The Catalina Island Project

[workshop]

The Catalina Island Project

My name is Jeff Parisse, owner of kVA Effects, a Hollywood effects company specializing in electrical effects (Tesla coils, Jacob’s Ladders, arcs, sparks, etc.). Recently I posted a blog here in the R/C Groups UAV forum detailing my company’s efforts to prototype a UAV for film or TV work. Although successful as an autonomous surveillance platform, the prototype was not suitable for broadcast quality video work (the prop was in the way of the camera for one thing) and the project was abandoned. We sold the prototype to the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University where they are currently using it in a graduate studies program researching machine vision.

I, however, have caught the UAV bug and am determined to continue my research and adventures with a self-funded project (read: smaller budget). I started in late November of 2006 to design a UAV that featured:

1. ARF Airframe
2. Unobstructed camera view of 180 degrees of pan and 90 degrees of tilt.
3. Removable “shoe” for quick change of cameras (High Res Still, IR, etc.).
4. Modularized electronics in damage resistant, copper lined RF enclosures to facilitate quick removal.
5. More sensitive GPS Receiver.
6. 1-hour flight time capacity.
7. Smaller Airframe.
8. Throttle Management (i.e. Pitot Tube).
9. Flaps
10. Self Contained Ground Station

What you see in the photo below is the result; minutes after it’s maiden voyage (January 10, 2007). As of today, Nick Ritter (ground station operator) and I have made five flights to trim the flight systems and test the telemetry systems. Yesterday was our first programmed flight and tomorrow we begin our first trials over farmland.

The title of this thread reflects our desire to submit the appropriate flight plan and engage in an autonomous flight from San Pedro California to Catalina Island 22 miles over the Pacific Ocean at 350’ AGL The main planning obstacle is determining if our chase boats can keep up with the UAV for the distance as the flight must be under pilot VFR and someone needs to be on Catalina to land. :rolleyes:

I’ll post photos and details here in the coming days/weeks as time permits.

Thanks,

Jeff W. Parisse
www.teslacoil.com

[Tom Harper]

Great project!!

I like the pylon mount. May have to try that on my Sr. Telemaster. How much weight (stuff) do you have in the nose for balance?

[workshop]

Thanks Tom,

The camera gear is the only thing in front of the firewall (which was removed). The batteries go onto the preinstalled tray (Hobby Lobby sells this plane as the Telemaster Electro... the Sr. Telemaster is a better airframe for reasons I'll cover in a later post) and the rest of the electronics fit under the wing. I'll have weights and photos after I go through my notes.

BTW... AUW is under 9lbs.

Jeff

[icebear]

Hi Jeff!

Nice to see that you're still "at it" and great to see that you have made that much progress in a short timespan!

It would be really interesting to know more details;

- what GPS did you use, groundstation, software, Picopilot?, etc etc.

I have too many questions, so I'll just wait for your update. Seeing those pictures makes me want to wish I lived in California. Two more months before our season starts over here if you mind strong winds and temperatures in the 30's... :(

Looking forward to your updates!

/Bjorn

[lvspark]

Wildman!

[typicalaimster]

I'm curious.. What are the wind patterns in that area? I know when I was visiting San Diego the wind was always blowing West to East..

[workshop]

The L.A. wind is fairly constant with the warming eastern desert sucking the cold ocean air across the L.A. basin starting around 10:30am every morning. Santa Ana conditions blow east to west a few days out of the year and make things, in a word, "awful".

I have a few photos from early on in the building process. I really like this airframe... um,… now.. Out of the box, one soon realizes that the decals don't come off (like the Senior Telemaster) and one must live with a garishly decorated plane or recover it (so much for an ARF). :mad: I couldn't live with the flying Hobby Lobby ad so I spent good time recovering the whole thing. :mad:

I am using a PicoPilot NAT and a 10 Channel JR receiver. I have enlarged the rudder 50% and electronically mixed (on-board) 40% ailerons into rudder to help the PicoPilot make one channel coordinated turns.

The farm test went well yesterday and now we have permission from the land manager to fly the 17 acres every Thursday. This will be great practice since the land changes crop configuration often. I'm having some ARPS data stream problems (I'm using the audio channel) that I have to work out by next Thursday but altogether, I'm excited about what this plane can do.

More tonight...

Jeff

[icebear]

Very nice to see the modular approach! And a very inspiring project Jeff.
I have been looking at the Telemaster too, even if it just a little bit big for my purposes, so it'll be good to know how it works out after more testing has been done.
Looking forward to reading more about it soon - I'm off for a one week vacation right now :).

/Bjorn

[kd7ost]

Yes Jeff,

Good to see you back in the game after you had to sell the first project. Good idea to build a bigger rudder too. I know the authority on the Pico Nav is optimal for UAV work and a gradual turn rate but I for one wouldn't mind seeing the turn rate in the unit doubled for what it does. Especially for the close in, (less than 1/2 mile) AP type work I'm doing. I adjust for full gain and then step up the rudder authority in the linkage to get it to turn faster under Pico Nav control.

Are you using a co-pilot at all?

Dan

[workshop]

It's really nice to "be back" and thanks for all the kind words guys!

Dan, I've been playing with the Co-Pilot on some other airframes and I'm impressed with how easy it is to setup and how well it levels the wings. My new plane uses the NAT version of the PicoPilot with NAV2 (aileron). The firmware turn rate has been increased from the version I last used. Icebear might have had a few flights on the new firmware before the weather got cold in his neighborhood. I'm still setting my gains so I can yet comment on the new turn rate.

I focused most of my airframe time on the motor pylon thrust angles and the mechanics necessary to make coordinated turns with only single channel input (aileron). Here's the combination that worked on the Telemaster 40 (Electro):

50% Aileron Differential (more up than down)
50% Enlarged Rudder
40% Aileron electronically mixed (on-board) to Rudder
GC moved until plane made turns without altitude loss

This was a very close formula to the Senior Telemaster set-up and produced similar results. I would imagine that most flat botton trainers could use these values as a starting point.

In so far as the pylon angle; I needed help from the "old school" engineers in my club to learn from their experience designing sea planes. Result: I built an adjustable mount and tweaked it between 1 and 3 degrees up from the bottom of the wing NOT the original thrust line. After three test flights and subsequent adjustments, the plane flies as if the motor were still on the nose.

Jeff

[mikenlapaz]

Do you have any pics of the motor pylon up close of mount to fuselage and engine mount? Would sure like to see the results from 'old school' experienne.

[workshop]

My Pleasure Mike!

[workshop]

I sent the PicoPilot back to U-Nav for a firmware upgrade on Wednesday. I have it back Friday morning (great customer service) and am reinstalling it today. In the meantime, I wanted to investigate the "gain chain" of the audio system because the signal to noise ratio seemed to be limiting telemetry range (but not video range which is clear and solid). It seems that there was an impedance mismatch between the audio out of the TinyTrack3 and the audio in of the Video TX.

Starting at the beginning of the audio chain, I jumpered resistor R5 as suggested in the TinyTrack3 manual to increase gain. That was a real challenge on the SMT version but with a magnifying glass and a sharpened soldering iron, I was able to run a small wire across the surface mount resistor and solder it in place. With an oscilloscope, I set the TinyTrack3 tones to 1 volt peak to peak.

I’m using Packet Engine Pro (http://www.elcom.gr/sv2agw/pepro.htm) to demodulate the received audio tone on a laptop soundcard (mic in). That software has a virtual oscilloscope to assist as a tuning aid. With that v-scope on the screen, I adjusted the impedance match pot on the 2.4GHz TX (thanks Bill Strong of Black Widow Video) to match the input impedance of the TX to the output impedance of the TinyTrack3. Setting the TinyTrack3 to transmit a 1k tone and watching the amplitude and QUALITY of the sine wave on the v-scope turned out to be the best way to do this with available test equipment.

Now the signal:niose is where it should be and the tone is LOUD but not so much that the Packet Engine can’t decode it.

The photos below show the Navigational Control Unit. The NCU is made from a copper lined balsa and PCB RF box containing a JR 10 channel receiver (can’t see it), Vee-Tail mixer (Aileron to Rudder) and PicoPilot. The SmartFly linear regulator is set to 6.0v and powers the NCU and servos.

Jeff

[lvspark]

Looks good Jeff. So are you now getting good decode at distance? I had to do a mod on my rx--> laptop end to get mine working properly.. Can't remember what I did (maybe 1:1 coil?), I can look into it tonight if you are still having problems.

[kd7ost]

What changes did you have UNAV do to the Pico Pilot if you don't mind saying?

Dan

[workshop]

LVSpark (Mike, I think?)... I just now walked around the block with the TX while my son watched the screen in the garage. I'm getting much better distance compared to a similar test last Wednesday. I won't really know until I get into the air next week, but the sine wave cleaned up a lot and that is what is making the difference. The pot on my TX (maybe many TXs) is for audio input impedance matching not gain (again, thanks Bill from BWAV). So after the input gain looked good, I rotated the pot until the output waveform looked uniform with unclipped peaks.

I’ve been looking for a good, discreet audio transient filter (“click and pop” for those that remember LPs and cassettes) but I’ll take whatever suggestion I can for reducing noise. Thanks.

Dan, The new code NAVAv1.16 expands the acceptable pulse width range from the usual 1.0uS to 2.0uS (did I write that right?) to a slightly wider range. Most if not all users won’t be affected by the change. I believe they expanded the range to accommodate an unusual circumstance where a JR Brand radio might issue a pulse width outside of the normal range (this is not an official U-Nav statement – I’m sure their website will post the revision change soon). ;)

Jeff

[kd7ost]

Thanks for the info Jeff,

I did know about that one from talking to Dave a couple weeks ago. I was thinking you were doing an A to R or R to A conversion in the Nav unit.

Dan

[workshop]

I’ve adjusted the mechanics of the servo arm/control horn connections to create control surface response better suited to the PicoPilot. The PicoPilot gains are set around the 25% level and I’m resisting temptation to fine tune them until I get my airspeed under control. The settings from the plans and the ones I am currently using are summarized below.

My main difficulty at this point is entering the route at a reasonable airspeed. Since I’m new to this plane, I’m still flying it way too fast. Our last test today was acceptable but the airspeed almost doubled over the five-mile route. I’m going to put the PicoThrottle module on a separate enable so I can control it from the ground.

Does anybody have any experience with the PicoThrottle? I’m using it with an electric motor and I can hear (and see amps) it modulate the throttle but the airspeed creep has me confused. Don’t worry, I’m used to it… :confused: :rolleyes:

Jeff

Telemaster Electro Settings for PicoPilot

Elevator:
Plans: 1” Up – 1” Down
UAV: 7/16” Up – 7/16” Down

Ailerons:
Plans: 1” Up – 1” Down
UAV: 1/2” Up – 1/4” Down
Mechanical Differential

Rudder:
Plans: 1”+ Left – 1”+ Right
UAV: 40% of Aileron
Discrete on-board electronic mixer

[workshop]

Today’s tests were very encouraging. The Telemaster is tracking perfectly with authoritative, coordinated turns and zero oscillation in pitch or roll. My only complaint is that the elevator is a little weak in manual mode, but I going to live with it for a while because everything else is working so well.

JR Flight Modes
The JR9303 (and probably many other radios of various brands) uses a concept called “Flight Modes” whereas many functions (dual rates, exponential, flap settings and mixes) can be assigned to a single switch. In my case, I rearranged my channel assignments to take advantage of this paradigm by placing a buffered splitter on the flap channel and sending one signal to the flaps and the other to the Nav and Alt enable channels. I put the PicoThrottle on a separate channel so I could engage it after I was in Autopilot mode and I was sure my airspeed had settled out. I have three Flight Modes assigned to the three-position flap switch.

Landing
Flaps 25 degrees down, Elevator 10 degrees down
Nav & Alt disable

Manual
Flaps 2 degrees down (so the Autopilot stays off)
Nav & Alt disable

Autopilot
Flaps up
Nav & Alt enable

Lakebed Tests
It is clear that Nick and I must return to the lakebeds to start testing long-range routes (10 mile +). I found out that the airstrip next to El Mirage is a private strip owned by General Atomics. That explains the Predators that fly over the lake. General Atomics is one of our primary vendors (we buy high energy pulse discharge capacitors from another division) so I made a few calls and got the name of the person who runs the flight desk there at the airfield. I reason that if I file courtesy flight plans with them I can raise my altitude to over 400’ AGL.

http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&q=&z=15&ll=34.623391,-117.601089&spn=0.016598,0.043001&t=h&om=1

Moving Map
It is amazing to see the small aircraft icon move over the Google maps hybrid view of the flight location only to glance over to the video monitor and see the exact same location in real time: it was like looking at the zoomed up version of the Google map as the plane flew around. I can really see the utility of this POV and tool set.

I’d capture video, but my camcorder got stolen in N.Y. over Thanksgiving. Hauling anything larger to the field is counterproductive so I’m just going to wait till I can afford a suitable replacement or borrow something in the interim. I’ll post photos of the ground station once we clean that up a little.

Jeff

[Tom Harper]

Jeff,

How are you using the audio tone? Is it modulated for telemetry? What frequency?

Tom

[workshop]

Tom,

I’m using the TinyTrak3 (surface mount version) to send GPS information down in APRS format (the TT3 can be configured to also send NMEA strings). The TinyTrak3 sends encoded tone bursts at user-selected intervals to the audio transmitter of one’s choice.

http://www.byonics.com/tinytrak/

I’m using the audio channel of my video transmitter to send the tones so the modulated R.F. carrier is 2.4GHz.

Once on the ground, the audio tone is sent to the laptop’s microphone input (soundcard) where Packet Engine Pro demodulates the tone and passes the data to the moving map program:

http://www.elcom.gr/sv2agw/tracker.htm

Later, I’ll be able to post the UAV’s real-time position over the Internet using an APRS over TCIP method (that I have to learn more about). It’d be nice to host real-time missions with map and video data over the Internet… :cool:

Jeff

[Tom Harper]

Jeff,

Thanks, did you get the signal clean enough or do you still need a band pass filter?

Tom

[Airboatflyingshp]

If its any use I can send you some scans of the recent cross channel GB- France RC electric flight just pm me your E mail and I can zip them and send them. :)

This is a inspiring project :D .. being a little biased its a slight pity in a way you couldn't have used a flying-boat design .................I have pictures and links to waterplane sites that flew to and from the Island http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=448080&pp=15 ....K .kuosoma's son tapio has responded to a request for info on his fathers designs which show many configuration features that would suit your project esp T15 and 16........don't miss the film footage.

Personal preferences asides this is a great venture and will make a fine scientific survey tool. :cool: :D
PS You might want to include some light permanent floatation JIC Murphy's law decides to apply itself. ;) The controller proved the Achilles heel on the X channel set up when tested in advance .... not the peak power but at cruising it was miss behaving and overheating due to the duration of the draw!

[workshop]

Airboat..., That is an amazing thread! The research it took to assemble that list is staggering... thank you so much... I had no idea so many air/water crafts existed!! I'll PM my email address to you.

Some of the ultralight designs look promising for a water based UAV...

That is great advice about the ESC too. The Jeti45-O is the first thing in the vented airflow and it is 2x overrated for the average observed amp draw. I should be OK but I'll watch it during our dry lake tests.

Tom, The signal is strong and clear up to our test distance limit of 1/2 mile. I'm sure that I should be able to read/decode the signal for the full range of the transmitter and I'll know more after the dry lake tests. Impedance and gain matching are the keys here. Being able to see the waveform as received by the soundcard was extremely helpful (using the Packet Engine Pro Tuning Aid) because one would have to adjust by ear otherwise (selecting a pure sine wave tone rather than a "distorted" one).

I'm still looking into noise reduction anyway... couldn't hurt.

Jeff

TinyTrak3 $50
Packet Engine Pro $50
AGW Tracker $50

Moving Map Priceless!

[mikenlapaz]

alternate dry lake site thread. about same distance from your location.
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_5392530/tm.htm
Rabbit Dry Lake

[Airboatflyingshp]

Workshop glad to be of use - the main Catalina island thread links are
for USA Pacific Flyingboats and the only remaining Sikorsky VS44.
http://catalinagoose.homestead.com/index.html
http://www.airliners.net/search/pho...inct_entry=true

There is an Australian record holder link that may be of use................add by edit....http://www.ctie.monash.edu.au/hargrave/cooper_wld_rec_270506.html http://www.ctie.monash.edu.au/hargrave/aerobotics.html

[workshop]

El Mirage - Monday Feb. 12, 2007

Despite the 15mph winds, the Telemaster (I need a name for this plane) managed level and steady flight for about half of the 12-mile route. The average motor current was high (around 20A) but the plane was tracking so well, we didn’t deem the current draw worthy of significant attention.

The most difficult part was watching the plane disappear from sight. Nick calmly watched the two monitors confirming normal flight altitude, heading and map position and me…? I jumped up and down with my binoculars in one hand and my now useless R/C transmitter in the other yelling at Nick for updates! I need more UPDATES! Basically I was out of the loop and feeling very insignificant so I sweated for about five minutes until I could join Nick at the monitors and enjoy the flight.

Monitoring the flight was a lot of fun. We could see the down firing camera shot match up with the Google Earth overlay as the plane flew past landmarks. Then, Nick started calling out falling altitude numbers as he watched the video OSD. 375, 350, 300. We could see that we were still on course but descending at a controlled sink rate. 200, 175, 150. I glanced at the motor amps and the gauge read zero. 125, 100. I disabled the throttle hold and attempted to goose the throttle: nothing. 50, 25, 10. Video goes dead.

We quickly disconnected the ground station and started out towards the plane’s last GPS location with the car. About a mile away, in the middle of the playa, we found the plane. She was upright on her wheels facing into the wind and her last known heading. No damage except for a cracked plastic wheel hub. Neither wing tip has any lake dust on it. It looks like the PicoPilot did a great job of leveling the craft and the upwind heading provided lift all the way to the ground. Good thing El Mirage is a DRY lake! :rolleyes:

Back home, I found that we were running only on one battery. Did I not plug the other in or did a Dean’s connector not make a connection? I don’t know…

I looked up Rabbit Lake (thanks Mike in LaPaz) and am talking with one of the club members about weather, etc.. It might be a less windy alternative to El Mirage.

Jeff

[Tale Spin]

Wow, I downed my whole glass after reading that, very exciting.
Sounds like you are really dialed in now.
Maybe with all the time and $ vested you may now want to print out a preflight check list to go over with Nick, as required in GA and commericial.
Great work!!

[workshop]

Checklists! :eek: My company deals in high voltage physics where risk mitigation is a primary concern. Every job we do carries the potential for death or injury to people or damage to multi-millions of dollars of electronic equipment. Project management aided by checklists is the key to our success and safety record.

For me, adding a checklist to my UAV hobby seems like it would suck all the fun right out of it. It would be like taking a checklist to play a few rounds of golf. Given the intensity of my day job, I do the UAV hobby to unwind.

However, I can’t escape the truism of the last sentence of my first paragraph. :rolleyes: So, perhaps there is room for a checklist and a way to keep it fun and unobtrusive. Is there an open-source UAV/AP checklist in Cyberspace that I could use as a template? :)

Jeff

[Tale Spin]

You make smile turning your sacrastic humor on yourself.
A bad day on the links would not begin to match the loss of the vehicle you have developed.
I suspect that everything you do carries a intensity and even if you characterize this project as only a hobby I'm sure it's loss through over looking a detail would not be acceptable. I am familiar with your profession and would wager that you would not compromise that level of detail for "fun".
You've sat through cockpit checks before... hardly unobtrusive .. just SOP.
You and the rest of the high tech pilots here are the ones to develop the list if you think it may be of some value.
Keep up the great work Jeff and please continue to share.

[Airboatflyingshp]

Hi Jeff, glad it found its way down in one piece.
I'm going to throw a little consideration your way ..I'm not familiar with your Pico stabilizer-giro/ Horizon sensor? But somewhere in my dim and distant memory an alarm bell rang. I remember reading somewhere that optical horizon sensing units have problems coping if flown over open water ..........something to do with the amount of light being reflected confusing the sensors and steering them into the drink.

Now I know very little about UAVs but I think you might need to run that by someone JIC, smooth or choppy sea water on a sunny day could totally scramble any light sensing unit- its bad enough on the eye/brain if your just trying to fly RC over it. Take a look at some of the K,Kuosma original pictures and the video, Ive spent hours correcting /re-balancing that brilliant Finnish light flashing of the lake surface :cool: Sunglasses ;) I can ask a couple of people if you like?

[icebear]

Jeff,

Very exciting to read about your tests and I'm glad everything went OK!

I have planned for a shorter 'across the water trip' which I didn't manage before the end of our season - a return trip to our local lighthouse - but it's nothing compared to your project! I have the Mini Telemaster on order so I keep on keeping things small :)

Airboat - the Picopilot autopilot Jeff is using has 'MEMS-sensors' which are sensing movement in the horizontal plane and they are not of the 'thermopile horizon sensing' kind like for example the FMA Co-pilot. I agree with you that that kind of equipment could be troublesome to use over water, but the Picopilot will not be affected by this.

/Icebear

[Airboatflyingshp]

Ta, Icebear..I'm still wandering about the variations created by clouds sun and sea....but as long as someones done the emperors clothes bit I'm happy....Seawater is nasty stuff.
I used to live near one of the old WW2 Sunderland flyingboat bases watching the light on the Sea and Cloudscape shift and light gradient invert or disappear was, illuminating.

[icebear]

Airboat - wow, just saw your comprehensive link list referenced earlier... Impressive! :)
/Icebear

[Airboatflyingshp]

Thanks if you know of any sites in sweden of interest add a link..or send it to me to add.

Well if workshop doesn't mind me digressing slightly, if you go to the Catalinagoose site - links page you will be able to pick up on a lot of web cams, panoramic views and local information about the Island and the setting for this venture...........sort of makes you want to be around for the event.

After testing over Terrafirma I think a parallel to the shore flight over water............. but staying in RC range, might be a sensible precaution?

[Wulffy]

...Later, I’ll be able to post the UAV’s real-time position over the Internet using an APRS over TCIP method (that I have to learn more about). It’d be nice to host real-time missions with map and video data over the Internet…

Take a look at http://www.franson.com/. Their GPSGate product facilitates doing what you want, and much more.

When my laptop is on, I have the simulator running in the background and is the input to one of the applications 'instances'. From that input, I can have numerous output to either real or virtual comm ports and also out to the internet via their gpsgate servers...

I am transmitting one of several simulated GPS coordinates to the GPSGate server at http://www.gpsgate.com. Add me as a buddy, and you can view my position - known as "Wulffy" at that site.

The neat thing about their utility is that you can actually listen to the GPS gate position reports as inputs to their application, and have it transposed onto Google Earth, or World Wind (using a plug-in), enabling the ability to vicariously experience someone else's flight in near real-time...

There is more functionality to the program, I just haven't had the time to explore it all, yet. Seems to be pretty robust and actively supported via forums, etc.

Nice thread, BTW, I am keeping a close eye on it! Thanks. -t

[workshop]

I would imagine that I would need to go with a continuous RF serial downlink (Maxstream, etc.) to make that happen but I can see that I’m moving in that direction anyway. I’m going to play with the new Realtime GPS feature of Google Earth too. Since I develop my maps with that program, I’d be nice to sick with a single application. Uploading realtime map position via the Internet just sounds too cool not to investigate further!

Thanks again to AirBoatShip for the historical Catalina Island information. It was cool to play history buff for a day and check out the rich aviation lore of the island. As AirBoatShip suggested to me in a PM, the past might be a great place to look for a name for the UAV.

BTW – Nick and I ran two four-mile tests last Thursday at San Pedro and everything checked out OK. I must have driven two hours to El Mirage last week just to forget to plug in one of the two motor batteries. That hurts. Next up: Checklists! :eek:

Jeff

[clolson]

I would imagine that I would need to go with a continuous RF serial downlink (Maxstream, etc.) to make that happen but I can see that I’m moving in that direction anyway. I’m going to play with the new Realtime GPS feature of Google Earth too. Since I develop my maps with that program, I’d be nice to sick with a single application. Uploading realtime map position via the Internet just sounds too cool not to investigate further!


I realize there are always 100 ways to do the same thing, but let me put in a plug for FlightGear (www.flightgear.org) here. (When you have a hammer, every problem looks like a nail, right?) :-)

If you can transmit your telemetry information from your UAV down to your ground station. And if your ground station can run FlightGear (3d accelerated hardware required.) And if your ground station has internet access. (I realize that is a lot of if's) :-) Then you can pipe your telemetry information into FlightGear (disabling it's built in flight dynamics) and connect FlightGear up to one of the available multiplayer servers.

This allows you to:

- Track your aircraft in real time with google maps/earth

- See a real time synthetic view from the perspective of your aircraft (i.e. FlightGear.) If you spend some time creating a detailed 3d model of your flying area you can really have a nice synthetic view to watch. If you are able to capture your control inputs you can even animate those in your FlightGear aircraft.

- FlightGear can also draw a huge variety of 2d instruments that can take up the whole screen or just overlay on top of the synthetic view. You could create a full suite of cockpit style instruments or an engineering panel to watch specific values ... lots of fun stuff, especially if you can pipe down more information than just gps data and do it at pretty fast data rates. I'm also working on a real time strip chart application to work with FlightGear, but that's not quite ready to hit the streets yet.

- If you have multiple aircraft in the air and all connected into the same system, they can see each other in their synthetic view on the ground station (possibly highlighting each other for increased visibility.)

- There are some increasingly strange things you could do as well. If you have an extra serial port, you could configure flightgear to re-send out the necessary info to drive a Garmin 196/295/430/530 type display down at your ground station and you could track your aircraft with a real aviation gps.

There would be some effort for a person to get up to speed with all this, but there are at least basic examples available for all of this if anyone wants to fiddle around with any of this.

Curt.

[Sparky Paul]

..I'm not familiar with your Pico stabilizer-giro/ Horizon sensor? But somewhere in my dim and distant memory an alarm bell rang. I remember reading somewhere that optical horizon sensing units have problems coping if flown over open water ..........something to do with the amount of light being reflected confusing the sensors and steering them into the drink.

Now I know very little about UAVs but I think you might need to run that by someone JIC, smooth or choppy sea water on a sunny day could totally scramble any light sensing unit- its bad enough on the eye/brain if your just trying to fly RC over it. Take a look at some of the K,Kuosma original pictures and the video, Ive spent hours correcting /re-balancing that brilliant Finnish light flashing of the lake surface :cool: Sunglasses ;) I can ask a couple of people if you like?
.
A good point..note though the desert at dry lakes tends to be brighter than the sky.
I've had my Futaba PA-1 autopilot get confused between the desert and the sky, and decide the desert was the sky. Fortunately the thing can be turned off remotely.:)
A flight across a less-wide body of water than the Pacific Ocean might be scheduled, prior to the Catalina atttempt.

[workshop]

Some of my friends don’t understand my affinity for the desert. I see the desert as art over time… lots of geological time. I find the landscapes to be beautiful and the air to be a 360-degree playground. I only mention this because I see you’re from Palmdale and probably have no trouble finding a place to fly anything you want. I’m jealous.

As Icebear mentioned, the PicoPilot does indeed use MEMS-sensors so the navigational unit is not affected by day or night conditions or contrast between Earth and sky.

Good to know, however, because many people use thermopiles.

Jeff

[Wulffy]

I have moved this off-topic-post to the Terrain Matching thread, here (http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=621750):

[dalbert02]

Jeff,
Would you happen to have a source for the thin copper foil you used for shielding? I have a Kadet Senior with almost an identical setup as yours and the Rf out of the BW video Tx sometimes swamps my FMA Rx. I have used aluminum foil, but I'd prefer copper. Thanks and great work!
-dave

[Wulffy]

Jeff,

I don't yet know if it is bad form or not to ask the monetary related questions, but seeing as you offered a hint at some pricing earlier in the thread, I am just going to go for it...

If you are comfortable with it, can you please put together a little bit of a breakdown on costs as it relates to the systems that you have integrated into your airframe, including the airframe, motor, and battery costs?

I am putting together a budget for a work project (that I have yet to submit to Executive Committee for approval), and seeing what you have incurred to date, as out-going monies, would be very helpful.

The budget I am putting together is seemingly going to be a bit more than I had anticipated. I guess that I was being a bit naive with it - i.e. I figured that I could get into a cheap 3 axis board-only IMU for sub $250 for a home-grown or kit version. I see that the folks at SparkFun have a 6 DOF board with Built-In Blue Tooth (not an attractive option from my perspective) and it is pushing twice what I was wanting to pay, and that is the cheapest that I have found yet - heck, some of the other sensor packs are pushing $5k to $10K. Out of frustration, I just ordered a ARM MCU Dev Kit from Coridium to see if I can just build one with comparable functionality. I was hoping that the folks over at the paparazzi project would be a bit further along than they are... Oh well, it seems that I may have to put the ultimate work project on hold, pending development/procurement of the various support systems needed...

OK, 'nuf with the rambling. Thanks in advance for any info you may be willing to share.

-t

[jparisse]

Budget- I've kept track of my receipts in a folder at home (I'm out of town right now). When I get back, I'll put together a list of components and the costs. I still have to put together a block diagram too.

R.F. Foil - I get the copper foil from Torrance Electronics. I'll post the particulars when I get home in a day. It is important to solder the sections for continuity; maybe that’s why the aluminum wasn’t working for you.

Jeff (not in the workshop)

[Tale Spin]

Jeff,
If you plan on posting your actual bill of materials and costs that would be extremely interesting to all who have been following this build.
Great work!

[macboffin]

Budget- I've kept track of my receipts in a folder at home (I'm out of town right now). When I get back, I'll put together a list of components and the costs. I still have to put together a block diagram too.

R.F. Foil - I get the copper foil from Torrance Electronics. I'll post the particulars when I get home in a day. It is important to solder the sections for continuity; maybe that’s why the aluminum wasn’t working for you.

Jeff (not in the workshop) Just a note for you; you can solder aluminum ; get plenty of solder as a bead on the end of the soldering iron bit,(Why do they call it an iron? It's copper!) and apply to the ali, scratch through the solder at the ali with a thin piece of sharpened stainless steel; this will get the solder to adhere. Do the same to both pieces, then touch them together and apply heat again. Doing it this way the ali where the solder is, is not exposed to air, thus you dont get an instant film of ali oxide where you scratch, its this instant oxidation on ali which stops solder adhering
if you merely clean it and try.
Mac

[Wmacky]

How about that promised pick of the ground station setup? I'd love to see it!

[workshop]

Below are photos of the ground station and one of me at El Mirage. I’ve also attached a budget spreadsheet showing the parts list, vendors and prices for those interested.

Last Thursday, Nick and I completed our first trials over the Pacific Ocean. We ran short jogs up the coast starting at the southern end of White Point and flying north 100 yards or so over the ocean at 350AGL. I’m still seeking the right airspeed for entry into automatic mode; too fast and the plane bobs. I still have no camcorder. :(

Google Earth Plus
Google Earth Plus now supports real-time GPS via serial or USB. This means one can use Google Earth Plus and all its features as a moving map for A/P, FPV and UAV if one can get real-time serial data (as opposed to tone bursts like the TinyTrak3) to the ground station. With the flying field cached and without an Internet connection, one can still pan, tilt or set up a “bird’s eye” view as one’s plane flies around. Google Earth Plus will either track ones movements with an icon and red line or it can be placed into “follow mode”.

I’m researching a few folks that have setup a FSK modems for GPS serial data over audio and I’ll report back here on the solution that looks promising for a low cost data over audio downlink.

Jeff

[workshop]

Airframe, R/C Transmitter, Tripod, Laptop and toolkit.

[workshop]

I’m currently working on a unidirectional modem to send GPS serial data to Google Earth Plus for moving map display. Once I make some progress, I will adapt the circuit to the Catalina Project and perhaps offer kits for sale. I’ll keep everyone posted on my progress here and if it works for Catalina, I’ll start a new thread dedicated to the modem.

Jeff

[workshop]

...but it was worth a shot!

This was a great exercise because; 1. it rekindled my electronics hobby (at least at the discrete part level), 2. I learned a thing or two about AVR microprocessors and I have a couple of leftover ATTINT2313s with which to play and 3. I found that it is easy to underestimate the difficulty of this particular task.

I talked this project over with some friends in the aerospace industry here in El Segundo. I seems generally accepted that cramming 4800 baud down a 10kHz pipe requires a more robust encoding and error correction than plain Manchester code will allow.

In the meantime, I'm making a few minor changes to the Catalina bird while I help Eladio with his AltHold project (which required I convert my Hobbico Twinstar over to a Co-Pilot / RCAP UAV). I'll have video shot at White Point to post over the weekend.

Jeff

[Gary Mortimer]

Would going down this route for flight tracking be any good??

http://free.3dtracking.net/isthis.aspx

Cheers

G

[workshop]

Gary,

I believe those type of solutions require an Internet connection in the field. Although that can be done in some areas with GPRS, I don’t have an account (yet) to test. Interesting thought…

In the meantime, I’ve used the bad weather and the time testing Eladio’s AltHold board to perform some convenience upgrades to the Catalina airframe:

1: Replaced Aileron and Flap connectors with one four pin wing connector.
2. Added 4PDT switch and two programming ports (GPS and PicoPilot). The switch toggles between Run and Program and eliminates all the plugging and unplugging.
3. Removed manual Z-Log reset and programmed the Z-Log for “zero on startup”. I covered the corresponding hole in the fuselage with MonoCote.
4. Added larger 4” foam tires
5. Streamlined and reduced the size of the VidTX mounting method.

The new AUW is 166oz. (10lbs. 6ozs.) The wing loading is somewhere around 28ozs/square inch.

Back to testing and trimming this week.

Jeff

[workshop]

Wow! The wind knocked out power to more than 130,000 homes in Los Angeles County yesterday. I’ve lived here for more than twenty years and I’ve never seen it so windy. I wonder if the weather is due to global blowing?

Anyway, I’m still experiencing some pitch oscillation due to the airspeed-controlled throttle causing an altitude increase corresponding to a throttle increase. The barometric pressure controlled elevator sends a down elevator upon altitude increase and since the two units don’t talk to each other oscillations begin and worsen.

Slowing down before entering the waypoint pattern helps a lot and I’m still practicing slowing down after climb-out. I’m going to work with the idle setting on the throttle board (UNAV) to see if the low idle is too high (Catalina is electric). The last solution would be to (further) angle the motor’s thrust line down a degree or two.

Below is a simple audio limiter I whipped up to prevent overdriving my laptop’s microphone channel. My laptop doesn’t have a discreet Line-In so I have to use the Mic-In for moving map telemetry.

Jeff

[workshop]

Back on Track
I’m almost finished helping Eladio Martinez beta test his RCAP v3 / AltHold v1 combination. When finished, I’ll be able to refocus my attention to The Catalina Project. In the meantime, I want to thank Airboatship (Clive) for all the reference material that he emailed to me! My favorite link chronicles the aviation history of Catalina Island:
http://catalinagoose.homestead.com/index.html
Clive is a walking encyclopedia of things that fly off of the water. Thanks again!

DZL Modem Update
I made a rookie mistake with the DZL modem project and was injecting RS-232 level GPS logic into a TTL circuit. Once I added a MAX232 level shifter to the GPS unit, the modem acted according to plan. Now, I’m using a USGlobalSat EM-411 GPS module to provide the TTL GPS stream; it works great. Next, I have to impedance and level match it up to the Vid TX/RX and then onto flight-testing with Google Earth. Once working, I’ll put out a call for beta testers that want to experiment with Google Earth to provide moving map, route overlay, real-time route tracking and real-time synthetic view.

Jeff

[Airboatflyingshp]

Hi praise :o Jeff thanks :) .. .. but I'm still relatively new to all this - the real experts are people whose work my tracker skills for want of a better term have led me to.
Hopefully it will be of use or inspire a few people to get creative and out onto a bit of the tricky stuff that covers most of the planet.

The island certainly has a rich history and a special connection with pioneering aviation...........somehow I think we too often miss the point as to how we travel to such places.

[workshop]

Catalina’s New GPS
The RX portion of the Holux GPS unit stopped listening to serial data and could no longer be programmed out of SiRF mode. Since it won’t transmit NMEA anymore, I have to replace it. Luckily, I have some USGlobalSat EM-411 20 Channel receivers so I designed and etched a PCB that includes a regulator and MAX233 level shifter. The GPS receiver works on 6-12Vdc, outputs TTL and RS-232. I used clear shrink-wrap so I could still see the EM-411’s LED. The PCB measures 1.25” x 3.00” (32mm x 76mm) and was handmade. If anyone else wants to make one, send me a PM and I’ll put together a zip file with the photomask, parts list and photos.

Bigger Things
The tiny DZL modem sends real-time GPS data from one’s airplane to the ground using the audio channel of one’s video transmitter. Attach the DZL receiver to a computer serial port to enable moving map programs like Google Earth Plus.

I’ve worked out a plan with DZL and Intelligent Flight of Perth Australia to manufacture the DZL modem. I’m in the process of designing the three boards (TX, TX w/GPS, RX) to be sent out for manufacture. After I have gone from breadboard to PCB (a week or two), I will be ready for Beta testing. So far, I have two folks that have signed up. PM me if you want to take part in the beta program especially if you want the GPS version.

Jeff

[Wulffy]

Hey Jeff. As usual, nice progress on your project!

I also am using the USGlobalSat EM-411 for development. Quick question on the EM-411 - is pin 6 outputting the PPS that I understand it is supposed to? I believe that my unit may not be and is why I am asking.

Also, I have found that you can use SiRF Demo v3.83 to setup and config the Rx for up to 115.2Kbaud (I am parsing/using data sent at 115.2K). However, I suspect that that the FSKing of audio signals at 115.2k will not work for ya...

What precipitated the change from the tinytrak to the DZL modem? Was it the desire to get actual data vs. tone bursts for use with the GE?

Also, I'd recommend that you look into Franson GPS Gate (http://franson.com/gpsgate/guide.asp?platform=winxp). It allows the 'splitting' of a single data stream into several for using the single GPS data by several applications concurrently. There is also a less robust free version out there called XPort3 (I forget where I found it - maybe on MP3Car.com.?.)... Just searched and found it here (http://curioustech.home.insightbb.com/xport.html).

Regardless - nice progress. Thanks for keeping this thread updated!!!

-t

EDIT: I was messing around with configuring the EM-411 and thought that I broke it with the configuration utility - I turned off the RMC sentence and the Status LED stopped working. Apparantly, the EM-411 triggers the Status LED to toggle on the transmission of the RMC sentence, so, if you do this, don't freak out. Also, if the config causes the EM-411 to not function, no fear, the unit can be 'reset' to factory default by shorting out the 'super cap' battery for a moment. The two solder paths immediatly to the right of pin 1 on the header connector is where this can be done at. Finally, the antenna is hard soldered onto the PCB inside of the EM-411. When mine shipped, the antenna was rotated a bit. Me, being the bonehead that I am, warmed up the adhesive holding the antenna to the module and rotated the antenna a couple of degrees. Needless to say, I compromised the solder connection. I had to entirely disassemble the module and resolder the connection onto the LNA portion of the board. Lesson here, don't frak with the antenna... :)

[workshop]

EM-411 Pin 6
I've tested three of these units so far and NONE have any signal on Pin6. :mad:

The DZL Modem gives straight through serial data so one can use any program that reads GPS data from a serial port (like Google Earth Plus/Pro). :cool:

Funny about the LED being tied to the RMC sentence! ha ha ha! :rolleyes:

That Franson software splitter looks cool too. Thanks for the link.

Jeff

[monkeywrencher]

Hi Jeff-
Been following your project for a while. For me it's a bit like reading a quantum physics manual in Mandarin :confused: but entertaining nonetheless :D

I'm a bit concerned that you will end up like Harrison Ford in "The Mosquito Coast"..

Keep it coming, I know you can pull it off!

Pat

[shanghai_fool]

EM-411 Pin 6

The DZL Modem gives straight through serial data so one can use any program that reads GPS data from a serial port (like Google Earth Plus/Pro). :cool:


Jeff

Have you tried this? GE accepts Garmin and Magellan drivers but not a EM-411 on a USB/Comm port. I've also tried GPSBabel but it also does not see the data although I can see it with Hyperterminal just fine. What's the secret?

Donald

[workshop]

Donald,

The secret is that the EM-411 datasheet and sales literature is FUBAR! :mad: The datasheet has the RX and TX pins reversed (TX on 3, RX on 4) and lists a 1pps output on Pin6 where no such output exists. The sales literature, I believe, must list the EM-411 somewhere as a RS-232 device; it is not.

The EM-411 only has TTL level input/output and that is why it won't work on a serial port or USB serial adapter. You'll need to add a MAX232 chip to the EM-411 if you want to get RS-232 out of it (i.e., you want to hook it up to a serial port).

Read back on this thread to see the post "Catalina’s New GPS". I made a circuit board for the EM-411 that gives it a regulator (5-12v) and a RS-232 output in addition to the TTL output. I have the PCB artwork and you're welcome to it; just PM me and I'll email you the artwork, parts list, etc. Or, you can check the "Standalone Waypoint Sequencer" Thread for links to commercial TTL to RS-232 converters.

Jeff

BTW... Speaking of the new GPS module... I didn't like the aerodynamics and homemade look of my handiwork so I prepared and strengthened a cavity behind the wing to hold the unit just under the covering. I made a small window so I could still see the LED. Now it's stealth!!! :cool:

[shanghai_fool]

Thanks Jeff,

I knew that the tx/rx pins were reversed. Mr RCam had the correction. I am using a TTL to USB adapter to the PC. I just don't know how to get Google Earth to get the data. I think your cover looks great. I think the led pulses at 1 PPS rate when locked on. You could glue a photo diode on it to get output or as remote indicator. Or if you have the guts, open'er up and tap the LED inside.

Donald

[shanghai_fool]

BTW, I will be back in LA next month for a few weeks. Where is there a good place to fly nearest to downtown. I have ordered the new Futaba 2.4GHZ and would like to try it out while I'm there. There are no RC clubs (read No Freq control) here so I'm hoping that will make me less nervous flying here in Shanghai.

Donald

[Gary Mortimer]

Hi Jeff and others.

I asked Eladio to add a serial connector from the GPS and RCAP unit he has kindly built for me. To that I was going to connect a Tinytrac and then use soundcard packet. Would I be able to connect your DZL modem from that connector??

Gary

[workshop]

Donald,

Try Apollo Field at the Sepulveda Basin Rec area. Check this website for field information.

http://www.valleyflyers.com/

Gary,

Like U-NAV (PicoPilot) I’m using servo connectors for GPS.

Black = GND
Red = RX
Yellow = TX
Female Jack = GPS Out
Male Plug = GPS In

I can solder up any interface you need.

Jeff

[shanghai_fool]

Thanks Jeff, I'll try to make it over there.

Donald

[hartwig]

@Shanghai_fool: In order to use the EM-411 along with GoolgeEarth you might ike to try the following:
Enable the VTG and GLL NMEA commands from the GPS receiver. On the EM-4xx receivers those seem to be disabled by default, so you have to enable them by sending the following strings to the EM4xx:
$PSRF103,05,00,01,01*20 (enable VTG)
$PSRF103,01,00,01,01*24 (enable GLL)

there is an application called DGEarthTracker that provides realtime GPS Tracking with GoolgeEarth, and it requires those NMEA sequences, and GE might require them also.

Cheers,
Hartwig

[shanghai_fool]

Thanks Hartwig, I'll try that when I get back to Shanghai. I didn't bring the 411 with me.

Donald

[spirko]

Jeff,
Read your thread on this exciting project. I hope you’ve just been busy with your day job and that the Catalina Project is still underway.

I also work in Hollywood and am intrigued by the possibility of quality aerials on a smaller scale. Something less expensive and more reliable than the gyron or wescam systems I usually use.

I went a different route, and built an electric r/c helicopter for ap, first with a co-pilot and after a few crashes, a Spartan RC ap2000 for stabilization, but the video was never broadcast quality. Then, when I was shooting in a wild-life protected wetland which didn’t allow full scale aircraft, I met with a local company, CopterVision, and they ran some tests for us with a gas powered r/c helicopter, but not only were they more expensive than a full scale helicopter would have been, but the quality wasn’t much better than my t-rex helicopter rig.

Anyway, I’m intrigued by your project and was wondering if you have enough battery power for the Catalina crossing? I’ve been reading the forums about solar powered sailplanes, but they haven’t been using the picopilot. You seem to have gotten a lot further in automated flight than some of those projects, also your above-wing mounted prop makes your rig much more camera friendly. But the idea of an all-day sky camera platform, potentially more stable and less noisy than a helicopter, is compelling.

Don’t mean to take over the thread, just musing on the progress of r/c AP and your project.

Best with your work,
Craig

[jparisse]

Work is finally letting up and I'll be back in Los Angeles probably until the end of the year so I'm going to catch up on the Catalina Project (especially since Bjorn is making such impressive progress).

12V Conversion – I wanted to beef up the video image so I invested in a Sony 520 line 1/3” CCD camera and rebuilt the gimbal. Since the camera requires 12V, I had to rethink my power system and have moved to a 3cell lipoly RX battery. It was easy to move to a 1W video TX since I have the 12V to power it so I did. :rolleyes:

DZL Modem – I sponsored the BETA program for Intelligent Flight of AU and was able to produce about 20 of these gems. It is a great low cost GPS send down but since the Maxstream Xtend Development Kit came on sale, I couldn’t resist. So Intelligent Flight of AU has all the results and PCB artwork and might be marketing these someday in the future.

Maxstream Xtend – Wow… Robust is an understatement! My first retractable antenna version (shown) failed at bench tests over 500mW because I had too many electronics near the TX module and antenna. The only way to get full power without corrupting RC electronics was to build a ground plane on the bottom of the airframe with copper foil and install the TX modules ONLY below the counterpoise. Now I get full 1000mW of 2.4GHz video w/ audio and 1000mW of 900MHz data (4800baud TTL GPS). Testing in the air will take place in early September.

Ground Station – Since all gear is hauled to place in my SUV, it made sense to install everything inside the car for easy getaway (remember the unscheduled desert landing?). Did I say “inside”?... The antenna array shown will bolt to the luggage racks of my SUV and bring down Video, Audio and RS-232 GPS. My wife is convinced that I am now “out of my mind”. I will make it removable so she doesn’t have to be unnecessarily reminded of my insanity. The mounting hardware and patch antennas are all wind rated for 100MPH or more. We’ll see. ;-) :D

More later… it is good to be back!

Jeff

ps. Hey Spirko... lets fly sometime...

[spirko]

jeff,
would love to. I'll be free after the emmy's in a few weeks. Where's your home field? I fly at Robin's field in Sylmar when I can, the basin when I have to, or the Hollywood bowl when I just need a quick fix.

-craig

[icebear]

Jeff,

Good to have you back and to see that things are moving forward!
That modular approach is very neat and your ground station is just awesome.
I can imagine domestic comments about it however! ;)
Looking forward to some flight reports...
I recently literally fried my Jeti spin ESC when the prop got stuck in high grass on take-off which also killed the OMNI mixer (!?), so my Viking is grounded at the moment. Good time to upgrade the motor, though.
The whole bottom floor smelled of burnt electronics, so I had to move it to the garage. To avoid trunks in the driveway :o

Keep up the good work!

/Bjorn

[workshop]

Nick and I finally shot some test video last week. Both days were very windy and the UAV had trouble making the short course in the high wind. Test #1 is almost all under autonomous control and it is interesting to note the bank angle and altitude hold during a missed waypoint about half way into the movie. The Test #2 video is a mix of autonomous and manual control. I’ll upload that in a day or two. We’re saving the missions to a DVR and it is great to have a DVD disk for each flight. The image is great (depends on what one is used too… since I haven’t flown in so long ANY image is great) but ripping the file to a editable format and outputting something that looks good on YouTube is quite a task. For now, I’ll up load the 100Mb files to my company’s website.

Edit: I erased the above mentioned file because it was to darn big! Use this file instead:

www.teslacoil.com/uav/kva_cip_test01.wmv

List of things to do…

1. Use the ground based RS-232 GPS feed from the data modem to create an audio track that can be recorded onto the DVR simultaneously with the video. That way I can play back the video AND the GPS track in real-time.
2. Figure if it is possible to save real-time GPS tracks in Goggle Earth as a plan “B”.
3. Run a full fledged distance test at El Mirage Dry Lake.


Then, I think we’ll be ready for some “missions” and a rework of the pitot tube airspeed hold system. I believe that the pressure sensor is not getting an input pressure reading that is in range to produce a steady forward speed. Anybody here use the U-Nav Throttle Hold?..

Jeff

p.s. I'll be using Bjorn's suggestion to use MS Movie Maker to squash my videos... The quality still isn't what I expect or want but that is not the technology's fault. :rolleyes:

[icebear]

Jeff!

We have all been waiting for this! :)
Great to see video from your new Telemaster UAV - good work!
I am impressed by the video quality even if I watched the compressed WMV version.

The altitude hold (Picopilot Alt-E?) is really impressive. You seem to stay within 20 feet even during a sharp turn in those conditions! My Viking UAV still drops a little when turning right downwind but I have managed to tame it down to stay within 25-30 feet - probably due to my airframe properties.

I noticed that you seem to use about 200W during cruise. What kind of flight times are you getting? Still watching milage... :)

Looking forward to more video and updates!

/Bjorn

[_helitron_]

Jeff,

just recognized that you use also the Holux GPS mouse as me, mine looks in the meantime as on the pic, stripped the housing and saved a bit weight :).

//Erwin

[workshop]

Thanks Bjorn! Cool mod //Erwin. Did you have any trouble with the case? It looks glued together.

It is funny how Icebear keyed right into the gas gauge! Yes, this is an American gas hog SUV of an airplane. So far, I’m half way to Catalina Island! In the long run, I am going to have to switch airframes to make it to Catalina Island. The Lightning Dart airframe shows some promise but the PicoPilot doesn’t support flying wings. I’m thinking of the AeroMaster from Hobby Lobby as a replacement airframe for the Catalina Project.

http://www.hobby-lobby.com/aeromaster.htm

The good thing about the weight (160oz.) is that the plane is very stable in the sky and makes turns that seem unaffected by wind. I like the way it flies and with the gyro gimbal, sometimes the shots are almost blimp-like. :cool: The next video is of White Point Nature Reserve (our favorite coastline spot) and you’ll see how smooth everything is. What you can’t see is how hard the wind was blowing that day. It was strong enough necessitate two people to assemble the wing onto the plane for fear of it blowing away.

Video Soon – I’m still climbing the learning curve. :o

Jeff

[_helitron_]

Cool mod //Erwin. Did you have any trouble with the case? It looks glued together.
Jeff

Thanks! Yes, is glued but with help of a Stanley knife no problem :) !

//Erwin

[Mr.Pibb]

It is funny how Icebear keyed right into the gas gauge! Yes, this is an American gas hog SUV of an airplane. So far, I’m half way to Catalina Island! In the long run, I am going to have to switch airframes to make it to Catalina Island. Jeff

Jeff,

I'm too lazy to look back in the thread, how far is the trip to Catalina Island you are trying to make?

I flew my Telemaster just over 1 mile and back this past weekend and then flew around the field for a while and landed and had only used about 45% of my 5s2p A123 pack. This plane fly's extremely well slowly barely using any power at all. I found that I had much greater efficiency with a standard APC e-prop rather than a three bladed prop.

Mr.Pibb

[workshop]

21 Miles from Cabrillo Beach to Emerald Bay. So far the Catalina UAV has traveled 12.5 miles on a single charge.

Jeff

[Mr.RC-CAM]

I sure like the pylon motor mount on your ETM. My camera is mounted under the ETM, with some prop still in the camera's forward view. Plus, my camera's location is likely to encourage decapitation on hard landings. Your solution seems so much better.

In regards to battery management, have you considered using the Vizion OSD's new mAH feature? It is the ultimate battery fuel gauge and is very handy. It makes monitoring available flight time a very easy task. Vizion's new Watts display is useful too. No doubt you've tried the new features, but if not, then please keep them in mind.

[workshop]

The Vizion is the best non-GPS OSD on the market! The new text is perfectly legible in all the lightings conditions I’ve encountered. The “field toggle” feature enhances the benefits of the new mAh and Watts display. This feature saves screen clutter by letting the user toggle between A, W and mAh by switching the unit off briefly. We’ll be using the OSD feature set to the fullest on our desert distance test. Great upgrade Thomas – oh that reminds me... I have to send the old one back for an upgrade too… :o

The pylon mount took a little adjusting (thrust line) to get working but it was TOTALLY worth it. I’m thinking of using the same scheme on a Sr. Telemaster so I can use a Pentax Optio A10 like my hero Icebear. Servo City www.servocity.com has a few pan/tilt mounts that would swing that camera with ease. One of the best features is that the camera(s) is/are mounted to a sliding “shoe” that permits a quick switch of nose gear. We’re looking into setting up a FLIR thermal imaging camera (read: $$$) for grins. :D

[icebear]

It is funny how Icebear keyed right into the gas gauge! Yes, this is an American gas hog SUV of an airplane.
So far, I’m half way to Catalina Island! In the long run, I am going to have to switch airframes to make it to Catalina Island.
Jeff - I couldn't help it since I have been working all summer with measuring amps, watts, oz/sq.ft, and range in miles/Ah etc... :o

I have found that with reasonable cruise speed you need about 1,1-1,3 W/oz (for a trainer type airframe). This actually works out pretty
well for your TME also if your SUV consumes 200W during cruise. :)

I’m thinking of the AeroMaster from Hobby Lobby as a replacement airframe for the Catalina Project.

The aeromaster looks fantastic - I have drooled over it several times... I am sure you could get better range with that wing/airframe even with
lots of gear in it.
Have you calculated how much your 'gear' including AP, videocam, downlinks etc weighs in at?

With roughly 5 sq ft of wing area I guess you could easily load it up to 80-90 oz (16-18 oz/sqft) and still get good 'milage'.
According to my assupmtions ("icebears law" ha-ha) you would draw 7-8 amps on a 4S pack and thus need roughly an
4S-8Ah pack to get to your precisous island assuming 20-25 mph cruise speed (but that's maybe conservative).

Your modular approach must be great for switching airframes... And I really envy your groundstation too - your are way ahead of me there!

Video Soon – I’m still climbing the learning curve.

Keep 'em coming - we are watching ;)

/Bjorn

[Mr.RC-CAM]

Wow, 21 miles. I'll definitely check back to see how your project progresses.

I appreciate your kind remarks regarding the new (V3) Vizion OSD features. For sure, let's update your old system. :)

[MX]

On my last flight, my electro Telemaster was maintaining crusing altitude at about 6 amps and 11 volts with a weight of 88 oz. That's about 0.75 W/oz.

MX

[workshop]

I guess that means that I have 72oz. of junk in my trunk... :D

[icebear]

On my last flight, my electro Telemaster was maintaining crusing altitude at about 6 amps and 11 volts with a weight of 88 oz. That's about 0.75 W/oz.

MX - that's really good. I have been able to cruise with less than 1.1-1.3 W/oz, but for my setups to maintain a reasonable cruise speed during windy days (coping with winds of at least 10-15 mph) I have found the extra power needed, so that's the basis of 1.1-1.3 W/oz. Of course this would be very airframe and size dependant. The Telemaster seem to be very efficient. Do you know the approximate normal cruise speed?

I guess that means that I have 72oz. of junk in my trunk...

Wow - that'll be a heavy Aeromaster! :o Or maybe you have planned some slimming...

/Bjorn

[MX]

MX - that's really good. I have been able to cruise with less than 1.1-1.3 W/oz, but for my setups to maintain a reasonable cruise speed during windy days (coping with winds of at least 10-15 mph) I have found the extra power needed, so that's the basis of 1.1-1.3 W/oz. Of course this would be very airframe and size dependant. The Telemaster seem to be very efficient. Do you know the approximate normal cruise speed?...
/Bjorn

Approximately 26-28 mph according to the GPS. Didn't have an airspeed sensor.

MX

[workshop]

Finally, the Catalina Project UAV completed its first mission. We flew a land and plant growth survey for the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy in San Pedro California.

My AMA club, the Palos Verdes Silent Flyers contributes to Conservancy since we have the mutual goal of conserving open space on the peninsula. Time and materials were donated to the PVPLC and the city of San Pedro and there was no exchange of consideration so as to maintain our status of recreational RC pilots.

A copy of the DVD video given to the PVPLC can be seen at:

www.teslacoil.com/uav/white_point_01.wmv

In the meantime, I noticed some slight periodic video distortion that seemed to be timed with the GPS signal. Looking at the ground station antenna array, I realized that the sole transmitting antenna (the 900MHz 8dbi patch) is probably bleeding into the 2.4GHz RX antennas because of its placement relative to them. I rearranged the array so that the TX antenna was located above the RX antennas in such as was as to reduce bleed over (I used the propagation charts from Hyperlink to determine spread patterns). This seems to fix things on the ground.

Looks clunky doesn’t it? I was wondering if I was making more work for myself. Well as it turns out, with so much gear already assembled (and tied to the roof of the car) setup at the field goes REALLY quickly. We just assemble the plane and hook up a computer and DVD recorder; done! Plus, all the gear is in the car. We can chase the plane or make quick getaways from a launch site (why that would be necessary, I don’t know? :eek: ). The only operational difference is that the spotter is turning a knob rather than the tripod. Also the new position makes for a quick change out of the 900MHz patch to a 9dBi Yagi for the Catalina Island trip.

Jeff

[Gary Mortimer]

Just making a pylon mount for my aircraft, I thought I would incorporate the battery at the base and generally make it an easy to swap power solution, ie I can put it on my gliders.

Anyhow I assume the thrustline problems you had were connected with the lever moment of the pod, ie throttle up nose down??

Any advice??

I was thinking of angling the engine thrust line slightly up.

Looking for to aeromaster reports, as you know I have also been lusting after that airframe!! (humm lust might be too strong)

Cheers

G

[Murocflyer]

What a great project. I fast forwarded to the end after reading the first page. No happy ending?

Frank

[workshop]

The Catalina Project needs a new airframe to make the 21 mile journey to Catalina Island. The longest mission on the Telemaster Electro airframe was 12.5 miles.

I converted the Telemaster Electro to a medium range FPV ship equipped with a Dragon OSD. I will be using it to practice FPV/AP and to experiment with different ground station configurations. Given the flyaway described earlier in this thread, I adopted an “all gear in the car/boat” philosophy.
The new airframe is the AeroMaster sailplane currently sold by Hobby Lobby. I will soon create a thread called “Catalina II Project” that will describe my efforts. I have all the parts and am just waiting for work to ease up a bit (hopefully by April).

Plans:
1. Increase mileage by using sailplane, decreasing feature set and weight
2. Use high gain dipoles and/or RX amps for 72MHz control
3. Reduce power supply complexity

Jeff

[Murocflyer]

Jeff,

Thanks for the update! Looking forward to Catalina II.

Keep us posted.

Thanks,

Frank

[Airboatflyingshp]

Jeff did you get the polish omni plane? Take a look here,,,,,,,,,,,,, http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=804379 someones doing some playing for you?

[kawika1kalina]

The Catalina Project needs a new airframe to make the 21 mile journey to Catalina Island. The longest mission on the Telemaster Electro airframe was 12.5 miles.

I converted the Telemaster Electro to a medium range FPV ship equipped with a Dragon OSD. I will be using it to practice FPV/AP and to experiment with different ground station configurations. Given the flyaway described earlier in this thread, I adopted an “all gear in the car/boat” philosophy.
The new airframe is the AeroMaster sailplane currently sold by Hobby Lobby. I will soon create a thread called “Catalina II Project” that will describe my efforts. I have all the parts and am just waiting for work to ease up a bit (hopefully by April).

Plans:
1. Increase mileage by using sailplane, decreasing feature set and weight
2. Use high gain dipoles and/or RX amps for 72MHz control
3. Reduce power supply complexity

Jeff

Hello Jeff,

I was directed to this page by "Airboatflyingshp".

I am working on the AeroNaut AeroMaster now with the intent of turning it into a water lander or floatplane.

This is my third sailplane conversion to a water plane, the first being the Super Dimona on floats and the second being the Bird of Time on homemade floats.

The Bird of Time worked out best with flight times of over an hour and covering over 12 miles on a single glide without powering up, without even trying, and that is with a 7meg camera onboard. The only problem was I couldn't taxi or takeoff from the water, it sat too low and the prop tips would hit the water.

This is where the AeroMaster may do much better.

Check out this forum. http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=804379

Looking forward to seeing yours, maybe we can share some ideas.

Dave

[Airboatflyingshp]

jeff knows my webfooted way of thinking ;) ......check out the sticky in waterplanes and you will get my drift.... take a look at the Blackburn B20 if you are intent on floats but your kite should make a natural flyingboat conversion .............. esp if you only need to stay afloat in a landing on water situation?

If you get stuck see the K Kusoma thread Tapio has put up the T 16 plans free in waterplanes a true Albatross of a flyingboat and a T10 or 15 might also do the tric but trim the build wt as they were designed to take a beating.

[workshop]

Dave,

You're making Clives day!!! Water and airplanes... he's your expert!

I just started working on the Aero-Master. I've been too busy at work to anything but look in the box. I'm home sick this weekend so I gave it a go.

I checked out your efforts and am inpressed. I intend to go from "hand" to "sand" so waterproofing wasn't in my game plan. Now that I see what you're up to, I bet your gonna have a great sea plane!

Jeff

[kawika1kalina]

Thanks for the encouragement guys, not sure how this plane will turn out in the end.

I'll keep posting until I suceed or fail, for now the floats will have to wait until the swimming pool thaws out (mid April) to see how she sits in the water without floats, and get an idea where to add flotation.

Looking forward to seeing your posts Jeff.

Dave

[cmoulder]

Dave,

You're making Clives day!!! Water and airplanes... he's your expert!

I just started working on the Aero-Master. I've been too busy at work to anything but look in the box. I'm home sick this weekend so I gave it a go.

I checked out your efforts and am inpressed. I intend to go from "hand" to "sand" so waterproofing wasn't in my game plan. Now that I see what you're up to, I bet your gonna have a great sea plane!

Jeff

Jeff, just wondering if you have considered a sailplane of the hotliner variety... much faster, still with efficient lift, more stable in crosswinds. More speed = less time, which is always the issue with batteries.

With a Zenoah G20 or SPE 26 hauling your big (8-foot) Telemaster, the Catalina crossing could be achieved easily. Well, relatively easily. I have been thinking about a pylon mounted G20ei pusher with fuel tanks in the big Tele's wings. I already have the ARF and the engine, but haven't touched them yet.

But first, I am almost finished with my Tele Electro based upon yours. Had a hell of a time getting the Com1 port configured for Pico/laptop conversations, but finally figured that out on my own with brute-force trial-and-error, no thanks to U-Nav. Mark has been good about getting back on e-mails, but it's mostly refer-to-FAQ stuff when what they really need to do is to make it USB/Windows-friendly. But this is a relatively inexpensive and simple unit compared to their other offerings, so I guess there are bigger fish to fry.

I forgot to ask, where did the CG end up on your Tele Electro. HL instructions give it a rather wide range!

-- Bob

[jetcruise]

Hi Jeff,

I am currently developing a UAV for aerial photography and environmental monitoring missions and I must say I am very impressed with your efforts with the Telemaster Electro. Coincidentally I also have the same airframe equipped with a Canon G9 for high resolution image capture and I was quite intrigued with your pylon mounted engine. Since I am also interested in developing a UAV with at least 1 hour endurance I am focusing on a more efficient airframe design. I am considering a canard design, such as the Long EZ since the camera could be mounted in the nose and the pusher prop is more efficient than a tractor design. Any thoughts? I have seen commercially available ARF's with 950 and 1250 sq.in of wing area which might make an accepable platform. Since these models were designed for .60 and .90 cu. in engines respectively, the fuselages would have to be lightened considerably but I think they may have potential...