Litche Questions

[adamhum]

I'm not too familiar with Litche's advantages verses GO 4.

Let's say i want to go 5 miles out and have the drone come back after it runs its route.

I want to get some footage of an open pit copper mine and i can only get a mile out without losing connection.

What are the disadvantages, do I run a much higher risk of losing my Phantom 4 with Litche?

 

[BigAl07]

Any time you're flying an autonomous mission and BLOS you are increasing risk of losing the aircraft.

You have to ask yourself,

a) Is it worth losing the aircraft
b) is it worth risking an incident with manned aircraft being out BLOS and unable to See & Avoid

With Litchi you should be able to get WAY out there and back but you have to factor in wind speed, wind direction, distant hazards (towers, poles, power lines, trees etc). Always ALWAYS plan to land with plenty of power reserve because more often than not you'll use more than you estimated.

 

[adamhum]

What are peoples experience with Litche? greatest thing since sliced bread or scary as hell?

 

[BigAl07]

What are peoples experience with Litche? greatest thing since sliced bread or scary as hell?

YES! LOL

I absolutely love it and use it daily. But the first few times using it (like any other autonomous 3rd party flight control software) I was very anxious and had to prove it's trustworthiness over time.

You've got to be detail oriented and meticulous when setting up long BLOS missions though. It's also a REALLY good idea to have a reliable "Drone Tracker" attached just in case.

 

[LarBear360]

I'm still scared of it but intend to give it more opportunities to earn my trust. Start out with simple missions over an open field. Maintain line of sight. Know and be prepared how to cancel if something looks amiss. There re lots of details that can be overlooked that could lead to hiccups along the way.

 

[adamhum]

How do you cancel and have it return to home?

 

[adamhum]

Am i able to use the website to create the mission, or do i need to use the app?

 

[BigAl07]

Am i able to use the website to create the mission, or do i need to use the app?

If you still have Tx to Rx connection flip the MODE switch and you have control of the aircraft again.

Yes you can use Mission Hub to pre-plan and then test/execute the flight when you arrive on site.

 

[LarBear360]

Am i able to use the website to create the mission, or do i need to use the app?

How do you cancel and have it return to home?

Two separate actions here:

To cancel the mission, flip your mode switch back to P (GPS). I have a P3 and the switch is on the right, all the way up. Not sure about the P4 controller. This assumes you're within range and the controller and drone are communicating. If not, you have no choice but to wait for the bird to fly back within range.

At that point you will have control again. Bring it back on your own or return to home. Many people recommend bringing it back on your own. More control over altitude, speed, obstacle avoidance.

 

[rene van der meer]

Litchi gives much more possibilities to your P4.
I once flew a mission on a race track without line of sight and then without radio contact . That was quite scary, but Litchi finished the mission without any problems.

On a P4 you can pause (and resume) a mission with pause button. Stopping by tapping on the screen.
There is a downloadable manual for the P4, but the online version is better updated. See help-litchi
Last week I compiled the online version it into a downloadable version.

 

[adamhum]

Cool thanks guys! I tried out Litche last night with my P4 and it was amazing...I love how smooth the video is verses manual control. I'm going to have a lot of fun with it...

 

[LarBear360]

Am i able to use the website to create the mission, or do i need to use the app?

You can use the website to create the mission. It's actually more user-friendly that way. Be sure to save it. When you open the app, assuming you logged in under the same name, the mission should be in the saved folder on the app. Be sure to open the app at home while you have an internet connection. I always give mine unique names to be sure I'm loading the the most recent mission and not an older version.

 

[adamhum]

So I created my mission and sent my PS4 out, it completed 3/4's of the mission and then disconnected and started coming home. I don't know why it did that since i still had 54% battery.

It even stopped recording...I decided i'm going to be as close i can to the mission, i was probably about a mile away and it made the situation pretty nerve racking.

Is there a log to look at to see what happened?

 

[adamhum]

Question, why doesn't the time it takes to run the mission go down if you increase the speed of the drone?

 

[LarBear360]

So I created my mission and sent my PS4 out, it completed 3/4's of the mission and then disconnected and started coming home. I don't know why it did that since i still had 54% battery.

It even stopped recording...I decided i'm going to be as close i can to the mission, i was probably about a mile away and it made the situation pretty nerve racking.

Is there a log to look at to see what happened?

Yes, there is a log that may help. Your device\Internal storage\LitchiApp\flightlogs. They will appear as Excel CSV files. Upload that file here: DJI Flight Log Viewer

You should see an overview of the flights and second-by-second details of what was going on.

There is also another flight log on the AC that DJI would download if they had to get involved. Never done that so can't speak to how exactly to do it though I'm sure it would not be hard to find.

 

[adamhum]

Yes, there is a log that may help. Your device\Internal storage\LitchiApp\flightlogs. They will appear as Excel CSV files. Upload that file here: DJI Flight Log Viewer

You should see an overview of the flights and second-by-second details of what was going on.

There is also another flight log on the AC that DJI would download if they had to get involved. Never done that so can't speak to how exactly to do it though I'm sure it would not be hard to find.

Awesome thank you for the information, i suspect the issue was the ipad overheating. I'm not sure why that would affect the mission which was already downloaded to the aircraft. I'll look at the logs

 

[LarBear360]

Awesome thank you for the information, i suspect the issue was the ipad overheating. I'm not sure why that would affect the mission which was already downloaded to the aircraft. I'll look at the logs

I agree. The mission should finish up since it's autonomous at that point. It's possible something terminated the mission. An RTH due to signal loss is not supported by Litchi, but a low battery is. The log will provide battery cell info as well. If you need more help, upload the log and then post the link back here. Or, just attach the log to a post and forum readers can download/upload and maybe provide some answers.

 

[John Locke]

Question, why doesn't the time it takes to run the mission go down if you increase the speed of the drone?

Mine always shows less total time if the cruise speed is set higher. You must be doing something wrong.