hueno
5/7/14
One of the earlier shipments of the directional antenna came in today. I had completely forgotten about it.
Here's a screenshot from today's flight of the construction area over robertsons.
5/5/14
We were flying today when we realized that the omnidirectional antenna doesn't function as well as we hoped. The range is abysmal as static makes the feed unviewable around 300ft away. I've come to the conclusion that we need an directional antenna for future flights.
Specifically this one:
5/2/14
So the battery on the Fatshark Predator v2 goggles died on us. I attempted to charge the goggles multiple times to no avail before browsing some forums. This is where I discovered the problem.
"If battery becomes fully discharged or shorted an internal safety circuit
will trip To reset the battery, tap 9V direct to the barrel connector via the discharge
adapter cable’s banana connector. This will instantly reset the battery and it can
be recharged as normal."
So I used a current/voltage generator to pump through 9V into the battery to reset the switch and it is now charging again.
4/30/14
8:54
We've been informed that the power will go out at 9:00am
8:55
Preparations to survive the power outage are underway
8:57
I'm scared, preparations have been made and I've been assured that we will have some power, but I'm not sure if we'll survive these couple hours
8:59
Goodbye
4/25/14
We installed the fatshark radio transmitter onto the phantom today. The Power Supply/DATA Cord came in the mail so we hooked it all up. The transmitter is jury rigged onto the back with velcro and balanced in a way that doesn't offset the center of gravity. 
4/23/14
Still waiting for the GoPro-->Transmitter cable, should come in today. Bo and I are ordering parts for a time lapse dolley.
This is where we get the idea.
4/21/14
This is the vlog we recorded to recap what we've done this quarter and plan to do.
4/18/14
We attempted to get the bluetooth module working with the iPad. The bluetooth dongle powers up and everything but it won't establish a bluetooth connection with the iPad. We've tried every troubleshooting method we know and we still can't get it to work.
4/14/14
The DJI Phantom 2 shipped out on Friday so it should hopefully be here by the end of the week. While I wait I've been watching Phantom 2 steady cam footage and I'm going to do my best to replicate it. I also need to check with Bo on how to calibrate the gimbal to point straight down. Last time we attempted this it took us multiple hours and a couple headaches. It should be a painless process now that we've done it before. Turns out the Bluetooth module also shipped today swell so that'll be in soon. I'm not really sure what I can do, I've been helping others around the lab as I wait for the phantom to come in. The pi is basically ready for mounting, the FPV system is ready for mounting, now all I need is the drone.
While looking at multi rotor systems I've been thinking of purchasing my own.
4/11/14
I'm all ready to go. I've got the new and more powerful 5.8gHz antennas, the fatshark FPV system, all I need is one more piece. The DJI Phantom II, it should be coming in soon. I've already picked apart both the manual of the FPV system and the drone and I've got a pretty good idea on how to install it. The quadrocopter should be coming in soon and when it does I'll be running on all cylinders, hopefully i won't crash.
4/9/14
The new 5.8 GHz antennas came in today. We tested it by driving around in the golf cart with the antenna attached to test the range of the new 5.8 antenna. The range seems to be noticeably higher but just like with the previous one, once you lose line of sight the feed becomes unwatchable due to static interference.
4/7/14
I stumbled across the TBS Discovery PRO kit when I saw this video.
It's purpose built for stable FPV surveying and aerial cinematography.
In total it'd be a little north of $2000, a good alternative to the S800 and S1000 models from DJI
The kit contains:
- TBS DISCOVERY PRO top & bottom plates
- Gimbal with motors and IMU
- Integrated SimpleBGC Controller
- TBS CORE & Camera Switcher integrated
- 4x Flamewheel F450 Arms (black)
- DJI Naza LITE Flight Control + GPS
- 4x 900kV Motors
- 4x BULLETPROOF 30A ESC
- 4x 9x5 Graupner E-Props
- Short Servo Extensions
- TBS-branded Velcro Straps
- Futaba T8FG 8ch remote control
- 4S 3.3Ah TBS LiPo
- Charger B6AC 80W - do not charge above 3.3A for 4S or it could damage the internal powersupply!
- TBS 59 FPV Camera
- Fatshark Dominator Video Glasses
- TBS Dominator Video RX (5G8)
- TBS GREENHORN (25mW) Video TX
- Fatshark Battery for Dominator Goggles
- Fatshark Battery Charger - EU/UK/US Version available
- 5.8 GHz SpiroNET Antenna Set (RHCP)
- Battery connector and 2.5qmm silicon wire
Bo and I were also talking about doing a 360 video VR like so:
4/3/14
I was cleaning today, the lab was a pretty big mess. Spent about the last hour cleaning it up the best I could. I put the monitors back on the shelves up on the ladder, I'll get back to cleaning during C Period when I have more time.
I also stumbled across this...
4/1/14 Independent
Flame Wheel F550 Pricing
Things we Need:
DJI F550 Naza/GPS/Prop/Motor Kit - $1,200
Includes Naza Flight Controller, The Frame, 3 x 10" Propellers, 6 ESC Opto Motors
H3-2D Gimbal - $400 (ALREADY HAVE)
Gimbal used for GoPro to steady footage.
Extra Propellers - $40
1 set of extra 10" F550 Propellers
DJI Landing Gear - $40
1 set of stationary non-retractable landing gears.
ESTIMATE: $1300
4/1/14
Today we're dissaseebmling the Phantom 2 Vision. The plan is to detach the Vision camera and once we get our new Gimple + Hero 3 Plus combo we'll mount that along with the FPV transmitter.
3/31/14
We're Back!
We got it up and running, the receiver is tuned in with the goggles and everything works.
The fatshark FPV system just came in!
We got it up and running, the receiver is tuned in with the goggles and everything works.3/10/14 Independent
Today Bill told me to coordinate with Bo. We'll be going down to Kiholo bay to shoot some stuff for Mr. Rice's turtle tagging,
I'll be leaving 3/20/14'ish so we'll have time to work on the boulder footage down at the site survey locations.Bill also let me know about the Cornell guys interest in using us, in return getting this fatshark FPV system would be pretty neat.
It's about $280, but if they funded that for us we'd gladly do some work for them
3/10/14
The siege program is actually quite comprehensive.
Once the siege script is blocked, or fails due to rudimentary security features on networks. It'll come up with a report of the siege.
The siege includes great diagnostics.
Here is an example of one of my runs on the hpa.edu external IP.
Transactions: 1,704,700
Availability: 94.05%
Elapsed Time: 424.33 seconds
Data Transferred: 18.03 GB
Response Time: 2.78 seconds
Transaction Rate: 4017 trans/sec
Throughput: 0.00MB/s
Concurrency: 111.07
Succesful Transactions: 1,704,000
Failed transactions: 700
Longest Transaction: 45.24
Shortest Transaction: 0.27