration was made after a DJI EP Build Video posted on the DJI Youtube Channel showed the EP Gripper being mounted on a S1 Chassis.
Also, it seems unlikely the EP Gripper will be made available as an Expansion Kit, as the Build Video implies.
As far as I'm concerned, this would be a MAJOR FAIL for DJI and the RoboMaster family...

What do you think?

I do not buy it. The chassis is definitely the same. Worst case scenario you would need a new intelligent controller which can obviously replaced.

BGA Posted at 3-9 17:02
I do not buy it. The chassis is definitely the same. Worst case scenario you would need a new intelligent controller which can obviously replaced.

My thoughts on the Intelligent Controller is that, perhaps, DJI would want to do a memory upgrade and replace the ARM microcontroller with a more modern version (i.e. more cores, more speed, etc.).
This would allow the Intelligent Controller to run a greater number of Python Library Functions internally and perhaps even provide some on-board storage for audio and video.
But this Intelligent Controller upgrade, as you hint, could be offered on the S1 as well and has little to do with the functionality or interfaces of the EP, IMHO.

Agree with at, I bought 2 s1 for education and was waiting for expansion kit. If it's not compatible with s1 I will feel too sad with that.

BGA Posted at 3-9 17:02
I do not buy it. The chassis is definitely the same. Worst case scenario you would need a new intelligent controller which can obviously replaced.

I certainly hope the EP is compatible with the S1. My students have already seen the EP pre-release video, and are quite excited to add the functionality of the arm. I guess we will have to wait and see. There is no mention of the EP on the dji website yet.

The official word is that the EP is not actually compatible with the S1.

It seems that the EP/Standard is similar to the S1, it has a blaster but also a lot more sensors (IR distance over the camera and on the four corners of a base plate). The EP/Engineer has the arm + all the sensors. The EP/Sentry as shown in the video has a bunch of extra stuff, I saw a humidity and a gas sensor on it. That implies some kind of sensor expansion module, maybe an ADC that communicates over CAN bus.

The incompatibility is odd, given that the S1 does have all the extra ports and attachment points, including the mysterious red M0 port. Looking at the pictures, it seems like the IR sensor over the camera can plug into the unused CAN bus port on the gimbal, and maybe the four corner sensors plug into the unused ports on the hit detectors.

It is possible that the processor on the EP has been upgraded substantially with respect to the S1. Though as Bruno points out, swapping out the Intelligent Controller would be easy...

At least I hope that the S1 can participate in the same competitions as the EP.

gpvillamil Posted at 3-10 08:55
The official word is that the EP is not actually compatible with the S1.

It seems that the EP/Standard is similar to the S1, it has a blaster but also a lot more sensors (IR distance over the camera and on the four corners of a base plate). The EP/Engineer has the arm + all the sensors. The EP/Sentry as shown in the video has a bunch of extra stuff, I saw a humidity and a gas sensor on it. That implies some kind of sensor expansion module, maybe an ADC that communicates over CAN bus.

We won'T be able to say much more about any type of comparison until the specs get released for all versions.
If DJI dumps the S1 into obsolescence before it even got a chance to make a place for itself, it will cause a lot of damage to DJI's image, IMHO.

Hi. Thank you for creating this informative post. I will forward this information to our designated DJI support team for further clarification. Thank you.

rhoude57 - YUL Posted at 3-10 10:26
We won'T be able to say much more about any type of comparison until the specs get released for all versions.
If DJI dumps the S1 into obsolescence before it even got a chance to make a place for itself, it will cause a lot of damage to DJI's image, IMHO.

Agree fully, and I hope DJI is 'smarter' about this. Historically they've released multiple hardware versions and made previous ones obsolete, without the option to upgrade ... whether it's the Tello (then Tello EDU), or the OSMO series. Not a good move at all, if confirmed.  

I bought the EP... and to be honest.. I am very disappointed.

The arm is too weak to hold the gripper.
There are no examples in the lab for the gripper. They are all based on the S1.

It is a complete rip off...