thinking about getting a drone on payday

I had a Phantom 3 and got the spark to replace it. It has been fastastic for a number of reasons.

In over a year I flew the Phantom a handful of times simply due to the size being a little unwieldy unless you are specifically going out to fly a drone. Short trips to a beach to get some nice shots would involve bringing a massive backpack and the batteries are expensive.

The spark, whilst lower resolution literally fits in a tiny 8"x8"x3" lowpro case with everything (including remote) that I need to fly for 45 mins almost non stop and be back in the air in an hour when depeleated (with a 20,000 mAh QC powerbank).

The spark actually has better range than the P3 Standard ! However honestly I lock mine into max 400m radius when I'm out and about. Technically the range is 1+ miles, but I would never risk going out of FOV.

I've brought it everywhere I can and never does it feel like the world is watching me fly a drone like it did with the Phantom.

No-one looks too hard at what I'm doing and because of the size, everyone assumes its just a toy, nothing serious. but It can take great video shots with some thought about what you want to achieve. The battery being only 15 mins (12-13 usable) means you have limited dry runs for the shot though.

The main disadvantage with the spark is the 2 axis gimbal, head on shots work great, but if you circle around objects for example, it has much poorer performance than a P3 as its reliant on software stabilization for the z axis.

As regards the DJI software, it already will lock you out of no-fly zones by default and the only way around is to hack it or use different (expensive) apps.

No idea why there would be a restriction to export as they are all made in China, by a Chinese company. However:

(a) The Us version has better range than the EU version.
(b) There is probably retail territory restrictions on DJI products.

All in all I love the Spark and its pretty damn cheap with the amount of technology onboard. I get to fly it far more often than I ever did the Phantom, heck even indoors at sports events I can fly it easily which is something I would never attempt with a Mavic or P3 due to the size and power !

Highly recommend it - nothing of its size comes close in terms of function vs form factor.

a reply to: Macenroe82

i have all sorts of android and apple phones and tablets in arms reach.

the replacement warranty is a little pricey but seems worth it.

i have been surfing around youtube abit and some of the racing drones as well as the more powerful 6-8 propeller drones seem pretty neat, there was even a video i saw of a guy surfing behind his drone



the head mounted visors for flying racing drones seem ... disorientating

a reply to: penroc3

Don’t say I didn’t warn you, but drones are addictive little buggers.
Before you know it, you’ll be buying yourself a DJI flamewheel and building your own customized bird.

a reply to: penroc3

Do it I got my spark about 2 weeks ago....not sure why I didn't get one sooner....just don't do dumb # and u will fine and make sure u reg that dam thing !!

Illegal to fly in any Federal land or most State parks. Mostly for the fire hazard , as a severely crashed drone can break open the flimsy Li-Ion batteries, which will catch fire upon contact with oxygen.

Significant engineering should be focused on providing a much safer power source.

Probably safest flown near beaches.

a reply to: charlyv

it was -3F today so i think i'm going to have to wait on the beach idea

Batt tech im moving along nicely the spark has a top speed of 50 KpH so i definitely could see an accident happening if people aren't careful.

I use our Phantom 3 Pro to check on the cattle. It can save me having to hike miles to find out where they are.

You have to be careful with the RTH (return to home) feature sometimes if there are obstacles near your landing area. The drone doesn't return the same way it went out. So, for example, while the drone returns at 100 feet, sometimes that can be below where I am standing, so the drone is actually climbing while returning home.

It's an amazingly stable platform and the video is fantastic. The first thing you'll wind up doing is going and getting more memory for your phone / tablet. Oh, and the sun shields are a great investment and not too expensive. Sun glare can be a problem, especially on a phone.

a reply to: Macenroe82

Okay, I'm intrigued (very). Now I have a bunch of questions....

1. Is the drone inside of some kind of a protective cage?

2. I assume this enclosure keeps the propellers from hitting the walls and ceiling, right?

3. But it looks like the cage moves around the drone...what is it attached to, and how?

4. How does the drone avoid hitting things? I suppose you as the pilot can avoid some things (the ones you can see), but you can only see where the camera is pointing, not behind, above and below it. Please do explain how this works. Are you using some collision avoidance technology?

5. Is the enclosure around the drone 'active'? In other words, is it somehow sending signals to the drone about what direction to move when it contacts something? And how do you, as the pilot, resolve those control input conflicts?

Wow...I'm amazed at these videos! That's some pretty tight quarters for a drone to be flying in!!

a reply to: Macenroe82

how do you transmit in a mine?

i assume its wireless but at the same time you would need a STRONG transmitter to get thru all the rock.

Do you have pics of your set up?

and are you hiring???

8 days until i order.....i'm so excited!!!!!

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Now those are they type of questions I like.

You are right.
This drone was the first, collision resistant uav.
The drone would sit upright inside the cage, with 4 propellers facing downwards.
The roll cage was on a gyro, allowing it to spin freely on all axis.
If the drone came in contact with a wall, the cage would roll along it.
This prevented it from simply bouncing off.
The cage attaches to the drone via the gyroscopic carbon fibre rod.

This drone does not have collision avoidance sensors.
The trick is to keep control over the drone the entire time.
Slow deliberate movement when in unexplored areas.


Now you can get these roll cages from a manufacturer called drone cage.
They are a simplistic version of the Cage in the video.

a reply to: penroc3

It all depends on the situation, you would be surprised at how well even a phantom 3 advance can traverse underground. DJI makes incredibly powerful transmitters.
The transmitter for the caged drone was made via a partnership with DJI.
It is a custom design and build.
The phantom 4 pro can fly 7km.
The tech in the transmitter for this drone is almost twice as powerful as the consumer level phantom 4 pro, And can reach over 12 km.
The rock underground will actually bounce that signal off its faces for over 500 meters of corners. I say over 500 meters because that’s the max flight distance around corners that I’ve flown underground.
If it’s a straight stretch, there’s virtually no limit underground.

a reply to: Macenroe82

I cannot picture the attachment / connection between the drone and the cage. If the cage can move (in any direction) then how can it be attached to the drone...without the drone moving too??

Do you have a picture of this attachment?

Or, is it like a rubber band type suspension where the cage springs back into place periodically?

ETA - So is it like the "Gim-Ball"??

ETA 2 - So, you can't really move in 3 axis', but rather only 2 axis', right? If so, then I get it. That's slicker than monkey snot!

Basically like this, by the Swiss company Flyability...

So, now I have a suggestion for you, Mac82...

Why not attach some LED's to the outside of the cage (independent of the drone)?

That way you could avoid some of the glare from the lights off the inside of the cage.

P.S. - You can send the royalty checks to FCD, c/o ATS!

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Similar,
Go to this article UAV magazine did on me.
You will see the drone in my hands.
I believe the write up has some information on our process.

UAV article

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

That has been implemented with a different version of the cage.
But the design on this particular drone has the cage floating around the drone, almost independently.
The weight from the LEDs end up pointing at the ground because of the weight imbalance.
On this model.

Other models of the cage are rigid allowing exactly what you suggested.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Flyability is the company we partnered with once they were awarded the million dollars for their prototype from drones for good.
The Gimball was the first iteration of the Elios. The Elios is what I helped develop.

I have been an integral part of their prototype development team since they went public.

They have flown us out there and man, treated us like kings.
The Swiss are hands down the nicest and smartest SOB’s I’ve ever worked with.
However, they had zero experience with underground.
That’s where I came in.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Man that pic brings back memory’s.
That was the Elios’ little brother.

a reply to: penroc3

Very strong signal.
I can’t get into too much detail due to NDA agreements with Flyability, but we have been utilizing LiFi as repeater stations for the newest prototype.
These LiFi nods integrate into what we call smart mines.
Machine Learning AI incorporated into all underground equipment.
From Seismicity, gas detection, to crack and fissure detection.
The idea is a primitive version of what you see in Prometheus, when the dude sends up an orb to scan the area. Asides from the look of the probe, the idea and basic concept is already in effect. Just picture the drone in the article flying independently of a pilot. Roaming an underground mine, reporting back everything it sees.

a reply to: Macenroe82

that's really neat and what a great opportunity to advance drone tech and use.

so many good reasons to use drone in a place like a mine, the canary has been replaced with what 50 years ago miners couldnt even imagine.

definitely going to save lives if it hasn't already i could imagine PPM gas detectors, looking at a possible collapse areas, to even acting like a back up emergency communication system i even saw very high res. FLIR camera already on a gimbal at the DJI store.

The reason i wanted to get this smaller drone from DJI was they seem to be the consumer level(pre-built) best drone right out of the box. and for under 600$(with the warrente we spoke about as well as the optionally available starter pack) was the way to go.

even if i don't get sucked into the drone world i will have a super awesome camera.

how did you get into your field and job? are you like a consultant to many companies or are you with one big one and work with DJI(maybe others) from time to time?

i was looking at DJI's FPV goggles, they look nice. if they can hook via HDMI or other common connection i will have to get them as well.

i don't own a PS4 but i saw a demo for the new Ace Combat game, it was made for VR and if i can hook sony's goggles to the drone video feed i will have get them, or vise versa. i would love to try FPV drone flight.

a reply to: Macenroe82

i missed that you posted an article.

very cool.

im in upstate NY if you ever need a worker