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Dual controller link with Enterprise Dual

Ken Means

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Oct 27, 2018
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I am disappointed to find that the Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual is not capable of dual controller linking.It is unfortunate that DJIs latest Mavic is less capable than their first generation Mavic. It would be great if we could use 2 controllers, 1 for piloting on visible and the other for. searching on IR. Does DJI plan on a firmware fix for this? I hope there is a fix for this.
 
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that DJIs latest Mavic is less capable than their first generation Mavic
The M2ED has more features built-in than a normal Mavic. Just think of ADS-B IN, attachments such as a strobe, speakers and the spotlight to name a few)
It might be a misinterpretation from a lot of users that an 'Enterprise' model is more capable or has more functions that a 'normal' Mavic. DJI has willingly reduced the features to not endanger the sales of their other market segments. Just think if DJI would have installed a 336 FLIR instead of the 120x160 resolution in the M2ED. (at a little higher price of course) Nobody would buy a Matrice 200 series aircraft with an XT2 336.

It would be great if we could use 2 controllers, 1 for piloting on visible and the other for. searching on IR.

You are right, it lacks currently the possibility to link 2 controllers to 1 AC, but it makes really no sense to have a second operator controlling the gimbal, because the visual and iR camera are mounted in one housing.
(it makes sense if you have a completely independent controllable payload camera and a FPV cam like a Matrice)

Instead have a bigger external monitor attached to your setup and let the 2nd operator do his work by watching the external screen.
 
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Good points but I respectfully disagree. Yes, both camera lenses are mounted in the same gimbal but independent gimbal control is not what I am wanting while in flight. (hovering is another matter) I am wanting to view both cameras simultaneously. It is very hard for me to fly while in the IR or MSX mode while using certain palettes. If we could double up on the controls, the pilot could use the visible camera to fly the drone and also use map view or radar to assist flying while the other would be searching with the flir camera. I feel two heads are better than one in a team approach to get better search results and safe flights.

How would a bigger external monitor assist the 2nd operator? Wouldn't that just show what is on the pilot's screen?
 
I can definitely see your interest as I agree that would be awesome or even have a picture in picture option to view both simultaneously like a M210 with 2 sensors. This is where it's important to set up your C1/C2 toggles to be able to switch back and forth easily between displays as not fly in one display (thermal or visible) more than another. I switch back and forth a lot so I can have good orientation and situational awareness at all times.
 
TSUPD, I like the way you think.
I'm hoping DJI may soon think the same way. I do use C1 and C2 and the 5D buttons to toggle vision, palette, and gimbal but two views from 2 cameras would be the best setup.
 
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One GOOD reason I’d like the dual remote option on the M2E birds is pilot training... right now we have to use our old MP1s with new pilots to get them used to the platform with dual remotes for teaching.

The downside is that they are not Enterprise-series so all the new stuff like GPS markers, top-mounted accessories, zoom feature and ADS-B can’t be part of the dual-pilot hands-on training.

We used this dual-pilot method for our Inspire 1 and 2 birds and likely saved time/money in training and fewer crashes.
 
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Instead have a bigger external monitor attached to your setup and let the 2nd operator do his work by watching the external screen.

Keule,
How do you install your second setup with the monitor?
With DJI go 4 I plug it with my second controller but I can't do it with Pilot.
Thanks
 
My sources say that this is coming...

This just came back in my email today from DJI; doesn’t look good:

Thank you for contacting DJI Technical Support.

We really admire your interest in using DJI products and thank you for making time in sending us an email. We have every desire to address your needs and provide the best solution available to resolve your issue as soon as possible.

With regards to your concern, as per our senior engineer's feedback, they don't have a plan yet to add a Dual Remote controller with Mavic 2 Enterprise series. However, it is already suggested to the R&D for consideration if possible. Right now we cannot make a promise if this will happen in the near future.

Should you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to let me know.
I´ll do my best to assist you.

Thank you for choosing DJI

Best Regards,
 
Keule,
How do you install your second setup with the monitor?
With DJI go 4 I plug it with my second controller but I can't do it with Pilot.
Thanks

He may be using the Smart Remote- it has an HDMI output...that’s what I do with my M2EZ... I use a 15-foot HDMI cable over to a Feelworld FW279 HDMI monitor mounted on a tripod.
 
Thanks Rangemaster.
We are using our M2EZ for bridge inspections. It means that I have to follow my drone if I donn't want to crash it. The cable and monitor can't follow me.
We were using our Mavic 2 pro with a second controller in the back of a truck so the engineers could sit there watching.
Any idea of how I could do it with my M2EZ?

Thanks in advance!
 
Thanks Rangemaster.
We are using our M2EZ for bridge inspections. It means that I have to follow my drone if I donn't want to crash it. The cable and monitor can't follow me.
We were using our Mavic 2 pro with a second controller in the back of a truck so the engineers could sit there watching.
Any idea of how I could do it with my M2EZ?

Thanks in advance!

The only thing that comes to mind (still early here, only one cup of coffee) with my hardware is to take the HDMI out from the Smart Controller and use a wireless HDMI extender...

I know the JTECH-WEX-4K60 has an advertised range of up to 660’, but you’d need to fashion a power source (5V at 3A) and a way to pack it....I’m thinking backpack. Several companies make wireless HDMI extenders, so look around.

By the time you buy the SC, the HDMI extender and fab the power source(s) it could add up to a bit...but then we’re talking about a commercial/industrial application, not a hobby app.
 
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Well it seems like it's not the perfect solution but I'll check if I can make it work.

Thank you for the effort before your second coffee!
 
Well it seems like it's not the perfect solution but I'll check if I can make it work.

Thank you for the effort before your second coffee!

OK...here’s another thought...

Let’s say you have a standard M2E remote - not a Smart Controller. You’re using an iPhone/iPad as a flight display.

You want to display (mirror) video to a laptop for your client to observe.

Install Mirroring 360 on your laptop. Mirroring360 - Screen mirroring from devices to computers and screen sharing

Get a travel hotspot/router like a GL-MT300N V2 and power it off a battery pack... or even something like RavPower FileHub that has a built-in 6700 mA hour battery, a hard drive for backing up video from your drone and an SD card reader all in one package, it should be able to run 4-6 hours on a charge.

Now start up the laptop and get on the portable router via wifi, and do the same with the iOS device.

Then start Mirroring 360 on the laptop...start DJI Pilot and mirror your display from the iOS device using the built-in mirroring feature in iOS (AirPlay).

Can’t speak to latency but your limiting factor will likely be max wifi range of the router, which can be anywhere between the drone RC and the laptop.

I’ll run a test this evening to see if it’s feasible and let you know.

I’ll be interested in knowing what latency is like...
 
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Just ran a quick test...

It works...tried the setup previously described on my home router and it worked, then tried my GL-MT-300N (powered off a battery pack via micro USB) and it worked as well. I can essentially mirror anything on the iOS screen (in this case DJI Pilot) to the laptop.


Of course range will be lacking because of the antennas (internal) but travel routers are available with external antennas. Screen resolution will be limited to what the iOS device is using and the camera feed thru DJI Pilot.

This makes me want to order a RavPower Filehub and test it.

BTW, this was tested using the Windows version of Mirroring 360 and an iOS 11 device. They also make a version compatible with Android mobile devices but I don’t know if that will play well considering the Smart Controller uses a stripped-down version of Android.
 
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Update:

Just performed a quick test on the Smart Controller.

The Mirroring 360 Sender (Android App) loads and appears to run fine on the Smart Controller...and mirrors everything on the SC display to a laptop running Mirroring 360 for Windows.

Yes, I have the Google Play Store loaded on the Smart Controller.

Of course a LOT more testing is needed before I’d depend on this in the field, like finding a good, reliable battery powered travel router with decent range. It will have to be placed between the remote and the laptop for a max range scenario, but for shorter ranges could be co-located at the laptop.

Latency doesn’t seem to be an issue especially because the laptop is just used to observe the downlink video from the aircraft; you cannot control anything on the Mavic. In some scenarios this isn’t a bad thing...

One more thought...in bright sunlight you can take that received video on the laptop and run an additional display out the HDMI port of the laptop if it has one (like attaching a Feelworld FW279 with 2200 nits...or even a set of DJI Goggles).
 
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Wow! The second coffee worked I see.
Thank you very much, I'm going to ask my colleagues to decipher all this and make it work.

Thanks a lot!
 
No problem...others out there have additional solutions I’m sure...but your particular application gave me an excuse to geek w/some hardware I had here.
 
It's really sad that we have to find a third party solution for something that works on a non-enterprise drone. What worries me with the HDMI transmitter is adding another layer of things that can go wrong and creating another interference for the drone communications. DJI has been very supportive in the past for adding features like a second remote and whatnot so I do believe that in time, it will work with two controllers but until then, the HDMI solution seems to have a better chance of working out of the box than an app on the same tablet I use for flying. If the program crashes, will it crash my DJI app? Freeze my tablet? drain my battery?... I'd rather have a little hdmi emitter and a battery in my pocket. If it crashes, only the watchers loose the feed, not me.
 
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