I want to buy or build a fairly nice multicopter. I’m targeting around a 5lb payload capacity. I want it to have cameras appropriate for landing and takeoff at a distance (yes, I will still comply with visual line of sight requirements) and a standalone controller instead of a phone or laptop. GPS would be nice but I don’t need it.

I have a 3D printer and an EE background, but no aerospace experience. I want to get into drone flying rather than drone building, so I’d like a kit or a straightforward build guide that doesn’t make me do any actual design work. Are there “standard” build architectures? I’d consider off-the-shelf options if anything good is available after the DJI/etc ban, but they are probably too expensive for me. My maximum budget is $1200 but I’d prefer to spend much less.

Can’t post in /r/drones because reddit bans TOR users and I live in a repressive country (USA).

  • KnilAdlez [none/use name]@hexbear.netEnglish
    1·
    29 days ago

    Nothing is fair, especially not me. I was busy at the time and couldn’t give my whole attention. I was also looking for details about size, usage besides carry capacity, if vtol was necessary, etc, since there are a lot of different r/c solutions.

    • future_model [any]@hexbear.netOPEnglish
      2·
      28 days ago

      yeah, VTOL necessary unfortunately. I think RC planes are cool (and sure, more energy efficient) but vertical takeoff and hovering is super useful. I anticipate a variety of payloads, grabbers, etc., but I expect all of that to be custom. Short trip duration - think 1-2 miles and 20 minutes tops before a battery change.

      • KnilAdlez [none/use name]@hexbear.netEnglish
        1·
        28 days ago

        This is simply unlikely. 20 minutes is a pretty long flight, especially for a hexacopter. Fighting gravity takes a lot of energy. I would suggest looking into alternatives for your project.

        • future_model [any]@hexbear.netOPEnglish
          2·
          28 days ago

          Distance and not flight time is the critical measurement for me, but 45 minutes unloaded seems “standard” on the nicer consumer quads (e.g. DJI Air 3S) and scaling up doesn’t necessarily decrease it (DJI Matrice specifies almost an hour best-case flying time). I expect that most of my flights will either be dropping or picking up a payload, so unloaded half the time. I posted it in another comment here but I see a couple examples of six prop hexacopter builds in this weight class. They are big, but that’s OK.