Hand Launching and Catching with protection

[Mavic Ray]

Thinking about the hunting falcons in Mongolia I thought about using heavy gloves to protect my hand.

 

[4wd]

You are far more likely to do something clumsy though.
I find if I face it towards me and nip both sides where it's a bit narrower behind the camera it doesn't try to go up.

 

[Guest]

If you are going to catch the falcons by hand than gloves are a good option.
You might have problems opening the cage.

 

[rpmaguire]

I had a propeller nail my finger before...instant blood blister. I would be more worried about eyes or face then hands. If there is any kind of interference the drone could wander.. not really worth the risk in my opinion.



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[Mavic Ray]

I don't like hand catching/launching but when I go hiking in the mountains there may not be a flat area for it to land. Someone mentioned using a tennis racket that you could hold for catching/launching. I need something more compact and maybe foldable. Haven't come up with anything yet. Maybe someone else has an idea?

 

[Achilles]

Never understood the hand launch/catch desire. Small neoprene square for small takeoff environments and I treat every landing as a challenge.


Mavic - North Bay, CA

 

[Kilrah]

As mentioned, some fly in locations where there's no place to put even your small neoprene square.

 

[GerdS]

I can just say, use a foto reflector. Small while folded and lightweighted.

 

[DroneTone]

I find if I face it towards me and nip both sides where it's a bit narrower behind the camera it doesn't try to go up.

I agree, I tried hand-catching in this manner yesterday several times and was easily able to accomplish it without disabling
any obstacle avoidance or vision positioning sensors. (I had all possible sensors activated at the time).
The method was as described above, simply position the drone facing you (camera seeing you), slightly above your head level;
then reach up and under to the slightly narrower area just behind the camera.
If you are careful, the drone will not rise as you capture it. Then shutdown with stick #1 as usual.

 

[F6Rider]

I agree, I tried hand-catching in this manner yesterday several times and was easily able to accomplish it without disabling
any obstacle avoidance or vision positioning sensors. (I had all possible sensors activated at the time).
The method was as described above, simply position the drone facing you (camera seeing you), slightly above your head level;
then reach up and under to the slightly narrower area just behind the camera.
If you are careful, the drone will not rise as you capture it. Then shutdown with stick #1 as usual.

Haven't tried this yet, hand caught my P3 every time. I hike in the Sierra's a lot in the summer and a lot of times there is just no level place to land, so this is a must at times.

 

[Mavic Ray]

Haven't tried this yet, hand caught my P3 every time. I hike in the Sierra's a lot in the summer and a lot of times there is just no level place to land, so this is a must at times.

Yes even if you have a landing pad, sometimes there is no level area to place this landing pad. I need a hand held portable/foldable landing pad.

 

[WolfgangStiller]

I have had to do this as well but the threat of an unexpected wind gust scares me. If it gusts, it could cause a sudden bank of the Mavic with possible painful repercussions.

 

[Crusader]

I agree, I tried hand-catching in this manner yesterday several times and was easily able to accomplish it without disabling
any obstacle avoidance or vision positioning sensors. (I had all possible sensors activated at the time).
The method was as described above, simply position the drone facing you.

Is this not supposed to trigger the forward obstacle detection,
or am i missing someting?

 

[sixxus]

Is this not supposed to trigger the forward obstacle detection,
or am i missing someting?

Rise your hand slowly from below it until you see the mavic rise (to avoid it). Then press control stick down and it will lower to your hand as if to land on the ground. No problems with forward detection in this case

 

[Wacker2611]

I'll never understand why people seem to be so averse to hand catching/launching. It really is the easiest thing in the world, and NOTHING stresses your craft more than landing in particular.


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[Member]

What about enabling sports mode shortly before hand-catching it? Wouldn't that disable the sensors? Or is it only object avoidance but not downward sensors? (to avoid it flying up)

 

[DroneTone]

Here's my method of Hand-Catching. Just double-checked it twice this afternoon and it seems to work reliably.

As opposed to catching the Mavic from below, (which can work too, but will initially cause the Mavic to rise away),
the method I've been using is one where your hand approaches the Mavic at the front (camera) end and from slightly below.

The DJI GO 4 app settings I’ve had set are with all Obstacle Avoidance sensors on, and the Mavic is in GPS Mode, (not Sport Mode).
It was also done in broad daylight.
While it seems as if this should trigger the obstacle avoidance sensors, it does not if done in the following manner outlined below:

1. Maneuver the drone to about shoulder level height and 5-6 feet away in front of you with the nose pointed towards you.

2. Holding the remote controller in one hand (ready to pull the left stick throttle back to “0” and shut down the engines),
slowly reach out with the other hand towards the drone, with your hand approaching the nose slightly from below,
and grasp the front body in the narrow area just behind the camera.
If your hand approaches the drone correctly from slightly below and directly at the front end, the Mavic will not rise or move,
(unless you accidentally jostle it with your hand as you grasp it).

3. From that point it is easy to use your other hand to pull RC left stick back to zero, thereby shutting the motors down.

 

[Nathan Hoover]

Yes there are certainly cases where hand-catch is required. Such as flying from mountain tops, areas with thick brush, etc. A landing pad can sometimes be used, but not always.

Even when not required, I still prefer hand catch as it's simple and reliable and keeps the drone away from the ground - and the chance to spew up dust and whatever. I've hand-caught over 750 times with Phantoms and at least 25 with the Mavic. No issue.

I've also had to do hand-launch with the Mavic a few times. Somehow I never had to with the Phantoms but it's pretty easy with the Mavic.

 

[laura schlenker]

I've hand caught my Mavic three times now, I think having small hands is a benefit. But so far it has gone well.

 

[WolfgangStiller]

Here's my method of Hand-Catching. Just double-checked it twice this afternoon and it seems to work reliably.

As opposed to catching the Mavic from below, (which can work too, but will initially cause the Mavic to rise away),
the method I've been using is one where your hand approaches the Mavic at the front (camera) end and from slightly below.

The DJI GO 4 app settings I’ve had set are with all Obstacle Avoidance sensors on, and the Mavic is in GPS Mode, (not Sport Mode).
It was also done in broad daylight.
While it seems as if this should trigger the obstacle avoidance sensors, it does not if done in the following manner outlined below:

1. Maneuver the drone to about shoulder level height and 5-6 feet away in front of you with the nose pointed towards you.

2. Holding the remote controller in one hand (ready to pull the left stick throttle back to “0” and shut down the engines),
slowly reach out with the other hand towards the drone, with your hand approaching the nose slightly from below,
and grasp the front body in the narrow area just behind the camera.
If your hand approaches the drone correctly from slightly below and directly at the front end, the Mavic will not rise or move,
(unless you accidentally jostle it with your hand as you grasp it).

3. From that point it is easy to use your other hand to pull RC left stick back to zero, thereby shutting the motors down.

Excellent! I really appreciate the step-by-step tested procedure! I will be practicing that prior to doing it on mountain tops.