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Stephane Rocca commented on Jack Crossfire's blog post 3 axis brushless gimbal
"Well, great job at this stage Jack. I assume you extract euler angles properly, from your computed matrix transform, before applying any correction don't you ? If so, your remaining problems are an illustration of the jerky behavior because of…"
6 minutes ago
Rob posted a discussion

One motor slows more quickly than the others - damaged?

Hi,After a slightly lopsided landing with my quad which resulted in the blades hitting the ground I've noticed that when I turn off the throttle one of the motors stops spinning much more quickly than the other three. Also when turning the motor by hand it feels much more "bumpy" than when turning the others.The motor is a jDrones 850Kv AC2830-358Is this a problem I should worry about? If it is does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix it?Thanks,RobSee More
10 minutes ago
Tono replied to Tono's discussion APM2.5 and simonK ESC's in the group ArduCopter User Group
"Thanks for the info. It seems to be working fine now, just need to play with the PID's and will be ready to fly. I ended up replacing the "bad" ESC with the spare one I bought and it now works fine. Maybe going to need to reflash the…"
22 minutes ago

Admin
Thomas J Coyle III commented on Joshua Ott's blog post 3DR is one of CNBC's Disrupter 50
"When I worked at Raytheon we were required to read the book "The Innovator's Delimma" by Clayton M. Christensen. The book is a very good read as to why corporations rise and fall. Corporations have to reinvent themselves every…"
27 minutes ago
RUBENS SACHETTO SANCHEZ commented on Chris Anderson's blog post Arduino debugging tips
"Hello Chris. I have many difficulties to install APM. Arduino at the error that appears is this: variable or field 'run_cli' declared void. I've tried in several ways without success. You can give me a hint?"
28 minutes ago

3D Robotics
Joshua Ott commented on Joshua Ott's blog post 3DR is one of CNBC's Disrupter 50
"Monroe, your words will make Chris smile, I'm sure!"
30 minutes ago
Joe replied to Craig Elder's discussion APM Copter 2.9.1.b has been released
"I was testing 3.0.0-rc3 to see if it would detect a missing Magnetometer, I am using an external magnetometer, I disconnected the magnetometer and sure enough it refused to arm and displayed the PreArm: compass not healthy disarmed warning. BUT it…"
32 minutes ago
Tomas Soedergren replied to Matt Gunn's discussion For anyone using GRID or GRID V2...please read
"If this is not already implemented; Why not develop a "distance intervalometer" that can trigger a camera at a desired distance interval, e.g. every 35 meter, without using up waypoints for simly triggering the cam? Then again, maybe I am…"
35 minutes ago
Tommy Larsen replied to Dean Wynton's discussion Arduplane Autoland
"This is why Dean has got a problem. When he reaches WP5 and "reads" WP6 which has a landing altitude of 100m(same as WP5), he is within the "3m" and the throttle cut's off and it stabilize the airplane for landing. Dean, if…"
53 minutes ago
Neil Flournoy posted discussions
59 minutes ago
Monroe Lee King Jr. commented on Joshua Ott's blog post 3DR is one of CNBC's Disrupter 50
" I agree with everything you said! I am truly hoping other open source projects can learn to do the same. It takes pick-and-place machines and reflow ovens to build open source hardware! It takes a certain amount of money to get them to…"
1 hour ago
Tomas Soedergren commented on Matt Gunn's blog post Mapping Mission Ride Along
"Matt, glad you liked APG. Guys, I feel a bit discouraged by reading about apm trigger problem. This platform is a bit too mature to present snags in such fundamental functions! Aerial photo mapping occurs like one of the obvious uses... But then the…"
1 hour ago
Charles lakins replied to Tono's discussion APM2.5 and simonK ESC's in the group ArduCopter User Group
1 hour ago
Jim Townsend posted a discussion

Can't hover my 3DR Hex in Stabilize mode

I've got a 3DR Hex with 850KV motors 10" props and I'm using a 35C battery.The ESC's were calibrated.The TX is a Walkera Devention 7 and it's been calibrated using MP.I'm running the latest APM2.5 firmware and Mission Planner version 1.2.52 mav 1.0The PIDs I'm using right now are the defaults that come with the Hex firmware.I've got everything hooked up and it flies.  Pitch, Roll and Yaw are great.  In Stabilize mode, it stays nice and level, it's responsive and very easy to control.But…See More
1 hour ago
Neil Flournoy replied to Neil Flournoy's discussion Program lock-up normal for ERROR??
"FYI MP 1.2.52 seems to have fixed this. Thanks!"
1 hour ago

3D Robotics
Joshua Ott commented on Joshua Ott's blog post 3DR is one of CNBC's Disrupter 50
"3DR rules because the community it comes from never stops moving forward. Our pick-and-place machines and reflow ovens are nice, but they're available to any company out there. We have some brilliant people on the payroll, but they could…"
1 hour ago

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For anyone using GRID or GRID V2...please read

Started by Matt Gunn in Aerial photography. Last reply by Tomas Soedergren 36 minutes ago. 19 Replies

Arduplane Autoland

Started by Dean Wynton in ArduPlane 2.x software. Last reply by Tommy Larsen 53 minutes ago. 18 Replies

Program lock-up normal for ERROR??

Started by Neil Flournoy in APM Mission Planner. Last reply by Neil Flournoy 1 hour ago. 4 Replies

ArduPlane 2.73 released

Started by Andrew Tridgell in ArduPlane 2.x software. Last reply by Andrew Tridgell 1 hour ago. 89 Replies

X axis accelerometer non functional

Started by charles1317 in ArduPilotMega 2.x hardware. Last reply by Bill Bonney 1 hour ago. 1 Reply

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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.

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

3DR is one of CNBC's Disrupter 50

Posted by Joshua Ott on May 25, 2013 at 12:00pm 5 Comments

3DRobotics was one of the five manufacturing companies in CNBC's Disrupter50 list; along with Makerbot, Quirky, Shapeways, Rethink Robotics.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100727789…

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(Acro Mode Anyone?) Today in 1927, Lt. James H. Doolittle performed the first known successful outside loop.

Posted by Drone Savant on May 25, 2013 at 6:28am 7 Comments

In 1927, Doolittle was the first person to successfully execute an outside loop — previously thought to be a fatal maneuver. Carried out in a Curtiss fighter at Wright Field in Ohio, Doolittle executed the dive from 10,000 feet, reached 280 miles per hour,…

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How to connect 3DR GPS uBlox to Raspberry Pi

Posted by Rogelio Nunez on May 25, 2013 at 5:45am 2 Comments

Here is my connection (You can check GPIO pinout here):

I used theFTDI GPS adapter cable, solder pads can be used also, just have…

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3 axis brushless gimbal

Posted by Jack Crossfire on May 25, 2013 at 3:56am 9 Comments



The key…

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First test of targeting system.

Posted by vis.asta on May 24, 2013 at 3:30pm 10 Comments

First test of targeting system. All calculations are done in the air.

Camera provides two streams. Highly compressed (rigth window) and detailed (left).

3 axis BL gimbal. In low light conditions and excessive vibration.

 

test at…

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Thirty Days (#18): NIR camera conversion

Posted by Joshua Ott on May 24, 2013 at 3:30pm 16 Comments

John modified a point-and-shoot camera to capture near infrared images. This is half the puzzle in building NDVI images for analyzing crop health.

Information on the conversion can be found here: …

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Understanding Fly-By-Wire B Mode Altitude Behaviour

Posted by Bill Bonney on May 24, 2013 at 2:44pm 2 Comments

A couple months ago I was testing ArduPlane and some of the different modes. I was not getting on very well in FBW-B* mode. If you look at the image below. You will see the purple track. I was loosing altitude and I couldn't understand why. You can see just before the path goes red, I'd lost a lot of…

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My two birds...ready for flight now

Posted by Euan Ramsay on May 24, 2013 at 1:30pm 5 Comments

Nicknamed "Laurel and Hardy", for reasons that should be obvious.

Everything calibrated...time to get the PID's done! Well..once it stops raining and snowing here in Switzerland. :-(

Some build annoyances, which I'll go into in an additional post.

 

 

 

Laurels bits…

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mapping with condor drone and apm 2.5

Posted by jim C. on May 24, 2013 at 8:30am 9 Comments

Because the latter one of condor drone tests went very well in the navigation, I decided to mount the camera aboard the condor photography for mapping and the results appear promising.

 

 …

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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

CU-Boulder organizing effort to establish unmanned aircraft test site in Colorado

CU-Boulder organizing effort to establish unmanned aircraft test site in Colorado

Jim Scott, CU-Boulder media relations A state application organized by the University of Colorado Boulder has been submitted to the Federal Aviation Administration for the development of one of six unmanned aircraft systems test sites slated to be established across the United States. Submitted this month, the seventh and final volume of the Colorado application is one of 50 proposals from 37 states for designated Unmanned Aircraft Systems, or UAS, test sites. UAS come in various sizes ranging from hobby airplanes to aircraft with wingspans as wide as commercial jets. While they can be used for tasks ranging from forest fire support and search and rescue missions to oil and gas exploration and military operations, a growing number of science efforts are being undertaken using UAS, said CU-Boulder aerospace engineering sciences Associate Professor Eric Frew. CU-Boulder has one of the most comprehensive UAS science programs in the nation, said Frew, who directs CU’s Research and Engineering Center for Unmanned Vehicles, or RECUV. CU-Boulder’s UAS projects have included monitoring seal populations in the Arctic and charting sea ice changes near Greenland to intercepting storm cells associated with tornadoes in Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska and measuring gaping holes in Antarctic sea ice known as [...]

Infragram: the Infrared Photography Project

Infragram: the Infrared Photography Project

A simple, cheap infrared camera which can measure plant health — for geek gardeners, farmers, and open source DIY scientists. What could farmers, gardeners, students or environmental activists do with an infrared camera that costs as little as $35?What is Infragram? Infragram is a simple, affordable near-infrared camera produced by the Public Laboratory community in a series of collaborative experiments over the last few years. We originally developed this technology to monitor wetlands damages in the wake of the BP oil spill, but its simplicity of use and easy-to-modify open-source hardware & software makes it a useful tool for home gardeners, hikers, makers, farmers, amateur scientists, teachers, artists, and anyone curious about the secret lives of plants. What can you do with Infragram? Take pictures to examine plant health in backyard gardens, farms, parks, andnearby wetlands Check on the health of your crops, especially from a balloon or a kite Monitor your household plants Teach students about plant growth and photosynthesis Create exciting science fair projects Generate verifiable, open environmental data Check progress of environmental restoration projects Document unhealthy areas of your local ecology Pretend you have super-veg-powers Near-infrared photography has been a key tool for planning at the industrial and governmental level: it is used on airplanes and satellites by vineyards, [...]

Google acquires kite-power generator

Google acquires kite-power generator

Well I did’nt see this coming. Using lots of UA tech Google invests in yet more cutting edge stuff (ed) Google has acquired a US company that generates power using turbines mounted on tethered kites or wings. Makani Power will become part of Google X – the secretive research and development arm of the search giant. The deal comes as Makani carries out the first fully autonomous flights of robot kites bearing its power-generating propellers. Google has not said how much it paid to acquire Makani, but it has invested $15m (£9.9m) in the company before now. In a statement posted to its website, Makani said the deal would “provide Makani with the resources to accelerate our work to make wind energy cost competitive with fossil fuels”. Rather than use fixed turbines to generate power, Makani has been experimenting with “flying wings” adorned with several smaller turbines that act as propellers as the craft takes off. Makani claims that mounting the turbines on a wing is more efficient as large numbers can be built with fewer materials than traditional tower-based turbines. In addition, the robot wings can land to avoid damage if wind speeds are too high or during bad [...]

Unmanned aircraft can protect crops from locusts

Unmanned aircraft can protect crops from locusts

by Gabino Martinez Serrano The world population is growing at a rapid pace. Today we are almost seven billion people and it is estimated that the figure will exceed 10 billion in 15 years. The world’s need for food will double, but the world’s arable land remains the same. Experts say that to increase performance, it is important to plant each crop where it can best develop, increase the yield potential of plant varieties and to reduce adversity posed by pests which have become a real problem. Failure to protect crops from pests would reduce harvests to just over half. Locusts are unique because they undergo a phase change. This means that under certain circumstances related to climate and population density, their behaviour changes and they move, eat and behave as a group, forming gigantic clouds and can travel great distances devouring crops in their path. These pests can affect 20 per cent of the surface of the earth, spreading through Africa, the Near East, and Southwest Asia. More than 65 countries may be at risk of swarms, invasion and reproduction. The last powerful plague occurred in 1988-89, threatening as many as 43 countries, one fifth of the world as [...]

ESCC to use donated unmanned aerial vehicles for science

ESCC to use donated unmanned aerial vehicles for science

Ted Shockley MELFA — Launching unmanned aerial vehicles from the Eastern Shore could be a financial plus for the area, and Eastern Shore Community College is positioning itself for an associated educational and training partnership. A link between the two was seen recently when an Aerosonde aerial vehicle donated to the college was unveiled in front of a gathering of staff members and industry experts. “We have something tangible, real, that the students can see,” said College President Linda Thomas-Glover of the unmanned airplane, which from wing to wing was bigger than a typical dining-room table. The particular model was used for years out of Wallops to gather weather data and has flown into hurricanes, said Jon Borcik, a program manager for AAI Corp., which oversees the Aerosonde program. He called it a “coming home mission” for the plane, a fitting place for an aircraft based at Wallops to continue its ­service. The plane will be used to stimulate an interest in science and also be studied by various college classes. The donation was arraigned by Peter Bale, board chairman for the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International and a former program manager for Aerosonde North America at Wallops. At a [...]

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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