https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnmOMfmBZbY
It has been our goal to find out how we can train a user with no radio control airplane experience to operate our drone safely in the shortest time possible. In our experience, all who come for the training do not have experience in radio control. Some of them even not aware of such a hobby before they start thinking of using drone system to do their work.
As most researcher or user do not have the luxurious to spend a few week with us, our training is confine to 3 to 5 days. Therefore the normal radio control coaching method which we have been used for years to train up a new hobbyist is not suitable for our time constraints students.
Before radio control flight simulator become popular, a beginner will start with a trainer plane, the instructor must help him to set up and trim the plane to ensure it will not have any bad habit. Then with a trainer cord connected between their transmitter, the instructor will flip a switch and let the student take control of the plane. Usually it will not be too long, most of the time, in 20 seconds or less, the instructor will need to take over the control again. Depends on individual talent, it may be a few months of Saturday and Sunday hardworking before a student earn his/ her wings. Fast forward today's situation, we need a better and faster flight plan.
Prof Edward Webb from National University Singapore still hold the honour as the only pilot who land his plane on the FIRST flight
For a radio control airplane beginner, the most difficult part is eye hand coordination and the prospective model airplane view in the air relative to his fixed ground position. Radio control flight simulator has been in the market for more than 20 years and today's flight sim such as the latest Real Flight 7 had great graphic and realistic physics. The fact that you can practice without worry about crashing the plane is a great help too. We have been using it to train beginner hobbyist with good result.
For best result. we have been evaluating using helicopter instead of airplane for the student to start the training. Over the years, I have noticed that if a student start flying with airplane, in simulator, he may able to fly randomly for sometime. But actually he had very little control over the airplane. A lot of bad habit will quickly develop in this stage if the student did not get good advice. It will take more time to undo those habit then learning a good one. Therefore, before the student come for training, we request them to buy a simulator and try their best to hover a helicopter, preferably 60 size. The main objective is to train up their eye hand coordination.
Our student is not come here to prepare for their next world RC aerobatic championship, the focus is how to safely take off and land the airplane. More time will be given to practice landing as we have develop our " semi auto " take off and APM auto take off command also pretty reliable now.
The training is divided into two part. Flight simulator and field practice with our Skywalker 2012 trainer equip with an APM 2. ( that is our first APM with build in GPS, should had travel thousand of mile and still perform like new ) In both flight simulator and actual flying, only 4 maneuvers are require to prepare the student for their first landing. That is left hand traffic pattern, right hand traffic pattern, low pass ( 20 meter ) and full power go around, horizontal figure 8.
A typical training session start with computer flight simulator. Once the student demonstrate he can somehow hover a heli, that means he had develop the eye hand coordination require to fly a radio control airplane, the instructor then fly a maneuver, say right hand traffic pattern for the student to let him see how to properly execute the said maneuver. Pay attention to maintain altitude and correct flight path. It is important to train them to fly in both direction as soon as possible so they will not bias to one particular direction.
A few hours of simulator training will usually sufficient for the student to try their first ever radio control airplane flight. Flying the same maneuver learned from simulator, they will feel the real thing is much easier, that is because we had them fly in FBW A mode. In this mode, the student will be concentrate to control the flight path and altitude ( about 100 meter ) while the APM keep the airplane stable. We try to limit the training to about 15 minutes per session. Longer flight time will counter productive as student will lost concentration.
Once the student can fly a reasonable traffic pattern with constant altitude, we can gradually reduce the altitude to about 50 meter and continue to fly a smaller traffic pattern. Pay attention to maintain a parallel flight path with the runway. Once the airplane pass the pilot, apply full power, full up elevator for go around. The final goal here is to be able to fly about 10 meter above the runway and a reliable go around. Because of engine or motor torque, the airplane may turn to the left side while apply full power at lower air speed, so one should prepare to compensate with aileron or rudder to avoid fly toward the cloud.
To set up for a landing, the student must be very confident to fly at low altitude, using throttle to control altitude and able to perform go around safely. Start from a downwind leg about 60 meter away and parallel to runway, student should gradually reduce throttle to lower the altitude, make a smooth turn for the base leg, continue the turn and adjust the bank angle so the nose will point directly into the runway for the final approach. Most student will be having difficulty at the initial stage to set up for a correct final approach, this is where the instructor come in to give verbal instruction and hopefully the student will follow. There is not much time to save the plane at this stage.
If the student successfully point the airplane into the runway, all he have to do is cut off all power and let it glide in for a landing. As training progress, student can learn to use throttle to adjust the landing point and using rudder to adjust the flight path so the plane will land in the centre of the runway.
Figure of 8 in both direction is the final maneuver for the student to practice. This maneuver will prepare for the student to be able to fly the airplane in all difference angle relative to him. He will have confident to take over control from auto mode in all position.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U85kAZ0JZk
We have been fortunate enough to have talented students come for training. Most of them make their first radio control airplane landing in their first training day. While we cannot guarantee everyone can do the same but we are confident in the third training day, one should able to land it in one piece or this may not your game.
Mr Yoon from Seoul, Korea after a training session
Fly by wire mode is really a game changer for radio control airplane training. A well set up plane such as our Skywalker 2012 is very easy and safe to fly. With Geofence enable, one is impossible to crash the plane during practice except mechanical or electrical failure. A training use to take a few months now can reduce to just a few days. This has opened up the door for more researcher to implement UAV technology in their field work. There are certainly endless of potential for UAV, especially low cost and easy to use UAV system. But we feel that proper training is essential for effective and safe UAV operation. We share our experience here and hope for more input toward better training idea and method.
May the number of landing and take off always be the same.
Comments