Antennas

[flightcohq]

Quick question guys. I've been getting pretty good range with the stock antennas so far. Got 820m yesterday with no issues using the circle antenna. I looked at the FPVLR antennas but was curious. On my controller I have 3 antenna connections. This only has two. Also do you think you get a more reliable signal in more congested areas with these antennas? I flew it today in a neighborhood and didn't have any issues but was thinking about ordering more reliable antennas. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

 

[PatR]

A couple things to consider;

How far is it legal to operate and if you are obtaining 820m and perfect results now what makes changing things more reliable?

In two years with two aircraft I’ve never used other than stock antennas with no recording or flight issues that could even remotely be attributed to the antennas.

 

[flightcohq]

Completely understandable. The odd thing is I was still in line of site. I was in a big open field and I could still see the drone but when I looked at the controller it said 820m. It almost didn' seem right. I'm not really looking for long range antennas but just wanting to know about more solid signal in congested areas. All my flying will be line of site I just worry about interference and wonder if upgrade antennas will help fight congested.

 

[rdonson]

What kind of congestion do you foresee?

If you're able to easily see the TH480 at 820m then you've got some good eyesight and flying conditions. For me, at that distance the TH480 is a bit hard to see and easily lost if I take my eyes off it. If I'm flying against a background of trees then 100m is generally comfortable for LOS.

N.B. when you get antennas with a higher gain then its because you've narrowed the field of reception. High gain antennas require more precision in ensuring they are pointed at the aircraft.

 

[flightcohq]

What kind of congestion do you foresee?

If you're able to easily see the TH480 at 820m then you've got some good eyesight and flying conditions. For me, at that distance the TH480 is a bit hard to see and easily lost if I take my eyes off it. If I'm flying against a background of trees then 100m is generally comfortable for LOS.

N.B. when you get antennas with a higher gain then its because you've narrowed the field of reception. High gain antennas require more precision in ensuring they are pointed at the aircraft.

I guess I am wondering let's say if I was doing a film near buildings or a heavily congested Wi-Fi area. Just was curious if the upgraded antennas would provide better signal to push through the congestion.

 

[PatR]

To be candid, you would most likely not be able to maintain LOS at 2490’ when mixed in with a lot of buildings so the antennas would be the least of your problems. Pushing out only 1000’ in such an environment can be iffy. To maintain LOS around buildings 820m out the aircraft would have to be quite a bit higher than the buildings, negating the imager quality.

I fly a 920 that’s almost 3 times larger than an H, an aircraft I can’t see well enough to navigate past 1600’-1800’. At 820m even the 920 gets pretty small with 20/10 vision.

After market antennas can give more range, if that’s your intent.m

 

[flightcohq]

I appreciate the feedback. I guess what I was wondering. I don't plan to fly it 820m out when near a bunch of buildings. More than likely under 1500ft away. I just didn't know if the stock antennas would get a bunch of video loss with that much interference. I'm still getting used to the range of this drone. I came from DJI and used to Lightbridge.

 

[PatR]

You’re not going to match the range of DJI’s Lightbridge even with after market antennas. That’s just the way it is. Yuneec is designed and marketed as an LOS system to assist users in maintaining legality. DJI manufactures their products with ability to easily violate LOS legality, and blatantly advertises their long range capability.

 

[flightcohq]

You’re not going to match the range of DJI’s Lightbridge even with after market antennas. That’s just the way it is. Yuneec is designed and marketed as an LOS system to assist users in maintaining legality. DJI manufactures their products with ability to easily violate LOS legality, and blatantly advertises their long range capability.

I do understand that. I'm not trying to go past LOS. All I'm asking is in more heavily congested areas with LOS, do you think the stock antennas will be fine? For example let's saying I'm in an area with high Wi-Fi and buildings and only plan on flying between 400-1000ft away from the ST16. Would the stock antennas do fine or would the upgraded antennas do better at fighting the interference from the Wi-Fi and obstacles. I think what I'm trying to get across is do you get more reliable signal from the upgraded antennas vs stock let' say within 1500ft or less.

 

[Steve Carr]

I think what I'm trying to get across is do you get more reliable signal from the upgraded antennas vs stock let' say within 1500ft or less.

A flat panel antenna is going to increase the received signal strength and will help reduce interference and lag. It is directional which tends to reduce interfering signals that are not in the reception pattern of the antenna. An omnidirectional antenna (the mushroom) receives signals from all directions.
I use a flat panel antenna because much of my flying territory is tree covered and the signal is attenuated quickly.

 

[flightcohq]

A flat panel antenna is going to increase the received signal strength and will help reduce interference and lag. It is directional which tends to reduce interfering signals that are not in the reception pattern of the antenna. An omnidirectional antenna (the mushroom) receives signals from all directions.
I use a flat panel antenna because much of my flying territory is tree covered and the signal attenuated quickly.

Thanks Steve for explaining.

 

[Dr Delta]

I use the standard flat antenna too.
Works perfectly and in open field one can fly out far more then LOS as long as you aim the antenna well. Buildings (and mountains) are a definitive stop for radiowaves though. I once lost contact with H behind a building @450 mtrs (I descended a bit to far trying to get the best position for a 360 degree picture of village marketplace with a nice cafe terrace). Happily regained contact when I moved 50 mtrs to one side in a hurry.

 

[FlushVision]

Completely understandable. The odd thing is I was still in line of site. I was in a big open field and I could still see the drone but when I looked at the controller it said 820m. It almost didn' seem right. I'm not really looking for long range antennas but just wanting to know about more solid signal in congested areas. All my flying will be line of site I just worry about interference and wonder if upgrade antennas will help fight congested.

I gotta say that if you still have LOS at 820m then you have far better eye sight than me. For my eyes I would consider myself to be beyond LOS at half that distance even without a backdrop of trees or buildings.

 

[rdonson]

If you want to dive into a bit of antenna theory and how the "flat" (patch) antenna works here's a good source. Perhaps the most useful piece of info will be figure 4 on page 6 which depicts the radiation pattern.

Orban-Patch-Antennas-2009-rev.pdf

Amateur radio was a passion of mine starting in 1964 with my first amateur radio license as a kid. In college we devised a lot of exotic antennas. In the Navy I was awed by some of the antennas used. Truly remarkable systems. That faded as my attention turned to computers though.

 

[thoneter]

Quick question guys. I've been getting pretty good range with the stock antennas so far. Got 820m yesterday with no issues using the circle antenna. I looked at the FPVLR antennas but was curious. On my controller I have 3 antenna connections. This only has two. Also do you think you get a more reliable signal in more congested areas with these antennas? I flew it today in a neighborhood and didn't have any issues but was thinking about ordering more reliable antennas. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

I've tried a couple cheap directional antennas and I typically use the square directional that Yuneec provided. I completely understand your concerns. For me it is when I'm flying and I lose the video feed while it's in LOS. I've noticed trees do absorb a fair amount of signal. I like doing long shots of my state park and constantly lose the video signal. Their are a few directional screw on with no mounts that I've researched that are 1/4th the price of 4 hawks etc. My 2 cents worth as the video signal is the biggest concern for me in certain situations.

 

[Rubik]

The video signal sometimes breaks up when I rotate the TH or camera, even at a sane distance out. It seems as though the camera transmitting antenna is somewhat directional. I notice that the new TH+ camera antenna looks like it might be more omni-directional. That seems to me to be a good idea.

 

[AveryBadman96]

I find LOS depend on what your backdrop is. If you are flying high and the blue sky is the backdrop then your liner of sight could technically be 1 km. However if your backdrop is dark objects such as trees your LOS could be 500 feet. I have at times misplaced my LOS when I quick look down at my controller and look up, unable to visualize my drone, whereas if i kept my eyes on it the whole time I child easily track it. I personally bring binoculars with me. Because I know where it odds at all times, but when looking in the monitor on the controller it is easy to misplace where it is in the sky. I quickly look through my binoculars to quickly find it then go back to tracking it with my naked eye. I do always know where my drone is at all times though. I guarantee if you are trying to make beautiful videos or pictures you will every once in a while lose LOS of your drone unless you let go of sticks, look down at the monitor and then look up and proceed. I don't understand how these pilots lose their drones if they are keeping them in LOS.