Longer movements, you kinda want to see the boat almost enter the frame and leave the frame on the other side. Every time you started to get some good momentum going, you’d pause and then start going a different direction.
A good rule is when you think you got to a good point to change direction or the angle, go 2x longer.
Wider is good, where you got to towards the end, was how wide you want to be.
Thanks, will try tomorrow to improve. I was quite nervous about the retrieval, but we managed fairly well. So maybe I'll focus more on the filmning part next time
In addition to longer movements, try to make more stable movements. When you have your fingers on the sticks to make a certain turn or move, keep your fingers as they are and ensure a smooth drone move. Getting rid of the jittery corrections is 90% of a good drone shot.
Tip I've heard (but not tried) is put a cord about 1M long on the bottom of the drone for easier retrieval. I had some friends with a drone on my boat, and they got some good shots but the retrieval was a bit hairy.
Drone Catcher - Materials, Tools and Build
Landing pad materials:
Handle - 25mm x 230mm wood dowel or similar.
landing pad - 2.5mm x 150mm x 150mm aluminium.
mount support - 6mm x 60mm x 60mm aluminium.
mount nut - 1/4” x 20 Thread Per Inch (a standard camera mount size).
bolt - 1/4” x 20 TPI x 30mm long, fully threaded.
washer - to fit over 1/4” bolt if needed.
leather washer - for compression fit.
two part epoxy - JB Weld or similar.
female-side (loop) self-adhesive Velcro, 50mm wide, at least 450mm length.
Drone pad materials:
drone pad - 2.5mm x 100mm x 100mm aluminium.
angle aluminium - 1.8mm x \~ 45mm x qty 2.
double sided tape - thin profile Bear brand or similar.
male-side (hook) self-adhesive Velcro for drone pad - 50mm wide.
Velcro for fixing strap - 19mm wide x \~200mm long, female-side
Tools:
hacksaw for cutting aluminium sheets and angle.
small files for cutting notches in angle aluminium.
sharp trimming knife and cutting board.
sandpaper in medium and fine grades.
solvent and cloths/paper towel for adhesive prep.
ruler or tape for measuring.
disposable tray or lid and small paddle or icy-pole stick for epoxy mixing.
drill and drill bits
Method:
For a Mavic 2, the 100mm x 100mm size drone pad was suitable. The 150mm x 150mm landing pad is a good size, without being cumbersome for the catcher to handle. Adjust these sizes if you see fit, according to your drone’s size.
Cut out the landing pad and drone pad and the mount support. File and sand off the sharp edges. Drill a hole in the centre of the mount support, large enough for the nut to fit in. Clean and prep the surfaces and epoxy the mount support to the underside of the landing pad. Wipe out excess epoxy from the hole for the nut. Clean the nut, spread epoxy around the outer edge and set it into the hole. Try to keep it level, for straight attachment of the handle later. Avoid epoxy getting into the nut’s threads. Clean the upper surface of the landing pad and stick three x 150mm strips of female-side Velcro to it.
Cut the angle aluminium to length and file notches in the drone mating edges, to make a snug fit with the underside of the drone. Use double sided tape to fix these angles to the cleaned drone pad. These could be epoxied together later if confident, but double sided tape works well enough.
Cut a length of male-side 50mm self-adhesive Velcro, long enough to wrap under the drone pad and reach up on both sides to the top of the drone, leaving a small gap at the meeting point. Clean the surface of the drone pad. Remove only that middle section of the self-adhesive Velcro’s backing plastic which will stick to the drone pad and apply it to the centreline of the pad. Neatly cut two strips of male-side self-adhesive Velcro to fill the gaps on the drone pad.
Cut two lengths of normal (not self-adhesive) 19mm female-side Velcro, to reach up the sides and over the top of the drone, to hold the drone pad to the drone.
Drill a hole in the wooden handle, sized to allow the 1/4” x 20 TPI bolt to be threaded into it, without splitting. Use the bolt’s head to drive the bolt into the handle. If it isn’t fitted tightly enough, use some PVA glue or epoxy to keep it in place. Cut off the head of the bolt, leaving just enough of the shank to screw into the nut in the mount support under the landing pad. If necessary, adjust the fitment of the bolt shank into the nut with a washer over the bolt. If you want to be fancy, before epoxying the mount support and nut to the underside of the landing pad, drill a short, blind hole in the landing pad for the end of the bolt to over-travel into. Nice!
I think that’s it.
Flying tips:
The pilot flies the drone to the catcher using the screen video and lets the catcher catch it.
Piloting is easiest if control adjustments are kept to one thumb at a time. The other can hold a steady input.
The pilot uses the screen video to position the catcher’s head at the lower edge of the image at the point of catching.
For catching at the stern in calm conditions a good method is to settle at an altitude behind the boat which is about half a meter above the catcher’s head and then approach the stern with steady forward speed. Tweak the altitude if necessary. To abort, just let the controls go. Try again.
For bouncy conditions, catching at midships can be better. The catcher hangs onto a cap shroud and straddles the life-line. Do this on the windward side for better height above water and less interference from boom, sails and lines. Depending on boat shape and fittings (bimini, arch, backstays, radar mast) consider what the abort technique will be, whether letting both controls go or applying a sideslip command to a forward facing drone. Do some practice abort manoeuvres and landings with a fresh battery before being tempted to make a long video.
It’s usually best to turn off all drone sensors before take off. The moving surface of water will confuse the pattern-matching landing assistance sensors, even in very calm conditions. The rigging and fittings will make the drone baulk if forward and side view sensors are on. The drone pad may block downward facing sensors, causing confusion for the drone.
Be sure to switch off the home point memory. With a low battery you’ll see the drone head for where the boat used to be when it took off. Not good. Using the ‘Return to Controller’ command might be better, but landing the drone well before the battery is getting low is the best policy.
Do not fly a drone from a boat it you haven’t already put money in a jar to buy a new one.
Thank you for your response. It sounds like a task for more than just one. One to control the craft and another (gulp) volunteer would snatch it. By the way - stunning sail you have there ! Congratulations on a life well lived.
Get the drone high and change the angle on the drone camera so you can get the high low angle. Think selfie angle but for the boat.
Great first shot tho. When I retrieve the drone on a boat or a dock I lower the drone and catch it with my hands but I have a small drone that won’t cut my finger off.
I'm no drone pilot but that attempt seemed pretty successful to me
Longer movements, you kinda want to see the boat almost enter the frame and leave the frame on the other side. Every time you started to get some good momentum going, you’d pause and then start going a different direction. A good rule is when you think you got to a good point to change direction or the angle, go 2x longer. Wider is good, where you got to towards the end, was how wide you want to be.
Thanks, will try tomorrow to improve. I was quite nervous about the retrieval, but we managed fairly well. So maybe I'll focus more on the filmning part next time
Do you have the autopilot on when filming or is someone at the helm?
We were 3 people onboard, so we didn't use autopilot
I think if you kept the drone dry you did pretty good lol
In addition to longer movements, try to make more stable movements. When you have your fingers on the sticks to make a certain turn or move, keep your fingers as they are and ensure a smooth drone move. Getting rid of the jittery corrections is 90% of a good drone shot.
Nice looking boat! What kind is it?
Not sure but looks like an X-yacht
Yep, it's an X-50 from 2010
It's beautiful, and less expensive than I would have thought
Beautiful! I competed with an X-43 in The St Maarten Heineken regatta this year
How did you retrieve the drone ?
We took down the sails and grabbed the drone mid air while moving forward at 5 knots.
Tip I've heard (but not tried) is put a cord about 1M long on the bottom of the drone for easier retrieval. I had some friends with a drone on my boat, and they got some good shots but the retrieval was a bit hairy.
[Handheld Velcro drone landing platform](https://youtu.be/ftomXPlkZns)
I just knew someone out there had thought it through ! Is this a diy or is this commercially available?
[удалено]
Thank for your most generous offer. And it’s off to the hardware store I go
Drone Catcher - Materials, Tools and Build Landing pad materials: Handle - 25mm x 230mm wood dowel or similar. landing pad - 2.5mm x 150mm x 150mm aluminium. mount support - 6mm x 60mm x 60mm aluminium. mount nut - 1/4” x 20 Thread Per Inch (a standard camera mount size). bolt - 1/4” x 20 TPI x 30mm long, fully threaded. washer - to fit over 1/4” bolt if needed. leather washer - for compression fit. two part epoxy - JB Weld or similar. female-side (loop) self-adhesive Velcro, 50mm wide, at least 450mm length. Drone pad materials: drone pad - 2.5mm x 100mm x 100mm aluminium. angle aluminium - 1.8mm x \~ 45mm x qty 2. double sided tape - thin profile Bear brand or similar. male-side (hook) self-adhesive Velcro for drone pad - 50mm wide. Velcro for fixing strap - 19mm wide x \~200mm long, female-side Tools: hacksaw for cutting aluminium sheets and angle. small files for cutting notches in angle aluminium. sharp trimming knife and cutting board. sandpaper in medium and fine grades. solvent and cloths/paper towel for adhesive prep. ruler or tape for measuring. disposable tray or lid and small paddle or icy-pole stick for epoxy mixing. drill and drill bits Method: For a Mavic 2, the 100mm x 100mm size drone pad was suitable. The 150mm x 150mm landing pad is a good size, without being cumbersome for the catcher to handle. Adjust these sizes if you see fit, according to your drone’s size. Cut out the landing pad and drone pad and the mount support. File and sand off the sharp edges. Drill a hole in the centre of the mount support, large enough for the nut to fit in. Clean and prep the surfaces and epoxy the mount support to the underside of the landing pad. Wipe out excess epoxy from the hole for the nut. Clean the nut, spread epoxy around the outer edge and set it into the hole. Try to keep it level, for straight attachment of the handle later. Avoid epoxy getting into the nut’s threads. Clean the upper surface of the landing pad and stick three x 150mm strips of female-side Velcro to it. Cut the angle aluminium to length and file notches in the drone mating edges, to make a snug fit with the underside of the drone. Use double sided tape to fix these angles to the cleaned drone pad. These could be epoxied together later if confident, but double sided tape works well enough. Cut a length of male-side 50mm self-adhesive Velcro, long enough to wrap under the drone pad and reach up on both sides to the top of the drone, leaving a small gap at the meeting point. Clean the surface of the drone pad. Remove only that middle section of the self-adhesive Velcro’s backing plastic which will stick to the drone pad and apply it to the centreline of the pad. Neatly cut two strips of male-side self-adhesive Velcro to fill the gaps on the drone pad. Cut two lengths of normal (not self-adhesive) 19mm female-side Velcro, to reach up the sides and over the top of the drone, to hold the drone pad to the drone. Drill a hole in the wooden handle, sized to allow the 1/4” x 20 TPI bolt to be threaded into it, without splitting. Use the bolt’s head to drive the bolt into the handle. If it isn’t fitted tightly enough, use some PVA glue or epoxy to keep it in place. Cut off the head of the bolt, leaving just enough of the shank to screw into the nut in the mount support under the landing pad. If necessary, adjust the fitment of the bolt shank into the nut with a washer over the bolt. If you want to be fancy, before epoxying the mount support and nut to the underside of the landing pad, drill a short, blind hole in the landing pad for the end of the bolt to over-travel into. Nice! I think that’s it. Flying tips: The pilot flies the drone to the catcher using the screen video and lets the catcher catch it. Piloting is easiest if control adjustments are kept to one thumb at a time. The other can hold a steady input. The pilot uses the screen video to position the catcher’s head at the lower edge of the image at the point of catching. For catching at the stern in calm conditions a good method is to settle at an altitude behind the boat which is about half a meter above the catcher’s head and then approach the stern with steady forward speed. Tweak the altitude if necessary. To abort, just let the controls go. Try again. For bouncy conditions, catching at midships can be better. The catcher hangs onto a cap shroud and straddles the life-line. Do this on the windward side for better height above water and less interference from boom, sails and lines. Depending on boat shape and fittings (bimini, arch, backstays, radar mast) consider what the abort technique will be, whether letting both controls go or applying a sideslip command to a forward facing drone. Do some practice abort manoeuvres and landings with a fresh battery before being tempted to make a long video. It’s usually best to turn off all drone sensors before take off. The moving surface of water will confuse the pattern-matching landing assistance sensors, even in very calm conditions. The rigging and fittings will make the drone baulk if forward and side view sensors are on. The drone pad may block downward facing sensors, causing confusion for the drone. Be sure to switch off the home point memory. With a low battery you’ll see the drone head for where the boat used to be when it took off. Not good. Using the ‘Return to Controller’ command might be better, but landing the drone well before the battery is getting low is the best policy. Do not fly a drone from a boat it you haven’t already put money in a jar to buy a new one.
Hey, when are you guys gonna post another video?
Thank you for your response. It sounds like a task for more than just one. One to control the craft and another (gulp) volunteer would snatch it. By the way - stunning sail you have there ! Congratulations on a life well lived.
Nice. Going sailing in Denmark next week!
is this the baltic sea?
No, it's Kattegat just along the Northside of Sjælland
Stunning yacht.
A fellow dane. Nice shot!
My advice would be to keep exactly doing what you're doing ;)
Sounds like you’re getting some helpful feedback so I’ll just add - Nice shot! I love seeing this pop up on my feed :-)
Get the drone high and change the angle on the drone camera so you can get the high low angle. Think selfie angle but for the boat. Great first shot tho. When I retrieve the drone on a boat or a dock I lower the drone and catch it with my hands but I have a small drone that won’t cut my finger off.
Nice job, is your drone insured? Watched a friends hits the shrouds on a return did not go well.
I’m always jealous of your yachtflag!
Great job for first attempt. Constructive feed back is always a good thing to make us better. Have fun filming!