a quick view of my neighborhood from the air

[Psychotic Bovine]

Bought a new toy. It's a DJI Phantom quadcopter.   Capable of hauling a gopro camera for bird's eye footage.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qcu1jKD53Jk&feature=youtu.be

[BradValk48237]

That things got some noisy valves....... :cool dude:

Just what we need ... more drones!

I need to get me one of those!

Brad

[Psychotic Bovine]

Oh, I am all for privacy.  With the gopro camera's wide angle lens, no one could recognize a person taken from 300 feet up.

As an amateur photographer, it's a wonderful tool.  FAA says I can't make money with it, but I didn't by it for that. 

To me, it's no different than any radio controlled flying craft (helicopter, airplane, etc).  With all of the micro cameras made today, any r/c craft can be a "drone".

[old2soon]

As quiet and stealthy as it is-it's begging to become the focal point of-TARGET practice.  RIDE SAFE.

[Psychotic Bovine]

exactly.  even at 400 feet up, you can clearly hear it.
Also, I am limited to line of sight to fly it.  2.4ghz transmitters have very low ability to penetrate structures.  It's really not much of a stealthy drone if you look out and see a guy with a big controller watching it! 
Like I said, it's a photography tool and a fun toy.

[Serk]

Very cool! VERY quick googling shows these seem to run in the $500 range now, is that about right? If so, that's still about $300 above my toy budget for now, but they're getting closer all the time!

[Psychotic Bovine]

Yeah, about $500, give or take.
If it loses the signal from it's controller, it returns to home using gps.  I tested it, it does work.  I turned off my controller on my first flight and it came back and landed within 3 feet of it's take off point.
Total flight time is around 10 minutes on a fresh battery.  There are videos on youtube showing some flying above the clouds, so altitude is limited by transmitter range. 

Here is a pretty awesome video shot of Niagara Falls showing the photographic potential.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfoLYTKObiU

[Moonshot_1]

So the woman who had a private and secluded place to suntan in the nude no longer has a private and secluded place.

Makes privacy fencing rather obsolete.

Just doesn't seem right. Or at least seems like a lot of opportunities for abuse and ill intent.

Some kind of regulation does seem appropriate. Particularly in residential areas.

[john]

                         " I will NOT tolerate such potential privacy intrusions or surveillance by ANYONE "  
 low orbit satellites are what ... a hundred miles up        
        yer shotgun ain't gonna do nothing ... better to plant some trees    

[Psychotic Bovine]

Well, a telescope in a highrise apartment in a city will make privacy fencing obsolete.  If I recall, peeping toms have predated radio controlled aircraft by more than a couple centuries.

I must have missed all of the sun bathers in my short video.  Granted, my eyes aren't really that good.

I cannot think of a single thing that man has made that can't be used for ill intent.  Just gonna have to trust me that I won't be using my toy to spy on people. 

[Robert]

Thats pretty cool but pretty expensive also. After looking at your post I looked at the specs is it true it has 8 minutes of flying time? I like the fact that is has gps and if the battery goes low it automatically lands. thanks that was fun.

[Psychotic Bovine]

Thats pretty cool but pretty expensive also. After looking at your post I looked at the specs is it true it has 8 minutes of flying time? I like the fact that is has gps and if the battery goes low it automatically lands. thanks that was fun.

Yes, about 8 minutes depending on load.  I had a 1/5 scale r/c car powered by a chainsaw engine that cost me around $2,000 or so.  So, expensive is relative.  I loved my 1/5 scale car, but $$$ versus fun wasn't there.

[donaldcc]

 
  I have played around with RC helicopters for a while.  From very small to fly around in the house and pester dog and cat to larger ones in back yard.  I want to try a quad.  while I am usa, I got several from China at greatly discounted prices.

[PAVALKER]

Yeah, about $500, give or take.
If it loses the signal from it's controller, it returns to home using gps.  I tested it, it does work.  I turned off my controller on my first flight and it came back and landed within 3 feet of it's take off point.
Total flight time is around 10 minutes on a fresh battery.  There are videos on youtube showing some flying above the clouds, so altitude is limited by transmitter range.  

Here is a pretty awesome video shot of Niagara Falls showing the photographic potential.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfoLYTKObiU

Privacy issues aside.   I can understand it being loud as a result of the camera being mounted on it, but  can I assume that you can't hear it when it is high in the air?  Doesn't sound nearly as loud as a smaller Gas RC plane.    The GPS return home function is cool, but does it avoid power/telephone lines and structures or.... choose shortest distance between points A and B?

[MAD6Gun]

 Thats my house you see in Chris's video with the white Pontiac Bonneville in the driveway and the three car garage in the back yard. Watch closely you can see my wife open the window curtains at about 4:10 in the video. That thing is cool. He brought it over one evening when we were watching TV and hovered in outside our Living room window. Its got a bunch of lights on it. Looked like a UFO outside the window.........

[Psychotic Bovine]

i had it up to about 350 feet or so and could still hear it pretty clearly.  Also it has very bright leds under it for ease or orientation, so it's not stealthy by any means.

The return to home works as follows.  When it loses it's signal it stops and hovers for 3 seconds.  If it doesn't get a signal it ascends to around 60 feet then proceeds to it's take off location.  It hovers at 60 feet for 15 seconds to wait for the signal to return.  It then slowly descends.  It has no collision avoidance.  It assumes that at 60 feet it should clear most things.  Basically, just don't take off from a place that has no open sky.  It has 3 flying modes, gps, attitude, and full manual.  Gps is designed to hold position even with wind blowing.  Attitude mode keeps it level and at the same orientation.  Manual is for aerobatics.  It's incredibly easy to fly, even easier than a small coax helo for indoor use.
It has a barometric pressure altimeter so it knows it's altitude, a 3 axis gyro for stability, an accelerometer, and a compass.  But it is only as smart as the person flying it.  
As a safety message, DO NOT activate go home when inside.  it will fly up to get to 60 feet whether you have a ceiling or not!   I don't speak from experience, since when I do test indoor, I turn off the gps mode.

[BF]

i had it up to about 350 feet or so and could still hear it pretty clearly.  Also it has very bright leds under it for ease or orientation, so it's not stealthy by any means.

The return to home works as follows.  When it loses it's signal it stops and hovers for 3 seconds.  If it doesn't get a signal it ascends to around 60 feet then proceeds to it's take off location.  It hovers at 60 feet for 15 seconds to wait for the signal to return.  It then slowly descends.  It has no collision avoidance.  It assumes that at 60 feet it should clear most things.  Basically, just don't take off from a place that has no open sky.  It has 3 flying modes, gps, attitude, and full manual.  Gps is designed to hold position even with wind blowing.  Attitude mode keeps it level and at the same orientation.  Manual is for aerobatics.  It's incredibly easy to fly, even easier than a small coax helo for indoor use.
It has a barometric pressure altimeter so it knows it's altitude, a 3 axis gyro for stability, an accelerometer, and a compass.  But it is only as smart as the person flying it.  
As a safety message, DO NOT activate go home when inside.  it will fly up to get to 60 feet whether you have a ceiling or not!   I don't speak from experience, since when I do test indoor, I turn off the gps mode.

Do you have a link to the one bought?  I assume you're using a GoPro?

[Psychotic Bovine]

http://www.dji.com/product/phantom/

[Pappy!]

lol ........is it just me or do all the houses look identical in that video??

[BF]

lol ........is it just me or do all the houses look identical in that video??

Looks like the entire neighborhood is covered in beach sand.   

[WamegoRob]

 I'll go to jail with a smile, knowing I knocked a chip out of their armor.

Or maybe just ruined some kid's day by shooting down his Christmas present.

And be careful with that rifle rangefinder... someone might see you snooping and decide jail sounds fun, too.

[R J]

Hey Mark, I had the right house.   I remembered the little shed and the 3 car garage, and also that there was a curve in the street.

Sounds like a fun toy. Chris, enjoy it before someone shoots it out of the sky.........

That would have been cool back in the day when I had to go to the pasture to bring the cattle in.

We had too damn many hill to look out straight and find them.

Yes, they were usually in the farthest corner of the field.

[alph]

reminds me of when I was a little kid, and I thought it'd be a neat idea to throw a rock at a hornets nest.  one of the few times I had good aim.  sounds airily familiar.

[WilliamRS]

be nice to have if you could use it from your car to find a new route when stuck in a traffic jam. Or just to see why traffic is backed up ahead of you.

[henry 008]

be nice to have if you could use it from your car to find a new route when stuck in a traffic jam. Or just to see why traffic is backed up ahead of you.

like control button G on the mach 5  (around 1:00)

Mach 5: What Does This Button Do?

[Psychotic Bovine]

lol ........is it just me or do all the houses look identical in that video??

With the exception of the houses that burned down over the years, they all are pretty much identical.  1955 cookie cutter houses.  Built like tanks, ugly as a bucketful of armpits.

[Psychotic Bovine]

See? Pretty much all the same, except that one, and another on the opposite street.  Oil furnace fire when family was on vacation many many years ago.

[Psychotic Bovine]

I am guessing some people think of this when they think of my UAV.



actually, it's this:

[Daniel Meyer]

Want one of those to get some overhead valk riding shots!

Very cool!

[Psychotic Bovine]

I thought it would be cool to bring to Inzane to get some overhead shots of the gathering of all of the bikes.  But, judging by the reactions of some people, it might get shot down!

[Daniel Meyer]

The next feature they need is the "follow this gizomo" mode...where you stick a tracker on your bike and it tries to keep you in sight! Kick ass vids have lots of differing viewpoints/perspectives and frequently changing shots.

I understand the privacy concerns...but seriously...this thing is a hobbyist platform and is not going to be a vehicle for snooping. The ones that are appropriate for that you don't hear, probably won't see, and damn sure can't shoot down.

They're also not operated by your neighborhood hobbyist or photographer.

[WamegoRob]

when you also don't know rangefinders...It's a rifle rangefinder as opposed to a golf rangefinder

Nope, not at all familiar with lasers and target reflectivity   

The point, which flew over your head like an R/C helicopter, is that you apparently perceive Bovine's very cool piece of photography gear as a threat to your liberty.  A neighbor could think the same of your high-tech pointy light thing.

But I see such a device outside my windows or over my property - and I will react instantly to remove it

We get it.. you're a crack shot and won't stand for any toys over your land.
Now that I think about it, Bovine's video would've been even more awesome if every one of his neighbors ran into their yards and starting trying to blow it out of the sky 
No offense meant, Bovine... I'm glad nobody freaked out.

Meanwhile, if we filter through the paranoia, Psychotic Bovine and Daniel Meyer are onto something here.
I love the 'follow me' idea for making ride videos and would trade chrome for it any day of the week.

I do see a couple of fun InZane tech-talks developing here:
Daniel - "The benefits of GPS beacons over WiFi signals"
MarkT - "Target acquisition as it pertains to remote controlled toys"

[Psychotic Bovine]

when you also don't know rangefinders...It's a rifle rangefinder as opposed to a golf rangefinder

Nope, not at all familiar with lasers and target reflectivity   

The point, which flew over your head like an R/C helicopter, is that you apparently perceive Bovine's very cool piece of photography gear as a threat to your liberty.  A neighbor could think the same of your high-tech pointy light thing.

But I see such a device outside my windows or over my property - and I will react instantly to remove it

We get it.. you're a crack shot and won't stand for any toys over your land.
Now that I think about it, Bovine's video would've been even more awesome if every one of his neighbors ran into their yards and starting trying to blow it out of the sky 
No offense meant, Bovine... I'm glad nobody freaked out.

Meanwhile, if we filter through the paranoia, Psychotic Bovine and Daniel Meyer are onto something here.
I love the 'follow me' idea for making ride videos and would trade chrome for it any day of the week.

I do see a couple of fun InZane tech-talks developing here:
Daniel - "The benefits of GPS beacons over WiFi signals"
MarkT - "Target acquisition as it pertains to remote controlled toys"

Most everyone in my family knows I like toys.  And I like photography.  I have no intentions to spy on anyone, I just like the pics I get from the air and it opens up some new possibilities.

[WamegoRob]

 A drone with camera close enough to snoop WILL be stopped.

So, to be clear, you do or don't approve of remote controlled toys flying over your compound?

What about an airplane (a real one) full of people with cameras?  Do they get a pass or do they get a buttload of buckshot, too?

[Bugslayer]

I'm a toy guy, and I would LOVE to mess with one of those. But I'm pretty sure it'll be out of my price range.

Fly it over my house all ya want. I won't shoot at it.....   
You'll probably get video of me sitting with a cold Coke watching you. I'm fascinated with that kinda stuff.

[Jeff K]

We saw one at a car show last month. The first thing I said to Joanne was "I hope they have that thing insured" I envisioned a crash landing involving several expensive cars. It made me nervous having that thing buzzing overhead. I guess it comes from the years I spent in RC planes in the late 80's those guys with helicopters were crazy. More than once I saw near death experiences. Those rotor blades were unsettling, I would sit under the pavilion roof when they would fly.  I'm sure they are MUCH better now, but I'm also sure that they can fail.

[crow]

There is NO way this video is real!!   Look at the horizon,  EVERYONE knows that the Earth is flat!

[Charlie McCready]

Chris, do you have a screen on the controller that shows what the camera is seeing? Or do you have to wait and download the video?

[R J]

Good question Charliemac.

I was wondering that also.

[BF]

Chris, do you have a screen on the controller that shows what the camera is seeing? Or do you have to wait and download the video?

That's called FPV, or First Person View. 

http://firstpersonviewrc.com/