Fpv indoor flying with cages

[Lapeer20m]

Had a request to use mavic for a special multi-agency training for emergency services. It is an active shooter drill.

The request is to fly mavic with cages inside a large building, like a school, completely blind except for fpv.

Is this a practical request?

A couple of questions:

What are the anticipated technical difficulties?

Signal strength....lockers, brick walls, etc. these will all have a negative impact, but how negative?

Is there an easy way to force Atti mode using foil or some other substance to block the gps sensors? I would think the potential of switching between gps/Atti could make for unstable indoor flight.

Does part 107 of FAA rules govern indoor flight? Is it technically unlawful to fly outside vlos if mavic is indoors?

Anybody tried something similiar?

What other concerns should I have?

 

[msinger]

completely blind except for fpv

Completely blind will be just fine as long as there are no obstacles between the remote controller and Mavic.

Signal strength....lockers, brick walls, etc. these will all have a negative impact, but how negative?

You shouldn't attempt to fly your Mavic right next to any magnetic metal objects (e.g. within several feet of a locker). Flying down the middle of a hallway shouldn't be a problem though.

Is there an easy way to force Atti mode

No.

Does part 107 of FAA rules govern indoor flight?

No.

 

[PT_Mavic]

Is there an easy way to force Atti mode

Yes, but we're muzzled and prohibited from discussing it on this forum. I think you're right about control issues if the aircraft switches between GPS and ATTI on a whim.
My Sport Mode switch is now an ATTI switch; I set it up to hopefully improve my intuitive flying skills.

 

[Lapeer20m]

I will do some testing soon and post video of the results.

 

[sonof40]

Had a request to use mavic for a special multi-agency training for emergency services. It is an active shooter drill.

I think the agency would be better off asking an engineer to design a wired quad vs wireless.

 

[Lapeer20m]

I think the agency would be better off asking an engineer to design a wired quad vs wireless.

The best tool for the job is often the one you have on hand.

Certianly there are better "robots" for these applications, but mavic is cheap and available.

 

[PT_Mavic]

I think the agency would be better off asking an engineer to design a wired quad vs wireless.

I don't think you'd want to be trailing a wire all over a training facility and hanging a control tether from the ceiling is problematic as well - even if caged, the prop assemblies could easily snag it.

 

[Lapeer20m]

This would likely be the best for this application, but the agencies in question do not have one.

 

[FlyGuy8675309]

My Sport Mode switch is now an ATTI switch; I set it up to hopefully improve my intuitive flying skills.

It's a completely different beast in ATTI mode and yes it's good to practice in case you lose GPS.

I actually buy cheap toy drones to fly around with the kids in the driveway. You really need to pay attention and fight the winds, drifting. etc. Fun practice tools!

 

[Lapeer20m]

It's a completely different beast in ATTI mode and yes it's good to practice in case you lose GPS.

I actually buy cheap toy drones to fly around with the kids in the driveway. You really need to pay attention and fight the winds, drifting. etc. Fun practice tools!

I've flown mavic indoors several times, mostly without GPS, and it does not fly like a toy. In my experience, the downward facing camera and other sensors really keep mavic pretty stable....especially compared to a cheap drone.

Tomorrow I will attempt my first indoor fpv test. This brings up another great question.....What settings should i change on the controller?

I probably want to hover in place rather than RTH if i loose signal. i may want forward vision sensors off.....

 

[Lapeer20m]

I sat outside at a table and did not watch mavic while it was inside the building. Here are the preliminary results of the test:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

 

[Top Hat]

I've flown mavic indoors several times, mostly without GPS, and it does not fly like a toy. In my experience, the downward facing camera and other sensors really keep mavic pretty stable....especially compared to a cheap drone.

Tomorrow I will attempt my first indoor fpv test. This brings up another great question.....What settings should i change on the controller?

I probably want to hover in place rather than RTH if i loose signal. i may want forward vision sensors off.....

Fly it in Tripod mode and RTH to Land/Hover, if possible Beginner mode. JMHO.

 

[Lapeer20m]

Fly it in Tripod mode and RTH to Land/Hover, if possible Beginner mode. JMHO.

I chose exactly those settings, except i did not use beginner mode.

I wish I had access to dji goggles...it would be interesting to see if that made fpv flying easier. I did just order a hoodman sunshade for the ipad. It should be here this week. I got a few compass errors with all the metal around. I did not include in this video, but the 2nd time i made the transition from GPS to vision i lost control of mavic for a few seconds. It maintained altitude but it gently rubbed into trucks on both the right and left side and did not seem to be responding to stick input before it gave up on GPS and entered vision mode.

 

[Lapeer20m]

here is a really short clip of mavic "rubbing" a couple of obstacle before switching to vision mode:

Mavic was not responding to any stick inputs...i was just about ready to abort mission.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

 

[Mr G]

Any of those cheap headsets on Amazon will give you FPV. You just won't have controls on the headset like the DJI one does. You can also fly just as well the controller only. I returned my DJI Goggles because it kept falling off my head. And because you can get a very similar FPV experience with almost any goggles. But DJI uses different tech, so if you try those expensive Fat Shark jobs, those antennas, etc will be of no use.

 

[Mr G]

I sat outside at a table and did not watch mavic while it was inside the building. Here are the preliminary results of the test:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

So you were flying in FPV mode? And you made all decisions in the flight? It would cool if the drone could enter the building, take a tour, and come back with human interference. Or is this what happened?

 

[FlyGuy8675309]

I've flown mavic indoors several times, mostly without GPS, and it does not fly like a toy. In my experience, the downward facing camera and other sensors really keep mavic pretty stable....especially compared to a cheap drone.

I never said the Mavic flies like a toy. I said I use a toy drone with no GPS to practice flying in ATTI mode. Also I wasn't just referring to flying indoors -- I was replying to the person who flies in ATTI mode to improve skills (a great idea BTW).

When you are flying at night the sensors do no good and you really need to rely on manual flying skills, esp. when there's wind.

 

[Phlier]

The Litchi app along with a cheap pair of VR goggles (the kind that you snap your phone into) will give you a fairly decent FPV experience with the Mavic. But as another poster above said, stay away from the dedicated FPV goggles. Their receivers are in the 5ghz range, and are meant to receive an analog transmission from an RC FPV camera. They will *not* work with the closed protocol ("Occusync") that the Mavic uses; their receiver is not in the correct band, and would be unable to interpret the Occusync protocol.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

That's not my YouTube vid, btw, but it's very helpful for guys wanting to fly the Mavic FPV on a budget.

If you're looking to work on your indoor FPV skills, there are many RC grade micro quads that can do just that. Google "tinywhoop", and have fun. Using a tinywhoop, you can either use the expensive Fat Sharks as mentioned above, or any of the really cheap (20-30 buck range) FPV box goggles. Tinywhoops will fly similar to the Mavic when the Mavic is in Atti mode, with one very notable exception: in Atti mode, the Mavic will attempt to use it's downward facing sonar to keep your altitude constant. Tinywhoops and their ilk require you to constantly keep altitude under control yourself.

Just a few sessions with a tinywhoop in FPV mode will get your skills up to the point that flying the Mavic FPV is a yawner.

I LOVE tinywhoops. My son and I fly them every day. I'm pretty sure that I'd be breaking the forum rules by posting links to my favorite brands, but I can say that there's a popular RC forum out there that has all the information you could ever want about them. Barring that, you can just google tinywhoop, and buy the cheapest stuff you can find. Chances are, it'll still be good enough for you to hone your indoor FPV skills well enough to where the Mavic is just dead easy.

Edit for clarity: Yes, "Tinywhoop" is a brand of indoor micro quads, just like "Band Aid" is a brand of bandages. The word "Tinywhoop(s)" as used in this post is not meant as an endorsement of the brand, but rather as a way of referring to that particular class of indoor micro quad. I do not use or endorse any Tinywhoop branded product.

 

[Lapeer20m]

So you were flying in FPV mode? And you made all decisions in the flight? It would cool if the drone could enter the building, take a tour, and come back with human interference. Or is this what happened?

Yes, I was flying in fpv and made all the decisions during the flight.

Because there is no gps signal, mavic cannot fly an automated mission through a building.

 

[Lapeer20m]

Flying in Atti mode fpv in confined spaces seems impractical with my current skill set.

I was pretty excited just to complete today's mission successfully.