Heading question in Litchi

[GreggC]

Hey guys,
Two questions,
#1...Is there a setting that will allow me to alter heading (left stick, yaw)
while the drone is on course to the next waypoint ??
#2...On one of my missions I have actions for #2 waypoint "stay for 60 seconds"
However it does not, at all, just flies to the next waypoint, Why ??

 

[lisadoc]

#1...Is there a setting that will allow me to alter heading (left stick, yaw) while the drone is on course to the next waypoint ??

Automated or manually? You're going to have to describe exactly what you're trying to do in more detail.

It all depends on what you mean by "alter heading". You can do it manually if you choose "User Controlled" ("Manual" on iOS), which allows you to control the yaw while the aircraft moves between 2 points. You can also set a POI where you want to point the aircraft (if you want to look at something specific) and then make the heading that same POI for both. If you want it to change between points, you can choose "Waypoint Defined" ("Custom" on iOS), and set it for one heading on the first, then another on the second, and the aircraft will yaw smoothly between the two in between those 2 points.

#2...On one of my missions I have actions for #2 waypoint "stay for 60 seconds"
However it does not, at all, just flies to the next waypoint, Why ??

You probably had it set to "Curved Turns". Waypoint actions are ignored when the mission "Path Mode" is "Curved Turns" as the aircraft will not stop at waypoints.

 

[GreggC]

Hey lisadoc,
Thanks for the reply,
To be more specific,
I'd like to have the drone fly from one waypoint to another and I want to
manually input yaw. Flying in between waypoints the drone will be on course, I want to
have manual control of the heading. Is this possible ??
As for the 60 second thing I think your correct, I might have had it in "curved turns",
Ill check when I fly tomorrow.

 

[lisadoc]

To be more specific,
I'd like to have the drone fly from one waypoint to another and I want to
manually input yaw. Flying in between waypoints the drone will be on course, I want to
have manual control of the heading. Is this possible ??

Yep. Like I said above, just choose "User Controlled" ("Manual" on iOS) for the mission setting "Heading Mode", which allows you to control the yaw while the aircraft moves between 2 points. Easy-peasy.

 

[GreggC]

Yep. Like I said above, just choose "User Controlled" ("Manual" on iOS) for the mission setting "Heading Mode", which allows you to control the yaw while the aircraft moves between 2 points. Easy-peasy.

Excellent,
Its supposed to be beautiful here tomorrow, I plan to fly,
Ill post my results.
Thanks !!

 

[GreggC]

OK I did it and it worked,
I got the heading to yaw, looks like that setting has to be input for every flight because it defaults to "custom"
As for the actions.
I input "stay for 60 seconds" for waypoint #2 in Litchi Mission Hub, and saved it correctly, but when the mission was uploaded to my ipad and then to my drone the actions were not there, I had to input again using the app.
Is this normal??
I would assume if the mission is built and saved on Mission Hub all data would transfer ??
Did I do some thing wrong ??

 

[lisadoc]

Possibly. Maybe it didn't actually save (or overwrite the old one). Save it under a new name and then load that one on your app, that way you can be sure you're getting the new mission version when you load it. Everything should transfer (settings, actions, etc.). Likely you just overlooked something.

 

[GreggC]

Ill give it a try,
Ill let you know,
Thanks for all the help

 

[GreggC]

Nope,
Just tried it,
I checked and doubled checked the entire mission on Mission Hub,
I then saved it and added "a" at the end of the mission name to denote
the new saved mission.
I opened up the app, turned on the transmitter and drone and within seconds the new "a" mission was there.
I opened it, went into mission settings and set "Heading" to manual,
I check and made sure "path mode" was in straight line, I touched the > in the lower right corner to look at waypoints,
when I got to the 2nd waypoint where I have "stay for 60 seconds" there was no action. Nothing.
I re-input 60 seconds and then Xed out. I re-opened to double check these settings and Heading was still in manual but actions went from the 60 seconds I input to 32 seconds.
Something is not right, it does not like this waypoint.
Im starting to get frustrated.

 

[GreggC]

Here is the mission,
Very simple,
Out and back

Starts and ends in my back yard

This is the problem child,
Waypoint #2

 

[lisadoc]

OK. Good news and bad news. The good news is... you're not crazy. I couldn't figure out why it wasn't working for you (I don't typically use "actions" when planning missions) so I set up a sample mission myself in Mission Hub. Same thing. Go out, wait, come back. Save it. Load it in the app. Point 2, no actions. I added a few more actions. Take photo. Turn. Wait 60 seconds. Save. Again, the first action is not in the loaded mission. Second action and beyond are there. No first action. And now the "wait 90 seconds" has turned into "wait 24.5 seconds". No clue why.

The bad news... it appears to be a bug in the software. When I export the mission to a CSV file, the actions are there. Opening them in the app, and the first one disappears and the rest are a bit wonky. My guess is that an email to Litchi tech support is in order. Unless there's something we're both missing here, but I can't imagine what it is.

 

[GreggC]

Wow,
Thank you Lisa,
Im pleased to know Im not crazy or stupid.
I appreciate your effort and time.
Ill email Litchi tomorrow along with a link to this thread,
Might be helpful.

 

[GreggC]

Just contacted Litchi on FB,
I received an answer right away,
Max "Stay" time for a given waypoint is 32 seconds.
I was inputing 60 seconds.
This afternoon I get back on Mission Hub and input 30 seconds,
save and upload and see if actions are now there.

 

[lisadoc]

Just contacted Litchi on FB,
I received an answer right away,
Max "Stay" time for a given waypoint is 32 seconds.

That solved it.

The denotation is actually tucked away in the help pages online (note: not included in the PDF): "Stay for: The time in seconds that the aircraft should pause at the waypoint. Maximum 32 seconds."

Strangely, it doesn't note that entering anything above 32 seconds would cause these types of issues. I also don't understand why there's this artificial limit imposed. Maybe there's some weird programming reason behind having a time limit for a specific action. Moreover, why would it be 32 seconds? Seems like a weird cutoff and bizarrely specific. And finally, why wouldn't it just default to 32 seconds if anything higher is entered, instead of deleting the entry or changing it to some other random value? Questions... questions...

Final note: there doesn't seem to be a preclusion from entering "Stay for 30 seconds" multiple times in a row in order to exceed the singular entry time limit (30 sec + 30 sec + 30 sec = 90 second wait, for example). It works in transferring to the app. I'm not sure how this would translate to real-world mission actions though, as I did not test that example in the field.