Managing cached maps in Litchi

[jmagee]

I often go to plan or fly a mission and find the cached mp for that area is gone, even though I might have saved it just a few days earlier.

Is there any way of keeping cached maps for good, or at least finding out when you need to renew them?

 

[MapMaker53]

Best practice is to connect to your home network before you fly, call up the mission (the map/aerial should load again with an Internet connection), and then just put you tablet into sleep mode when you head out. Don't completely power it off. That's what I generally do.

 

[Mark The Droner]

I've heard a lot of people mention "30 days" when they talk about the cached maps. I agree - it would be nice to get it to stay permanently or at least warn us when we need to refresh. I haven't heard of a way to do it yet, though.

If your maps are only lasting a few days, could it be a memory problem? Could be you have a cheap tablet with inadequate memory...

 

[Photoflash]

Here is a good scenario. I went on a search and rescue opp last weekend. The night before, booted up and made sure the P4, controller, and Ipad Mini 4 were all charged and updated. Not knowing where we would be searching prior to meeting SAR, hard to set up a mission. I used Litchi for this trip.

So I went into Goggle Maps for the area I was going to be in and downloaded the maps for later use if needed. The area we were in had zero cell phone service. I normally use me Cell Phone as a WiFi hotspot to get the maps to load. So I flew with FPV and no maps in the middle of nowhere. Prior to liftoff, recorded the lat and long to be able to see it on a map once back at home.

So the question is....How to get a map when flying without cell phone or wifi service?? Anyone else run into this issue while flying???

 

[Mark The Droner]

It should work fine if the maps are cached to the device, but I've seen posts where people complain that they lose the maps once they turn the mobile device off. They say they have to keep the device on from the time they cache the maps to the time they fly. I don't have that problem with mine and I think most people don't have the problem. I have a Nvidia Shield K1 Android.

Also the Go app wants to use "Here" maps now instead of google maps, so you'd want to cache them. But if you use the Go app at home to cache the maps where you intend to fly, it should work fine.

 

[Photoflash]

Gonna have to play with it and see what works best. I / We have become so dependent on our cell phones and wifi, that when they don't work, I want to know a work around!!

 

[Photoflash]

Here is what is on Litchi's website:

11. I won't have Internet access where I want to fly, will I still be able to see the maps?
If you cache the maps prior to the flight, you will be able to see them even when offline. To cache maps while connected to Internet, drag the map around where you are planning to fly, zoom in and zoom out. You can exit Litchi in between but avoid restarting the mobile device as it may clear the cache.