For those who miss Autopilot...

[houldsworth1]

I just found out that the guys that created Autopilot have a new program (more of a complete package really) called Dronelink.

It seems a bit more aimed at the commercial folks (works for me) based on what I have read so far. It also looks like it allows you to create (and share?) libraries of functions and then combine them into missions instead of starting from scratch each time, which appeals to the old programmer in me

they also claim it is available for both iOS and Android, and that means it will also work on the new smart controller. That was one of the things I have always liked about Litchi, so it's good they fixed that.

They have a sign up for beta users so I have already signed up. I'll post an update later once I've had a chance to play with it a bit.

Link to the page is here in case anyone is interested: www.dronelink.com

I'll be very interested to see if they have fixed the jerky panning on the M2 range - I can't use my M2Pro for certain shots because of that, so I'm still hanging on to my P4P until that is finally fixed.

 

[brett8883]

This is great thanks for the heads up! Got enrolled in the trial and ready to go. I like the concept and you can tell it’s similar to Autopilot but I like that they ditched the layout in favor of a more “DJI Go 4” layout

 

[Ralph thompson]

I hope this is good news, Autopilot is by far the best app I’ve used on my Inspire. Very disappointed that it’s not available for the Smart Controller & M2P. I look forward to testing this. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[parkgt]

I have taken a quick look but can't get past the poor resolution when zoomed in fully or almost fully.

Also in satellite view the photo also changed to an older photo when zooming and a five year old building disappeared when it switched to the older photo.

Tried several locations on both a Win 10 desktop and a iPad with the app.

Very strange; never saw anything like that with Lithci, Tower or Mission Planner.

 

[dronelink]

We are using multiple third-party mapping packages in various parts of the web app and native app. I assume you are referring to the 2D maps in the web app (currently provided by Mapbox)? Do the 3D maps (from Esri) have better resolution in your area? Do you mind sharing which areas have the poor imagery so we can take a look? Our decision to use Mapbox is not set in stone, but there are several factors that go in to the decision making process beyond the quality of the base layer. We are already using maps from Google and Esri in other areas, so using alternate vendors in possible.

 

[brett8883]

@dronelink happy to see you here, thanks for stopping by! I haven’t had the chance to use it yet but I like what I see so far.

One thing I love is being able to see the attitude radar and the map at the same time, this is huge for me. Though the hud seems to be a little crowded because the widgets on my iPhone 8 seem to be super sized, even hitting the spot metering seems to be HUGE. Is this intended behavior? Seems like the total area being taken up by widgets is at least half the screen. Is there a way to adjust the size of then ir go full screen?

On iOS I don’t see any “settings” page is this because it inherits settings attributes from the web app?

 

[dronelink]

Happy to be here!

The majority of the widgets in the flight dashboard are stock, DJI SDK UI library widgets. Unfortunately, DJI doesn't provide many options in the way of customizing the look at feel, but there are a few things we have control over. The good news is, it looks like DJI's next version of the UI library is being redesigned with customization in mind, so we are hopeful it will be released soon.

Having said that, you can access DJI settings by tapping the ... in the top right, or the camera exposure bar, or the flight status bar.

Have you tried using the portrait mode flight dashboard layout?

 

[parkgt]

We are already using maps from Google and Esri in other areas, so using alternate vendors in possible.

Well I hope you you get it sorted out. Autopilot had some neat features.

Many of the missions I plan require close in zooming on maps that are up to date. Missing buildings makes it tough.

The 3D perspective in VLM to Google Earth is also a hard to give up feature. Is something like that in the works?

 

[dronelink]

Confirmed that google maps does have a better base layer at Bell Park, but if it helps you can turn on the 3D view (top right in the image) to see Esri's base layer, which is much closer to Google's:



You can turn on the 3D view by right clicking the map (long press on mobile), and then selecting Simulated Drone. The 3D view also shows the actual aspect ratio and field of what the drone will see, and render the flight path intersecting terrain (if the altitude is too low). Is there something beyond this functionality that you are looking for in the VLM export to Google Earth feature?

 

[parkgt]

Confirmed that google maps does have a better base layer at Bell Park, but if it helps you can turn on the 3D view (top right in the image) to see Esri's base layer, which is much closer to Google's:

View attachment 78161

You can turn on the 3D view by right clicking the map (long press on mobile), and then selecting Simulated Drone. The 3D view also shows the actual aspect ratio and field of what the drone will see, and render the flight path intersecting terrain (if the altitude is too low). Is there something beyond this functionality that you are looking for in the VLM export to Google Earth feature?

Nice feature I will have to work with it some more to see how they compare. Sometime it is just a matter of how you get the information needed; once you get used to getting it one way it takes a while to adjust.

 

[VFRon]

I loved autopilot and although it had a big learning curve it was great once you understood it.
Looking at the tutorial for Dronelink it looks fantastic, but I'm stuck at the beginning. I don't know whether its old age or I'm missing something simple but I can't find out how to download the app onto my iPad.
Am I missing something or is it not available yet?

 

[egoldy]

I loved autopilot and although it had a big learning curve it was great once you understood it.
Looking at the tutorial for Dronelink it looks fantastic, but I'm stuck at the beginning. I don't know whether its old age or I'm missing something simple but I can't find out how to download the app onto my iPad.
Am I missing something or is it not available yet?

Created a video just for you..

(subscribe to that channel as we'll be rolling out some shorter videos to get people rollling)

 

[tmtwomey]

So I have been playing around with the web app and I love it, but the native app will not start on my Samsung Note 9. Anyone else able to run this on Android ?

 

[dronelink]

Does it work if you install the APK directly?
Download Here

 

[tmtwomey]

Does it work if you install the APK directly?

Gave that a try and it seemed better. I got to the login dialog, but the app would keep stopping. I managed to get logged in, but again after a few seconds the app would stop. Android would eventually report 'app keeps stopping'. Before the app stopped, I did see the map on the screen and the dialog asking if I wanted to load a plan I had created on the web. If there's any info I can supply, like a log file or event info, let me know.

 

[dronelink]

Gave that a try and it seemed better. I got to the login dialog, but the app would keep stopping. I managed to get logged in, but again after a few seconds the app would stop. Android would eventually report 'app keeps stopping'. Before the app stopped, I did see the map on the screen and the dialog asking if I wanted to load a plan I had created on the web. If there's any info I can supply, like a log file or event info, let me know.

We appreciate the feedback. Trying to work through what the issue on the Android side is. Stay tuned..

 

[parkgt]

How about a new thread with a more appropriate title?

 

[StefanG]

We appreciate the feedback. Trying to work through what the issue on the Android side is. Stay tuned..

For your info, I have the same issues on a Pixel 3 /Android 9 as well as a Huawei Mediapad M5 / Android 9.

Other than that, the mission player is great! Going to be interesting to compare the preview with the actual flight later on.

 

[dronelink]

We are investigating the issue and should have a resolution today.

We are also looking in to the minimum number of permissions that the app needs to request. Unfortunately the DJI SDK forces us to ask for many of the permissions, even though we don't use them directly. Will verify if all these permissions actually need to be granted in order for the DJI SDK to function.

 

[dronelink]

How about a new thread with a more appropriate title?

Done:

Introducing Dronelink

Hey everyone, I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted, but I’ve been heads-down working on my next project called Dronelink. Dronelink is an entirely new approach to flight automation, and we are looking for beta testers on iOS, Android, and the web. This is a great opportunity for you to...

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