Hi all,
UAV newbie here but very interested in adding a DIY UAV to my field tools for some of the conservation work I'm involved in. I work in a lot of rugged areas where clear fields for picture perfect landings are a very rate commodity. Usually there are coral rubble beaches or lava fields but smooth grass or sand is very limited. However, there is no shortage of smooth, glassy water. Has anyone here built a UAV able to handle a water landing? If I hand launch and auto land, is catching a moving UAV really feasible?
Thanks!
Replies
I wouldn't count on catching the plane by hand. It's not a reliable option.
If you would be landing mostly on water then maybe buying/building a seaplane is an option. The plane could also take off from water then.
If you are talking about an winged UAV it is not unusual to use a net to retrieve or even catch it but I don'e know if the accuracy of autolanding is good enough to handle that. Some videos of the Foamaroo in a net and caught by hand are on youtube, for example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfuoYUjPlVM&list=UUhcyBNxepqwCFm...
Look at his other videos for bungee launches and hand catches.