Lesson Learned (again!)

[Bret]

Here is a gentle reminder to myself, to always be aware of your surroundings when you fly. A few weeks ago, I sent the Solo up to Follow Me - Leash when I was in the boat. At the time, I set the altitude to 50 feet to make sure I would clear all of the standing timber in the water. Never once did I look for any other obstructions, such as power lines, etc. I am thankful, however, that my Solo lived to see another day! Here is a short clip of what transpired. Note how close the second power line came to tripping the Solo.

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[RichWest]

You are the man for close encounters...lucky day...again.

 

[Pedals2Paddles]

Well I'd say that's the current forum leader in the category of close calls. Did you notice it as it happened, or not until after playing back the video?

 

[Chuck]

It looks like when he stood up as quickly as he did in the video, he saw what was coming, but had no time to react to it. Just my guess. That was one of the closest calls yet, for sure. Glad it came out ok.

 

[Bret]

Well I'd say that's the current forum leader in the category of close calls. Did you notice it as it happened, or not until after playing back the video?

Ha ha, I did not notice this until later that night when I played back the footage for editing. You can imagine my SURPRISE when I saw that. If it had tripped and fall in the water, I would have never known what happened or where it was at. Like I said, I was very thankful!!!! LOL

 

[Bret]

It looks like when he stood up as quickly as he did in the video, he saw what was coming, but had no time to react to it. Just my guess. That was one of the closest calls yet, for sure. Glad it came out ok.

No, I didn't even realize there was power line there until after seeing the video later. About choked on my beverage at the time!

 

[blacksapphirez]

wow crazy! I am really looking to be able to do this also on my boat. any pointers?

 

[mattshup]

wow crazy! I am really looking to be able to do this also on my boat. any pointers?

No reason you shouldn't be able to. Just set it to follow in leash mode and keep the controller with you. Just make sure wherever you take off from is solid ground in case Solo decides to RTH for some reason.

 

[Bret]

No reason you shouldn't be able to. Just set it to follow in leash mode and keep the controller with you. Just make sure wherever you take off from is solid ground in case Solo decides to RTH for some reason.

Yes, what mattshup said. However, I take off from the bow of my boat. Just check your surroundings like you are supposed to. LOL

 

[Bret]

wow crazy! I am really looking to be able to do this also on my boat. any pointers?

If you have the Solex app, just this week the developer (Kelly) updated it with a new feature. On Solex, you can now set up a moveable multi point cable cam. What I plan on doing is, go to an open field and set up a multi point cable cam, with some object like a picnic table or trash can to be my "boat" (focal point, really). That way, I don't have to waste time on the water setting up a cable. Should be great for when I want to get some aerial shots while fishing. You then take you moveable multi point cable and start it when you are on the water because the cable will start from wherever your Solo is hovering at. Just beware of any surroundings, altitude, etc. while doing this.

 

[Greg Parker]

Yes, what mattshup said. However, I take off from the bow of my boat. Just check your surroundings like you are supposed to. LOL

But will the bow of your boat be in the right place if RTH is triggered and you lose connection?

 

[User Name]

Wow man!! That was really close! You know what they say - three strikes and you're out... Just hope when your luck runs out, you're over land!

 

[Bret]

But will the bow of your boat be in the right place if RTH is triggered and you lose connection?

I am using the Solex app, so I have it set to Return To Me instead of RTL. When I bring it in to actually land, I reach up, grab it and turn off motors manually.

 

[Greg Parker]

I am using the Solex app, so I have it set to Return To Me instead of RTL. When I bring it in to actually land, I reach up, grab it and turn off motors manually.

How well does RTM work if connection is lost?

 

[Bret]

How well does RTM work if connection is lost?

I really can't say as I have not lost a connection yet (knock on wood!!). I try to be very conscious of my wifi signal and typically am not separated from Solo a great distance.

 

[Pedals2Paddles]

RTM constantly updates the solo with your phone/tablet's location and will use that location for failsafe returns. If you lose connection with the controller, your phone craps out, or otherwise interrupt that location being sent to the solo, it will use whatever the last known location was.

 

[mattshup]

Which still leads me back to taking off from solid ground. Much safer and less worry.

 

[Greg Parker]

I really can't say as I have not lost a connection yet (knock on wood!!).

That's why I asked so that you would think about how things might turn out if you do lose connection. It will come down at the last point you had a connection as was posted previously by P2P.

And is why mattshup takes the precaution of launching from a "Home" that doesn't change location.

You may never have an issue with a lost connection, just good to recognize the risks associated.

 

[Marich]

The stock Solo app now allows return to user.
(The first time I typed this post my iPhone diligently autocorrected it to "Return to Utah".)
I dunno about the world today...

 

[User Name]

The stock Solo app now allows return to user.
(The first time I typed this post my iPhone diligently autocorrected it to "Return to Utah".)

It should be noted that Return to Me (Return to User, whatever) is NOT working on Android for the stock Solo app from 3DR. It apparently doesn't use the actual GPS location from the device, but whatever synthesized location it gets from cell tower information, which is NOT accurate. The danger is that if it starts going off in the opposite direction to the user, it can travel further out of range, making it impossible to regain control. Return to Utah is probably a more accurate description, on Android at least!