Comment by endrew on February 7, 2010 at 3:44pm

very nice...
You used stabilization only? How did it navigate?

Comment by jasonshort on February 7, 2010 at 3:56pm

I was in a mode to relax and leave the laptop at home. Just wanted to show how 2.5 is designed to be an all around performer and not just a waypoint flyer.

I was thinking if I had a position holding algorithm, I could have stayed aloft for hours. Oh and I did learn one important thing about flying and got to apply it today. It has to do with height, energy and speed. I've had trouble flying here before due to stalling. But this time I was trying a new flight technique based on some work we are doing in 2.5.1. The idea is that the best way to get speed and control is to dive. Throttle alone won't accelerate the plane nearly enough. I've always tried to power my way out of tough spots and stalled/crashed. This time I dived slightly, picked up speed and throttled out. I didn't crash once. Sounds basic, but I've never flown like that until now.

Comment by endrew on February 7, 2010 at 4:04pm

I still don't understand. is the movie of manual flight or autonomous? or maybe fly-by-wire?

Comment by jasonshort on February 7, 2010 at 4:14pm

Sorry, It is in stabilization mode.

Comment by endrew on February 7, 2010 at 4:20pm

in second 47 the airplane makes a U turn. did you switch to manual and took the turn?
if it only stabilize itself, how didn't it drift in wind direction? how did it kept the correct heading?

Comment by jasonshort on February 7, 2010 at 4:27pm

I put a flight mode in 2.5 called "STABILIZATION" that tries to level the plane. If you move the sticks you can control it. How much you control it depends on how far you move the stick. I am using thermopiles to find the horizon and use it as a reference for level flight. As soon as I can I will switch to the IMU. The nice thing, as you can see, is that in high winds the plane is rock solid, but still fun to fly.

Comment by endrew on February 7, 2010 at 4:30pm

oh... now its clear. i think in 2.4 it was called "fly-by-wire".
looks great.

Comment by jasonshort on February 7, 2010 at 4:36pm

Yeah,
I think the more common term in RC is stabilization. We added a real Fly-By-Wire mode in 2.5 that basically tells the plane to go where you point, and the AP does the rest. It's a great mode for debugging and novice pilots.

Comment by Mark Colwell on February 7, 2010 at 5:24pm

Wind is steady?? UAV looks good crabbing down the beach...

Comment by Morli on February 7, 2010 at 5:44pm

Looks cool jason, Good work

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