Confused orientation

[indonesianpilot]

guys anyone here ever confused about solo orientation when flying? Why there is no information about solo orientation in solo app? when i fly i hardly know if the solo heading to me or not, especially if i cant see myself in FPV or my gopro suddenly freeze/blackout.
When i fly and suddenly my gps signal is lost and going to manual mode, my controller signal is 1 bar left before its gone. I want to pull my solo closer to me, but bcs i cant see myself in fpv i happen to push it even further. What should i do?

 

[Ryan Levitz]

That's what the lights are for...

 

[indonesianpilot]

That's what the lights are for...

My solo is flying out of sight. Or when i fly it at daylight its hard to see the light from solo its too dim

 

[Ryan Levitz]

Can you legally do that where you live? I can't.

You have a live video from Solo's POV. That doesn't give you a good indication? Maybe it just takes more practice? I would definitely fly within line of sight until you are VERY comfortable flying just by the video screen.

 

[indonesianpilot]

Can you legally do that where you live? I can't.

You have a live video from Solo's POV. That doesn't give you a good indication? Maybe it just takes more practice? I would definitely fly within line of sight until you are VERY comfortable flying just by the video screen.

Like i said, my gopro freeze. And I fly it in the middle of corn field. Is look alike everywhere i see and i cant find myself anyway

 

[Ryan Levitz]

IS the go pro freezing, or the video freezing due to flying to far?

 

[indonesianpilot]

IS the go pro freezing, or the video freezing due to flying to far?

I think its freeze. Bcs when its too hot my gopro oftern freeze or blackout. My gopro is 4 black. Is this common or just me?

 

[fpvsteve]

Indeed it would be great if 3DR would add heading information and home point direction into the OSD bar. Even when flying in LOS, it can become difficult especially if you are flying in Manual mode and the wind is about to drift your drone.

Workaround: blend in the map in the app. You can see then your homepoint and the position of your Solo. You can use this to navigate home w/o camera. But: this does not work w/o GPS!

 

[Jubalr]

I think its freeze. Bcs when its too hot my gopro oftern freeze or blackout. My gopro is 4 black. Is this common or just me?

Advice and solutions in my opinion:

1) Practice, Practice manual mode until you are comfortable flying nose in figure 8s repeatably.
2) Maintain line of sight to Solo. If you can't see it and don't have a live feed, you can't fly it.
3) Purchase aftermarket antennas to improve feed and control
4) Get your GP updated or fixed. It shouldn't be freezing on you.
5) If it is far enough away that you can't determine orientation to safely fly it (should not happen) use RTH.

 

[indonesianpilot]

Advice and solutions in my opinion:

1) Practice, Practice manual mode until you are comfortable flying nose in figure 8s repeatably.
2) Maintain line of sight to Solo. If you can't see it and don't have a live feed, you can't fly it.
3) Purchase aftermarket antennas to improve feed and control
4) Get your GP updated or fixed. It shouldn't be freezing on you.
5) If it is far enough away that you can't determine orientation to safely fly it (should not happen) use RTH.

Can you see my solo in the picture that i attached? It is there, actually in line of sight, but because the pattern of the background is so complex, black solo is very hard to see. And because of the pattern of the fields, i cant see myself from FPV. So even my GP isnt freeze, i still cant find myself. Let say my GPS is fine and my controller signal is strong, i want to film the field from far away straight to my place, i fly, i turn down my altitude near the field and suddenly damn, i cant see my solo. And guess what, i cant see myself from FPV too, the fields is look alike everywhere i see. I dont have any idea where my solo heading. Am i need to use RTH everytime this happen? Then how can i do my work? In this kind of complicated altitude of the hills, RTH is not a very good idea too, im afraid it will hit the hills. I mean, put a simple radar on the app is not hard, and the benefit is real

 

[erikgraham]

Can you see my solo in the picture that i attached? It is there, actually in line of sight, but because the pattern of the background is so complex, black solo is very hard to see. And because of the pattern of the fields, i cant see myself from FPV. So even my GP isnt freeze, i still cant find myself. Let say my GPS is fine and my controller signal is strong, i want to film the field from far away straight to my place, i fly, i turn down my altitude near the field and suddenly damn, i cant see my solo. And guess what, i cant see myself from FPV too, the fields is look alike everywhere i see. I dont have any idea where my solo heading. Am i need to use RTH everytime this happen? Then how can i do my work? In this kind of complicated altitude of the hills, RTH is not a very good idea too, im afraid it will hit the hills. I mean, put a simple radar on the app is not hard, and the benefit is real
View attachment 2331

I understand where you are coming from. I've flown many times in many places with similar challenges visually. I think a lot of folks here have as well. But what most of us are saying is that after a lot of collective experience, we don't recommend the type of flight mode you describe. On DJI phantoms they call it IOC with a couple variations (if I recall they are called Home Lock and Course Lock). On 3DR platforms, similar modes are called Simple mode and Super Simple mode. So we do understand what you are asking for, but we don't recommend it.

Instead, I would recommend using the map in the Solo app. It will show you both the location and the heading of your Solo. It's like a Radar. Or use the Tower app.

Also, I'd recommend that you make a habit of checking your soroundings when you start flying. Pay attention to where the sun is relative to you. Look for landmarks, like a particular hill or building near you. That will help you return to home using FPV if you want.

Lastly, once you've scouted an area and you know what kind of shots you want, land, plop in a new battery and set up a cable cam or use Tower to create a detailed mission.

 

[ronbo]

One suggestion I heard is a flashing red bicycle light that you set aimed toward your solo. It should be visible on your screen, like a lighthouse.

 

[Burkeam]

Can you see my solo in the picture that i attached? It is there, actually in line of sight, but because the pattern of the background is so complex, black solo is very hard to see. And because of the pattern of the fields, i cant see myself from FPV. So even my GP isnt freeze, i still cant find myself. Let say my GPS is fine and my controller signal is strong, i want to film the field from far away straight to my place, i fly, i turn down my altitude near the field and suddenly damn, i cant see my solo. And guess what, i cant see myself from FPV too, the fields is look alike everywhere i see. I dont have any idea where my solo heading. Am i need to use RTH everytime this happen? Then how can i do my work? In this kind of complicated altitude of the hills, RTH is not a very good idea too, im afraid it will hit the hills. I mean, put a simple radar on the app is not hard, and the benefit is real
View attachment 2331

If you work is commercially, technically your not doing it legally. Line of sight is not the same as Visual Line of Site (VLS). If you can't see it with out standard corrective lens you are Extended Visual Line of Site (BVLS). To your question. Can't you just hit RTH for the craft to orientate back to home then hit FLY?

 

[Chuck]

This may be just me, but you can also watch your distance from home on your screen. If it gets farther away, you know you are still going away from you. If the distance from home decreases, you know it is coming back to the home area. I don't fly out of sight, but I used this during my antenna tests. Also, if you have good gps lock before takeoff, you can just hit RTH, and then when you can see your bird again, you can hit pause, and take over again. Good luck to you.

 

[Jubalr]

If you work is commercially, technically your not doing it legally. Line of sight is not the same as Visual Line of Site (VLS). If you can't see it with out standard corrective lens you are Extended Visual Line of Site (BVLS). To your question. Can't you just hit RTH for the craft to orientate back to home then hit FLY?

Not so sure those laws apply to him. Pretty sure he is not in the US. Just guessing by his name and that picture with unusual plants.

Edit: Just checked. Picture was taken just outside of Bandung, West Java Province of Indonesia with an iPhone.

 

[erikgraham]

If you work is commercially, technically your not doing it legally. Line of sight is not the same as Visual Line of Site (VLS). If you can't see it with out standard corrective lens you are Extended Visual Line of Site (BVLS). To your question. Can't you just hit RTH for the craft to orientate back to home then hit FLY?

He's in Indonesia for sure - I remember him and toilet talking about it. So yeah, he doesn't have to worry about the US rules. Keeping vls is still a safety issue though.

Great idea about hitting RTH and then switching back to FLY. I'm gonna keep that in mind for myself.

 

[erikgraham]

This may be just me, but you can also watch your distance from home on your screen. If it gets farther away, you know you are still going away from you. If the distance from home decreases, you know it is coming back to the home area. I don't fly out of sight, but I used this during my antenna tests. Also, if you have good gps lock before takeoff, you can just hit RTH, and then when you can see your bird again, you can hit pause, and take over again. Good luck to you.

He is worried about hitting hills during RTH. Obviously he could just set a high RTH altitude, but I get the impression he has a certain shot he wants to get on the way home, so probably wants more control of the flight path and camera orientation on the way home.

 

[Soloing]

I would take off, turn the Solo around so it faces me. Then fly a manual Selfie. A little bit up, and back. Stay there for 30 seconds. This will give you a chance to see exactly how your home position looks like. Try to recognize/remember any specific landmarks that will at least give you a better idea of what "home" looks like. In other words: Look at YOU before you fly instead of trying to find yourself afterwards.

Just an idea.

Also. From my understanding, the shot you want to take is not that hard to do. Take off, turn and face you, now just fly as far backwards as you like. Now just fly straight forward again and you will have the shot you wanted (I guess ).

Or hit RTL and it should come back facing you...

Thanks.

 

[Burkeam]

Not so sure those laws apply to him. Pretty sure he is not in the US. Just guessing by his name and that picture with unusual plants.

Edit: Just checked. Picture was taken just outside of Bandung, West Java Province of Indonesia with an iPhone.

duh, I wasn't paying attention

 

[Jubalr]

Or Just use Tower..