UAV fully autonomous long range aerial video flight

I weren't tracking this. Made a simulation and counted time with a stopwatch. I used Nikon Coolpix S1 on the nose... Normally it is easy to add an OSD system with telemetry and have the tracking - there are FPV solutions for the task. I am aiming for a solution with max lift, therefore one day I will make some holes in the nose and mount much heavier camera just in order to document the whole area.
There is completely no GA traffic in this region (no big bosses, no airfields, ppl too poor/unimaginative to fly a para-plane, nearest fighter jet is based some 250km from there).

The plane has hundreds flights on it. I have used 'throw and forget' technology (as a few times before). Anyway it is tracking so well the flight path, if it would not return, it would be 90% chances battery failure, most probably ending with a gliding descend along the way (the autopilot dies last on 3S lipo). In such case I would just launch another one with camera down, maybe waiting for calmer weather first.

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Developer

Mark Colwell September 29, 2009 at 8:37am

Good mission, Wish we could do this in USA, this is a good example of a simple medium range mission. Ranchers must use a real plane or a man on horse, to check on missing livestock now. May be land owners could get a UAV operations permit for flights over their land?? I hope so.
Moderator

Robert Krogh (hooks) September 29, 2009 at 7:21am

Awesome!
T3

Krzysztof Bosak September 29, 2009 at 4:19am

I weren't tracking this. Made a simulation and counted time with a stopwatch. I used Nikon Coolpix S1 on the nose... Normally it is easy to add an OSD system with telemetry and have the tracking - there are FPV solutions for the task. I am aiming for a solution with max lift, therefore one day I will make some holes in the nose and mount much heavier camera just in order to document the whole area.
There is completely no GA traffic in this region (no big bosses, no airfields, ppl too poor/unimaginative to fly a para-plane, nearest fighter jet is based some 250km from there).

The plane has hundreds flights on it. I have used 'throw and forget' technology (as a few times before). Anyway it is tracking so well the flight path, if it would not return, it would be 90% chances battery failure, most probably ending with a gliding descend along the way (the autopilot dies last on 3S lipo). In such case I would just launch another one with camera down, maybe waiting for calmer weather first.
Paul Thompson September 29, 2009 at 3:49am

Great to see some long range flights being done without any dramas. Were you viewing its progress on video or telemetry once it went outside LOS?
Dimitar Kolev September 29, 2009 at 3:02am

Well done job Krzysztof! What is the camera setup you have?

This reply was deleted.