Now this is quad racing!

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Burnzoire
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Now this is quad racing!

Post by Burnzoire »

I've been on the verge of getting into RC flying for a long time but this could possibly be what makes me jump in head first:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-06-11/t ... ng/6532896" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
In the days of VR Gaming, this might be a step backwards as the goggles are usually low field of view, but the idea is for low latency wireless FPV piloting which isn't quite do-able with the Oculus Rift...

I can see this being a ton of fun!
Tested on a ready-to-fly racing mini quad:
Tested showing a custom build:
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Cletus »

Looks ace! I've avoided quads in my R.C journey. First vid is ace. I could get into that. My DX6i isn't super compatible with quad racers I've just read, but it can work initially. Very interesting.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Madmya »

Yeah looks bloody fun.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

A couple more nice examples of FPV flying:
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

It has begun! Ordered this little ripper last night:
http://www.getfpv.com/frsky-taranis-x9d ... ode-2.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Image
$311 for radio with aluminium case, inc. FedEx Priority from the US.

My second choice was the Spektrum DX9 but I couldn't justify spending $550 on my first radio. This FrSky is a good unit though. Packed with features, good build quality and has been disappearing from shelves everywhere (hence ordering from overseas).
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Cletus »

Nice! If I do wade into these waters I'll stick with Spektrum because almost everything I have is with them. Might sell off my modded DX6i for an upgrade to a DX9...maybe.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

So my eventual build is looking like this:
" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Pretty big buy-in, starting without any gear at all :/
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Hercy »

Burnzoire wrote:but I couldn't justify spending $550 on my first radio.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

i spent $50 on my first quad, if that's what you're getting at
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Hercy »

I meant that 2 days after questioning the value of an extra $200 on radio equipment, you're looking at a spend of $2,000 on a drone.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Cletus »

My RX is capable...not for the super high end but a Blade quad witha lipo and brushless motor upgrades should be on target. the Horizon FPV kit has me interested in looking into that for my planes. I was always trying to fit spy cameras to the helis.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

Hercy wrote:I meant that 2 days after questioning the value of an extra $200 on radio equipment, you're looking at a spend of $2,000 on a drone.
Nah I was well aware of the cost of the drone before I bought the radio, which is why I needed to save that $200 ;) Besides, the radio I chose certainly isn't lacking anything.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

Update time. Still hooked, but not without incident!

First thing I bought was a little nano quad that I've been practicing with regularly from the comfort of my couch:
Image

I then upgraded to a nano with FPV, in order to practice FPV before going to a full size quad:
Image

I couldn't really test it inside as you need a little more room - It's really hard to judge where walls are beside you when looking at the screen. I eventually took it for a spin in a friend's (small) backyard. Big mistake. I lifted off and quickly found myself above roof level - no problem, except I quickly became disoriented as every fucking rooftop looked the same. By the time I looked away from the screen to fly it line of site, I couldn't tell which way the drone was facing. It quickly ended up hovering over the neighbors yard and as I was attempting to determine how to orient it back to me my screen flickered black and I lost complete signal and control of the drone. It flew away from me and UP fucking high until it finally fell out of the sky over a house in the next street. Fuck. I left my transmitter on and jumped in the car, drove around to the next block to where I thought it had landed. I walked back and forth with my eyes glued to the transmitter's screen, hoping to regain signal. I walked up someone's driveway and got a flicker of video feed for an instant. The fucking thing is still alive... and.. was that a tv aerial? lol. Long story short, I recovered my drone from the roof the next block over, still intact and working. Pro tip - don't fly anything in suburbia above roof level, even a nano quad.

Not to be dissuaded, I've started to buy bits and pieces for my first 250mm quad. I'm a little freaked out by the expense but fuck I'm looking forward to building it! It's not the most expensive hobby around but it's still a big money sink. About $1000 for the drone, another $1000 for supporting gear (transmitter, FPV goggles, batteries etc), plus a bit more for electronics tools. Then there's the spare parts...

I'm pretty much following this guy's super-clean build, down to his custom 3d printed parts which are on order:
Image
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by itch »

I think the holy grail of this would be a gimble that tracks head movement while wearing an oculus rift. Imagine that, it would be like flying, that would be so trippy.

Do these guys just view it on a monitor or what?

EDIT: Oh the screen is on the controller... Interesting.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

No no that's only for the nano. It's just a trainer drone. Quad racers are controlled via video goggles, the most common are by FatShark.

Image
You pretty much look like a mong in them

They tend to be far lower quality due to the need for the analogue signal to be transmitted across the air to the goggles. Oculus like resolution would require a high powered video transmitter which means more power draw from the battery. Bigger battery means more weight... Also quad racers use security cameras for their small size, low latency and ability to handle changes in brightness well. I'm sure it's doable if weight isn't an issue, though the oculus itself isn't even wireless anyway.
This video shows you what to expect from a camera like this:
Image
Pretty low res but it's fine for getting about. Most people also mount a go-pro or equivalent to the top of the drone for recording HD footage.

Head tracking is already a thing though and supported by many fpv goggles. Add gimbled servos to your camera and your head movements can be mapped to your camera :) It's more popular in fixed wing fpv since drones can already spin around as though you're looking anyway.
Note this vid is from 2012
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by itch »

That's unreal, I might have to get into this when I get some money together.

I see what you mean about drones being able to turn on a dime, but if you're not racing and you're just exploring it might be super trippy to use head tracking while just scoping around.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

Yeah there actually are drones out there that can use an oculus, if you're willing to carry battery packs or a laptop around with you. The Parrot 3.0 Bebop drone will do it off the shelf, and has software head tracking by panning around the view of an ultra-wide lens. Tech is moving pretty fast so it'll get there.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

This one's for Cletus:
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Cletus »

I just need to buy myself a Fat Shark set up and put it on one of my micros. And a stack of batteries...mine would all be dead. The planes alone would keep me entertained for ages.

Fucken ace videos
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

3D printed parts from FPV Flight Club have arrived, plus the Flight Controller & ESCs. I have the frame, motors and OSD ordered also. Can't wait to start building!
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

Time to start building...
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

Powered it on for the first time - no white smoke! That's a big relief. Now to configure it before its first LOS flight.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Cletus »

Well done. it's really hard to get the white smoke back in once you've let it out.
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Burnzoire »

drum roll please...
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Re: Game of Drones [FPV Racing]

Post by Cletus »

:dblthumbs: And I found a couple of spare bags of white and black smoke just in case
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