Homepoint - From Atti to GPS mode

[RotorWash]

I'm curious about the following, if I took off in ATTI mode and say flew out 150 yards away and then the AC picks up a good GPS signal and goes into P-Mode, will the craft record the HP (while in flight) at that location automatically? I'm assuming yes (but I don't like to ***/u/me) and to counteract that, I could then update the HP to my phone's location with the RC if desired?

 

[Spark 317]

Give it a low altitude test.

Launch the Spark in Atti-mode, hover about a foot off the ground, move to a location, stop and see what happens.

Then change the Home Point to you once it established a GPS lock.

 

[nilanjan118]

The last thing you should do is take off in ATTI mode. That's because ATTI mode doesn't always mean insufficient GPS reception. You may also have a malfunctioning IMU or compass interference causing the AC to be in ATTI mode. Why would anyone want to risk it without being sure that everything is working perfectly? We have heard enough flyaway stories already. The best practice is to wait for sufficient GPS reception so that the AC enters P-mode, records home point and then take off.
Now having said that, your assumption is correct. The AC does record the home point on its own as soon as it gets sufficient GPS signal and you can reset that to your phone location.

 

[RotorWash]

Give it a low altitude test.

Launch the Spark in Atti-mode, hover about a foot off the ground, move to a location, stop and see what happens.

Then change the Home Point to you once it established a GPS lock.

I like your idea but for some reason I’m envisioning you as Jeff Foxworthy and me as the guy holding the sign asking you to hold it as I don't want to lose it! lol Just kiddin' Spark 317. I'll have to try an experiment whenever the remnants of Erin have blown through. Probably grounded till Sunday by the looks of it...

 

[RotorWash]

The last thing you should do is take off in ATTI mode. That's because ATTI mode doesn't always mean insufficient GPS reception. You may also have a malfunctioning IMU or compass interference causing the AC to be in ATTI mode. Why would anyone want to risk it without being sure that everything is working perfectly? We have heard enough flyaway stories already. The best practice is to wait for sufficient GPS reception so that the AC enters P-mode, records home point and then take off.
Now having said that, your assumption is correct. The AC does record the home point on its own as soon as it gets sufficient GPS signal and you can reset that to your phone location.

I appreciate and agree wholeheartedly with your comment. If I'm outside I always wait for the Home Point to set and I check it on the map before taking off. I treat that as a cardinal rule and I'll even make sure the GPS lock has at least 4 solid bars. That is up till the other day which is what got me thinking about this in the first place.

Recently while I was doing some video down at a local water stream I was under a lot of canopy growth with trees on both sides of the brook. Because of that I couldn't get GPS lock and no Home Point could be set. As I was going to be keeping the Spark within close proximity of myself and there was little wind I decided to go ahead and fly with vision sensors only as one would do indoors. However just as I raised the craft to hand launch, it got enough of a peek through the trees that it picked up GPS lock and the HP was recorded.

I go ahead and launch and as I'm gently moving the craft over the water the GPS would come and go depending on openings in the canopy above. I was impressed by its sensitivity and lack of lag tracking the signal. So anyway, it got me to wondering what if I didn't have lock and no Home Point set when I launched but got lock while over the water. Would the HP set at that current location automatically or can that only happen (automatically) during take off. Mostly not a big deal over a small brook but in a different situation or environment further out it might be a factor to consider. As you said, that can happen and that’s good to know, thanks!

 

[KST1P]

I thought I’d read you can make the controller the HP in the software so that would solve your problem I think ?

 

[RotorWash]

I thought I’d read you can make the controller the HP in the software so that would solve your problem I think ?

You are correct, the HP can be set that way. I think it uses the mobile device's location which is usually your RC's location anyway, so same same. I actually tried doing that at first when I couldn't get lock on the AC but then I got the error message "weak mobile device GPS signal", then I thought, yeah that makes sense, lol. So if in a similar situation one would need to make sure that you have time to get to a better signal area beforehand and if coming home high the AC will need a clearing regardless. Thanks for your comment, I appreciate it.

 

[Spark 317]

You are correct, the HP can be set that way. I think it uses the mobile device's location which is usually your RC's location anyway, so same same. I actually tried doing that at first when I couldn't get lock on the AC but then I got the error message "weak mobile device GPS signal", then I thought, yeah that makes sense, lol. So if in a similar situation one would need to make sure that you have time to get to a better signal area beforehand and if coming home high the AC will need a clearing regardless. Thanks for your comment, I appreciate it.

And if you fly with a WiFi only (Mini4) like I do, I lose that ability for that function. And the "find my drone" feature.

Just a tip to those buying a tablet or phone without a GPS chip as a primary flying device.

I thought I did all of my homework before purchasing the Spark, but this bit of information wasn't known to me at the time and was a live and learn moment.

My mini4 has a compass, but not a GPS.

 

[nilanjan118]

And if you fly with a WiFi only (Mini4) like I do, I lose that ability for that function. And the "find my drone" feature.

Just a tip to those buying a tablet or phone without a GPS chip as a primary flying device.

I thought I did all of my homework before purchasing the Spark, but this bit of information wasn't known to me at the time and was a live and learn moment.

My mini4 has a compass, but not a GPS.

This is a very good tip. It is particularly useful for those who plan to do a lot of active tracking with their drone. No one would want to chase the Spark going back 1km towards "home" after they have run all that way.

 

[Spark 317]

who plan to do a lot of active tracking with their drone. No one would want to chase the Spark going back 1km towards "home" after they have run all that way.

When doing active track, the Spark will update it's GPS location every 15 meters if the Dynamic Home Point is enabled via the Go4 app.

The Spark will return to the last recorded HP at 15 meters rather than the original HP if the connection was lost on the subject.

 

[nilanjan118]

When doing active track, the Spark will update it's GPS location every 15 meters if the Dynamic Home Point is enabled via the Go4 app.

This is not a default setting. You can sure turn it on if you want to but I don't think it's a wise thing to do. There is no clear definition as to how this dynamic home point will be chosen. I haven't tried it myself but remember reading somewhere that you cannot see it on the map too. That to me is scary. You don't want to see your drone take off to Timbuktu either. So the best thing to do is to update to the location of the mobile device.