Any one play with DIY drones ??

[Justin00]

As per the subject..
Anyone play with DIY drones ??

I'm kind of interested.. Looking to get a basic / amateur kit.. Would be cool if it had a GPS module and camera... and would like it to be already built, I just take it out of the box and put it together I guess.
 
I saw a few years back this one kit that had cool software and you could basically tell it where to fly (on the map) and at what altitude and then it would go off and fly that route.

I've had a look on the internet... so many choices... would like to hear if any of you folks are into this and what you have... and any recommendations ??

Thanks =)

[Justin00]

Got my eye on this one

http://www.aeroquadstore.com/AeroQuad_Cyclone_ARF_Kit_p/aqarf-001.htm

comes with the software/board you need.. Just need to supply the radio equipment..

Kind of need to read more into it though.. Don't think it comes with the GPS or the camera.. lots of reading to go

I should probably just get a $50 kit in case I loose interest in a few weeks

[Kluge]

  Why are the amp ratings on the speed controllers so high? Idunno what kind of thrust you need to generate for something I'd guess to be pretty darn light, but 20Ax4 seems pretty high unless some people are nutty enough to try running them on LR6 alkaline batteries or something.

[Justin00]

No idea...

Hmm trying to find the software a saw a while back.. which let you plot the route... hmmmmmmmmm can't seem to find it.. they probably all do it but I just want something nice and plug and play.. don't wana have to compile crap and what not...

[CrackedLogic]

I've got an Ar Drone 2.0 Power edition.

It's quite fun, but it's more of a toy.

[ensurance982]

Very interesting, but for people located in a city it's a rather dangerous endeavour. I also believe that they're effectively prohibited in many areas due to air traffic regulations or other laws in place. I'd check with the authorities first, to be safe!

[Mitchell]

I bought myself a Syma X5C. It's a very basic Quadcopter with a 2.0MP "HD" camera. You can get one for around 62$ and flying it is a lot of fun. It flies for about 7 minutes, but it's possible to buy a better battery to extend that to around 15 minutes. If you want to see some footage of the camera, just send me a PM

[minerpumpkin]

I also advise against using them in densely populated areas! If those things do go down, they may damage the property of other people and you may be held responsible for that! Which brings me to another question: What if those drones operate on some sort of AI, may that AI be held responsible for damages or the decisions it has made in some point in the future???

[Plank]

As per the subject..
Anyone play with DIY drones ??

I'm kind of interested.. Looking to get a basic / amateur kit.. Would be cool if it had a GPS module and camera... and would like it to be already built, I just take it out of the box and put it together I guess.
 
I saw a few years back this one kit that had cool software and you could basically tell it where to fly (on the map) and at what altitude and then it would go off and fly that route.

I've had a look on the internet... so many choices... would like to hear if any of you folks are into this and what you have... and any recommendations ??

Thanks =)

A group of my close friends have recently made a flying RC diy plane for their university project,It was able to fly simply with a controller.Drones are coming to takeover the sky very soon I guess

[BitcoinStuff]

When the battery is about to die the software should tell the machine to go home (the place you set) using its GPS, obvious that place should be very close.

[Justin00]

Yeah I have seen alot of more advanced (but still fairly basic) models will do this..

I'm trying to find this software I saw on a presentation some where... It was made by like the editor or owner or something of wired magazine.. He did a presentation... hmm maybe it was defcon or something like that.

But yeah.. looks like there is equipment to suit any budget from $50 upto $10,000's..

Not really 100% sure why I want one... Will probably just get a cheaper one with a camera and see how long it entertains me for.. I suppose I don't need the full autopilot/GPS/air strike capabilities just yet :p

When the battery is about to die the software should tell the machine to go home (the place you set) using its GPS, obvious that place should be very close.

[Kluge]

Yeah I have seen alot of more advanced (but still fairly basic) models will do this..

I'm trying to find this software I saw on a presentation some where... It was made by like the editor or owner or something of wired magazine.. He did a presentation... hmm maybe it was defcon or something like that.

But yeah.. looks like there is equipment to suit any budget from $50 upto $10,000's..

Not really 100% sure why I want one... Will probably just get a cheaper one with a camera and see how long it entertains me for.. I suppose I don't need the full autopilot/GPS/air strike capabilities just yet :p

When the battery is about to die the software should tell the machine to go home (the place you set) using its GPS, obvious that place should be very close.

Well, the nice thing about delivering with drones manually is you can nudge the person for a delivery tip and just call it a software glitch if they complain.

[Justin00]

Kluge do you mean I fly it into someones head until they pay me a fee to leave them alone :p ?
Sorry I mean the glitch flies it into there head repeatedly..

[Justin00]

Oooo found the video finally! The one with the open source software/hardware I have been looking for.
Its worth watching if you are interested in all this stuff.

"Chris anderson drones defcon 20"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysyYKPa9Rcg

If you skip to the 13 minute mark he talks about the flight planner and all the good things with the flight planner


*edit* Hmmm for some reason a lot of suppliers don't seem to ship out of the USA, and not to Australia....
I might have to get one of you lovely people to re-ship the items to me for a small fee for you time and effort

[minerpumpkin]

It seems people have just used some drones to capture the progress on Apple's new Campus in Cuptertino. You know, the one that's going to look like a giant spaceship! http://www.macrumors.com/2014/08/31/aerial-video-progress-apple-campus-2/

[Justin00]

Lol so I spent about 8x than I was planning to...

got the DJI Phantom 2 + vision...

It has a movable camera.. GPS, FPV (via android) and also lets you sets waypoints... Only played with it for a hour or two.. can't get the GPS to calibrate properly.. which I am hoping is the reason I can not use the waypoint setting tool properly..

I will take it back to the hobby shop tomorrow to get them to help me calibrate it and ensure the waypoint stuff is setup Ok..

Has all that return to base stuff...

Had a quick flight... its very stable.. until you lose orientaton is which is back and front and then you need to do the reverse controls

Should be able to have a lot of fun with it.... but yeah... faaaaaarken expensive

[Mitchell]

Ah yeah, the DJI Phantom 2! It's a great quadcopter and I wouldn't mind having one. However, it's way too expensive for me. Have fun with it and goodluck with the GPS issue!

[BeeTeeSea]

I will, when BTC goes 10k 

[Justin00]

thanks
truth is hopefully i do geet a few hours of enjoyment out of it.. then set it to autopilotmde and have a bit more fun out of it..
im guressin it will be put aeay until we go somewere were it wll be interesre to ttake pics of stuff.. perhaps abovee water and wat not...

eitherwy

should be lots and lots of fun

[Justin00]

farrrk its good fun
set it to fly a course around the local park... plotted my course.. zigzap formation.. 400m high... light up my cigarette then a few minutes it was finished and returned back to my starting point and landed its self... took some amazing footage

considering the price I shouldnt be so silly with it... and take it easy.. but eeh.. great fun
also prettty sure what I'm doing is highly illegal.. but yeah.. I'll leave that between my wallet and CASA (.AU aviation)

good thing my pilots license (single engine) expired a few years ago or i'd loose it very quickly.

pretty funny actually... I was out just before having a play.. it was dusk.. like 5-6pm.... there was a police helicopter a few km away... shot it up 180metres and got it to hover.. no joke the police helicopter did a you turn and shined the spotlight on it... descended that bastard like no bodies business and did a runner :p

while testing it.. stupidly in the bedroom i accidentally rammed myself... needless to say the props are bloody sharp.


anyways I'm not going to fool around with it anymore or do anything illegal or put anythig in danger.. cause ya its not a toy and has potential to do a shit load of damage / kill someone. definetly going to respect it abit more..