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Follow me mode

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I have watched video's mainly on utube, showing the inspire following the operator who is driving along in a car, I realise there are various apps that have a follow me function, what I don't understand is how does the operator driving the car keep the inspire RC's antennas pointing towards the aircraft, and if he isn't why is there not any disconnection issues.
 
I have watched video's mainly on utube, showing the inspire following the operator who is driving along in a car, I realise there are various apps that have a follow me function, what I don't understand is how does the operator driving the car keep the inspire RC's antennas pointing towards the aircraft, and if he isn't why is there not any disconnection issues.

Because the aircraft is still in fairly close proximity to the RC. If these shots were taken from 500m away there maybe more disconnect issues.
 
Because the aircraft is still in fairly close proximity to the RC. If these shots were taken from 500m away there maybe more disconnect issues.
Thanks for your reply Ed, I'm surprised that the body of the car doesn't interfere with the signal from the RC to the craft even within 500m, what would happen with fly to home function if it was initiated by a loss of connection, would it return to original take off point.
 
Thanks for your reply Ed, I'm surprised that the body of the car doesn't interfere with the signal from the RC to the craft even within 500m, what would happen with fly to home function if it was initiated by a loss of connection, would it return to original take off point.
Depends whether you had dynamic home point set or not otherwise yes, it would return to its take off location.
 
Depends whether you had dynamic home point set or not otherwise yes, it would return to its take off location.
Hi again, if you did have dynamic home point set wouldn't you still need a connection between the RC and the craft. Say for instance you had dynamic home point set, and were in follow me mode (following a car) and you lost connection, the craft starts to return home to take off point, but finds signal again, would it then try to fly to dynamic home point (i.e. the car) or would it resume the follow me, I suppose a lot of these kind of questions are "suck it and see" really, but it would be good if some of the instructional video's went into a it more detail about when things like loss of signal occur, I'm looking forward to trying out the follow me function.
 
If you loose connection would you probably stop the car? You can cancel rth before if flies to some old homepoint. Problem is if you are not in a car but in a train :D
 
Hi again, if you did have dynamic home point set wouldn't you still need a connection between the RC and the craft. Say for instance you had dynamic home point set, and were in follow me mode (following a car) and you lost connection, the craft starts to return home to take off point, but finds signal again, would it then try to fly to dynamic home point (i.e. the car) or would it resume the follow me, I suppose a lot of these kind of questions are "suck it and see" really, but it would be good if some of the instructional video's went into a it more detail about when things like loss of signal occur, I'm looking forward to trying out the follow me function.

No - the dynamic home point means it will be set to you RC location at last update. This means the GPS coordinates of the last location update of where your controller was located is stored in the aircraft.
On signal loss the aircraft will behave exactly as it normally would under RTH/Signal loss conditions except it will go to where it last got an update from your controller for location.
 
No - the dynamic home point means it will be set to you RC location at last update. This means the GPS coordinates of the last location update of where your controller was located is stored in the aircraft.
On signal loss the aircraft will behave exactly as it normally would under RTH/Signal loss conditions except it will go to where it last got an update from your controller for location.
Hi Ed, so hopefully the last home point location update to the aircraft would be pretty close to where you loose the signal while driving, sorry if I appear a bit thick, but still getting used to the Inspire. Thanks.
 
I have tested this feature on a boat.Left the RC on my lap and nothing else.And the Inspire just followed me.Remember it's just a test on open space,so nothing was in my way.Felt very uncomfortable.
 
Follow mode is nice but it would be better if you could climb a mountain above 4-500 ft from the take off point.
When I started this flight I was at the base of a 550 ft hill so when I got to the 400 ft elevation mark the inspire stopped following, you would think DJI would make the max elevation from the RC to the Aircraft not the take off point.
Funny thing is I can take off from the top of a 1000 ft mountain and it will follow you to the bottom and be - 600 ft elevation but you cant start at the bottom and go up the mountain above the 4 to 500 ft mark even though the aircraft is only above the RC and ground 100 ft.
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Follow mode is nice but it would be better if you could climb a mountain above 4-500 ft from the take off point.
When I started this flight I was at the base of a 550 ft hill so when I got to the 400 ft elevation mark the inspire stopped following, you would think DJI would make the max elevation from the RC to the Aircraft not the take off point.
Funny thing is I can take off from the top of a 1000 ft mountain and it will follow you to the bottom and be - 600 ft elevation but you cant start at the bottom and go up the mountain above the 4 to 500 ft mark even though the aircraft is only above the RC and ground 100 ft.
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Interesting observation!
I wouldn't be able to test that easily in this extremely flat country (Netherlands).
Wouldn't dynamic homepoint be the solution?
 
When you have dynamic home point set, and the craft goes into fly to home and flies to the last updated dynamic home point, does it ascend to the safe altitude that has been pre set in the fly to home settings, ( i.e. height above the RC ) If so why can't it follow the contours of the terrain using the constantly updated dynamic home point.
 
When you have dynamic home point set, and the craft goes into fly to home and flies to the last updated dynamic home point, does it ascend to the safe altitude that has been pre set in the fly to home settings, ( i.e. height above the RC ) If so why can't it follow the contours of the terrain using the constantly updated dynamic home point.
I just checked.
The RC GPS itself does not update the RC altitude to the I1 FC(yet). So the current I1 altitude is always measured relative to the startup altitude (zero). With Autopilot you can use an apple device with built in barometer so it follows the altitude of the apple device. The altitude of the RC/device is thus updated to the on board FC. However, I don't think it is possible to have the I1 follow you to a point that is higher than the max set altitude relative to the original takeoff point. At least for now. Theoretically is should be quite doable to program once DJI releases an SDK update that incorporates this feature.
 
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I just checked.
The RC GPS itself does not update the RC altitude to the I1 FC(yet). So the current I1 altitude is always measured relative to the startup altitude (zero). With Autopilot you can use an apple device with built in barometer so it follows the altitude of the apple device. The altitude of the RC/device is thus updated to the on board FC. However, I don't think it is possible to have the I1 follow you to a point that is higher than the max set altitude relative to the original takeoff point. At least for now. Theoretically is should be quite doable to program once DJI releases an SDK update that incorporates this feature.
Thanks lake-flyer for your efforts, that sounds encouraging that at sometime in the future it is achievable, and we may get terrain following altitude settings. To me this would be one of the best improvements to any of the flying apps that developers could work on.
 
Thanks lake-flyer for your efforts, that sounds encouraging that at sometime in the future it is achievable, and we may get terrain following altitude settings. To me this would be one of the best improvements to any of the flying apps that developers could work on.
Like I said, terrain following with altitude change (at least up to the DJI imposed limits) is already possible with Autoflight Logic's Autopilot. But only if you have an Apple device with built in barometer like the latest iPhones and Ipad Air.
 
Like I said, terrain following with altitude change (at least up to the DJI imposed limits) is already possible with Autoflight Logic's Autopilot. But only if you have an Apple device with built in barometer like the latest iPhones and Ipad Air.
Thanks again lake-flyer, I fully understand the reasons for having the 400ft altitude limit, but it becomes pointless unless the 400ft limit is above the ground level beneath the position of the aircraft, I wonder why Dji are so dogmatic about it. There seems to be a lot of app development going on at the moment, it would be great if one of them managed to make it that the 400ft altitude limit was above the ground level wherever the craft was positioned. It would make flying in steep hilly areas so much less risky.
 
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Like I said, terrain following with altitude change (at least up to the DJI imposed limits) is already possible with Autoflight Logic's Autopilot. But only if you have an Apple device with built in barometer like the latest iPhones and Ipad Air.
You can do it with a GPS altimeter as well.

There seems to be a lot of app development going on at the moment, it would be great if one of them managed to make it that the 400ft altitude limit was above the ground level wherever the craft was positioned. It would make flying in steep hilly areas so much less risky.
It will have to be a firmware update to allow it, but you should note that you can already set it to 500m (1600 ft) in the GO app. Assuming you are following at max FAA AGL altitude (400ft), this means you could go uphill as much as 1200 feet before the firmware would limit you. Of course you would only want to do this with Autopilot as it is the only solution with a dynamic altimeter reference right now.
 
You can do it with a GPS altimeter as well.


It will have to be a firmware update to allow it, but you should note that you can already set it to 500m (1600 ft) in the GO app. Assuming you are following at max FAA AGL altitude (400ft), this means you could go uphill as much as 1200 feet before the firmware would limit you. Of course you would only want to do this with Autopilot as it is the only solution with a dynamic altimeter reference right now.

I REALLY would not want to trust a GPS altimeter with my Inspire but each to their own.
The timing errors are far more exaggerated in the vertical direction than horizontal. GPS stated altitude is with reference to the WGS84 datum which is a mathematical approximation of the Earth's elipsoid and averaged sea level rather than an actual/measured one.
This can be 400ft out. :eek:
 
A GPS altimeter should be in each app for informational purposes. It will be helpful to determine alt with some experience comparing the screen with what gps says. But I dont want it to be used for waypoint programming.
 

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