900Mhz Datalink and PC Ground Station

Questa said:
I was having similar problems then I raised the base station antennae on a pole so its sits about 5 feet off the ground and reoriented my antennae on the bird and all is good now but most of my missions are out only 3,000 feet max.

Questa,

Makes perfect sense regarding raising the "Base Station" antenna on a pole,,,,

What antenna upgrade instead of the stock black whip stick would improve the distance for 2.4Ghz ?
 
I use stock, works well for me. I did not worry about it losing the signal too much after three or four times because even when I lost signal I know it will, either: 1. come back from auto return if loose transmitter signal or 2. will complete its mission and come back to me.

The first time it does freak you out a bit though especially if you can not see or hear it.
 
yeah that was another thing I noticed, but was pleasantly surprised about. I had always read and was under the impression it would RTH if the datalink connection was broken, but was happy to see it continued along the route.
 
Drone pilot,

Does the 900 data link come with everything required to install for $520 or is their something else required?
 
Love what you've done DronePilot. Are there any pics of what the connection looks like inside the bird?

Thanks for sharing!
 
I would appreciate Forum Member help with these questions:
1) Does the Can-bus module allow you to plug in either the 2.4 Ghz or 9 Mhz Datalink?
2) What else can you plug into the Can-Bus module?
3) Does the 2.4 Ghz Datalink work fine as long as you don't use FPV? Does it interfere with the 5.8 Ghz controller? If the PV2+ gimble and camera could be modified to stabilize and store to the SD card you could get by without FPV while using the 2.4 Ghz.
4) The only 900 Mhz Datalinks I see available for $520 is the free 50 waypoints for the Wookong M or A2 Is that the Datalink you are using?
5) Has anyone successfully extracted the GPS coordinate data from the GS log files? It wasn't clear to me from the "Format of DJI Wookong Ground Station log files ?" thread that they had.
6) If you could extract all the data from the GS log file wouldn't that essentially take the place of the Flytrex Live?
I will try to contribute to the discussion as I learn more.
Thanks,
kennca
 
kennca said:
I would appreciate Forum Member help with these questions:
1) Does the Can-bus module allow you to plug in either the 2.4 Ghz or 9 Mhz Datalink?
2) What else can you plug into the Can-Bus module?
3) Does the 2.4 Ghz Datalink work fine as long as you don't use FPV? Does it interfere with the 5.8 Ghz controller? If the PV2+ gimble and camera could be modified to stabilize and store to the SD card you could get by without FPV while using the 2.4 Ghz.
4) The only 900 Mhz Datalinks I see available for $520 is the free 50 waypoints for the Wookong M or A2 Is that the Datalink you are using?
5) Has anyone successfully extracted the GPS coordinate data from the GS log files? It wasn't clear to me from the "Format of DJI Wookong Ground Station log files ?" thread that they had.
6) If you could extract all the data from the GS log file wouldn't that essentially take the place of the Flytrex Live?
I will try to contribute to the discussion as I learn more.
Thanks,
kennca

I'll try to answer some of these, hopefully DronePilot can correct any misinformation..
1) yes
2)DJI uses CAN Bus cables for many things, not sure what works with the Plus
3)With the WiFi extender on the controller turned off the 2.4Ghz GS works fine. When I was using the 2.4 I would start recording and set camera angle with the phone App, Turn off the extender, start the motors and elevate, upload mission and GO. Never noticed any interference with control of the Plus if I needed to take over. Don't forget to stop recording before turning off the power to the Plus, or you could loose some footage.
4) That's the one, NAZA on the Plus only uses 16 WP I'm pretty sure
5)1st page of this thread, post #9
6)unknown

Good Luck
 
ChuckMRN,
Thanks for your reply! I can see the 900 Mhz has some real advantages over the 2.4 Ghz and worth the additional cost, size and weight.
I just upgraded to a new Phantom Vision 2 + and I can't get the FPV to work. I've tried a full size IPAD 3 and IPHONE 5. I know the IPAD is not recommended but the IPHONE 5 should work. I upgraded all firmware, turned on the controller, wifi extender and quadcopter; calibrated the compass; acquired satellites and started the DJI Vision app. The Phantom wifi signal was intermittent at first but now it remains strong and the mobile device is using the Phantom wifi. When I click the camera icon it displayed one blurry image and quit. That same image remains each time I go into the app. It says Phantom connection failed. I even scanned the QR code on the bottom and it recognized the camera SSID and Mac address.
This is a new Phantom from B&H and want to be sure the wifi module is bad before I pack it up and send it back. Any suggestions?
Thanks,
kennca
 
kennca: I would send it right back and get another unit.

Naza gets only 16 waypoints on the 2.4Ghz and 900Mhz datalink.
900 Mhz datalink does not work with the ipad. CAN bus at the phantom can connect to either 2.4Ghz or 900Mhz.
Data can be extracted from the GS logs on the PC. They are encrypted however wintsa from rcgroups has cracked the GS logs and provided a java tool to create csv's and kml's from them. It works quite nicely.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1712646&page=2#post27941984
The only time there are gaps in the datalink data is if signal is lost for more than a second or so (it seems a small amount is buffered). I've had this happen when I'm two miles out and have my bird drop below the tree line for a bit, just too many trees between us :) Fortunately in waypoint mode it always completes the job, and when it pops back above the tree line it re-establishes telemetry.
One thing I wish the PC ground station provided is the phantom battery voltage or power remaining. I can't recall but I think the ipad GS provides this and of course the vision app GS has it.
 
DronePilot,
Thank you for your advice and Ground Station information! It's great that you, ChuckMRN and others are willing to share your knowledge.
I will definitely get the 900 Mhz datalink and may get the 2.4 Ghz datalink even with limited capability. I'm glad to hear that you have successfully extracted GPS and other data from PC Ground Station. I will pursue that.
I want to be sure I get the correct 900 Mhz datalink. The one I see typically sells for $520 and has 50 way points. I don't understand why it says it's for the Wookong M or A2.
It will be good to get the datalink installed on the new P2V+ and start flying. I have some videos to make of the Southern Oregon coast.
Thanks,
kennca
 
With the P2V+ Naza-M V2 controller you will only get 16 waypoints. I think that restriction is in the Naza firmware.
DJI's Wookong M controller with wither the 2.4Ghz or 900 Mhz datalink and GS would give 50 waypoints but that's not compatible with the rest of the P2V+ hardware.
 
This is what I'm buying. Seller is waiting for me to verify compatibility. My understanding is this will work on the Phantom 2 Vision + but I can only enter 16 waypoints instead of 50. Is that correct?

I also understand that I can cut the short JST cable and splice it to a small 4 conductor Can-Bus cable using the pin assignments shown by the post made by wattsn. Is that correct?

As an alternative I can buy a Can_Bus module to make the connection. I've seen three different versions of this. One includes a landing gear skid, one looks like a JST connector and one from B&H that includes a the Can-Bus cable and looks like a circuit card that allows you to plug in a gimbal and other devices. Which one do you recommend?

Can anyone tell me if a full size IPAD 3rd generation will work with the DJI Phantom 2 Vision + FPV? I've read posts that say it is not recommended.

Thanks again for your help!
 

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You will need the CAN bus adapter that comes with the Phantom leg because it comes with the small JST? connector that plus into the PSU board. You then splice this with the CAN bus cable to make it lighter and cleaner then having the connector on the Phantom's leg. Alternatively you could find the JST? connector and pins and get a crimper. No CAN bus hub is required. The 900Mhz drone side does have an extra CAN bus jack should you have anything else CAN to plug into it.

Yes, the ipad 3 works fine for the DJI vision app and FPV. I have one and have used it many times.
 
DronePilot,

Thanks to you and ChuckMRN I've made a lot of progress with my P2V+. Fortunately after reseating a connector on the camera platform the video feed works well with my ipad 3.

I have the parts for PC Ground Station and I'm getting ready to install. I understand you use a dremel tool to cut the plastic shroud off the antenna. Do you cut around the shroud above the hinge? Will it come off easily?

Thanks for any help,
kennca
 
Before and after with two small pieces of heat shrink
ry%3D400


I started at the fat part of the plastic and just went very slow. The pins in the 90 joint come out pretty easy once you pry the ears apart. A simple cut and pry with a flat tip screw driver will get you started
 
Thanks!

One more question: Do you have to take the landing struts off before the top half of the Phantom shell will come off?

kennca
 
Thanks for your help! The 900 Mhz Ground Station works great. I'm just wondering what happens if I create a "mission" that goes beyond the range of the hand held controller? Does it continue the mission or does it "return to home"?
kennca
 
DronePilot said:
kennca:
Data can be extracted from the GS logs on the PC. They are encrypted however wintsa from rcgroups has cracked the GS logs and provided a java tool to create csv's and kml's from them. It works quite nicely.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1712646&page=2#post27941984

One thing I wish the PC ground station provided is the phantom battery voltage or power remaining. I can't recall but I think the ipad GS provides this and of course the vision app GS has it.

This would be a real accomplishment! It appears that only two or three people have been able to get winstsa's Java script to convert the gpslog.dat file to a .kml file. His post says you only have to copy two files from the Java Software Development Environment 7. Which two files do you need or do you need to install the whole thing?

I use the ipad FPV to monitor the battery voltage and a PC laptop to host the Ground Station.

Thanks for any help,

kennca
 

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