Hello,
I've added this discussion in this category because I thought that in "Aerial photography" people would have more insight about payloads and different models.
I just have a few questions and maybe here is the place where they will be answered. I am a new to UAV but ArduCopter seems very cool.
I would need a helicopter which would have an autonomy of 10 km of flight at a height of 150-200m maximum and which would carry a payload of about 4-5Kg.
All I found for this were military/research models with prices ranging between 35000 - 100.000 $, which is a lot of money for me. I will have at most 10 000 $ for this.. It is true that all models from that category were UAV's and came with their own software.
So, after all the research it seems that I couldn't find an affordable UAV heli to satisfy my needs. My questions are :
1) Would it be better if I bought separately the helicopter and I would configure ArduCopter on it?
2) Does anybody from here know and could recommend a few models of helicopters which would satisfy my requirements and integrate smoothly with ArduCopter? ( no surprises )
3) Is ArduCopter reliable, I mean is the development in a stage where ArduCopter is stable?
4) What other options would you recommend?
I would like to use ArduCopter for establishing a waypoint mission for a traditional helicopter.
Replies
I like the two opposing views in this discussion. Very interesting.
: )
I disagree with much of what Vernon wrote.
First of all, the mechanics to do what you want are already available, almost off the shelf. I'd suggest you talk to Bergen R/C.
http://bergenrc.com/
I think the E-Observer would be a good way to go if it has enough range, I don't know.
Otherwise, the gas powered Observer EB or Twin should do the job. These are in the range of $3-6000.
Unfortunately, that does not leave enough money in your budget for a professional closed-source flight control system (ie: DJI). So you would have to rely on APM. And I'm not going to lie to you, on an ambitious project such as this, I won't say "Yeah, it'll do it". Theoretically it's possible, but nobody is doing it with helis, yet.
As for the safety and legality aspect, I almost guarantee you, people are doing things similar to what you want to do every day. Chris Bergen has a full-time business building these things, and that wouldn't be possible if there wasn't a market for it. And for there to be a market, must mean people are doing it.
Here's the problem, 4-5Kg (maybe 11lbs) payload is way too heavy for any normal RC equipment. Understand the the AMA http://www.modelaircraft.org/ basically has set forth the rules for RC aircraft (to keep the FAA out of our business) and thus kit builders and companies would try to stay within those guidelines. http://www.modelaircraft.org/files/105.pdf For the most part, the aircraft itself is limited to 55lbs all up wieght inlcuding any payload. You're talking 1/5 of total weight in a heli which has much higher requirements. The rotor disk loading alone is way too high to be pratical requiring specialized materials and engineering in the rotor blades. A 25 lb heli needs to generate more than 30 lbs of lift to even be remotely flyable. A 90 sized heli might be able to do 2 or 3 pounds but 11 is just trouble. Second, any aircraft that big is going to get some attention. Under the current rules, the UAVs we are building are for hobby/learning use. When you start carrying an 11lb payload, that's not a hobby, and thus you are falling dangerously into the FAA rules requiring a COA. They aren't exactly giving those out to Joe off the street.
Next, "10 km of flight", that's not line of sight where you could have visual on it and control it manually. Since we don't have any avoidance mechanisms and you don't have direct sight (FPV doesn't cut it here) you are talking just downright dangerous to not only yourself but anybody anywhere in that 10km radius.
Open source or not, proven APM tech or not, you need much higher level of equipment and technology to meet your requirements safely. Again, having somewhere near 10lbs of payload in a heli means the heli really should be more than double that so maybe 30-40lbs minimum with some amazing tech, or standard tech right up to the 55lb limit just to get off the ground. 55lbs out of control is just insane. That could level a house, crush a car, or definetely kill someone with a near miss, let alone a direct hit.
Your rated height 150-200m (492-656 feet!!!) is also outside of AMA rules, and really out of Federal rules. Max height for normal usage is 400ft about 120m .
Basically, just about every part of what you want to do is either illegal in the US or just impractical even from a technology mechanical engineering standpoint.