Phantom 2 Vision WIFI mods

[themosttoys]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

Okay, I finally got around to making some more changes. I had thought about it for a while, but after the exchange with helixaviator, I decided to put the amp on a diet and see what happened.

First the good news. After removing the aluminum enclosure (and heat sink) and the hefty and pointless right angle connector (BTW, also an excellent heat sink in and of itself, what a PITA). Then adding my own heat sinks and SMA connector, the weight of the entire AMP is down from 90+ grams to eight (8) grams (WOW, now that is worthwhile).


So now the not so good news. The aluminum enclosure was not only a heat sink but also a faraday cage, without it, the amp is throwing off a MASSIVE noise. Next step is to build a faraday cage using wire mesh. The other strange observation that I've not yet figured out is that after changing the right angle connector to a standard SMA, they output of the amp at 2.4ghz increased from 350mw to 550mw (hmmm), the bad news again is that most of that is noise, and cross spectrum noise (bleeding heavily into the 5.8ghz space.) Bottom line of these changes is that until I build the faraday cage and maybe figure out a filter, the effectiveness of the amp actually decreased. Along with antenna selection, this explains why helixaviator didn't see a big difference by using the amp.

 

[helixaviator]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

That big right angle connector is a pain to remove. Almost broke the amp trying to get it off. I had to cut the connector at the legs and then individually remove each leg with a very hot iron and tweezers.

Interesting about the Faraday cage. Can't say that I completely understand it though. I guess that heat sink acts as some sort of rf shield? Is that what you are saying? I went ahead and used some foil tape and wrapped the board in it after insulating the electrical components with plastic tape. The foil seems to act as a bit of a heat sink as well. I haven't had a problem yet. It gets warm but not dangerously so. With the props turning it stays very cool.

I don't have the equipment to properly test whether or not its helping with range or signal/noise etc. I will give it a flight test this weekend and see if there is obvious improvement.

 

[themosttoys]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

Yup, the right angle connector was a pain. I have a rework station with a pre-heater, hit air and 70w iron (even set at 480c it will would not flow). Eventually I hung it with the right angle down and torched the right angle adapter until the solder flowed, then wiggled until it fell.

Yes, the board is throwing off a ton of radiation, the aluminum enclosure was shielding the radiation. I can't yet tell if this is the only reason so much noise is being thrown into the mix, but after making these changes, the amp is much less useful (the noise level is simply defeating any potential gains.)

In time, more testing and modding. But for anyone else thinking of adding this (or other) amp, for best results, I'd leave it stock (unless you have the knowledge and equipment to overcome these issues.)

 

[helixaviator]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

You can always just put the enclosure back on. Can you confirm that it was throwing off a bunch of noise before the mods? I am wondering if these are just cheap amps.

 

[helixaviator]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

not too surprisingly the aluminum foil tape on my amp didn't seem to make a noticeable difference. I am only getting about 6-700 feet. Maybe I got a dud? one guy on here said he tried 3 different visions and one of them had a range about 1/3 of the others.

 

[Nasrace10]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR REPLY THEMOSTTOYS I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING I CAN THINK OF...AFTER YOU ANSWERED ME BACK I WENT OVER ALL THE CONNECTIONS AGAIN AND FOUND THAT MY SMA FEMALE CONNECTED WAS MADE WRONG IT DIDNT HAVE ANY CONDUCTOR METAL WHERE THE PRONG PLUGS IN ...SO SINCE I ORDERED ANOTHER AND REINSTALLED IT I WAS SURE THAT WAS THE PROBLEM.. BUT STILL NO GREAT DISTANCE ON A GOOD DAY I COULD GO 3000 FEET WITH JUST THE REPEATED UPGRADE AND OMNI DID THE CAMERA UPGRADE AND WITH THE OMNI I CAN GET 3000 STILL BUT WHEN I PUT THE HELICAL ON THE REPEATER IT DROPS TO AROUND 2000 ITS GOT ME CONFUSED....DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEAS THANKS

 

[greenamit]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the ton of information in this thread.
I'm quite new to this and might have a silly question.
Since the 2.4 GHz HELIAXIAL24 (2370-2510MHz) RCHP 11dBic Helical Antenna from ReadMadeRC is not available and quite expensive I found the following on FPVLR website:

6.5 Turns LHCP 12.9dBi
This antenna is LHCP and has a gain of 12.9dBi .
Very popular among Phantom Vision 2 pilots. Mounting it on the wi-fi extender,it allows 1.5km + range with the stock Phantom antennas.It needs to be aimed quite accurately to reach that range.
If used with regular FPV equipment it needs a LHCP pinwheel on the TX side in order to work properly.

I would like to use it with 2.4 GHz SPW24 (2370-2510MHz) RCHP Skew Planar Wheel Antenna from ReadMadeRC:
http://www.readymaderc.com/store/index. ... ts_id=1096

Here goes my question:
The SPW24 is RCHP and the 6.5 Turn is LHCP. Does it matter? Will these two even work together?

Thanks,
Amit

 

[mr_3_0_5]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

No LHCP and RHCP will not work together
But fpvlr sells those in both RHCP and LHCP just need to tell him when you order

 

[themosttoys]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the ton of information in this thread.
I'm quite new to this and might have a silly question.
Since the 2.4 GHz HELIAXIAL24 (2370-2510MHz) RCHP 11dBic Helical Antenna from ReadMadeRC is not available and quite expensive I found the following on FPVLR website:

6.5 Turns LHCP 12.9dBi
This antenna is LHCP and has a gain of 12.9dBi .
Very popular among Phantom Vision 2 pilots. Mounting it on the wi-fi extender,it allows 1.5km + range with the stock Phantom antennas.It needs to be aimed quite accurately to reach that range.
If used with regular FPV equipment it needs a LHCP pinwheel on the TX side in order to work properly.

I would like to use it with 2.4 GHz SPW24 (2370-2510MHz) RCHP Skew Planar Wheel Antenna from ReadMadeRC:
http://www.readymaderc.com/store/index. ... ts_id=1096

Here goes my question:
The SPW24 is RCHP and the 6.5 Turn is LHCP. Does it matter? Will these two even work together?

Thanks,
Amit

It will matter very much, they are not compatible. You can either purchase the exact same helical from FPVLR only the RHCP version (it's the same antenna, only compatible with the SPW24). Or you will need to also purchase a LHCP pinwheel from FPVLR.

 

[greenamit]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

OH - was worth asking

Any difference in terms of quality/range between the pinwheel from FPVLR to the SPW24?
Any difference between ELIAXIAL24 and the one from FPVLR?

 

[ClimbrJohn]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

You might be interested in checking out the spreadsheet of distance achieved with various antennas that's in progress:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc ... sp=sharing

OH - was worth asking

Any difference in terms of quality/range between the pinwheel from FPVLR to the SPW24?
Any difference between ELIAXIAL24 and the one from FPVLR?

 

[themosttoys]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

OH - was worth asking

Any difference in terms of quality/range between the pinwheel from FPVLR to the SPW24?
Any difference between ELIAXIAL24 and the one from FPVLR?

I don't yet have any FPVLR antennas (though I do plan to order some soon.) That said, there should not be any appreciable performance differences. Of course I'm certain FPVLR will say his will be better, and he should be proud of his work (he does great work.) At the end of the day, FPVLR is here on this site, so why not purchase his antennas (pretty much can't go wrong when the person who builds the product you buy is available.)

Cheers

 

[greenamit]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

OH - was worth asking

Any difference in terms of quality/range between the pinwheel from FPVLR to the SPW24?
Any difference between ELIAXIAL24 and the one from FPVLR?

I don't yet have any FPVLR antennas (though I do plan to order some soon.) That said, there should not be any appreciable performance differences. Of course I'm certain FPVLR will say his will be better, and he should be proud of his work (he does great work.) At the end of the day, FPVLR is here on this site, so why not purchase his antennas (pretty much can't go wrong when the person who builds the product you buy is available.)

Cheers

Absolutely but the spreadsheet does show a big difference between the ranges you achieved and the ones with the other setup. Am I missing something?

 

[Skipholiday]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

if you install 1 or 2 of these on the phantom camera,
the 3000-4000ft ranges that have been posted will almost double.

http://www.fpvlr.com/store/dettaglio_ar ... rticolo=31

I like the compact size and the white color of those.

Out of curiosity, are you located in Italy?

 

[Skipholiday]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

if you install 1 or 2 of these on the phantom camera,
the 3000-4000ft ranges that have been posted will almost double.

http://www.fpvlr.com/store/dettaglio_ar ... rticolo=31

I like the compact size and the white color of those.

Out of curiosity, are you located in Italy?

Used to be, I am in FLorida.

I thought you said that. I remember now mentioning my trips to Pensacola for Samurai parts. I'm old please forgive me.

 

[themosttoys]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

Absolutely but the spreadsheet does show a big difference between the ranges you achieved and the ones with the other setup. Am I missing something?

FPVLR covered it pretty well. Essentially, very few have yet to get their setup done like I have. I'll be testing FPVLR antennas soon enough (I should soon be in the queue.) After I've tested them, I'll be sure to let everyone know how they perform. While I never make a statement of performance until I've seen it with my own eyes, based on the simple math of it (and FPVLR attention to detail), I do have confidence his antennas will perform as good or better. Apples to apples, FPVLR uses a better impedance matching technique (if properly tested) then CW. That in itself will not make a huge difference, but at the end of the day, it is the little things that add up.

Some may ask, if I'm happy with my current setup, why would I change? The first reason may not be a surprise (if you have followed my posts), I have a thing for RF and in particular antennas. The second reason is that FPVLR has contributed to this hobby and I support that, so if his antennas work as good or better, I'd prefer to use them. BTW, along the same lines, I also respect the work Horizonfpv is doing, so especially for those in the EU, I believe he is also a good option.

Happy flying

 

[PVFlyer]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

I respect both FPVLR and Horizon FPV, and their knowledge is valuable assets to our P2V community. Personally, I haven't bought any antenna from either of them so far (I live in Hong Kong, a bit far away from US/UK). I like DIY and enjoy learning antenna RF knowledge during DIY process. But I referred a few friends buying from them.

However, those range claimed of conventional FPV gears (even using the same set of antenna) may always be misleading to our P2V flyers. This is mainly due to analog communication vs. digital wireless network. I think antenna alone is only part of the game in P2V for range, while other factors such as Wifi interference and network protocol are also key factors. Valid range claimed should be the record of actual flying P2V instead of flying other aircrafts, or using static point-to-point test.

 

[Klaus]

Please help

Hi

I'm nearly getting crazy here :twisted:

I can see in this thread, that a lot of you guys seems to know a lot about WiFi, so maybe one of you have an idea what's going on.

As you maybe have seen in another thread I haven't been so lucky with my PV2. I have had it for 3 month now but have only being able to fly for around 10 days because of problems.

After the first 10 days without any problems, suddenly I couldn't connect my phone to the Phantom! It was just telling me that the Phantom was out of range. I tried everything and found out that there was no light in the camera. There should be a green light but I only got a red light for about 2 secs. and then nothing. At least it seem like I had found the problem. Heli-pal agreed to replace the camera which took around 3-4 weeks before I got it back. When I got it back with the new camera, and green light in the camera, still same problem, couldn't connect, out of range a gain!!!!
The most weird thing is, when I reset the WIFI Extender for binding it with the camera, my phone connect immediately and I have full bars on the signal strength. Then I rebind and everything are going fine until 10 seconds after the rebind then my phone lose the connection again - out of range. I have tried that many time now.
Ok so now I have a new camera with green light, then it can only be the WiFi Extender! Yeah they have even send me a new replacement phantom, still the same! Now Heli-Pal have send me a new WiFi Extender, still exactly the same problem.
What's going on here????
Of course you would think it must be the mobile phone, that is the only thing left. Yes I agree, but how come I can connect when I reset the Wi-Fi extender but it only last until I bind it to the camera??? Any ideas???
I have even tried it on a tablet, exactly the same problem.

For info, my Phone is a Samsung S3
And my Pad is a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.5

Any help are much appreciated.
As it is now, I have for more than $2000 just sitting here, I haven't even been trying to fly the new Phantom they have send me.

Thanks in advance.

 

[mr_3_0_5]

Re: Please help

Hi

I'm nearly getting crazy here :twisted:

I can see in this thread, that a lot of you guys seems to know a lot about WiFi, so maybe one of you have an idea what's going on.

As you maybe have seen in another thread I haven't been so lucky with my PV2. I have had it for 3 month now but have only being able to fly for around 10 days because of problems.

After the first 10 days without any problems, suddenly I couldn't connect my phone to the Phantom! It was just telling me that the Phantom was out of range. I tried everything and found out that there was no light in the camera. There should be a green light but I only got a red light for about 2 secs. and then nothing. At least it seem like I had found the problem. Heli-pal agreed to replace the camera which took around 3-4 weeks before I got it back. When I got it back with the new camera, and green light in the camera, still same problem, couldn't connect, out of range a gain!!!!
The most weird thing is, when I reset the WIFI Extender for binding it with the camera, my phone connect immediately and I have full bars on the signal strength. Then I rebind and everything are going fine until 10 seconds after the rebind then my phone lose the connection again - out of range. I have tried that many time now.
Ok so now I have a new camera with green light, then it can only be the WiFi Extender! Yeah they have even send me a new replacement phantom, still the same! Now Heli-Pal have send me a new WiFi Extender, still exactly the same problem.
What's going on here????
Of course you would think it must be the mobile phone, that is the only thing left. Yes I agree, but how come I can connect when I reset the Wi-Fi extender but it only last until I bind it to the camera??? Any ideas???
I have even tried it on a tablet, exactly the same problem.

For info, my Phone is a Samsung S3
And my Pad is a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.5

Any help are much appreciated.
As it is now, I have for more than $2000 just sitting here, I haven't even been trying to fly the new Phantom they have send me.

Thanks in advance.

Maybe this thread will help

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=4055

viewtopic.php?t=8199&p=67868

 

[Highcloud]

Re: Phantom 2 Vision WIFI

This is my test rig – looks rough but as I say it is for testing various set ups. During my lengthy testing I have discovered that the Docooler repeater is more powerful than the DJI stock unit BUT is much noisier. Using the stock repeater I was able to obtain greater distances when connected to the right antennas, than when connected to the Docooler. So lesson 1, always use the stock repeater. I tested antennas one at a time to establish the greatest range. The Netgear 18dbi patch panel was by far the best. I used a RHCP SPW24 Skew Planar Circular Wireless antenna on the PV. The most important lesson learned so far is about MIMO and the fact that we are using a digital streaming wifi connection. To obtain distance you will need 2 antennas on the repeater NOT 1. You will also need 2 antennas on the PV (I’m waiting for my second SPW24 to arrive). The reason that you want 4 antennas in total is due to Multiple In Multiple Out, i.e. each antenna talks to 2 other antennas, hence doubling the bandwidth, which will directly increase range. I have proved this. Previously running with one SPW24 on the PV and one antenna on the repeater the best range that I managed was 1.7 Km before losing the video When I added the second antenna to the repeater (I used Netgear patch and RHCP Circular Wireless Helical, just because I did not have 2 linear patch panels available) I got to 2.64 KM with full video. I turned back only due to wind and battery level. I have ordered a second 18 dbi Netgear patch and plan to run these as the two antennas connected to the stock DJI repeater. Adding a second Skew Planar to the PV will give extra bandwidth again and increase range and reliability, but at 2.64 KM (8660 ft) at 100M altitude I am convinced about the MIMO effect.

What we may all be missing is the fact that MIMO thrives on any signal, so a linear high gain panel could well be the ideal choice, multipath rejection is not important to MIMO – it figures it out itself. Where we almost all have failed to date is to connect just one patch panel to the repeater. Connect two and your range will grow significantly. Also worth bearing in mind for all the antenna developers, as this is not a typical analogue set up as used historically with FPV.

Hope this helps everyone. Will let you know when I send my application in for the 4 KM club