Remote ID Module Location?

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With remote ID on the horizon I've started looking for an add on module for my fleet of phantoms 4 birds (I have 3: a standard, an advanced, and a Pro V1) which I plan to keep flying. They are the best fit for my use case. With all of that said, my question for the group is when I finally settle on a module; where is the best place to attach it to the bird w/o causing interference with other antennas and transmitters?

Gary
 
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Hopefully they come with instructions, incl best location. I'd assume the legs but...
I also have a Phantom fleet and A2 without ID.
 
Good question.. Wonder if DJI will give us some guidance on this also.
 
Well, I know the GPS antenna is directly in the center of the top shell. I sure don't want to interfere with that. So far I have a strobe on one front leg and one rear leg to help w/ daytime visibility, and a Marco Polo unit on the upper front shell to locate the bird in case of a crash... space is getting scarce...
I'm not expecting any help from DJI, they don't like any third party stuff on their aircraft.
 
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I did a night flight around State Farm Stadium a couple days before the Superbowl. Pierce Areo Space allowed me to test a Remote ID device that I attached with velcro type attachments on a prop arm. My experimental flights went great. This system will meet FAA standards.
 
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did a night flight around State Farm Stadium a couple days before the Superbowl. Pierce Areo Space allowed me to test a Remote ID device that I attached with velcro type attachments on a prop arm. My experimental flights went great. This system will meet FAA standards.
 
I did a night flight around State Farm Stadium a couple days before the Superbowl. Pierce Areo Space allowed me to test a Remote ID device that I attached with velcro type attachments on a prop arm. My experimental flights went great. This system will meet FAA standards.
Which add-on device are you using? I just received my DroneTag Beacons and am field testing in the next few weeks.
 
Which add-on device are you using? I just received my DroneTag Beacons and am field testing in the next few weeks.
Did the Dronetag Beacon modules come with a recommended placement instruction? I have 2 ordered now.
 
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I purchased a Drone Beacon db120 RID and my coworker made a mount for my P4P with his 3D printer. The plastic is very light weight, but (as an afterthought) I intend to make it even lighter by drilling a series of holes in that bar and cutting off the corners of the mounting plate. This was the only location I could find that would not interfere with any of the sensors. As a test, I had placed it on top of the shell to see if it affected the number of satellites detected, and it did lower the count significantly.
 

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I purchased a Drone Beacon db120 RID and my coworker made a mount for my P4P with his 3D printer. The plastic is very light weight, but (as an afterthought) I intend to make it even lighter by drilling a series of holes in that bar and cutting off the corners of the mounting plate. This was the only location I could find that would not interfere with any of the sensors. As a test, I had placed it on top of the shell to see if it affected the number of satellites detected, and it did lower the count significantly.
Interesting. I’ve got a P3S and a Mavic Pro…
 
Did the Dronetag Beacon modules come with a recommended placement instruction? I have 2 ordered now.
Hey, they didn't come with any recommended placement. The did include some 3M mounting tape but no guidance for where to place it on the drone. There are so many different types of equipment, I expect they just want to leave that in the pilot's hands to know best.

Because the Phantom's GPS receiver is up top I want to avoid mounting on the upper shell, even though that's probably the ideal location from the Beacon's point of view. I haven't come up with a solution I like, to be honest. I'm still playing around with placement. I have trust issues with velcro.

I do feel that if I have to choose between good GPS for the Phantom and good GPS for the Beacon, the Phantom's system is more important.
 
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Hey, they didn't come with any recommended placement. The did include some 3M mounting tape but no guidance for where to place it on the drone. There are so many different types of equipment, I expect they just want to leave that in the pilot's hands to know best.

Because the Phantom's GPS receiver is up top I want to avoid mounting on the upper shell, even though that's probably the ideal location from the Beacon's point of view. I haven't come up with a solution I like, to be honest. I'm still playing around with placement. I have trust issues with velcro.

I do feel that if I have to choose between good GPS for the Phantom and good GPS for the Beacon, the Phantom's system is more important.
I agree with level of importance.
 
I put an aluminum strip made from a paint stick between the back bottom of the legs of my Phantom 4 for a diy fishing line drop. That might be a good place to put one. I never had any problems with it. The rid could set in the middle.
 
With remote ID on the horizon I've started looking for an add on module for my fleet of phantoms 4 birds (I have 3: a standard, an advanced, and a Pro V1) which I plan to keep flying. They are the best fit for my use case. With all of that said, my question for the group is when I finally settle on a module; where is the best place to attach it to the bird w/o causing interference with other antennas and transmitters?

Gary
I just installed a Holy Stone Remote ID on my Phantom 4 (standard). See photo. I observed the number of GPS satellites before and after installation and before and after turning on the module. I found no interference with GPS (same number of satellites in all case and same number of bars). No problem with connection between controller and drone. I flew for more than an hour without issues. I replaced the velcro provided by Holy Stone with a larger, stronger velcro. I added yellow tape for greater visibility in case the module fell off while I was testing the attachment. My only caution is that I contacted Holy Stone support to get information if, now or in the future, the remote ID broadcast will appear on some model of iPhone with some revision of software. 45 minutes of frustrating chat with a support person who only knew how to copy and paste irrelevant text from a script and I gave up. Later, they wrote me an email and said they are working on it. It would be nice to have proof that the module is working. For now, I just have to believe the blinking green light means it is.
IMG_5981.JPG
 
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I just installed a Holy Stone Remote ID on my Phantom 4 (standard). See photo. I observed the number of GPS satellites before and after installation and before and after turning on the module. I found no interference with GPS (same number of satellites in all case and same number of bars). No problem with connection between controller and drone. I flew for more than an hour without issues. I replaced the velcro provided by Holy Stone with a larger, stronger velcro. I added yellow tape for greater visibility in case the module fell off while I was testing the attachment. My only caution is that I contacted Holy Stone support to get information if, now or in the future, the remote ID broadcast will appear on some model of iPhone with some revision of software. 45 minutes of frustrating chat with a support person who only knew how to copy and paste irrelevant text from a script and I gave up. Later, they wrote me an email and said they are working on it. It would be nice to have proof that the module is working. For now, I just have to believe the blinking green light means it is.View attachment 125545
Thanks, I had not thought about that location. I've got a db 120 module now, but I have not mounted it yet. I'll have to see how it would fit in that location.

Gary
 
Another RID mount I had considered (but didn't use) is to take a thin rectangular piece of plastic, drill a couple of holes into it, and zip-tie it to the landing gear. Then Velcro mount the RID unit to the plastic piece. Probably would be sturdier with 2 small zip-ties on each side. This location would not interfere with any sensors. See concept below.
 

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I also considered mounting to landing gear. Before I mounted the module on the front of the drone, I moved it around the body and landing gear and watched the GPS signals. Definitely interfered when the module was on top of the GPS transmitter at the top center of the drone. But the location in the front seems to be working and it was easier than a landing gear mount.
 
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Tks for the update. I’ve replaced a P4P shell before but never thought about this. Each leg has an antenna. The drone obviously needs a signal from the TX and needs to transmit the 2.4 and 5.8 MHz video and data info. Wonder which does what.
 
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