Personal Flight Log

[captblaze]

Since I purchased my Solo I have been keeping a detailed flight log (separate from the ones Solo generates) to assist me in troubleshooting and maintenance of my thousand dollar + investment. Being new to quadcopter piloting I wanted a way to keep track of my experiences and these logs seem to be a good start for me. As time goes on I am hoping that a quick review of previous flights will give me insight into what worked and what didn't.

Some of the things I chronicle in the logs are:

1. Pre Flight Check - did I follow my checklist
2. Location and Weather - including wind speed and direction, barometric pressure, humidity and altitude.
(I use the NOAA weather app to gather the weather data)
3. Battery used during flight - I have them labeled alphabetically and try and rotate each in turn. I also record
flight time for each battery and how many charge cycles each receives
4. General Location Description - hilly, flat, obstructions, rural or urban area
5. Flight Description - anything occur out of the ordinary or unexpectedly any damage to Solo or malfunctions
of equipment (Solo, Controller, Go Pro)
6. Solo Maintenance - props, motors, camera mount (later on gimbal), legs / antennae

I know it could be considered a bit obsessive, but I don't want to develop any habits that would lead to destroying my Solo or possibly injuring someone or destroying their property.

Does anyone else do this? If you do, any further suggestions?

 

[DodgeP]

I'm actually in the process of creating a .pdf form that will allow you to just tap a check mark in boxes of the checklist as well as type in a flight log at the bottom and save (for a digital flight log) or print for a physical one.

 

[GoodnNuff]

I'm actually in the process of creating a .pdf form that will allow you to just tap a check mark in boxes of the checklist as well as type in a flight log at the bottom and save (for a digital flight log) or print for a physical one.

You need to make that into an app for us Dodge! I have a preflight app I use for fixed wings, but haven't searched for a drone one?

 

[Eric Sheehan]

I'm in for a copy of that PDF Mr. Dodge

 

[erikgraham]

I thought I'd revive this thread. Anybody got a good recommendation for logging?

I used the Hover app for awhile, but it needs some polish. I'm mostly looking to log battery use. What are folks using these days?

 

[PdxSteve]

I'm working on something to read the data off the smart batteries. That tells number of charges, etc. Lots of goodies these batteries keep track of.

 

[erikgraham]

I'm working on something to read the data off the smart batteries. That tells number of charges, etc. Lots of goodies these batteries keep track of.

Now that is an app I'd pay for.

 

[PdxSteve]

It would be hardware though, and plug into your battery with a LCD display to see the battery data. Ideally, this will be part of a charging system eventually. But the charger could track all batteries and keep a log of each since they all have a SN. Some params you can get:

temperature register
voltage register
predicted remaining battery capacity as a percentage
capacity when fully charged
design capacity register
design voltage register
serial number register
manufacturer name
manufacturer data
cell voltage register
current register

There are more...

Here are the full SMBus specs: SMBUS Spec.pdf

 

[erikgraham]

It would be hardware though, and plug into your battery with a LCD display to see the battery data. Ideally, this will be part of a charging system eventually. But the charger could track all batteries and keep a log of each since they all have a SN. Some params you can get:

temperature register
voltage register
predicted remaining battery capacity as a percentage
capacity when fully charged
design capacity register
design voltage register
serial number register
manufacturer name
manufacturer data
cell voltage register
current register

There are more...

Here are the full SMBus specs: SMBUS Spec.pdf

Sign me up. I want that. Just tell me how much and where to send the money!