Have been lurking in your forum for some time now. I decided that I needed to join as I have many questions. I am a 107 pilot and I have the P3, P4P+, and the Inspire 2. My interest is in inspections. Everything from cell towers to solar panels and even roofs. Finding that these DJI units are not going to fill my need and I don't plan on spending upwards of $35,000 for the new M210 RTK with the Zenmuse XT and Z30. I have been waiting for the release of the H520 but I'm beginning to wonder if they have changed their mind. I guess the H920 Plus would work just fine, but I guess the CGO-ET doesn't fit it. I also am having a hard time trying to find out if the V18 Zoon would fit as well. I know they have the CGO-4 that is a 3x zoom, but I don't know if that would be enough. All these questions at my age can make one dizzy. Thank you in advance for any answers.
Lurking
- Thread starter djkelly57
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Not sure I understand what the questions are.
What do you need to do that the present craft will not do?
It's hard to say today what tomorrow will bring. When I try to guess I'm usually wrong.
What do you need to do that the present craft will not do?It's hard to say today what tomorrow will bring. When I try to guess I'm usually wrong.
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Thank you all for the replies. Guess my question is Do I want to pull the trigger right now for a h920 plus, or do I wait for the h520? Whatever I get, it must accept the CGO-ET and the V18 zoom.
The one thing I know is that the V18 camera will not fit the H520. The CGO-ET will.
The H920 Plus is getting very good reviews from owners.
What do you need to do that the Inspire 2 can not do?
The H920 Plus is getting very good reviews from owners.
What do you need to do that the Inspire 2 can not do?
@Rayray The Inspire 2 has no Thermal camera available for it and the only zoom I can find is a 3x lens. I want to do inspections and I don't think 3x zoom would be enough. I went and did a mock cell tower inspection. I did that with my P4Pro Plus. I found that getting closer than 20 feet was causing my display to break up. I figured getting closer than that was going to cause problems. But at that distance I wasn't close enough to see small details. From some of the research I have done they want you to be able to read a barcode. I thought that the v18 would be enough to do this with. Also there is no Thermal for the I2. I am looking into the CGO-ET but I understand that it does not have very good resolution. That would be alright if it would be enough to do solar panels and flat roofs. Now my understanding is that the CGO-ET will not fit the H920 Plus and the V18 will not fit the H520. uuurrrgggg!! Please don't get me wrong. The Inspire 2 is a fine bird and if I could equip it with the two cameras I would. But trying to do this with the M210 RTK is beyond my financial means. I have been "lurking" in your forums cause I'm thinking I would like to try Yuneec. I like the idea of hex, most of your posters give good grades to Yuneec. I'm sure you are aware of the problems of trying to deal with DJI. I have a problem with my I2. I get a message that says "cannot detect camera lens". I don't know what to do about that but I really don't want to send it in and be without my bird for "who knows how long". Sorry, didn't mean to ramble on.
No problem, you have explained the situation very well. Personally I have the Remote Pilot Cert., but not much experience yet.
Back to equipment. The CGO-ET is said to fit the 920+ with an adapter, the adapter to be released.
The V18 is another story. I'm not sure Yuneec will even continue to sell them. I saw one on Ebay but... EDIT: It's 1280 resolution.
Some members have reported no problems getting close to cell towers with the TH. Let me add here that even if the 5.8 video feed breaks up, the micro card continues its capture, but blindly...You gotta watch the dang guy wires too.
The new 520 cameras may be able to capture good close-ups. Besides zoom, a fixed lens of say 100mm will give you results like a zoom.
Whether interchangeable lenses will be available is unknown to me.
@Tuna, a member here, may be able to weigh in and give you some good suggestions.
I think you're on the right track, and I understand the pricey alternatives.
Back to equipment. The CGO-ET is said to fit the 920+ with an adapter, the adapter to be released.
The V18 is another story. I'm not sure Yuneec will even continue to sell them. I saw one on Ebay but... EDIT: It's 1280 resolution.
Some members have reported no problems getting close to cell towers with the TH. Let me add here that even if the 5.8 video feed breaks up, the micro card continues its capture, but blindly...You gotta watch the dang guy wires too.
The new 520 cameras may be able to capture good close-ups. Besides zoom, a fixed lens of say 100mm will give you results like a zoom.
Whether interchangeable lenses will be available is unknown to me.
@Tuna, a member here, may be able to weigh in and give you some good suggestions.
I think you're on the right track, and I understand the pricey alternatives.
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I'd recommend hanging tight for the H520 - it's a platform designed for commercial/inspection work. Whilst the H920+ upgrade brings the original H920 up to date, it's a big 'ol thing and you'd probably be better off getting 'in on the start' of the new model. Yuneec are putting a lot of technical resources into making sure the H520 is a really competitive, high quality machine (one of the reasons for the delays). In terms of commercial support, they've said that they're planning a really good package to make sure that operators can rely on great up time and quick repairs if necessary (I think mention was made of 24 hour turnaround) - which could be very useful for operators who can't afford to be stuck without a working machine.
It's not at all clear what's happening with cameras. At the January CES we got suggestions we'd see an 'inspection camera' which would have something like the CGO3+ specs, but better glass with a narrower field of view and the ability to look up by a small angle. It also looked like we'd see a refresh of the CGO3+ (again, better lens). Since then there have also been rumours of a 20Mp camera that's entirely new.
What seems to be for sure is there are at least a couple of new cameras coming, and that they are going to be compatible with the full range of Yuneec drones. I've not heard anything more concrete than that. Yuneec are incredibly secretive about new hardware, which doesn't help when people are trying to make purchase and support decisions in advance of releases. Personally I'm working on the assumption that when the H520 is finally released, we'll get more information about the cameras that will be available for it.
The CGO-ET is about what you'd expect for the price, with the kicker of the visual camera built in. The combined visual and thermal image is good for detail whilst picking out hot spots. The thermal resolution is nothing like a normal camera, but unless you're willing to spend $5K+ just on the sensor, you're pretty much stuck with low resolution regardless of which manufacturer you go for. Personally I think some people get hung up on the details here - remote sensing using airborne thermal cameras is always going to be as much an art as a science - it's a case of figuring out what the sweet spots are for the equipment rather than expecting to be able to just fly in and get a view like the Terminator with fractions of a degree accuracy.
It's not at all clear what's happening with cameras. At the January CES we got suggestions we'd see an 'inspection camera' which would have something like the CGO3+ specs, but better glass with a narrower field of view and the ability to look up by a small angle. It also looked like we'd see a refresh of the CGO3+ (again, better lens). Since then there have also been rumours of a 20Mp camera that's entirely new.
What seems to be for sure is there are at least a couple of new cameras coming, and that they are going to be compatible with the full range of Yuneec drones. I've not heard anything more concrete than that. Yuneec are incredibly secretive about new hardware, which doesn't help when people are trying to make purchase and support decisions in advance of releases. Personally I'm working on the assumption that when the H520 is finally released, we'll get more information about the cameras that will be available for it.
The CGO-ET is about what you'd expect for the price, with the kicker of the visual camera built in. The combined visual and thermal image is good for detail whilst picking out hot spots. The thermal resolution is nothing like a normal camera, but unless you're willing to spend $5K+ just on the sensor, you're pretty much stuck with low resolution regardless of which manufacturer you go for. Personally I think some people get hung up on the details here - remote sensing using airborne thermal cameras is always going to be as much an art as a science - it's a case of figuring out what the sweet spots are for the equipment rather than expecting to be able to just fly in and get a view like the Terminator with fractions of a degree accuracy.
@Tuna
Thanks for your reply. I am a 107 pilot and a level 1 thermographer. I use the Flir E60bx. Unfortunately it isn't something I can get up into the air. I need something that would do solar panels, flat roofs, maybe a little power line work, and cell towers. I'm not sure how well the h520 would handle close quarters with cell towers and power lines, so for that I need some zoom. Flat roofs and solar panels would require thermal imaging. To do thermal imaging with a drone you need decent resolution because of the distance. If the CGO-ET would provide the resolution needed I would be just a happy camper. I have not had any experience with Yuneec but I'm liking the idea of hex and I'm encouraged by the way most people talk about their equipment. My Flir is 320x240 res. and the best info I can find on the CGO-ET is that it's 160x120. The Flir xt is 640x512. To my way of thinking I don't need more than I need. But again, how much do I need? I sure do appreciate you guys jumping in to help me out. What with the whole world seeming to be on fire, it sure is nice to see people come together for any reason.
Thanks for your reply. I am a 107 pilot and a level 1 thermographer. I use the Flir E60bx. Unfortunately it isn't something I can get up into the air. I need something that would do solar panels, flat roofs, maybe a little power line work, and cell towers. I'm not sure how well the h520 would handle close quarters with cell towers and power lines, so for that I need some zoom. Flat roofs and solar panels would require thermal imaging. To do thermal imaging with a drone you need decent resolution because of the distance. If the CGO-ET would provide the resolution needed I would be just a happy camper. I have not had any experience with Yuneec but I'm liking the idea of hex and I'm encouraged by the way most people talk about their equipment. My Flir is 320x240 res. and the best info I can find on the CGO-ET is that it's 160x120. The Flir xt is 640x512. To my way of thinking I don't need more than I need. But again, how much do I need? I sure do appreciate you guys jumping in to help me out. What with the whole world seeming to be on fire, it sure is nice to see people come together for any reason.
Hello,
It is a pleasure to welcome you to the YuneecPilots forum.
I hope that you will be able to use the forum to further your safety knowledge and for the exchange
of innovative ideas and as a resource for current developments in Yuneec quadcopter’s.
Enjoy!
It is a pleasure to welcome you to the YuneecPilots forum.
I hope that you will be able to use the forum to further your safety knowledge and for the exchange
of innovative ideas and as a resource for current developments in Yuneec quadcopter’s.
Enjoy!
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