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Translation from French Report on Yuneec H520

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From: Yuneec H520, les indiscrétions

With its orange color, the new H520 from Yuneec leaves no doubt: it is a device intended for professionals. It looks like two drops of water to Typhoon H (see here). And yet, the differences between the two devices are major. Yuneec toured France in July to show its multi-rotor range. I took advantage of the stage near Rouen, organized by Studiosport, to come and see a prototype of H520 fly. One of only two prototypes available in Europe! Normandy weather conditions were perfect for a good test: wet weather and beautiful gusts of wind! I took the opportunity to ask a few questions to Christophe Sautarel, head of the brand for France.

Frédéric Botton: It can not be seen at first glance, but the H520 would be very different from the Typhoon H?
Christophe Sautarel: Absolutely! Outside, apart from the orange color, we see little difference. The span slightly larger, 52 cm diagonal instead of 48, goes unnoticed. What changes is inside!

FB: But then, these differences?
CS: The electronics has been completely modified, with a flight controller totally different from that of the Typhoon H. That said new hardware also says new internal software.

FB: Are the components of the two devices compatible? I saw that the H520 battery was working in the Typhoon H ....
CS: No, most components are not compatible. The engines are more efficient, the propellers have been modified accordingly, and the cameras are not interchangeable. For the batteries, it remains to validate.

FB: The H520 batteries are LiHV type, ie each cell can be charged at a voltage of 4.35V instead of 4.20V.
CS: Yes, it is a technique that allows us to gain a little autonomy, it is 30 minutes.

FB: Any other changes?
CS: Absolutely. A special effort has been made on the protection of the electronic compass, much more reliable!

FB: The landing gear is still present ...
CS: Yes, it is important that it can be raised since the camera under the device is mounted in such a way that it can rotate 360 °, and beyond, without ever reaching the stop.

FB: I was impressed by the management of this camera. When it is rotated 360 ° and the H520 is rotated in one rotation, the camera is automatically accelerated or slowed down in the direction to maintain a 360 ° at constant speed.
CS: The freedom of orientation and rotation of the camera is a peculiarity against the competition, yes, there is no doubt about it.

FB: It is always a hexacopter, so with redundancy of the engines.
CS: Yes, having six engines allows to deal with a breakdown on one of them while retaining sufficient control for an emergency landing. It is a function very appreciated by the professionals, which makes the difference in front of a quadricopter.

FB: During the tests, I was very surprised at the little noise generated by the H520, compared to the Typhoon H and other similar-sized aircraft. A positive point for professionals who want to disturb as little as possible, men and animals ...
CS: Everyone remarked to us about the very limited noise. This reduction is due to the new engines and new propellers. Note that wind resistance is particularly effective, as you can see today, the H520 does not move even when it faces big gusts ...

FB: During the tests, I saw that the official Yuneec pilot, Simon, had calibrated the compass for the Typhoon H but not for the H520. This means that this manipulation is no longer necessary?
CS: I can not say anything yet, but it is a good observation ... The stability of the H520 has also been improved, it brakes over a very short distance and its propellers stop immediately when placed.

FB: The radio control used for the demonstration flights of the H520 is not the one that will be marketed?
CS: No, it will be a new model called ST16S. It will always rely on Android, but will rely on a processor twice as fast, a brand new interface, and two USB ports.

FB: Why two USB ports?
CS: I can not talk about it yet. Unfortunately it is also a little early to talk about the new functions, but the gain in power allows to offer new software tools. The HDMI connector will always be present to broadcast 720p video feedback in real time.

FB: What is the weight of the device?
CS: It is less than 2 kilos! It is known, in Yuneec, that this threshold is important for French professionals who want to evolve in urban areas, since the requirements are less restrictive. The weight of this prototype is 1910 grams.

FB: Can we talk about the camera that equips the H520?
CS: It will actually be 3 different cameras that will be launched with the H520. A first intended for video shooting, another with high resolution for professional uses such as inspection, and a thermal. The names of the cameras are not yet defined.

FB: Can we expect a large sensor camera? Has a thermal camera biformat?
CS: I can not yet give details on the cameras, except for the thermal which is based on a FLIR base in 320 x 240 for the thermal part, with the possibility like on the Typhoon H to mix the thermal image and the " Classic image.

FB: What's new?
CS: There will be special services for professionals. You should also be aware that industry-recognized tools will be included in the H520's software endowment.



FB: Can we find out more?
CS: No, we will have to wait a little longer until the agreements are finalized. But there is a novelty that satisfies me very much. Yuneec has chosen to provide an SDK and APIs to enable developers to create their own applications. This makes the H520 a very open machine! One day, one might imagine a Yuneec App Store, we never know.

FB: Will Intel's hurdle detection tools be integrated on the H520?
CS: The normal version of the H520 will not be equipped with RealSense. But it is likely that a Pro version is available later, as for the Typhoon H, equipped with obstacle detectors. That said, detection at the front is assured with the normal version of the H520.



FB: Will the H520 be limited by NoFly Zones?
CS: That has not been decided yet. As this machine is sold by professionals to professionals, the issue of integrating NoFly Zones is important, as is the ability to remove them to respond quickly and efficiently to mission orders.

FB: When will the H520 be available?
CS: It will be for the 2017 school year.

FB: And the price? I heard about $ 3000 to 4000?
CS: This range corresponds to that reported in media in the United States. The price has not been defined precisely, you will understand that I will not comment on it!
 
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I'm not a professional but I like the sound of it, new electronics, sounds great, I better start saving up
 
Good to hear they have focused on protecting the compass, this is the cause of just about all flyaways and the H has had issues with this in the past. I don't like the move to LiHV though. Yes, maybe more flight time but it will significantly reduce the lifespan and expected cycle count of the batteries.
 
I pre-ordered my H480 but fortunately I didn't have to wait long since they released it to the consumer marked just the week after. I'm gonna have the H520 but I'm in no rush. I was one of the first to get the H480 in the U.K. but I'm gonna wait for a couple of months after the H520 is released in the U.K. and see what other 'real' people think about it.
I've been a happy bunny with the H480. It flies lovely and I've only had a couple of minor issues mainly due to the long camera connection times and dropping the video link when raising the landing gear. (by the way, the issue with video dropping out when raising the gear has not completely gone away but is much better than it was a few months ago). If the new H520 doesn't have the same issues with connection times and dropping video when raising the gear, then that'll do for me.
 
Proprietary batteries are all and only about increasing the revenue stream for the manufacturer. I don't care who the manufacturer is. If the only battery you can use has to be obtained from the unit maker they just generate that much more profit from the sale of every new multirotor. Most that make their own camera rigs use batteries with common connectors that are readily available form multiple battery suppliers. If one battery type can be swapped between multiple units of different design the cost of equipment is significantly reduced, and the amount of equipment needed to maintain the fleet is minimized. If a good battery could only be obtained from the OEM we would not see the after market batteries equal or better than OEM available at less than 1/2 the cost of the OEM batteries as we see now. Good to great batteries can be obtained many places at reasonable cost. Only the connector types and shell designs prevent their use in multirotors using proprietary batteries.
 
It probably has been asked before, (so apologies now) But, is the H520 the same size at our current Typhoon H480? I would love to be able to just purchase the Orange shell and replace my black shell. That Orange color really makes it pop in the sky, allot like my Orange Autel Pumpkin.
 
To make size comparisons a bit easier, Yuneec has been labeling their hexacopters by their "wheel base" dimensions. 480, 520, and 920. Those numbers reflect the distance in millimeters from motor shaft to motor shaft at opposing motors. This method has been a common sizing standard for several years with quad, hex, and octo frames.
 

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