I need an ATTI piloting tutorial!

[GearLoose]

I've made at least a couple of dozen flights by now but I'm still taking baby steps in trying to learn to fly the Phantom. The biggest problem I have right now is making sense of ATTI mode. About the only thing I'm sure of is that it will fly away from me and come back, as long as the Phantom is facing away from me.

Where confusion sets in is when I try to fly in a circle.

Are there online tutorials that could help me understand the necessary stick positions for simple maneuvers?

thanks!

 

[Darrell1]

I think you're confusing GPS ATTI and ATTI mode with the IOC (Intelligent Orientation Controls) which are the switch on the upper left.

While you are learning, just keep IOC off and keep the flashing light on the Phantom facing you. Then it won't get confusing and when you pull back, it will come back (as long as the back of the Phantom is facing you). Is that what you are struggling to understand?

 

[GearLoose]

No, I think I have a fairly clear understanding of the IOC modes -- I have found it useful, for example, to keep the left switch in Home Lock, so if I get in trouble I quickly flip the right switch from ATTI to GPS. That has helped me many times when I became completely confused as to the Phantom's orientation.

To rephrase my problem: only as a precaution, I have the left switch in HL (but I understand that HL does not work in ATTI mode).

I take off in ATTI, do a few "forth & back" moves to warm up, then I try to do a circle around me. As I do this, the rear of the Phantom is facing me. To go CCW, I move the stick to the left and to keep the Phantom at a constant distance from me, I also pull the stick toward 7 - 8:00 o'clock.

I'd have to film this to describe where it all goes wrong but it doesn't take long. It seems that the Phantom keeps going outside of my intended circle.

I tried the same circle movement, CCW, with the Phantom's left side facing me. Again, I wasn't able to get more than 90 degrees, maybe less, before I'd strayed way off course.


I'm sure this is operator error, as in all other regards this thing has been quite reliable. I have it calibrated and it carries a Drift camera -- otherwise completely stock.

 

[Gizmo3000]

ATTI is the same as GPS, only when you release the right sick instead of stopping it will continue going.

To get the Phantom to fly in a circle, the key is using the left stick yaw with moving forward or sideways.

just takes some practice, in a very large field, and you'll get the hang of it.

 

[GearLoose]

Gizmo, are you familiar with the expression, "It's easy when you know how"?

Your comment about yaw was running as a loop in my head when I woke up this morning. I thought, "Yaw! Yaw!" so many times that I assumed it must be an echo from my Scandinavian heritage!

After tea and between rain squalls I went to the neighbor's pasture for another stab at it.

And, voila! I suddenly got it. (Grokked it if you're old enough to remember that one.) Using a much more aggressive hand on the left stick I yawed, circled, and figure-eighted all over the place. What a kick, an entirely different experience.

thanks!

 

[tanasit]

First may I suggest that you set the IOC switch to OFF not HL. When you need the HL function, flip it at the moment notices.
Why:

When you are flying in home lock mode, if the aircraft is back into the 10m range around home point, or you switch into ATTI. Mode, or the GPS signal becomes weak, MC will fly in course lock by the current forward direction automatically. But this forward direction is NOT the recorded forward direction. If you open the course lock now, MC will fly in course lock still by the earlier recorded forward direction.

That's why you got confused with the control from time to time.

 

[Gizmo3000]

yah.. it just takes practice.
the more you fly the more you'll get the hang of it.

try flying in circle-8's as well, it takes a bit of getting used to flying when the craft is facing you, but it's the key to safe flying.

I'd recommend against using IOC/HL/CL for filming until you know what you're doing. most people don't really use it for fllming, but HL is key for bringing the craft back to you if you accidentally fly a bit far away and lose orientation.

 

[GearLoose]

Thanks, the confusion you describe using HL close to Home sounds just like what happened to me this morning. A rain squall was coming in fast so I tried to recover the Phantom quickly... but it seemed to refuse to come to me. I ended up landing some distance away as the battery was low.

I'll keep IOC off now and only engage HL as needed.

Live & learn!