IOS v Android plus imposed restrictions?

[Nidge]

I don't, as yet, own an Inspire and instead I'm sitting patiently on the sidelines to see how the much publicised trials and tribulations of the first adopters pan out.

However I have downloaded and installed the DJI Pilot App on both my IPad Air and Sony Xperia phone and have a couple of questions/observations.

First of all I notice that on iOS the map data is nearly around twelve years old where as on the Android system it uses the latest Google data. I currently use the DJI Groundstation hardware on my F550 hex and find it somewhat limiting due to the same use of old map data.

Secondly, I refrained from updating the Groundstation App when it was updated last April due to the embedded flight restrictions which prevented use of the Groundstation in a 5mile radius of an Airport. I see the DJI Pilot App for the Inspire also appears to have flight restrictions around airports. Do these restrictions prevent all flight within a five mile radius of an airport or do they, as in the Phantom Vision App, restrict the altitude of the craft proportionally to the distance from the airport?

As you can see from the screen grab below I live within one of these restricted areas as is my BMFA affiliated flying club. If these embedded restrictions totally prohibit flight of the Inspire I will instead look at an alternative system.

Regards

Nidge

 

[AlexanderAF]

Wow, just noticed that. I'd like to know too!

 

[Nidge]

Hi Alexamder

I've managed to answer my own questions.
With regard to the flight restrictions around major airports this is described in the manual on pages 19 through to 22. The restrictions are progressive. From five miles out to 1.5 miles from an airport the max altitude is limited the closer you get to the airport. 1.5 miles to the centre of the airport take off is disabled.

Next the issues with the map data used on the iOS platform. This I theorise is an Apple versus Google thing. I've checked some other iOS applications that use aerial images and these rely on the same very old data. I say old as the images of my area are at least twelve years old - the car pictured in my driveway was sold twelve years ago - and are very low resolution and nearly unusable.

There is currently a lot of anger about the way the release of the iOS version of the DJI Pilot App has been bodged but if DJI were to at a future date provide a waypoint feature then an Android device would prove to be far superior as the map imagery is more recent and far higher resolution.

In the meantime I'm going to limit my enthusiasm for the Inspire as I have yet to see how it does anything different to my self built, GoPro equipped, hexacopter I put together for a third of the price of the Inspire.

Regards

Nidge

 

[AlexanderAF]

I can certainly live with that. There's no reason I'd fly within a mile and a half of an airport, and an imposed altitude restriction within 1.5-5 miles won't hinder me.

A 5-mile iron dome would have been very prohibitive!

 

[Morgon]

Next the issues with the map data used on the iOS platform. This I theorise is an Apple versus Google thing. I've checked some other iOS applications that use aerial images and these rely on the same very old data. I say old as the images of my area are at least twelve years old - the car pictured in my driveway was sold twelve years ago - and are very low resolution and nearly unusable.

Huh? Does the Inspire Pilot app use Apple Maps? I was under the impression it utilized Google Maps just like the Phantom app? Regardless, the aerial photographs wouldn't have anything to do with the rest of this - your old car doesn't really indicate old data about actual POIs and positioning data of airports.

As for your gripe about restrictions around airports, I don't speak for everyone, but "everyone" agrees this is a very good thing and should not be circumvented.

 

[Nidge]

Hi Morgan
I don't disagree with the progressive restrictions, it's a very sensible approach. My initial concerns were that they had implemented the same no flight restrictions they did with the Groundstation system, the separate hardware and not the groundstation app as used with the Vision, whereby the system is prohibited from operating at all if within five miles of an airport.

I don't have any experience of the Phantom App but as far as the DJI Pilot app is concerned the iOS version uses a different map to that of the Android version which is the up to date Goggle imagery. The difference is somewhat moot as I now understand that DJI will not be implementing a Waypoint flying option to the Inspire where higher resolution and up to date map imaging is of a great benefit. I also use Ardupilot Mega (APM) flight controllers for Waypoint flight, using a Mavlink interface to a cheap and cheerful Android tab, and having the extra resolution, especially if using a small tablet display, is a very big advantage. Not that the Inspire 1 is not a good machine, when everything works, but for me personally I was hoping for more versatility from the platform. Hopefully as it evolves some of the more advanced niceties' will be made available.

Regards

Nidge

 

[AlexanderAF]

Unfortunately some people are morons. That's who these restrictions are designed for....

This would have prevented that idiot in Turkey who flew his drone over Istanbul Airport.