Flying the drone from a moving boat.

[Icarus50]

I have a number of drones, larger than the Spark but am very impressed with Spark's performance and features. I do photography and view Spark's photographs and videos to be at a very good presentation standard. Messaging at this level is more effective than number of pixels. With warmer weather now, I would like to fly the Spark from a moving boat. I once did this but the signal got lost a number of times as the distance between the boat and me increased so I returned the boat to its original location to regain the controller-Spark connection. I would like to fly the Spark behind the boat, on the side of the boat, in front and even away from the boat while I am cruising fast around a lake/river. So the question is how to do it this: If I tap my Home position (on the Go 4 app) periodically while the Spark is following me in the boat, will this allow me to fly it without distance restrictions? If I use the Dynamic Position do I need to be in Active Tracking mode for the software to automatically update my Home position or this is not even an option. So manual or automatic? Are there other options? I appreciate any input to learn. Thanks

 

[RoarRoar]

I've done this once. I mostly used active track. The problem was I was on a 3 engine center console that could easily out run the spark or any drone for that matter. So I only used it when we had to slow down in a restricted channel.

I used this as my tutorial.

 

[Icarus50]

I've done this once. I mostly used active track. The problem was I was on a 3 engine center console that could easily out run the spark or any drone for that matter. So I only used it when we had to slow down in a restricted channel.

I used this as my tutorial.

Thank you for responding. Helpful video. I will be trying out some options this week, if the weather permits, and hopefully all will be fine.

 

[Putz]

I've taken several videos from a boat. You can get some really cool videos. It's a lot easier if you're comfortable with hand launching. As far as home point, I just left it alone and canceled RTH if I got to far away. I always figured if I kept LOS and monitored my battery, I didn't need it.

 

[Kayl]

I haven't done it yet, but plan on doing it soon! This video has some tips that I'm planning to use.

 

[Chrislaf]

I have done numerous Follow/Track missions with both my Spark and P3S. I have used DJIs Active Track, Litchi’s Track mode, and AutoPilot’s (iOS only) Follow mode. Out of all of them I have found AutoPilot to be the most reliable and rock solid. The other two often lose track of the target object. I have used Following/Tracking to follow me while walking, bicycling, snowmobiling, and my son kayaking.
AutoPilot has dynamic home point so the home point is always updated.

I am going to be trying Follow missions soon while canoeing/kayaking but have to figure out the landing problems I could have in a drifting canoe/kayak. I usually hand launch and land but this would likely be difficult in these situations.

Here’s a screen shot of my current AutoPilot settings for Follow:


Chris

 

[Icarus50]

I have done numerous Follow/Track missions with both my Spark and P3S. I have used DJIs Active Track, Litchi’s Track mode, and AutoPilot’s (iOS only) Follow mode. Out of all of them I have found AutoPilot to be the most reliable and rock solid. The other two often lose track of the target object. I have used Following/Tracking to follow me while walking, bicycling, snowmobiling, and my son kayaking.
AutoPilot has dynamic home point so the home point is always updated.

I am going to be trying Follow missions soon while canoeing/kayaking but have to figure out the landing problems I could have in a drifting canoe/kayak. I usually hand launch and land but this would likely be difficult in these situations.

Here’s a screen shot of my current AutoPilot settings for Follow:
View attachment 9799

Chris

Hi Chrislaf, and thanks a lot! Your video is fun to watch, I noticed that at times you were going very fast with the boat, but your drone kept up. I believe the Spark cannot fly that fast with Active Tracking on, so you must have been using some other drone. I have driven fast 40+ miles on the boat and used my Yuneec Typhoon H drone which kept up with the speed. So I am going to try with the Spark whenever the weather permits and will see how it goes. But this is definitely fun to do and watch. Like the music you selected too. Thanks again.

 

[Chrislaf]

Hi Chrislaf, and thanks a lot! Your video is fun to watch, I noticed that at times you were going very fast with the boat, but your drone kept up. I believe the Spark cannot fly that fast with Active Tracking on, so you must have been using some other drone. I have driven fast 40+ miles on the boat and used my Yuneec Typhoon H drone which kept up with the speed. So I am going to try with the Spark whenever the weather permits and will see how it goes. But this is definitely fun to do and watch. Like the music you selected too. Thanks again.

Hi Icarus,
The video you are referencing was not mine. I don’t have a boat, only a canoe.

When I did have my Spark follow me on my snowmobile, I did not drive at high speed as it would not likely have been able to keep up. You need to keep the speed within the speed the Spark can fly at and the wind conditions at the time.

Chris

 

[Icarus50]

Hi Icarus,
The video you are referencing was not mine. I don’t have a boat, only a canoe.

When I did have my Spark follow me on my snowmobile, I did not drive at high speed as it would not likely have been able to keep up. You need to keep the speed within the speed the Spark can fly at and the wind conditions at the time.

Chris

Thank you!

 

[Hungryant0]

I tell you what happened to me , I have a new Mercury Verado with that said all the controls are fly by wire , I took off from the bait board and as soon as the drone flew over the outboard it just dropped straight into the drink ,I'm thinking the outboard control interference helped her with the first and last swim lesson.

 

[Icarus50]

I tell you what happened to me , I have a new Mercury Verado with that said all the controls are fly by wire , I took off from the bait board and as soon as the drone flew over the outboard it just dropped straight into the drink ,I'm thinking the outboard control interference helped her with the first and last swim lesson.

Wow! Sorry to hear that. How high was the MV when it flew over the outboard? Did it fall because the motors stopped or was it “directed” into water?

 

[DavidBlezard]

I have a number of drones, larger than the Spark but am very impressed with Spark's performance and features. I do photography and view Spark's photographs and videos to be at a very good presentation standard. Messaging at this level is more effective than number of pixels. With warmer weather now, I would like to fly the Spark from a moving boat. I once did this but the signal got lost a number of times as the distance between the boat and me increased so I returned the boat to its original location to regain the controller-Spark connection. I would like to fly the Spark behind the boat, on the side of the boat, in front and even away from the boat while I am cruising fast around a lake/river. So the question is how to do it this: If I tap my Home position (on the Go 4 app) periodically while the Spark is following me in the boat, will this allow me to fly it without distance restrictions? If I use the Dynamic Position do I need to be in Active Tracking mode for the software to automatically update my Home position or this is not even an option. So manual or automatic? Are there other options? I appreciate any input to learn. Thanks

i used active track on a Spark for this video of my buddy’s boat. I did not update home. For landing I manually land. We stop the boat first ?.