3dr solo manual mode

[aidanlou]

I thought the point of MANUAL mode was to be able to take off without GPS? I can arm the motors in MANUAL mode, but it will not let me fly until I have GPS...Anyone have any thoughts?

Yeah you can fly sans GPS but only in manual mode. I don't know how you usually take off but when you take off in manual mode, you need to use the throttle stick instead of holding the fly button again. So you go into manual mode, arm the motors with the fly button and then give it some throttle until it starts flying.

 

[Jubalr]

I thought the point of MANUAL mode was to be able to take off without GPS? I can arm the motors in MANUAL mode, but it will not let me fly until I have GPS...Anyone have any thoughts?

I always take off/land in manual. But I will usually acquire GPS lock first, which lately is less than about 30sec. Just press the Manual mode button you have assigned when ready. Then hold the left stick down and left to arm the motors, once the motors are running slowly raise the left stick above half to bring solo to a hover.

The other reason pilots will start in manual is if they are in an area that they can not get a GPS lock due to obstructions, trees, etc. You can take off in manual and fly straight up high enough to get a lock for home point. The altitude of the lock is not really relevant, as the HP will be the area directly below Solo at point of lock. The only difference it makes is that if RTH is initiated, Solo will slow it's descent higher than usual, but still continue to descend until solo contacts good ol' terra firma

 

[SARDG]

In all my time flying... (~4 weeks ) I've never used the Fly button to fly - always the throttle. Land, too. I just feel more in control of my destiny.

 

[SARDG]

SARDG: Now can't get the propellors off. Have you seen any videos or instructions on that?

Remember, silver-hubbed props are right-handed threads; black are left-handed...

The only time I had any problem removing the props was after a thick bush jumped up in front of me and crashed into my Solo! The motors screwed them on tighter than I would have liked.

 

[Jubalr]

The only time I had any problem removing the props was after a thick bush jumped up in front of me and crashed into my Solo!

I hate it when that happens. Damn plants & trees have no respect for personal property. (With all due respect to Rodney. Now I've dated myself again.)

 

[Jag]

For the newer pilots, the following is pasted form the Solo manual.

8.4 Home Position Safety
Fly:Manual, Stabilize, Acro, and Sport modes do not require GPS lock. To take off without GPS lock, Solo must be set to one of these modes. Without an active GPS signal, Return Home, Pause, and Smart Shots are disabled. If you take off without GPS lock, Solo does not save a home position at the launch point. If Solo acquires GPS lock mid-flight, the autopilot saves a home position at that location. To prevent a potentially unsafe situation, do not use Return Home if Solo did not acquire GPS prior to takeoff.

 

[bluesgeek]

For the newer pilots, the following is pasted form the Solo manual.

8.4 Home Position Safety
Fly:Manual, Stabilize, Acro, and Sport modes do not require GPS lock. To take off without GPS lock, Solo must be set to one of these modes. Without an active GPS signal, Return Home, Pause, and Smart Shots are disabled. If you take off without GPS lock, Solo does not save a home position at the launch point. If Solo acquires GPS lock mid-flight, the autopilot saves a home position at that location. To prevent a potentially unsafe situation, do not use Return Home if Solo did not acquire GPS prior to takeoff.

Solo would then shut down at that HP while airborne?

 

[PdxSteve]

It wouldn't shut down, but it may have obtained a lock over trees, a lake, a house or something, which is where it would land since it thinks that is "home".

"Home" is wherever it obtains the first GPS lock from.

 

[bluesgeek]

It wouldn't shut down, but it may have obtained a lock over trees, a lake, a house or something, which is where it would land since it thinks that is "home".

"Home" is wherever it obtains the first GPS lock from.

So HP won't respect the altitude Solo was at when obtained the lock and upon RTH think it has landed while it's still airborne?

 

[Pedals2Paddles]

It will continue to descend until it detects that it has landed. The only effect the home location altitude has is on it's descent rate. It will descend at a faster rate until it reaches about 30ft above the home altitude. Then it will descend slower until it reaches the ground, at whatever altitude, positive or negative, that may be.

 

[Jag]

Like they said above, the Home position may be in a bad spot for a landing so is inadvisable. If you happened to be at 50m altitude when Home is recorded then it may also cause a problem. The Solo descends faster down to I think 10 metres above the Home position, then much slower from there. If you had flown past the 25% battery warning to the 10% one where I think it decides to land itself you could be in trouble. It could easily take more than 1 minute to descend from 10m above Home (at 50m giving 60m total !!) at the final landing vertical velocity. This may be 1 minute that you do not have left !!

I would definitely recommend that you develop a deep understanding of these behaviours so that you can make an informed decision on whether to fly in this manner.

 

[Pedals2Paddles]

Exactly. So my advice is this. If you need to take off in manual to gain some altitude for a GPS lock, do it. But then immediately land again in a safe spot, disarm, rearm, and takeoff again. That way you not have a valid home position set for the flight. In my experience, it keeps it's GPS lock once you attain it in this case.