The Hubsan H107D FPV is quite close to my ideal personal drone: small, with embedded video transmitter and camera and good flying performance.
The Hubsan H107D FPV quadcopter with it’s radio
At least some channels ar compatible with FatShark equipment, so it is possible to fly it FPV with just a pair of FatShark goggles. It is also possible to fly it FPV right from the hubsan radio, which comes with a generous screen that gets the video feed live.
Flying First Person View or FPV has a lot of addicts in the RC models community. The basic idea is that a video camera is mounted on the nose of the model and hooked to a wireless video transmitter. The pilot can then watch the video stream, either on a screen mounted on a tripod, or with special video goggles such as the ones in the picture below.
A complete FPV setup from FatShark. The camera, attached to a video transmitter, will be mounted on the RC model, while the pilot will wear the glasses to view the video stream in real time
As it happens, care to details and sometimes the use of some dedicated, although simple and inexpensive devices can go a long way in protecting your expensive equipment. One piece of delicate equipment used in RC models, and in particular for FPV, are indeed video cameras, with their exposed lens.
We have been discussing the setup of the Mobius camera for FPV in a previous post. Since then, a nice new model with wide angle lens came out:
Mobius camera, wide angle version
This is even better than the original version as for FPV it is great to have an as wide field of view as possible.
The wide angle lens is however somewhat bulky and protrudes prominently from the camera body. In the event of a collision, the lens will make for a great shock absorber for your multirotor, especially if the camera if mounted on the front of the aircraft, as it usually happens. But of course you see the point here: chances of damaging the precious optical element are significant.
There comes to the rescue a great, lightweight, little custom piece of equipment designed by Bo Lorenzen (check out his Blog at FPVGuy.com) as a shock absorber / lens saver to protect the lens of the wide angle Mobius camera.
I tried it and it is a perfect fit. Once in place the piece will grip strongly to the camera. A little pressure on the two little “wings” will release grip and allow a smooth removal.
Wide angle mobius camera with lens protector from FPVGuy – Top viewWide angle Mobius camera with lens protector from FPVGuy – Front view
The mobius wide angle lens protector is described here and can be ordered from Shapeways. It is made with a 3D printer from the original Bo Lorenzen design.
Here we go with another exciting nine minutes video by Arendatorovnet. The quad appears to be a TBS discovery pro with apparently standard DJI equipment (ESC, motors, arms).
A video transmitter with a linearly polarized antenna is visible on the front of the quad, whose brand and frequency remains to be identified/disclosed. A we have already discussed here, the tech specifications of the video equipment are a puzzle as the pilot appears to be flying long distances and down roads under loads of electrical cables without loss of the video link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roYxWfv663I
The video promotes the copter.mobi link for aerial video service. The link actually points to the Arendatorovnet youtube channel, click to check out.
The Arendatorovnet youtube channel is quite active recently and three new videos were posted today. These videos are unique in that the quadcopter (and his pilot of course) are apparently experiencing a total freedom of movement in the Island of Ko Samui in Thailand. This is of great inspiration for me, and possibly many other FPV enthusiasts, in relation of what First Person View (FPV) is about.
Those last videos were apparently recorded on the down/ground side of the video link and are likely close to what the pilot was actually seeing in his video goggles during navigation. The pilot shows complete control even in a few moments in which the video link looses strength.
In this first video, there is a moment in which the quadcopter stops to “play” with dogs. We have recently noted the interesting relationship between quadcopters and dogs, and this is a nice example. The dogs seem rather scared of the multirotor and do not dare approaching too much, although they indeed show interest. This starts at 14:35 of the following video, FPV Taras 3:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHaLdpE_Dzo
Low quality, video interferences and the “electronic background” audio on these last videos provides a special flavour to them, contributing to making the whole thing very special. Here are the other 2 videos.
FPV Taras 4. See how the quad greets people with a little oscillation, for example at 6:25
We have been following closely (1–2) the youtube channel of Arendatorovnet, a Thailand based quadcopter enthusiast that is releasing, since a while, some stunning FPV videos.
In the last couple of days three new exciting videos were published that are again worth viewing from start to end. It is a full immersion FPV experience in which the quad really has it’s own life and covers long distances with ease. There must be some solid equipment behind these performances but the technical specifications for the radio and video links are still unreleased at this time.
I recently made a post about Blackout’s Mini-H-Quad. It is a great small size FPV platform, that will possibly host full size/full potency FPV equipment that is normally mounted on bigger quads. Sounds great for a lightweight personal drone that you can easily fit in a medium sized PC bag together with the radio and a handful of batteries. Get yours HERE.
In this post I would like to share my current setup for the Mini H Quad. It is probably not the lightest possible configuration. I bet I could take off at least 5/10 grams of weight with some minimization here and there. Possibly the photos below could be a source of inspiration, or criticism, for others who wish to build or already built the same quad. Continue reading Blackout Mini H Quad, our latest FPV quadcopter build details→
Multirotors and quadcopters come in all sorts of sizes and shapes that will reflect their main purpose and usage. In order to lift heavy reflex cameras or cinematography equipment, tipycally huge multirotors (>650mm) are used, while for indoors flying fun, some quadcopters are reaching ridiculously small sizes these days:
The Proto-X-Nano quadcopter – sourceProto X nano quad – source
Flying FPV, First Person View, can be performed from all sorts of aircrafts (or other RC controlled moving devices). For quadcopters, unless you are very skilled in DIY related to video equipment (see the nice blog from FPVGuy), a decently sized frame (330-450 mm minimum) is usually required as the quad has to have a decent payload in order to carry with ease all the equipment required for FPV, such as video transmitter, wide angle camera, possibly onboard DVR to record video.
See for example a DJI F450 equipped with camera and transmitter for FPV:
DJI Flamewheel F450 NAZA V2 equipped for FPV with FoxTech Horizon HD camera and video transmitter TS832, 5.8 GHz, 600Mw
A while ago a guy called “Blackout”, from Australia, started posting some amazing videos with very aggressive, sporty style FPV flights on his youtube channel, and reporting and writing about his newly designed frame called the Mini H Quad.
This is a very contained size frame (220 mm), very robust and yet extremely lightweight, designed to be able to carry full size FPV equipment usually mounted on larger multirotor frames.
Blackout’s Mini H Quad with 2 onboard cameras – detail
In our quest toward the perfect personal drone we could not skip this one. The box arrived a few days ago and the quad is currently under assembly. I’ll be posting a build report soon.
Beyond the gear it is interesting to see Blackout’s approach to flight. He has a number of videos labeled “proximity” in which he explores very busy paths, such as trees dense in branches, and flies sometimes very close to ground level, with some breathtaking “spikes” in altitude at times. Many of his videos look like a style exercise, precisely executed. The small size of the quad also seems to allow to pass through narrow paths that would be otherwise unaccessible.
Gizmaz has published a nice review of the new DJI Phantom vision quadcopter.
The new Phantom Vision quadcopter from DJI
With it’s on board wide angle, high resolution camera, and the 25 plus minutes of flight time, the Phantom 2 brings a wealth of new features to the lucky owners.
Click on the image below to go to the DJI Innovations web site.
Let’s see the new features in detail in this Gizmag video:
If you plan to buy one of those you might also want to check out this video from the Roswell Flight Test Crew that covers unboxing and all you need to setup your new little personal drone:
And here’s a solid 28 minutes uncut flight (ok, from DJI) with the new phantom:
A video from AMA (Academy of Model Aeronautics) president Bob Brown explains how AMA always embraces new technologies and supports research, continuously updating AMA programs and guidelines.
AMA Logo
First Person View (FPV), quadcopters and multirotors are no exception and it is great to hear that President Brown himself is “one of us”, owning two quadcopters and practicing FPV himself.
A quest toward the perfect quadcopter or multirotor for aerial video and personal flying freedom and a permanent survey on the latest quadcopter news and multirotor news
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