Welcome DJI Spark Pilot!
Jump in and join our free Spark community today!
Sign up

Flying indoor

AK19

Member
Join
Aug 16, 2017
Messages
7
Age
23
Good time of a day.

I am a new Spark pilot (less than a week).

Is there any way safely fly Spark indoor? Should I change any settings in the Spark set up.

One thing what I though my self, if I should disable (if possible) GPS and make Spark fly on visual reference only. By disabling GPS, I can prevent Spark picking up GPS signal automatically mid-flight and getting wrong reference with a consequence to flying to the wall or something else.

Does any one has regular experience of flying Spark indoor (just inside of house for fun)?

Any feedback are welcome.

Best Regards
 
Use prop guards and RC when possible. Need really smooth and small reactions on the stick.
It will not use GPS either OPTI or ATTI mode. OPTI will height sensor and bottom camera to keep position. It will switch from one to the other mode depending if the camera see a pattern below.
Use obstacles avoidance but remember it is only in front.
Also best is to train you flying in ATTI mode to learn keeping orientation outside but it is difficult to get that mode as you cannot force it through the app.
 
One thing to note when flying indoor is WIFI interference. I have 3 separate WIFI networks in my home, thus flying indoors is next to impossible for me
 
  • Like
Reactions: His415
I flew indoors this week for the first time. When you takeoff and have the LEDs blinking green twice, you are good - if they stay yellow, be prepared that it will drift. I didnt block GPS.
When I flew above a table, bright and white, the LEDs changed to yellow and Spark wouldnt stay where it was. However, it was easy to maneuver it away from the table as the drift was quite slow.

Prop Guards will help alot ... just in case!
 
I fly my Spark indoors a lot of the time because the weather here has been mostly rain all summer. RTH altitude set to current altitude just in case - have yet to lose signal. I have the prop guards on. So far I've not experienced any problems at all. It complains a little about interference when I buzz past the freezer plus the wife gets annoyed if I pester her with it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: REMUS1 and uasav8r
Prop guards are a must! Also remember to not have loose paper or messy table near by. I tried flying in doors, Spark was very stable but other things flew everywhere!

Spark is much better than Phantom 2, I stupidly flown that in-doors very briefly, and almost blown away the living room rug, it was a very very scary experience.
 
I fly my Spark indoors a lot of the time because the weather here has been mostly rain all summer. RTH altitude set to current altitude just in case - have yet to lose signal. I have the prop guards on. So far I've not experienced any problems at all. It complains a little about interference when I buzz past the freezer plus the wife gets annoyed if I pester her with it.
Thanks for pointing out about RTH altitude - it definitely can make a few scratches on the ceiling and upset the drone (and the wife).
 
Prop guards are a must! Also remember to not have loose paper or messy table near by. I tried flying in doors, Spark was very stable but other things flew everywhere!

Spark is much better than Phantom 2, I stupidly flown that in-doors very briefly, and almost blown away the living room rug, it was a very very scary experience.

Hmm, didn't think about the wind. Good point. Thanks.
 
One thing to note when flying indoor is WIFI interference. I have 3 separate WIFI networks in my home, thus flying indoors is next to impossible for me

Interesting, I have minimum 5 separate WIFI networks around me, as I live in the apartment, but my Spark is fine about it. But if I leave Bluetooth "ON" on my iPhone, Spark does not want to fly and show warning message about Bluetooth network around it. Same happens when setting up for a flight outdoor, if Bluetooth is left "ON" on the iPhone, the Spark shows warning message about it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: antnyp85
Tested it, and Tripod works fine indoors when it is in Vision/OPTI Mode.
Ok good to know. I thought that it is only on gps mode as i cant go to the intelligent flight mode (where i can then select tripod) without gps.
 
Hello everyone!

I'm a new owner of a Spark. This is my first real drone so please bare with me! :)

The weather is not favorable for outdoor flying so I was looking to get some practice indoors, in the meantime.

I had read about using the Tripod mode and of course prop guards.

Last night I tried setting my Spark to Tripod mode, but I got a message saying that this mode cannot be used while in ATTI mode. I dont get any GPS signal in my basement, and the drone remains in ATTI mode.

Do I absolutely need to move up a floor and hope to get GPS signal? My understanding is that flying indoors without GPS is safer to prevent a rogue fly-away or a smash into the wall?

Thanks for your help and advice!
 
When using tripod mode, stick inputs must be larger to move it.
That means it pops to higher speed if it suddenly decides to go to atti mode because of lost track of the floor.
When it goes to atti mode, it drops out of tripod mode. I have had fun with that, so now I never use tripod mode indoor.
 
When using tripod mode, stick inputs must be larger to move it.
That means it pops to higher speed if it suddenly decides to go to atti mode because of lost track of the floor.
When it goes to atti mode, it drops out of tripod mode. I have had fun with that, so now I never use tripod mode indoor.

Good to know !
 
I fly indoors from time to time, but the Spark is a bit big and generates a lot of airflow for indoors. I've found it's "attracted" to walls due to the downdraft of air it generates, so flying down narrow hallways can be a little intense sometimes. If you see it drifting toward a wall, over-correcting can send you flying into the other wall. I'd also give a nod to prop guards, they're pretty much required indoors although I have yet to bump anything. Grass probably won't damage your props, branches are iffy, but a bookshelf is pretty much guaranteed to cost you a prop or two. It'll also clear the papers off your desk if you get very close!

A special consideration with the Spark is the collision avoidance. I have problems in my house doing things like going through doorways because it sees it as an obstacle and will stop at the threshold. I either have to back out of a room or switch to Sport mode to disable the sensor. Of course that triples the sensitivity of the stick so you have to be careful. Lately I've only flown in sport mode indoors so I don't have to fight it, and I think that gives me good practice with being "gentle" on the sticks. It seems to do a good job of parking when you let go of the sticks though, guessing it's using its optical sensors to hold position even without a good GPS lock. (my house is mainly GPS-proof)

My hexacopter (WLtoys Q282-G) is by far the most stable indoor drone I own, I actually never even bother with the prop guard indoors. It doesn't fly very fast and is a lot smaller with less downdraft so it can hover near a wall and has plenty of maneuvering room even in a hallway - they're great for a beginner indoors. My Syma X11 are a lot more maneuverable, and stick sensitivity is a lot higher so I usually fly those with the guards on, although I rarely have issues. The syma (with the guard on) are beaters, I wouldn't be too afraid to run into a tree with them and pick it up and toss back into the air and get going again, so they are my preferred indoors drone because they're rugged and more fun to fly. So if you would like something for indoor time I would really suggest you get a cheap beater like the X11, they're much better suited for indoor use than the Spark, and you hav a lot less risk all around. For about the cost of a Spark battery you can go to amazon and get an X11 ($29) with 5 additional batteries and a bulk charger ($15) and basically fly as much as you want indoors.
 
or switch to Sport mode to disable the sensor.

You can disable the sensors in the Go4 app without having to go to the Sport mode.

Plus, if you switch to Tripod Mode, it's safer in the house as the stick movements are slower.
 
You can disable the sensors in the Go4 app without having to go to the Sport mode.

Plus, if you switch to Tripod Mode, it's safer in the house as the stick movements are slower.

yep I was just thinking about disabling the sensors, but tripod mode may not be good enough to deal with the "wall effect" I am encountering in tight hallways.
 

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
14,601
Messages
118,823
Members
18,013
Latest member
JulieMyers