Thanks to the good ideas of Gary Mortimer and others, we're now launching a Trust Time Trial contest. The idea is simple: you set up four waywaypoints, spaced 200m apart, on your own field and time your UAV completing the course. Upload the data in the comments here. Best time on Sept 1 wins (I've got a prize this month--a new FunJet kit).
In the future, we'll add complexity and stricter standards to the trial, but this first one is easy:
1) Must complete the pattern as shown above, totally autonomously (go into auto mode before waypoint 1 and exit after you hit waypoint 1 again). The four points are arranged in a square, with 200m on a side (obviously the two diagonal paths are longer). Any aircraft/autopilot allowed. It doesn't matter how close to the waypoints you get, as long as you pass on the outside of them.
2) For this first one, altitude is not graded.
3) Fastest time to hit all points and return to 1 wins (one lap). Must provide GPS track with timestamps and on-board video. (If you don't have/can't afford a small onboard videocamera like the FlyCamOne 2, we'll let it go this time. But in the future: video or it didn't happen!)
4) Must also demonstrate that fun was had. Kids, picnics, silly hats, marching bands, something.
GPS tracks are best achieved with an onboard GPS datalogger, like the i-Blue 747 or smaller Sanav ML-7. But if you don't have one or don't want to add the weight, you can just capture the GPS track from your telemetry stream, although you'll have to figure out how to convert it to KML format to export to Google Earth (see below). If your Ground Control System has a built-in map+track function, a screen shot of that is fine, but it should be possible for people to check to confirm that your leg lengths are at least 200m.
Evidence data should include these four things:1) Total time, along with aircraft and autopilot used. A photo of the aircraft would be nice.
2) Screen capture of path exported to Google Earth or an equivalent, annotated with waypoints and where autonomy began and ended. Here's a sample from Dean Goedde (waypoints and autonomy not marked):3) GPS datalog file, any format
4) Onboard video, embedded from YouTube or Vimeo. [Not absolutely required but requested]
I'd like to take part in this contest as well.
I've been dealing with autopoilots for 2 years now and my targets have been return to launch and automatic thermal hunting (I'm into sailplanes). I'm using custom autopilot, which is built by myself. It uses 16-bit dsPIC microcontroller, measures speed and altitude with pressure sensor, is stabilized with acceleration sensors and gyroscopes and uses GPS for finding its way home when needed. Waypoint navigation has not been in focus and also precision requirements have been quite relaxed, but I improved on that during past 7 days and now managed to complete pattern, in about 75 seconds. Autopilot's behaviour is far from perfect and I will continue to improve it, but I may not be able to achieve significant success before deadline. Anyway, its a great competition!
Okay, Chris, finally I got around to catching up on posts, so I will fly the course again within the next couple of days and set my "problem corner" route waypoint farther out so that it will fly outside the box.
Can the actual programmed route have as many route waypoints as desired as long as it goes outside the corners??
What's the point of that trial? Larger, out of sight in many cases, fast run. Even more speed-oriented than Xbox. Are we testing ariframes (Funjet would win) or autopilots?
How about replacing 200m by 50m?
Thanks Gary! I don't think any more laps are necessary for my setup as it is probably as fast as it gets with the SUperMiss. I was actually surprised that it cruised around @ 45-50 kph in spite of the short legs.
Fun competition and nice to see the other entries - bring on the next one! :).
..and finally another video from last nights best flight. I am quite happy with the Creative Vado HD and it manages well with the motor runnig in the SuperMiss.
I'm at the beach this week with both the ArduPilot and AttoPilot EasyStars, so I'll be posting some more tracks. But I'm unlikely to beat the top two times so unless Jordi brings out his Funjet I don't see radical changes in the standings.
Well done Bjorn there is only one more potential player out there that I have heard about and 8 days of the competition remaining, things will pretty much stay like this I think.
Comments
Time to find out what the Estonian flag looks like.
I'd like to take part in this contest as well.
I've been dealing with autopoilots for 2 years now and my targets have been return to launch and automatic thermal hunting (I'm into sailplanes). I'm using custom autopilot, which is built by myself. It uses 16-bit dsPIC microcontroller, measures speed and altitude with pressure sensor, is stabilized with acceleration sensors and gyroscopes and uses GPS for finding its way home when needed. Waypoint navigation has not been in focus and also precision requirements have been quite relaxed, but I improved on that during past 7 days and now managed to complete pattern, in about 75 seconds. Autopilot's behaviour is far from perfect and I will continue to improve it, but I may not be able to achieve significant success before deadline. Anyway, its a great competition!
Video is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKWJxHZveeA
Its recorded with Flycamone v1, so there is no quality.
Here are my autopilot-related pictures
Here are KML and gps datalogger files: (kml is cut, gps file is as is)
t3a.kml
G170627.TXT
Regards,
Andrus Kangro
Can the actual programmed route have as many route waypoints as desired as long as it goes outside the corners??
How about meeting sort of half way and make them 100m apart.
I'm worried about your eyes if you can't stand in the middle and see 200 and a bit metres!
How about replacing 200m by 50m?
Start 200m south of the first pole then follow the arrows around the poles and then finish point 200m north of the last pole.Hitting the virtual stumps as you go. A chance for a nation to retaliate ;-)
If you don't know what the ashes are you won't understand that!
Fun competition and nice to see the other entries - bring on the next one! :).
..and finally another video from last nights best flight. I am quite happy with the Creative Vado HD and it manages well with the motor runnig in the SuperMiss.
/Björn " target="_blank">
Or will they?
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