"About our flight times, this was a design decision not a technical limitation. To operate legally within visual line-of-sight it is adequate for most sites. But we have enough reserve payload to carry 3x that battery capacity if needed (and have…"
"Mauro,
If you can control the length of time you apply the USB power from the autopilot, then you can use a camera script to measure this time and take different actions. Short pulse = take picture, long pulse = shutdown. Some clever people have…"
"Interesting... but I think using terms like "china copy", "clone", "counterfeit" and even "plagiarized" in this context is a bit misdirected.
The design is opensource. Anyone can take the design files and manufacture it and sell it for whatever…"
"Hi Mauro, we use a relatively small prop 7X5E. With about a 1500kv brushless motor and 3 cells it gives a nice speed range and efficient cruise with only 40% throttle.
Squalish- Yes I feel 400ft is on the low end for this type of work. You…"
"Any reason you reject a fixed-wing solution from the start? And why do you want to run dual cameras?
The system you sketch out sounds a bit complex for use in the field to me.
"Thanks for the comments. sorry I've been away for a few days.
Chris: Don't worry we follow the regulations that are in place for both flying permits and export restrictions. As you heard I am not in US, but anyway we have export restrictions here…"
"Hi Pete, No we don't fly a laser sensor. The 3D measurements are done photogrammetrically, ie. derived from all the photos in software during post-processing. I'll try to explain how it works since a few people have asked."
"When I say navigation precision, I mean something like this (flown with paparazzi/thermopiles Jan 2010 at -18C): It really makes data processing go a lot smoother."
"Ok I'll tell you about this migration from MicroPilot to paparazzi. There is of course a pretty major cost difference (the "flyaway" cost for a MP-equipped plane if it goes down in a lake or something is pretty painful) but surprisingly that wasn't…"
Some of you may have heard about SmartPlanes in Sweden. We have been quietly working with survey and mapping from UAV's for about 5 years now and keeping a bit of a low profile. I have just been putting a bit more information on our homepage about…
"Nice work, thanks for sharing this.
I wouldn't say it is off-topic at all, there has been a lot of talk about it lately. The ability to produce georeferenced photo mosaics and even surface height measurements is what turns a bunch of pictures from…"
"I read the claims in the patent. It is about controlling access to information based on geographic position. So a moving vehicle could only gain access to information authorized for its current location for example.
"I'm afraid the two-way switches on the newer Futabas are digital inputs and can't be converted that way. You could convert a trim pot though. See This link
"brakar- yes I noticed you used the same flying pattern. I call it the "zamboni" pattern, you know the machine that cleans the ice on a hockey rink. It makes a lot of sense for small areas with narrow strips. Making smooth gentle turns into the lines…"