Litchi app. Whats your thoughts

[Gollum1973]

Hi guys, just downloaded the litchi app on my android tablet. Ive entered a mission on my pc and will fly it this weekend.
How do you rate it?
Does it work?
Thanks in advance.

 

[snickell]

Great app for waypoints flights. Make sure to complete the mission back to your general location though cuz you may lose contact during the flight. And don't panic if you lose contact - mission is stored in bird so it will always complete the mission. Haven't really tried any other modes though so can't speak for the others.

 

[MasterBlaster]

The rush you get when you lose contact and you know it is all up to Litchi now to continue the mission. And waiting anxiously at the home point for a sign, a sound of your bird, anything. And then you hear it, see it, land it, Is AWESOME! Then watching the video.!!
I love running missions and is the only reason I bought it.
It takes flying to a whole new level.
I love it!


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Fallguy]

The rush you get when you lose contact and you know it is all up to Litchi now to continue the mission. And waiting anxiously at the home point for a sign, a sound of your bird, anything. And then you hear it, see it, land it, Is AWESOME! Then watching the video.!!
I love running missions and is the only reason I bought it.
It takes flying to a whole new level.
I love it!


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

So will Litchi continue the mission even though you lose video and RC signal ?

 

[Dirty Bird]

Yes it will. Make sure to CAREFULLY program your missions verifying necessary clearances. Also make sure you set the mission to return to first waypoint (or return to home point) at the end of the mission. Its fantastic once you know what your doing. Start close so you can abort of necessary until you figure things out. Before you know it you'll be having a blast!

So will Litchi continue the mission even though you lose video and RC signal ?

 

[Gollum1973]

Thanks so much for the responses. I think i will start small just to build my confidence in the app. My first mission i waypointed could be a bit nerve racking.

 

[Dirty Bird]

If you are new to waypoint flying I would 1) read the Litchi documentation thoroughly. Make sure you understand how to cancel a programmed mission. Go to a big open area like a park or high school & scan for obstacles so you know how high to fly. Always best to error on the high side. Program/save some simple missions at slow speeds that are close so you can watch how the Phantom responds. Then expand with longer flights, POIs, etc. as you gain confidence. When programming longer missions always do adequate reconnaissance prior to flying so you clear any obstacles along the way. ALWAYS go over your mission waypoint-by-waypoint verifying altitude for each point! The first time you send her out of RC range you'll get this strange sense of thrill with a touch of dread.

Thanks so much for the responses. I think i will start small just to build my confidence in the app. My first mission i waypointed could be a bit nerve racking.

 

[jogforfitness]

Yes it will. Make sure to CAREFULLY program your missions verifying necessary clearances. Also make sure you set the mission to return to first waypoint (or return to home point) at the end of the mission. Its fantastic once you know what your doing. Start close so you can abort of necessary until you figure things out. Before you know it you'll be having a blast!

When contact is initially lost does it lose video first while still receiving transmission data such as speed,height,location?

When contact is re-established does your notebook beep or do anything special to let you know?

In your mission, what do you have set for your drone speed? Your mission is awesome and you can tell you've spent a lot of time putting it together.

I've never lost communication before but, I want to fly around the outer perimeter of a steel mill property. In short manual test flights I lose video around 4200 feet. My guess there's interference around the mill. So, if I opt to fly the mission I'll lose communication for a while. It will be unnerving. My P4 is new and don't want to lose it. The mission should last only 10 minutes at 24mph. I may bump up the speed as I want the bird back in range asap. Until I get used to this sort of thing. Thanks for the tips!




Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[chapsrlz]

Hi guys, just downloaded the litchi app on my android tablet. Ive entered a mission on my pc and will fly it this weekend.
How do you rate it?
Does it work?
Thanks in advance.

how do you enter missions from a pc?

ive been using it for a couple weeks, only in panorama mode which work great when im able to load a mission... 5 / 10 times i receive a "time out message"
running on a nvidia k1 shield, phantom updated to latest firmware version.

 

[Fallguy]

Yes it will. Make sure to CAREFULLY program your missions verifying necessary clearances. Also make sure you set the mission to return to first waypoint (or return to home point) at the end of the mission. Its fantastic once you know what your doing. Start close so you can abort of necessary until you figure things out. Before you know it you'll be having a blast!

You dont have to turn any smart RTH off in the go app ? I thought I read that somewhere. I have used Litchi before several times and I love being able to use the Mission Hub .
Let me tell you what my intentions are. I have been able to fly around 19000ft before losing signal in the DJI Go App , and I am looking to go another 1000ft or so to complete a mission that I just set up in Litchi . I land with over 30 percent so I figure I have plenty of battery left. I have my mission set up to go 32MPH to make sure I have the distance covered according to the air time on the P4 battery. So ,what I dont want is to lose signal and have it auto RTH .

 

[Dirty Bird]

First question depends on your particular bird. It will be the same as when you are manually flying. With the P3S I've been using for Litchi I have telemetry for a very short time after video loss. Short due to mission speed I'm confident.

In the Litchi Speech settings enable some items. I have distance & battery enabled so, the moment the bird reestablishes contact the voice announces her distance & battery status. If out of contact for over 10 mins the RC inactivity timer will begin beeping. Pop the forward stick to reset the inactivity timer. (if it starts beeping again that's 20+ mins & pucker time!)

My mission was set to 30 mph due to the distance...over 37,000'.

When contact is initially lost does it lose video first while still receiving transmission data such as speed,height,location?

When contact is re-established does your notebook beep or do anything special to let you know?

In your mission, what do you have set for your drone speed? Your mission is awesome and you can tell you've spent a lot of time putting it together.

I've never lost communication before but, I want to fly around the outer perimeter of a steel mill property. In short manual test flights I lose video around 4200 feet. My guess there's interference around the mill. So, if I opt to fly the mission I'll lose communication for a while. It will be unnerving. My P4 is new and don't want to lose it. The mission should last only 10 minutes at 24mph. I may bump up the speed as I want the bird back in range asap. Until I get used to this sort of thing. Thanks for the tips!




Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Dirty Bird]

If your missions are short you won't need to disable Smart RTH. I'd try it first with it enabled since that's your safety mechanism. If your bird aborts & RTH returns, but you know you can get back with >10% battery (auto-land point), then disable & re-fly the mission. I had to disable for my "Harbor Shot" run because I would RTH about 1 out of 3 flights. She was already OTW back with only a few remaining waypoints along the return leg & was getting back with >30% remaining. Disabling Smart-RTH made sense here since I know she can easily complete the mission. If you disable Smart-RTH it appears the bird will fly on until 10% then auto-land. If you are in RC range you can hold her aloft & fly home manually from that point.

You dont have to turn any smart RTH off in the go app ? I thought I read that somewhere. I have used Litchi before several times and I love being able to use the Mission Hub .
Let me tell you what my intentions are. I have been able to fly around 19000ft before losing signal in the DJI Go App , and I am looking to go another 1000ft or so to complete a mission that I just set up in Litchi . I land with over 30 percent so I figure I have plenty of battery left. I have my mission set up to go 32MPH to make sure I have the distance covered according to the air time on the P4 battery. So ,what I dont want is to lose signal and have it auto RTH .

 

[MasterBlaster]

Hitchhiking on what Dirty Bird said, I would highly recommend using either an app or a website to look at elevation changes where you plan to fly your mission. And remember the trees are above that ground level.
I use -
www.altitude.nu
or
the Geo Elevation (App)

I love Geo Elevation, but you have to pay for it.
Well worth the price if you plan on flying a lot of missions though.
I use it to plan anywhere I am going to fly so I have an idea of the area I will be flying

 

[WWK888]

I too just started using Litchi. I ran my first mission yesterday, very short. I triangulated a park just to make sure I did things right. Went home I have 4 more missions planned and ready to load. The mission hub is great, makes it so easy. I think Litchi is one of the best investments for the Phantom.

 

[Gollum1973]

Sweet. I will home tomorow to try my icklw missions round the park. I have made the missions on my work computer and downloaded it to the app
See what happens.

 

[Jorge Flora]

Hitchhiking on what Dirty Bird said, I would highly recommend using either an app or a website to look at elevation changes where you plan to fly your mission. And remember the trees are above that ground level.
I use -
www.altitude.nu
or
the Geo Elevation (App)

I love Geo Elevation, but you have to pay for it.
Well worth the price if you plan on flying a lot of missions though.
I use it to plan anywhere I am going to fly so I have an idea of the area I will be flying

With Google Earth, it's very easy to create a path at fixed altitude relative to ground, import it to the Mission Hub and then modify each waypoint if wanted.

 

[Bill Nicely]

Yes it will. Make sure to CAREFULLY program your missions verifying necessary clearances. Also make sure you set the mission to return to first waypoint (or return to home point) at the end of the mission. Its fantastic once you know what your doing. Start close so you can abort of necessary until you figure things out. Before you know it you'll be having a blast!

I am completely blown away by your mission Dirty Bird. I did my 1st yesterday, just a test flight around my flagpole. And I thought THAT was cool. What would you say was the furthest distance from your home location? And you a daring pilot! Some elevations of the buildings were close for my comfort. Did you use something to assist with elevations of elements within your mission path?

 

[Dirty Bird]

Thanks. Furthest point from launch is about 2.25 miles with the entire flight covering 7.2 miles @ 30 mph. The bird returns with ~30% left in the tank. I've been building up a database of Baltimore building heights for some time using a combination of research & aerial reconnaissance. Remember altitudes are all relative to your launch point height. If you begin your mission from a 50' rooftop that is zero feet to your Phantom so a 100' building nearby is only 50' higher.

I am completely blown away by your mission Dirty Bird. I did my 1st yesterday, just a test flight around my flagpole. And I thought THAT was cool. What would you say was the furthest distance from your home location? And you a daring pilot! Some elevations of the buildings were close for my comfort. Did you use something to assist with elevations of elements within your mission path?