Tried Litchi, my thoughts

[captirwin]

GPS is NOT dependant on cellular service. I suspect that the WiFi only iPads simply do not have the GPS module in them. As I said, my nVidia Shield K1 is a WiFi only device and it HAS a GPS receiver module. It knows where it is.

My Asus Transformer tablet is also a WiFi only tablet. However, it has no GPS module much like your experience with the iPad Wifi only models. So its device dependent on whether the unit has a GPS receiver or not.

And so does my Samsung Galaxy Tablets...I have 2, both are wifi only and both also have GPS.

 

[HWCM]

I have a HTC one M9 phone. I purchased litchi. I have had a hell of a time getting it to connect to the controller. After a few phone restarts and shutting down the P3 and transmitter a few times, I finally got it to connect. BUT...when I went into the settings in Litchi and tried to change anything, it disconnects and I get an audible "Warning disconnected". After that it will not reconnect. I have to shut everything down, restart my phone and go through the whole routine a few times to finally get it to connect again...then if I go into settings...it disconnects. I have been trying for two days. It is acting like the DJI GO app did when it was updated and a mass of users were having connection issues.
I have tried several different USB cables all of which work with GO on the phone and K1.
I cleared all the background applications.
Cleared the phones cache.
Uninstalled Go to see if that made a difference.
Uninstalled any app that needed access to the usb port.
I have debugging enabled.
I have the USB settings to MIDI, I tried the other options, same results. MIDI works for Go and on the K1.
I bought the app mainly for the FPV goggle feature. But now I do not trust it.
The app works fine on the K1 tablet. But I can not fit the tablet into my FPV goggles. ;-)
Any advice? I have Emailed Litchi.

 

[Dirty Bird]

For manual flying I would still use the DJI app, but Litchi is pretty damned awesome & spot-on for waypoint flying. You can go places you often can't go manually. You can launch a mission from a discrete location, fly in & grab your footage, then buzz out before most folks even know you're there. Here is one of my early Litchi missions - 42,102'. My only complaint about Litchi is the automatic camera tilting (up down - yaw works fine) only works when the RC is connected to the aircraft. If they could somehow fix that this would be the perfect app!

When flying waypoint missions it is EXTREMELY important that you CAREFULLY perform adequate reconnaissance of your intended flight path & program to clear any obstacles. Error on the high side, adjust altitude & tweak, then re-fly the mission after you watch the initial footage.

I tried Litchi out and had some mixed opinions, will have to try it out some more. I tried using the way points, really weird by the way just watching your craft fly off and you not controlling it. It followed the 4,000ft round trip path I sent it on around the pond. At the last waypoint it started to climb to around 220ft, I then realized that was my RTH height and it was set to do that. I did start to freak out a bit, as that was happening I could hear a helicopter coming towards my direction. I always drop my bird down low when I start to hear this coming as they seem to fly very low in my area and usually pass directly over our house time to time.

The only way it would start on its waypoint was if it was in f mode. P mode would not work for it. I then tried the follow me mode and again only the f mode would work. Interestingly when I activated the follow me mode the bird took off on a hard southern direction at full speed. Not even paying attention to me. I quickly switched the phantom into Atti mode and regained control before anything serious happened. I know from a couple years of reading that if you lose control, to just switch it to atti mode. Luckily, that turned out to save me. If I hadn't done that, I surely would have crash and been searching for the phantom.

Just my initial thoughts. As of now I prefer the DJI go app, but will also use litchi for waypoints...Its just hard watching your bird fly off out of site and hoping it comes back to you when the video breaks up...

 

[Sagebrush]

For manual flying I would still use the DJI app, but Litchi is pretty damned awesome & spot-on for waypoint flying.

X2.

SB

 

[FliteDoc]

Litchi will do what you tell it to. You can tell your mission to RTH after the last waypoint, to just hover, or to return to the first waypoint. It did nothing wrong.

All automated flights happen in F mode, that's what it's for. This is true for Go or Litchi.

Switching out of F mode will always let you regain control, which is what you could have done when you heard the copter. This is true for both apps.

Follow-me requires that you have a FPV device with cellular ability (not necessarily turned on with your carrier, but the device should not be a WIFI only device). This is also true for both Litchi and Go apps. And also, the Go app is just as wonky in Follow-me mode as any other app.

Litchi has a free side-car app called 'Litchi Magic Leash' that you can put on your cellphone, so if your FPV tablet is WIFI only, you can sync it with your cellphone and do follow-me, even without carrying around the RC.

Chris

Have been making several flights w. my P3A and Litchi .. and frustrated because I'm limited to 500 Meters in radius ... I'm trying to fly around an island, over water, with no obstructions, and can easily see the drone throughout .. but Litchi limits the flight radius to 500M .. which I believe is set w. the DJO GO App ... don't see any settings in the Litchi App .. using iOS w. iPad .. don't know about Android. Any suggestions to get beyond 500M? Also, do you know if you follow the drone, say w. a boat, is the 500M from the iPad, or from the takeoff point?

 

[FliteDoc]

For manual flying I would still use the DJI app, but Litchi is pretty damned awesome & spot-on for waypoint flying. You can go places you often can't go manually. You can launch a mission from a discrete location, fly in & grab your footage, then buzz out before most folks even know you're there. Here is one of my early Litchi missions - 42,102'. My only complaint about Litchi is the automatic camera tilting (up down - yaw works fine) only works when the RC is connected to the aircraft. If they could somehow fix that this would be the perfect app!

When flying waypoint missions it is EXTREMELY important that you CAREFULLY perform adequate reconnaissance of your intended flight path & program to clear any obstacles. Error on the high side, adjust altitude & tweak, then re-fly the mission after you watch the initial footage.

You say you flew 42,102' ... 8 miles w. Litchi?? Maybe they've changed the App, or restricted us w. the DJI GO flight radius limit ...

Have been making several flights w. my P3A and Litchi .. and frustrated because I'm limited to 500 Meters in radius ... I'm trying to fly around an island, over water, with no obstructions, and can easily see the drone throughout .. but Litchi limits the flight radius to 500M .. which I believe is set w. the DJO GO App ... don't see any settings in the Litchi App .. using iOS w. iPad .. don't know about Android. Any suggestions to get beyond 500M? Also, do you know if you follow the drone, say w. a boat, is the 500M from the iPad, or from the takeoff point?

 

[impilot51]

My only complaint about Litchi is the automatic camera tilting (up down - yaw works fine) only works when the RC is connected to the aircraft. If they could somehow fix that this would be the perfect.

Can you expound on that a bit? My experience is that if you use POI's, and set the gimbal pitch mode to Focus POI with the appropriate POi selected as the target, that Litchi also controls gimbal angle while disconnected flying an autonomous mission.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[impilot51]

You say you flew 42,102' ... 8 miles w. Litchi?? Maybe they've changed the App, or restricted us w. the DJI GO flight radius limit ...

Have been making several flights w. my P3A and Litchi .. and frustrated because I'm limited to 500 Meters in radius ... I'm trying to fly around an island, over water, with no obstructions, and can easily see the drone throughout .. but Litchi limits the flight radius to 500M .. which I believe is set w. the DJO GO App ... don't see any settings in the Litchi App .. using iOS w. iPad .. don't know about Android. Any suggestions to get beyond 500M? Also, do you know if you follow the drone, say w. a boat, is the 500M from the iPad, or from the takeoff point?

I don't see a 500M restriction in Litchi, and I have flown much farther than that. Are you sure you don't have a maximum distance enabled in DJI GO?

 

[Dirty Bird]

Connect with DJI & turn off the Distance Limit toggle. The only limit with Litchi is battery & doo-dads!

You say you flew 42,102' ... 8 miles w. Litchi?? Maybe they've changed the App, or restricted us w. the DJI GO flight radius limit ...

Have been making several flights w. my P3A and Litchi .. and frustrated because I'm limited to 500 Meters in radius ... I'm trying to fly around an island, over water, with no obstructions, and can easily see the drone throughout .. but Litchi limits the flight radius to 500M .. which I believe is set w. the DJO GO App ... don't see any settings in the Litchi App .. using iOS w. iPad .. don't know about Android. Any suggestions to get beyond 500M? Also, do you know if you follow the drone, say w. a boat, is the 500M from the iPad, or from the takeoff point?

 

[Dirty Bird]

Gimbal tilt (up & down) to a POI only works if the RC is connected to the aircraft. Yaw control towards a POI is uploaded when the mission is started & doesn't require an active connection between the bird & RC. I've tested & believe me I wish there was a way around this. I even tried manually entering camera tilt & interpolating but as soon as you go out of RC range the camera stops tilting right at its current point.

Can you expound on that a bit? My experience is that if you use POI's, and set the gimbal pitch mode to Focus POI with the appropriate POi selected as the target, that Litchi also controls gimbal angle while disconnected flying an autonomous mission.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Wyattroa]

So much information in this thread.. Thanks

 

[impilot51]

Gimbal tilt (up & down) to a POI only works if the RC is connected to the aircraft. Yaw control towards a POI is uploaded when the mission is started & doesn't require an active connection between the bird & RC. I've tested & believe me I wish there was a way around this. I even tried manually entering camera tilt & interpolating but as soon as you go out of RC range the camera stops tilting right at its current point.

Actually.....
You are correct for Focused POI and Interpolate. I didn't know this, but just put together a couple of test missions to verify, which I did by shutting off my RC as soon as the mission uploaded.
I did find though, that if you use Straight Line Path option in Mission Settings, rather than Curved Path, you can set a waypoint action to change the gimbal angle to any setting you wish, and it will do so even with a lost connection. So your not going to get a transition of angles between two waypoints, but if you are running a very long mission where you believe you will loose connection, this is an option to perhaps program just the long distance part as a separate mission to achieve most of your goals. I also test this by shutting off the RC as soon as the mission uploaded, and then watching later the recording.

 

[GeoffJ]

I'm pretty sure once a Litchi mission is started, the RC connection is no longer required, and the aircraft just autonomously follows the mission instructions. What happens at the end of the mission is something you need to plan into the mission.
If you tell it to RTH it will. If you tell it to hover, it will probably do that, realise it has no connection, and then RTH.

 

[impilot51]

I'm pretty sure once a Litchi mission is started, the RC connection is no longer required, and the aircraft just autonomously follows the mission instructions. What happens at the end of the mission is something you need to plan into the mission.
If you tell it to RTH it will. If you tell it to hover, it will probably do that, realise it has no connection, and then RTH.

It does, except for gimbal angle, unless you use waypoint actions and specific gimbal instructions with straight line rather than curved waypoints.

 

[Slambo239]

How do you cancel the RTH with litchi? I want to be able to land manually after It came back

You must go into the settings for the feature and tell it what to do at the end of its route. You can choose from RTH, land, fly it in reverse or just hover. If you select hover, it will wait for you to take control. Every feature has MANY settings. Look at the app EVERYWHERE before you go fly and look at EVERY setting. You can even smooth out the waypoints so it curves instead of sharp turns. Or you can leave it on the exact points and you can tell it to do an action at a particular waypoint. Like take a photo. Then it will continue on after it does the "action". Litch is great but ONLY if you know all its settings.

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Slambo239]

How do you cancel the RTH with litchi? I want to be able to land manually after It came back


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

You must go into the settings for the feature and tell it what to do at the end of its route. You can choose from RTH, land, fly it in reverse or just hover. If you select hover, it will wait for you to take control. Every feature has MANY settings. Look at the app EVERYWHERE before you go fly and look at EVERY setting. You can even smooth out the waypoints so it curves instead of sharp turns. Or you can leave it on the exact points and you can tell it to do an action at a particular waypoint. Like take a photo. Then it will continue on after it does the "action". Litch is great but ONLY if you know all its settings.