Anyone Flying Drones?

Just please make sure you keep it within visual range.
 
MachFly said:
Just please make sure you keep it within visual range.
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Certainly. One cool feature is if it looses contact with the controller in returns automatically to the place where it was launched. I want to do photography with it.
 
Geico266 said:
Certainly. One cool feature is if it looses contact with the controller in returns automatically to the place where it was launched. I want to do photography with it.
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Then I have nothing against it. Have fun.
 
Hi Larry! I've been flying a Phantom 2 Vision Plus since early May. It's incredibly fun. It can also be quite useful. I obtained excellent overhead shots at my stepsister's wedding last month at a California ranch. I've also used it to inspect my rooftops for storm damage. The camera images are so clear that the roofing contractor didn't even need to climb up on the roof.
 
Shepherd said:
Yes. It's fun. Just obey the AMA rules and avoid jail time. :-)
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Jail time for violating non-governmental rules would seem to violate due process.
 
Is it a good idea to buy a cheap quad copter to learn with?
Any advice from you guys flying these?
 
Geico266 said:
At OSH I attended a forum on stones. Very interesting, so interesting I am thinking of buying one to mount a gopro to.
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Interesting... In my experience, stones do not stay airborne for very long. Probably won't make for very good video with a GoPro either.
 
ebykowsky said:
Interesting... In my experience, stones do not stay airborne for very long. Probably won't make for very good video with a GoPro either.
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I would think they could stay airborne for quite a while actually..
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ebykowsky said:
Interesting... In my experience, stones do not stay airborne for very long. Probably won't make for very good video with a GoPro either.
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20 mins? That is plenty of time.

Good catch cowman! :lol:

As for quality of video? Most movies, and sporting events are using drones for gimble mounted / controllable cameras. :dunno:

Take a look at the videos in this link. They were shot with a similar drone as the one I am getting. :dunno:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/content/3-awesome-videos-shot-drones-and-how-they-were-made
 
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A gimbal for the camera is essential for great video. This helps smooth out the vibration and all the back-and-forth of the drone trying to stay steady.

The only prior experience I had was a $20 indoor RC copter, and I picked it up just fine. These are so easy to fly (in most modes) that landing is the only thing that takes much effort. Here is the one I've been flying:

http://www.horizonhobby.com/products/350-qx2-ap-combo-rtf-with-safe-technology-BLH7900

Camera is not quite as good as a GoPro, but still a decent package. I think you can add a GoPro to it as well. I got some great video of harvest this year. I am not too far south of you :-)
 
Geico266 said:
At OSH I attended a forum on drones. Very interesting, so interesting I am thinking of buying one to mount a gopro to. I'm looking at a DJI Phantom with a camera mounted.

http://touch.groupon.com/deals/gg-p...rget*53689458589_adtype*pla_t*Toys-Games-200+

Anyone else flying a drone?
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The boss brought one to the boat a few days before I left, forgot the brand (I'll find out if you want), it has a mounted camera pod which you can observe on your iPad, Android, and wifi computer in real time. It is gyro stabilized (the quad copter) and self 'parking' by just releasing the controls even in a pretty good breeze that I judged at 15 kts. Release the controls and it hovers right on location.
 
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Henning said:
The one the boss brought was $1300 and had no learning curve. You can instantly fly it completely stabely.
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I might send this one back and up grade, for what I am doing I will need to have a remote gimble.
 
So does this mean a toy RC airplane is a "DRONE"? It seems to me that these toy quad copters, albeit very advanced with electronics and GPS, is not a drone. I'm seeing so many news reports, people not familiar with RC aircraft and the normal Joe on the street talking about the drones that are flying around and invading privacy - it's crazy.

Thirty years ago when I started with RC aircraft, we put cameras on the plane and took pictures. Was that a drone, no. It was just having fun taking aerial pictures. Thirty years later I still fly RC, but mainly RC helicopters, and I've flown the quad copters (4 rotor helicopter). I also fly my full size plane with a GoPro mounted to the wing and video my flights. Does this mean I'm flying a U2 or SR71? I wish! :)
 
To me, the difference between a drone and an RC aircraft is the fly by wire system. An RC you directly control the aerodynamic surfaces through a 'dumb' servo control. With a drone, you send a signal as to what you would like it to do, and then the computer tells the aerodynamic surfaces what to do to achieve it.
 
Just a nit to pick: a "drone" refers to a fully autonomous vehicle, whereas quadcopters, POV RC aircraft, and military unmanned aircraft (Predators, etc.) are all considered UAVs. If it has a person commanding it, it's not a drone. So, if you're asking whether a toy aircraft or what Geico wants to buy is a "drone", the answer will always be "no". However, the true question lies in where will the FAA ultimately implement regulations in controlling different types of UAVs (RC models included)
 
flyingriki said:
Is it a good idea to buy a cheap quad copter to learn with?
Any advice from you guys flying these?
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http://www.amazon.com/Syma-Channel-...e=UTF8&qid=1407018562&sr=1-1&keywords=syma+x1

I was gifted one of these as a graduation present last month - I have zero helicopter and quadcopter experience and I think it's cheap and durable enough to learn. The transmitter isn't anything special and kind of cheap, but the whole package is like 30 bucks :dunno:

It's hit the ground, a wall, and a couple other objects and it's been rather robust. Controlling them is pretty simple once you start moving it around, and chopping the throttle is always an option. I get about 5-7 minutes of flight time on each battery and I have 3.

I've flown it both indoors and outdoors, the indoor flying is nice if you have a big enough area, but outdoors it handles a bit timidly in anything over 3-4 mph of wind. There's a high and low rate button on the transmitter that gives you more control authority (which I have to use always when flying outside) and there's an "eversion" button, which when held and the stick moved, the heli does a flip in that direction.

There are gyros in it for orientation but they are nothing super sophisticated - you plug the battery in, the copter goes on a flat surface, the sensors calibrate and then the light goes solid meaning you're good to fly.

The only complaint I have about it is the in-the-open gear under the motors, and the only real complaint the internet reviews I watched had was how cheap the transmitter was (one review said that a real transmitter he used for other aircraft made it into a whole different quadcopter).

All in all, a solid buy in my opinion :thumbsup:
 
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Www.diydrones.com

I bought their autopilot w/ GPS, gyro, airspeed pitot, baro sensor, and a fixed-wing styrofoam model (better range than a copter), but haven't assembled it yet. These things get a pre-programmed flight plan and can be turned loose to fly autonomously. With good batteries, I think the range would be 25 nm or so.

I'd not be TOO worried about releasing it into Class G and E airspace (it's 2 lbs), but of course it needs to stay away from airports/approaches/common flight paths. (I'm sure I will now get tons of flames here)

For all the people paranoid about "drones" do you realize that the weather and hobbiest balloons released every few hours weigh more and rely completely on the "big sky" theory?
 
ebykowsky said:
Just a nit to pick: a "drone" refers to a fully autonomous vehicle, whereas quadcopters, POV RC aircraft, and military unmanned aircraft (Predators, etc.) are all considered UAVs. If it has a person commanding it, it's not a drone. So, if you're asking whether a toy aircraft or what Geico wants to buy is a "drone", the answer will always be "no". However, the true question lies in where will the FAA ultimately implement regulations in controlling different types of UAVs (RC models included)
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Yeah, I see the point, however many of these units would not require much to make them autonomous to fly a program.
 
overdrive148 said:
http://www.amazon.com/Syma-Channel-...e=UTF8&qid=1407018562&sr=1-1&keywords=syma+x1

I was gifted one of these as a graduation present last month - I have zero helicopter and quadcopter experience and I think it's cheap and durable enough to learn. The transmitter isn't anything special and kind of cheap, but the whole package is like 30 bucks :dunno:
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I thought about getting one of these to prepare for the larger one, but did not end up doing so. The Phantoms and the like are so stable that I'm not sure it matters much. Throttle up to 20 feet or so, don't touch anything, and it will hang out there all day even in the wind (until the batteries run out).
 
Henning said:
Yeah, I see the point, however many of these units would not require much to make them autonomous to fly a program.
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Fair, but until you actually take that step to make them fly autonomously, they're not drones. It also wouldn't take much to rig a 172 to fly it via a remote control. That doesn't mean a manned 172 should be considered an RC aircraft.

You could even easily have a UAV that works as a drone on some flights, but is flown by a pilot on other flights. I imagine that despite being the same vehicle, the FAA would set different regulations for each flight--much in the same way one aircraft can operate under different FARs based on the purpose of the flight.
 
Henning said:
The one the boss brought was $1300 and had no learning curve. You can instantly fly it completely stabely.
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I'd appreciate that brand and model next time you see it.
Thanks!

Ps: I'd better not build one or it might turn into a death trap too...:yikes:
 
flyingriki said:
I'd appreciate that brand and model next time you see it.
Thanks!

Ps: I'd better not build one or it might turn into a death trap too...:yikes:
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I've got an email in to the boss asking what it is, I'll post it when the answer comes.
 
Henning said:
To me, the difference between a drone and an RC aircraft is the fly by wire system. An RC you directly control the aerodynamic surfaces through a 'dumb' servo control. With a drone, you send a signal as to what you would like it to do, and then the computer tells the aerodynamic surfaces what to do to achieve it.
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I was a member of the Long Island Drone Society over 30 years ago. We flew RC airplanes.... ;)
 
F01LA said:
I thought about getting one of these to prepare for the larger one, but did not end up doing so. The Phantoms and the like are so stable that I'm not sure it matters much. Throttle up to 20 feet or so, don't touch anything, and it will hang out there all day even in the wind (until the batteries run out).
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Yeah, something I absolutely can't do with the Syma. The gyros keep the spinny side up and that's about it. I have to constantly correct but I think that's a good learning situation where you have to correct and get better at controlling it if you need. I think I saw a phantom on 60 minutes where the guy took his that was hovering calm as a mirage next to him, grabbed the gear, and then walked like 10 feet with it and let go - it flew straight back to that spot and hovered without missing a beat. Too cool :yes:
 
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