"I have not tried it because that seems like it will only tell me if the OF is working. The fact that Mission Planner TERMINAL Test optflow shows no values makes me beg the question to whether the OF, V1.1, is supported. I have two OF…"
Latest Activity
William Burkert replied to William Burkert's discussion SPOTTY SUPPORT FROM DIYDRONES in the group ArduCopter User Group
Wayne Morris replied to Dave C's discussion Arducopter Tuning Guide"Let us know after recalibrating."
DeveloperRandy replied to Randy's discussion ArduCopter-3.0 ready for wider use
"
Nothing to add except a video that shows that we've seen this problem plenty and at least some of the time the compassmot can sort it out."
João Victor Fortes Carvalho replied to Dave C's discussion Arducopter Tuning Guide"Yes, it moves petfectly, thought as said i didnt moved during calibration process. Iam going to try tomorrow. Will be back to tell the results."
John Campen replied to Craig Elder's discussion APM Copter 2.9.1.b has been released"Martin do you mean you have built a X8 quad or you have 8 arms with 16 motors in coaxial configuration? There is a massive amount of research done by NASA in the mid 50s on coaxial copters etc.I don't have it now but do some searching and…"
Bill Bonney replied to Randy's discussion ArduCopter-3.0 ready for wider use"Sounds like you have current flowing into the APM on GND. This raises the GND level voltage and decrease the differential. Try disconnecting the GND from the ATTO sensor. There's a common GND, so it should work ok."
Jeff Griffith replied to Dave C's discussion Arducopter Tuning Guide"When you go to Radio Calibration in Mission Planner can you see the channel changing with the pot? Thats where I would start. It may be a problem with your tx settings."
Chuck Durham replied to Chuck Durham's discussion Connecting 3DR Quad Power Distribution Board to APM 2.5+"Attached are some pics, but basically what I have connected up
1) Battery to APM Power Management cable, APM power cable connected to the APM power input, the Deans connector out from Power Management cable to the Quadcopter Power…"
João Victor Fortes Carvalho replied to Dave C's discussion Arducopter Tuning Guide"Wayne, thank you for your reply, the issue i am having is despite the place my knobe is i always can change only between two values which are minimum and maximum ive set before. There is no chance i can choose a midle value, i am using vr(a) which…"
John Hanson replied to Randy's discussion ArduCopter-3.0 ready for wider use"Thanks! This explains it - my quad , flies great under 2.9.1b, but under 3.0 it always yaws left similar to the calibrate video, and has bad loiter. I tried calibrate compass and compassmot several times - I never got a interference level less than…"
Xander Zoolander replied to Xander Zoolander's discussion Advantages to types of frames?"You have very good points in there. I'll be building mine completely from scratch, design and materials, then whatever motors props and boards I get will do.
I was thinking of doing #1 when I first got looking into this stuff. I think I will do…"
JDronesJani Hirvinen commented on Jani Hirvinen's blog post jDrones News: jD-IOBoard v1.0
"I will ask my girls to send new board to you as yours might be broken or something else is wrong on it. Please PM me your delivery address.
We are using those for multiple things and newer need to powercycle them while programming. It is after…"
DeveloperRandy replied to Randy's discussion ArduCopter-3.0 ready for wider use
"Martin,
leave min at 0. Make the Max the maximum declination you think you might need divided by 10. So for example min = 0, max = 2.0 would give you +- 20 degrees of tuning which should be enough."
Wayne Morris replied to Dave C's discussion Arducopter Tuning Guide"You don't see the change in the MP configurations. You set up the control and I set mine at the minimum, anti-clockwise, and write those to the copter. Then you fly and adjust the knob for the best flight. After the flight refresh the…"
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Forum
Arducopter Tuning Guide
Started by Dave C in ArduCopter 2.x (multicopter). Last reply by Wayne Morris 5 minutes ago. 515 Replies 47 Likes
ArduCopter-3.0 ready for wider use
Started by Randy in ArduCopter 2.x (multicopter). Last reply by Randy 7 minutes ago. 108 Replies 12 Likes
APM Copter 2.9.1.b has been released
Started by Craig Elder in ArduCopter 2.x (multicopter). Last reply by John Campen 14 minutes ago. 1271 Replies 9 Likes
Connecting 3DR Quad Power Distribution Board to APM 2.5+
Started by Chuck Durham in ArduPilotMega 2.x hardware. Last reply by Chuck Durham 26 minutes ago. 3 Replies 0 Likes
Advantages to types of frames?
Started by Xander Zoolander in Quad/multicopter frames. Last reply by Xander Zoolander 36 minutes ago. 6 Replies 0 Likes
APM not uploading in Mission Planner
Started by Soko in APM Mission Planner. Last reply by Soko 37 minutes ago. 24 Replies 0 Likes
Motors spinning on arming
Started by Steven Tisseyre in ArduPlane 2.x software. Last reply by Randy 47 minutes ago. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Unable to arm firmware 3.0
Started by Richard Boyhan in ArduCopter 2.x (multicopter) 51 minutes ago. 0 Replies 0 Likes
Ardupilot on PX4 + IO won't arm motors.
Started by Stephen Berke in ArduCopter 2.x (multicopter). Last reply by Stephen Berke 59 minutes ago. 3 Replies 0 Likes
Setup videos
Started by Kenobi in 3DR Radios. Last reply by MasterBlazter 1 hour ago. 1 Reply 1 Like
APM Project vs DJI NAZA and WOOKONG
Started by Dale Charnock in ArduCopter 2.x (multicopter). Last reply by Monroe Lee King Jr. 1 hour ago. 42 Replies 1 Like
Anyone successfully gotten their camera to trigger on waypoint?
Started by Matt Gunn in Aerial photography. Last reply by Phil Ellerbroek 1 hour ago. 22 Replies 0 Likes
APM 2.5 Extending The Log Capacity
Started by Riley in ArduPilotMega 2.x hardware. Last reply by Chad Phillips 1 hour ago. 4 Replies 0 Likes
Props & rotors Vs EDF
Started by Jon Stockman in Airframe design. Last reply by R. D. Starwalt 2 hours ago. 2 Replies 0 Likes
3DRobotics Eagle Library?
Started by Bob Hern in Uncategorized 2 hours ago. 0 Replies 0 Likes
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Welcome to DIY Drones!
This is the home for everything about amateur Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Use the tabs and drop-down menus above to navigate the site. (About us/Site rules)
This community created the Arduino-based ArduPilot, the world's first universal autopilot (planes, multicopters of all sorts and ground rovers). The APM 2.5 autopilot hardware runs a variety of powerful free UAV software systems, including:
- ArduPlane, a pro-level UAV system for planes of all types
- ArduCopter, a fully-autonomous multicopter and heli UAV system
- ArduRover, a fully-autonomous ground-based vehicle system
I'm new to all this--where do I start? Are amateur UAVs legal? (yes)
Examples of civilian uses of drones Glossary of confusing terms
Blog Posts
DIY Samsung Trigger for APM
Posted by Jeff Taylor on June 18, 2013 at 5:06pm 1 Comment 5 Likes
In this post I’ll describe how to make your own cable to trigger the Samsung mirrorless cameras NX20, NX210 and NX1000. We’ll be using an ArduPilot Mega 2.5 to do the triggering but you can use any Arduino or even a soldered push button.
What you’ll need:
- Any 2 or 3 wire cable – I use a 30cm Futaba servo extender which I cut the female end off…
DJI has officially released the H3-2D Gimbal for $699!
Posted by Adam AKAV8R on June 18, 2013 at 3:00pm 6 Comments 1 Like
Well the price has finally been released for the new DJI Phantom gimbal @ $699.00 and comes complete as shown below. The nice features are the ability to charge the GoPro while flying and the ability to output video to your video Tx all contained inside the arms of the gimbal. Full details …
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Parrot releases GPS module for AR.Drone 2.0
Posted by Chris Anderson on June 18, 2013 at 1:20pm 5 Comments 3 Likes
Man whose RC drone was shot down over Turkey protest returns to the skies
Posted by Matthew Schroyer on June 18, 2013 at 7:44am 1 Comment 4 Likes
Many of you might be aware of the situation in Turkey, where protests have been going on for longer than two weeks. Some of you on DIYDrones might also be aware that a man was flying a small RC drone above these protests, that is, until his aircraft was shot down by riot police.
I originally wrote about this on sUASNews,…
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PX4FLOW Position Hold Beta and Source Code Release
Posted by PX4 on June 18, 2013 at 7:30am 3 Comments 6 Likes
Our new video shows position hold (the position can be moved on the fly, so its actually full position control) using the PX4FMU autopilot plus …
Continue$250 disposable drones could monitor hurricanes
Posted by Chris Anderson on June 18, 2013 at 6:52am 8 Comments 3 Likes
ASME Podcast - How Drones Can Help Predict Tornadoes
Posted by S.G. Sutter on June 18, 2013 at 6:30am 1 Comment 5 Likes
ASME presents a podcast on the application of small UAVs in the study of severe weather, especially tornadoes.
Here is the link to the ASME…
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A beginner's experience to the Copter world
Posted by Steve Monro on June 18, 2013 at 5:00am 8 Comments 2 Likes
My dad likes remote control cars. My brothers like remote control cars. I like them too. As a family, we grew up playing with train sets laid out on the family dinner table. As kids we also used to enjoy playing with a “Thunderloop Thriller AFX Slotcar Set” and making things out of Lego. The things that typical boys enjoyed playing with.
So where do I begin with this flying journey? How about this last Christmas. It was the year of… strangely enough remote control…
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Know your sky!
Posted by Monroe Lee King Jr. on June 18, 2013 at 4:16am 3 Comments 9 Likes
I talk a lot about the FAA and such and my concern for our community so I thought I'd give everyone a look at what's going on in the sky from the view of the FAA. Explain some basic things about flight charts and flight planning.
You can get a look at what's going on above your head and plan better and safer…
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Contests
Season Two of the Trust Time Trial (T3) Contest has now begun. The fourth round is an accuracy round for multicopters, which requires contestants to fly a cube. The deadline is April 14th.A list of all T3 contests is here.
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UAV news from sUAS News
UAS demonstrates potential of unmanned aircraft for wildfire use
Mark Engebretson Owners of Unmanned Aircraft Systems, based in Oklahoma City, were at Possum Kingdom Lake Saturday demonstrating unmanned aircraft that can be used over wildfires. Held at the Possum Kingdom East Volunteer Fire Department, representatives from the Brazos River Authority, Graham Fire Department, Palo Pinto County Sheriff’s Office and Caddo VFD attended. Greg Ward, who has extensive experience with Channel 9 in Oklahoma City with video and audio reporting from aircraft, explained some of the capabilities. “The flexibility is endless, you can configure it a number of ways,” he said. The 4.4-pound aircraft can be equipped with forward looking video with a variety of possible lenses, infrared and thermal imaging among the options. He also said there are a number of options for flying the aircraft, from line of sight, to first person with a computer monitor, much like a video game to programming it to specific coordinates. “Flight time is generally two hours,” Ward added. “We’re putting auto pilots in all of these. It can return to the GPS location where it was launched, circles and waits to land.” Jerry Stuckey, the company’s CEO, said the aircraft is made on composite Styrofoam. “If something happens, if it runs [...]
NASA Tests Radio for Unmanned Aircraft Operations
NASA’s communications experts have begun flight testing a prototype radio as part of the agency’s contributions toward fully integrating civil and commercial Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System (NAS). This particular radio is one of the first steps to provide the critical communications link for UAS pilots on the ground to safely and securely operate their remotely piloted vehicles in flight even though they are many miles — if not continents or oceans — apart. “So far the tests are going well and we’re learning a lot about how this prototype radio operates under various conditions, but we still have much more testing to do on this radio and others that will come,” said Jim Griner, a project engineer at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. Currently there is not a great deal of freedom for civilian uses of UAS over our nation’s skies. Police and firefighters, for example, must use off-the-shelf systems and fly under special Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approvals that restrict where and when remotely piloted vehicles can fly. “There are some pretty good limitations on those operations, but the work we’re doing to develop a new command and control radio for the UAS [...]
PSNI on G8 drones: ‘They actually look like big model aircraft’
THE POLICE SERVICE of Northern Ireland (PSNI) have revealed details about the unmanned aerial vehicles or drones they will be using during the G8 summit, which gets under way in Fermanagh tomorrow. As part of an unprecedented security operation at the Lough Erne golf resort near Enniskillen, the PSNI will be operating three of the unmanned aircraft over the next two days to give them an “eye in the sky” view of their operation. The drones will be used primarily for surveillance purposes during the summit and will deliver high quality images to police commanders. The PSNI will have 8,000 officers in the field over a 24-hour period with the existing force supplemented by over 3,600 officers brought in from police forces in England, Scotland and Wales. http://www.thejournal.ie/psni-g8-drones-953869-Jun2013/ Bookmark It Hide Sites
Trimble’s new UAS targets big survey, geospatial projects
Holding thumbs that the FAA will come through for them in 2015, Trimble unveils its latest wing. Sunnyvale, Calif.-based, publicly traded (Nasdaq: TRMB) Trimble, with $2 billion in 2012 revenue, uses positioning technologies – GPS, lasers and optics – to focus on applications requiring position or location, including surveying, construction, agriculture, fleet and asset management, public safety and mapping. Like the X100 but better Just like its predecessor, the Gatewing X100 – the market’s first commercial aerial imaging rover – incorporates mission planning, automatic field image acquisition and fully digital and automated image processing software. Trimble acquired privately-held Gatewing, a Belgium-based manufacturer of lightweight UAVs for photogrammetry and rapid terrain mapping, in April 2012. The UX5 carries a Sony NEX-5R mirrorless, 16.1-megapixel camera with a fixed focal-length external lens, which has a surface area nearly nine times that of the Ricoh camera carried on the X100, which was already 1.5 times larger than the biggest on the market at the time. The large field of view from the camera allows the rover to cover 50-75 percent more area to enhance efficiency and reduce operational costs. In addition to the increase in flight efficiency, the Trimble UX5 is capable of producing [...]
Washington’s $10B Unmanned Industry
By Rick Anderson Tad McGeer, multimillionaire godfatherof the state’s drone industry, was heading home the other day from his office in the rain-swept Columbia River Gorge town of White Salmon when he picked up his cell phone and dialed a Seattle reporter. In an earlier e-mail exchange, the reporter had asked about the growth of drone manufacturing in Washington, and McGeer had written back, “Are you jumping on the hype bandwagon, or do you want to discuss reality?” The hype he referred to was the drone-phobia that hovers over any discussion of unmanned flying vehicles, from the small model-sized planes that buzz Seattle neighborhoods to the multi-ton aerial robots that are used in war and prowl Washington’s northern border. To McGeer’s dismay, the public doesn’t seem to like them much—the airborne snoops fly right up and peek through your window, don’t they?—even though civilian drone use is growing and the Pentagon is expanding its drone air force, including four bases in the Evergreen State. Assured by the reporter that reality rocks, McGeer agrees to call. “I’ve got about a 20-minute drive,” said the 56-year-old Stanford aeronautical engineer, steering towards Hood River, Oregon, across the old two-lane toll bridge stretching three-quarters of [...]
UAV news from Flight Global
Maritime Heron UAV supports European airspace trial
Europe has advanced a project to prove the feasibility of using satellite communications to enable UAS operations in non-segregated airspace ...Brazilian navy begins UAS evaluation
The Brazilian navy has begun to evaluate two Israeli-made unmanned air systems for maritime surveillance missions ...Indian air force to launch micro UAS evaluation
The Indian air force is to evaluate several micro unmanned air systems from around 10 companies in early May ...VIDEO: Eurocopter demonstrates unmanned EC145
Eurocopter has unveiled an optionally piloted vehicle (OPV), based on its EC145 light twin, which has been in development since September 2011.Israeli F-16 downs another Hezbollah UAV
An Israeli air force Lockheed Martin F-16 has shot down an unmanned air vehicle launched from Lebanon by Hezbollah militants ...
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