Why Waypoints? Why not Black Box Safety?

[RotorTalk]

(PART REPEAT RANT)

Not sure I understand why it is folk like DJI and ZeroUAV adhere to pricing models that hinge on the number of Waypoints you can pre-program and fly to. Are there really any photographers out there that are that sophisticated and who's batteries can justify it? In a 12 minute flight I struggle to convince myself I'm not threatening someone's life with a blunt freefall carbon fibre message from heaven... Let alone setting TomTom going on my Octo...:shame:

Personally I'd pay a premium (short for a lot) for a flight controller that knew more about the system it was attached to e.g.:

• Individual ESC temp, timings, current
• Power loom temperature (boards should be covered in a grid of temp sensors really)
• Motor RPM, temp, vibration
• Vibration in general
• Black box (why do DJI rely on us having telemetry?) Not good from an indemnity standpoint - you'd want your own data wouldn't you?
• Battery RFID tag read (now there's an idea). Yes I think my Main Controller should know more about a battery's history/use
• weight/payload/configuration options for the frame

Did someone say this would add 700g to my payload?

OK forget it.

 

[Dewster]

The battery issue is the only reason why I haven't purchased the waypoint feature. My craft is used for close in photography (line of sight). I would purchase the waypoint feature for a light quad that can get the mileage out of a battery. It's just a neat feature for the heavier ships.

 

[jes1111]

I see where you're going but I view it slightly differently. In systems terms it makes more sense to put as much of the computing power as possible on the ground rather on the craft - the flight controller has enough to do already and, as with all embedded systems, you actually want that part to be as simple as possible (and therefore as robust and stable as possible). Feed key data back to the ground and draw conclusions/make decisions there. The key to allow this scenario is getting rid of the traditional RC radio transmitter and replacing it with a tablet computer (probably with manual joysticks alongside the touch screen). A two-way radio link instead of one-way. Then you're cooking on gas!

 

[ZAxis]

One reason We've not yet moved away from MK electronics is the excellent telemetry available in real time straight to the Tx. All the important parameters, number of sats, battery voltage/ capacity used, altitude, distance, esc temperature, amps. Far more is downloadable from the on bard SD card. It's been invaluable in diagnosing all sorts of problems. Its all built in and no extra costs are involved and far more useful than 50 gps waypoints.
http://www.mikrokopter.de/ucwiki/en/MX-20

If you add an Xbee datalink then the whole parameter set is available in real time but this requires a separate PC to display it all.

andy

 

[Mr.fixit77]

The reason for waypoints may not appeal to a photographer who is taking single image photos. Being able to set waypoints is absolutely wonderful for those wanting to map large areas. If you set up waypoints so that your craft flys a zig zag pattern back and forth over the area you want to map and your camera equipment is setup to take a photo every few seconds and you keep your altitude the same. You can then take all the images that were recorded and overlay them to create an area map with high detail rather than one image from way up high which will give you a low resolution image. Another advantage to waypoints is if you want to produce video along a route, like say following a winding mountain road. Letting the craft be controlled by waypoint would allow the pilot to focus more on controlling the camera and getting the precise angle of shot he/she wanted. The biggest advantage to waypoints (and this takes planning and knowing your exact flight time for the battery you use) is to be able to follow a route that may take you out of Tx range and return like filming the entire Golden Gate Bridge.

 

[RotorTalk]

The reason for waypoints may not appeal to a photographer who is taking single image photos. Being able to set waypoints is absolutely wonderful for those wanting to map large areas. If you set up waypoints so that your craft flys a zig zag pattern back and forth over the area you want to map and your camera equipment is setup to take a photo every few seconds and you keep your altitude the same. You can then take all the images that were recorded and overlay them to create an area map with high detail rather than one image from way up high which will give you a low resolution image. Another advantage to waypoints is if you want to produce video along a route, like say following a winding mountain road. Letting the craft be controlled by waypoint would allow the pilot to focus more on controlling the camera and getting the precise angle of shot he/she wanted. The biggest advantage to waypoints (and this takes planning and knowing your exact flight time for the battery you use) is to be able to follow a route that may take you out of Tx range and return like filming the entire Golden Gate Bridge.

Photogrammetry? Definitely something I'd do on fixed-wing. I don't think Multicopter flight durations suffice right now. Going out of visual range with a £7000 multicopter? Not me ;-).

 

[Mr.fixit77]

I agree with the not going out of visual range. I'm only flying a stock F450 with Naza+GPS,and a home built gimbal with a GoPro, and would still not risk it even if I was able to use Waypoints. You're correct in saying that Photogrammetry or GIS Mapping is accomplished better using a fixed wing aircraft.