Spork's Journey

[Spork]

Thanks, Doc.

Regarding the dropping - it happens at every altitude from 2' to 16' (all indoors). The only way I've found to eliminate it (95%) is to move at least a touch faster than slowly. As soon as I slow to say less than half walking speed or try to hover, then the dropping starts.

I had no idea on the creeping, but then again I've never measured a battery before. Always good to learn stuff - thanks.

I like that - I'll try Rick's timer idea for now. And shop for a battery monitor - like that idea.

While I like flying the little critter a LOT better now than on day one, I'm kicking myself a little for not taking a bit more time shopping to find something with OSD or some kind of battery telemetry (if I'm using the right terminology). Oh well, we live and learn. I figure - even if this doesn't turn out to be my dream indoor FPV flyer, the lessons learned around using BetaFlight, binding, and setting up the Taranis model - it will still have been money well spent. This little adventure is making me consider getting a BNF 2" or 3" to help me better understand what I want/need - things I like/dislike - before I spend the time, effort, and money on building a larger freestyle quad.

 

[Spork]

So my second package from Banggood finally arrived. I connected the Eachine ROTG02 to my laptop, pressed the channel scan button and BAM - video feed on the monitor. Very happy that this went super smooth. I can't fly the Tiny6 very well like this yet - only had time for one battery, but I think I'll adjust the throttle curve as Doc suggested above (JB had a great video on this). On the plus (or minus - you decide) side, the cat decided he isn't afraid of the motor noise anymore and tried to attack it like he does when mayflies get in the house. I was flying about 4' off the ground and he almost nabbed it. This is going to be fun! Hopefully, I'll have some TinySpork vs Milo video soon.

Also in the package was the TX01 Cam/VTX AIO (also Eachine) - which will go into HolySpork when I get a chance to cut a hole in the nose. Made another n00b mistake and didn't notice that the receiver had linear antennas and the TX01 has RHCP. Not waiting on Banggood, so I asked Mr. Bezos to drop one by the house tomorrow.

I plan to power the VTX with one of the Tiny6's 250mAh batteries (smaller/lighter). Is my math right that if the VTX draws 200mA that I should get a little more than hour of usage from the 250mAh battery?

 

[Spork]

Changed the title and updated the first post - since I won't be building anything for a while. Sorry/not sorry, but this has turned into more of a running thread on my random ramblings. I'll continue to update this one as I play around with things and will create a new thread for an actual build.

 

[Spork]

HolySpork has survived surgery and is now in the recovery unit with a new bionic eye.

I didn't think about the props hitting until after I had it hot-glued down and re-assembled.

Sigh - what a n00b.

Both props banged into the antenna, so I bent it back a little and now there's maybe 3mm clearance. Too many aggravating little screws to bother moving it now. I'll wait to see how she flies and move it back a bit later if I need to. Still waiting on the receiver antenna to show up later today and it'll be time for a test.

Her last surgery involved amputating her landing gear, prop guards, and the crap camera for almost a 20% reduction in weight. That added about a minute to her 6ish minute flight time. I also drilled a hole underneath to run the receiver antenna out hoping for better range, but haven't tested it yet.

Also, looking at the pic, I guess I should order some replacement props. Someone, not mentioning any names (Spork Junior) likes to rub the ceiling with the props.

FrankenSpork may be a more fitting name, but we'll stick with HolySpork for now

 

[Spork]

Well, okay then. This project was a success! HolySpork is a hell of a lot easier to control on FPV than TinySpork. Just being able to hover let's me slow down enough to feel more in control. Only got to fly one pack before Mrs. Spork told me to stop interrupting her TV show, LOL. She'll go to bed soon and I'll be able to fly the remaining batteries. I will say it does feel a bit disoriented "being" in another room than the one in which I'm flying. I don't get that at all when I'm flying in a sim.

Other lessons learned ...

• 25mw is almost just enough power in the house - too much snow here and there, but good enough for now. I was impressed with the low light performance of the camera, though. When I flew into a dark room, it was like daylight in there. If it's nice tomorrow, I may open the window and do a bit of backyard flying from in the house to test range.
• I need to put the prop guards back on. My confidence looking through the monitor is a lot less than when I'm standing right near by doing LOS.
• Turn off the screen saver! Just as I was getting the hang of things, the SS kicked on, killing my video feed. By the time I put in the password to unlock the screen, HolySpork hit the wall and hit the deck from 15' up. Fortunately she seems to be a tough old broad and appears to be fine.

 

[Gyro Doctor]

... Keep us posted, this is hilarious .... and partly because we've all been there done that (or similar)

 

[Spork]

... Keep us posted, this is hilarious .... and partly because we've all been there done that (or similar)

I was hoping it would be amusing to some of you. I also hope I can help other new folks avoid a mistake - or ten.

 

[SNSTRLefty]

Turn off the screen saver! Just as I was getting the hang of things, the SS kicked on, killing my video feed. By the time I put in the password to unlock the screen, HolySpork hit the wall and hit the deck from 15' up. Fortunately she seems to be a tough old broad and appears to be fine.

I could just here the cursing that ensued when that happened.

 

[Spork]

I could just here the cursing that ensued when that happened.

You would be correct. My son happened to be coming up the stairs during the crash and was laughing at both the crash and my cursing.

 

[Spork]

So yesterday I flew some packs with TinySpork and thought I had collected some decent FPV feed video of Milo the cat chasing, trying to attack and following from room to room. I was a little ticked off when I realized I forget to hit the record button. On the plus side, I'm getting much better at flying TinySpork through the house - having a ton of fun compared to day one. Darn cat, I charged the batteries and flew again today and he couldn't be bothered to get up from his nap.

I had grand plans to try flying HolySpork around the perimeter of the house while piloting from the kitchen, but Mother Nature wasn't cooperating with the high winds and then rain.

 

[SNSTRLefty]

I'm thinking of trying the same, flying around the yard while using the TV at some point, once I get something with a decent range and can work with the QX7.

 

[Jackson]

I had grand plans to try flying HolySpork around the perimeter of the house

Mr. Micromotor has a few antennas spaced around the perimeter of his roof.

 

[Spork]

Mr. Micromotor has a few antennas spaced around the perimeter of his roof.

No wonder he gets such good reception.

And that is one NICE house (and property) - I guess the micro motor business is good. Thanks for introducing me to his channel in one of your previous posts - I wasn't a big fan on first watch, but he grew on me and have now watched dozens of his videos.

 

[Gyro Doctor]

... I've been kicking around the idea of modifying those "WiFi Extenders" readily available in stores.
It occurred to me that if they can pick up and resend both 2.4 and 5.8 GHz signals for cellphone/computer use
then they can also do it for our WiFi linked quads as well as our regular 2.4 and 5.8 GHZ control and FPV links too !

This could greatly increase our range without using overpowered devices and breaking any "rules" as well as reducing
breakup/dropouts when flying behind obstacles or through trees too. Just imagine simply placing one out at your favorite spot to fly
and not having to worry about FPV dropouts just because you're swinging behind that patch of trees at the edge of your range,
or even simply stringing several in a line so you could fly "all the way out to there" (theoretically unlimited) and back without
ever even worrying about range at all !

The biggest problem is that they (existing repeaters) rely upon the phone or computer's GUI for set up. It would require the
designing of a built-in interface that would emulate the native GUI (otherwise seen on the phone or laptop) aboard this device
using a screen of it's own, as well as the processing power to do so. It would also require the incorporation of a battery supply
instead of the usual "mains" supply ( but that's the easiest part of all) so that each repeater would then become a self powered,
independent unit capable of communication with all other nodes within the established network, having discrimination to reject
unauthorized frequencies (a bonus in thereby reducing outside interference), in a small weatherproof box , and at a reasonable
price too.

Of course as soon as it's invented the Chinese will clone it and then they'll sell like hotcakes at half the price and someone will be
getting rich other than the inventor (me) ..... soooooo, I'm just tossing the idea out there if anyone feels enterprising enough to tackle
the challenge or maybe even collaborate on creating such a device. The constraints upon both my time and budget given my current
occupation preclude such an endeavour, but a guy can still dream ... right ?

 

[Spork]

I love the idea Doc!

Although instead of a built in screen, I don't see why you couldn't just use a phone app to configure them. My new wireless router/satellite setup was totally done on the phone quick and easy.

 

[Gyro Doctor]

I don't see why you couldn't just use a phone app to configure them

Any range extenders I've ever setup are extending the range of the device which is being used to set them up.
Which is to say it's going to repeat the link that's established by whatever that device is using, not setting up an unrelated link.

 

[Jackson]

but he grew on me and have now watched dozens of his videos.

He's a real character.

 

[Spork]

Any range extenders I've ever setup are extending the range of the device which is being used to set them up.
Which is to say it's going to repeat the link that's established by whatever that device is using, not setting up an unrelated link.

Gotcha. I was thinking you got the idea from range-extender, but would build a new device allowing you more freedom with design choices.

 

[Spork]

Yesterday, TinySpork and HolySpork were introduced to the newest member of the family, AirSpork. They were impressed that AirSpork could fold up his arms and hide inside a case. TinySpork laughed and said he was smaller and could hide in a case less than half that size. HolySpork just sat there, because he's still a little embarrassed about his recent bionic eye surgery. (Yes, I'm cracking myself up).

The nice FedEx man delivered AirSpork yesterday, just after it started pouring rain. During some of my boring conference calls, I went about charging the batteries, reading the manuals and watching YT videos on dumb stuff NOT to do on day one while I prayed for the rain to stop. I decided to try to fly indoors, and it was so loud that it not only scared the cat and the dogs, but TBH it scared me a little, so I quickly landed it back on the dining room table (please don't tell Mrs. Spork) before I crashed it into Mrs. Spork's china cabinet. I've already been yelled at for crashing TinySpork into into furniture, so I certainly didn't want to leave any evidence of that.

Of course, it didn't stop raining until this afternoon, so I put AirSpork in my backpack, hopped on my bike and rode over to the nearby soccer fields that I fly at when I get a chance. I played around with beginner mode (I think it limits you to 100' alt and 100' horizontal) for most of the first battery and shot some very high quality, but very boring video. Feeling a little more confident, I turned off beginner mode for the second battery and flew all around the fields, up and down the road, and up to the top of the light poles (100ish feet) - a new thing for me as HolySpork would only get about halfway up the light pole before the wind would start quickly blowing him towards the woods. AirSpork just stays where you put him. I also flew through a few soccer goals, albeit slowly.

Battery #3 saw AirSpork climb to 200' for a look around the place and testing out the obstacle avoidance system. I was impressed, I aimed AirSpork at a tree, one of the light poles and finally me - luckily AirSpork obediently stopped abruptly. It was a slightly jarring feature at first, but I'm not sure I would ever turn this off. I decided not to press my luck on smaller objects. I wanted to try out some of the automated cool stuff, but I remembered one of the videos that I watched said to wait on those until you get more practice and a good feel for how it handles - so I'll wait until I get a few more batteries behind me. I feel like I already have enough possibility of crashing into stuff without an automated routine crashing into stuff for me.

As I was about to land, I noticed a car pull up to the gate and someone opened their window and appeared to be on the phone. My first thought was it would be a busybody wanting to say who knows what. So after I packed up, I got on my bike and told myself to be nice (at first). Turns out it was just a teenager smoking a bong. So I waved at him and smiled. The look on his face told me he had no idea I was coming and that he might be checking his shorts later.

All in all, it was a good start for AirSpork. Tiny and Holy are pretty jealous. I secretly charged their batteries today, so after some dinner, I'll get some indoor flying in before Mrs. Spork comes back from her trip. TinySpork has some furniture to crash into.

Soon, I'll go through the video and see if there's anything worth sharing so you guys can have a laugh. Stay tuned.

 

[Spork]

Okay, went had another session at the soccer park today. Mrs. Spork wanted some fresh air, so she came along. I tried to get her to fly, but she was scared of wrecking.

Psssh. I think quadcopter is Swahili for wrecking.

My editing skills are a little rusty, but here's today and yesterday boiled down.