Introducing Dronelink

[Keule]

You should have seen 34 a few hours ago.

Yep, already testing the new build

 

[dronelink]

Yep, already testing the new build

We have removed build 34 on iOS as some users were seeing an infinite splash screen. Please roll back to 33.

 

[Keule]

We have removed build 34 on iOS as some users were seeing an infinite splash screen. Please roll back to 33.

Okey dokey - thanks for the info!

 

[dronelink]

35 is out, should be good to go.

 

[Dan C]

I too am a newbie with DL, so take this with a grain of salt. At this point Orbits to not integrate well with WP missions. As you noticed it set up another approach which interrupts the flow of the mission.

I know they have plans to make Orbit tools available inside a Path plan as they get to it. This is still BETA with much work to do to get all the features everyone wants integrated in useful ways.

Yeah, I saw that. Thanks Greg.

I'm updating my plan this afternoon, then I hope to try it out. But I think I'll make a small plan over a clear area of the park first as a Confidence Test before I try the tricky one near buildings.

I want to be sure the positioning is accurate.

There's a silver lining, too. Re-thinking through building the orbit I want, I've decided to set the gimbal at 0, start closer to the pillar (it's 91m tall with an Eagle on top), and pull out as I climb, doing an upward and outward spiral, thus performing a "reveal" of the Eagle at the top.

I'll finish that off by doing a backwards withdraw and climb, keeping the pillar in view throughout, before panning away, then ending.

The whole sequence should be something like 12 minutes long.

Wish me luck!

 

[Dan C]

You cannot put an orbit in the middle of a path right now. We do have additional Waypoint Types on the product roadmap, one of which would be a circle, but in the meantime you should consider just putting down a whole new Path component after the Orbit.

No problem. I already have ideas for a workaround. Thanks for the info.

 

[dronelink]

The whole sequence should be something like 12 minutes long.

Sounds cool. Can you post a link to the final mission plan?

 

[Dan C]

Sounds cool. Can you post a link to the final mission plan?

Will do.

 

[Dan C]

FYI, can't log into support.dronelink.com again today. The login popup comes up, with the usual warning about cookies (always there, it seems). I enter my credentials (actually, Firefox does that -- no mistakes that way). The popup closes as though everything is good, but it isn't. Most of the links don't function anymore, certainly including the "login in" link, until I reload the page. But I'm not logged in.

-----

Anyway, what I'm actually after is to ask if there is some kind of log for a flight, and where I'll find it.

I tried a small (safe) test to see how accurately the Mavic Air would follow a path. You can see the plan here:

GPS Test Plan

I'm not sure where it was exactly when it failed the mission, but I'm expecting it to be one of the camera commands -- probably the reset.

I used the camera reset from the Dronelink repository, and I'm assuming there is a command in there not supported by my camera, but marked as required.

Is there a log somewhere that will tell me what failed?

 

[dronelink]

Is there a log somewhere that will tell me what failed?

Click on the missions tab in your account:




Then hover over the Failed icon and look at the tooltip:

 

[parkgt]

FYI, can't log into support.dronelink.com again today. The login popup comes up, with the usual warning about cookies (always there, it seems). I enter my credentials (actually, Firefox does that -- no mistakes that way). The popup closes as though everything is good, but it isn't. Most of the links don't function anymore, certainly including the "login in" link, until I reload the page. But I'm not logged in.

-----

Anyway, what I'm actually after is to ask if there is some kind of log for a flight, and where I'll find it.

I tried a small (safe) test to see how accurately the Mavic Air would follow a path. You can see the plan here:

GPS Test Plan

I'm not sure where it was exactly when it failed the mission, but I'm expecting it to be one of the camera commands -- probably the reset.

I used the camera reset from the Dronelink repository, and I'm assuming there is a command in there not supported by my camera, but marked as required.

Is there a log somewhere that will tell me what failed?

A lot of camera command for sure. I don't know about a log of mission commands.

I try to avoid unnecessary commands, build you own list of just what you need and save the list in a Repository. The Required will get you if it is an unsupported command. I don't use it. I tend to set my camera up in Go4 and then just let the mission start it.

 

[dronelink]

We highly recommend forking our core components and modifying them to fit your use case / specific hardware. Not using camera commands in an option, but it will require you to remember to perform the right actions on every outing which increases your cognitive load and stress.

 

[parkgt]

We highly recommend forking our core components and modifying them to fit your use case / specific hardware. Not using camera commands in an option, but it will require you to remember to perform the right actions on every outing which increases your cognitive load and stress.

Alternate view:
Reviewing camera settings before each mission gives you a last minute chance to verify what you want for that flight.

If the choices were limited to those actually supported by the craft it would be more certain. The "Required" has gotten me also.

Over time I will probably make more use of lists and camera commands but the current uncertainty of what is supported makes me keep it simple.

It takes less time to review and set before hand than to try to figure out why a mission aborted, log into the web app and try to correct while out in the field with limited time and battery.

 

[egoldy]

Alternate view:
Reviewing camera settings before each mission gives you a last minute chance to verify what you want for that flight.

If the choices were limited to those actually supported by the craft it would be more certain. The "Required" has gotten me also.

Over time I will probably make more use of lists and camera commands but the current uncertainty of what is supported makes me keep it simple.

It takes less time to review and set before hand than to try to figure out why a mission aborted, log into the web app and try to correct while out in the field with limited time and battery.

Greg -

Fair enough point. I do want to get to a point where we know what will prevent missions from aborting based upon aircraft, etc.

 

[Dan C]

Then hover over the Failed icon and look at the tooltip:

Camer Focus Mode | Auto

Mavic Air doesn't support it. Thanks for the help.

 

[Dan C]

Alternate view:
Reviewing camera settings before each mission gives you a last minute chance to verify what you want for that flight.

As I think about this, I'm kind swinging around to flying the drone a bit and playing with the settings to see what is appropriate for the current conditions. Auto settings are, while convenient, maybe not the best for the post production work to follow.

But you can't really know what manual settings you need till you get your camera up in the air.

And if you do that, you don't want to use the reset commands.

-----

Question: Does anyone know if the D-Cinelike mode for the Mavic Air is part of the drone's camera system, or a part of the DJI Go 4 software?

If the former, I want to make sure that's selected. Research has taught me this mode with a few manual adjustments is the way to go for video on the MA

 

[dronelink]

Camer Focus Mode | Auto

Mavic Air doesn't support it. Thanks for the help.

The other option is to put the command in and mark it as not required, meaning it will try to do it if possible, and keep going even if it fails.

 

[Oyibo VFX]

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 influence our product roadmap, and we would love your feedback. You can join the beta now, and our public launch is scheduled for later this year.

For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Jim McAndrew and I am a software architect and drone enthusiast from Austin, Texas. My passion for creating drone software started in 2014 with Autopilot, the first app for DJI drones in the iOS App Store. After Autopilot I cofounded Hangar and served as CTO until mid 2018. Since then I have been working hard to create Dronelink - the culmination of five years of experience and lessons learned. To those of you who have supported me along the way, thank you.

I look forward to creating the future of flight automation with you.

-Jim

I will see the beta and test.
And a video will follow (of course)

 

[HawkEye76]

That was just a rendering issue in the video, it should be corrected in later videos.


You cannot put an orbit in the middle of a path right now. We do have additional Waypoint Types on the product roadmap, one of which would be a circle, but in the meantime you should consider just putting down a whole new Path component after the Orbit.


We just uploaded build 34 of the APK, which hopefully corrects some of the issues people have been having with crashing and unreliable connection (on smart controllers). Let us know if it still happens after a fresh install of 34.

This solved my issue, I am now able to load the app on Samaung S10 and fly. Looking great so far!

 

[MontanaFree]

This software is fantastic! As a IT-professional I want to applaude the developes for thinking in the terms of modules/commands. Love it!
What is the status of the project now?