Is your drone now lying in a field or hanging in a tree? How can you find it again?
Ideally, of course, you should prevent loss. For example, with a GPS module and GPS Rescue Mode. We have already made a video about this.
Preparation is everything: plan your route, estimate your battery and range correctly. But it can still happen that you are flying your FPV drone and suddenly the video or the connection to the remote control breaks off, even though you otherwise had everything under control. This can happen at any time and to anyone.
In our video with Nils aka BlueRC, we try to find a lost drone again.
Tip number 1 from Nils: Beeper buzzer
The simplest and best method: you know roughly where your drone crashed. As soon as you are close to the suspected crash site, activate the beeper mode on the radio. If you do not have an external beeper on the drone, the motors will "beep".
If you have not activated or installed a beeper, you can also arm the drone briefly in an emergency. But not for too long, otherwise the controller and the motors could be seriously damaged. However, if the battery is disconnected from the copter due to the crash, this method will not work.
But there are beepers with built-in batteries, which is one of the best ways to find a lost drone. These beepers work for up to 30 hours and are connected and used like a beeper without a battery. And the built-in battery charges automatically when a flight battery is connected.
The VIFLY Finder 2 is an intelligent drone buzzer, self-powered by its own Lipo, and works even when the flight battery is off. Buzzer is programmed to be compatible with all flight controllers to support FPV quad and receiver for RC airplanes. No additional setting is required. The device to be connected is automatically recognized. However, as soon as the flight battery is disconnected, the beeper beeps at a low volume for 40 seconds, then goes to full volume. The very bright blue LED allows you to find your drone even in the dark!
Smart solution: When it is already completely dark, this beeper goes into standby mode to save energy and only starts beeping again when the sun rises.
Tip number 2 from Nils: Directional antennas
Do you have directional antennas(patch, etc.) on your goggles or radio? Then you can use these to determine the rough direction. To do this, turn on the spot until you receive the best signal. Then walk in that direction and repeat the whole process until you are closer.
If you are using a TBS Fusion receiver module, for example, you can also use its locating function. This also works best with patch antennas and gives you audio-visual clues as to where the copter is probably located.
Tip number 3 from Nils: GoPro
What many people may not know: if the battery has separated from the drone, you can still use the GoPro to find the drone.
Of course, this only works if you are in the vicinity of the GoPro. Our recommendation: set the GoPro's band to 2.4Ghz. This gives you more range. In addition, the 5.8Ghz transmission of the GoPro does not interfere with the video signal of your glasses. A less obvious trick is the GoPro location mode. GoPro Locate can be selected in the camera settings. This causes the GoPro to start beeping.
Tip number 4 from Nils: DVR recordings
To locate the drone, you can also use the recordings from the goggles, i.e. the DVR - provided the goggles support this.
If you have the recording running during the flight and have also installed a GPS module in the copter, you can display the coordinates in the OSD. If you now look at the recording, you can determine the last readable coordinates in order to search for your lost drone at this position.
But even without a GPS module, the DVR recording itself can help.
If you look closely at the recording, you can search for the last position and try to find the terrain again.
Tip number 5 from Nils: 2nd drone
If the other tips didn't work, we have one last tip for you: You know roughly where the drone crashed? Then try to find the terrain on Google Maps.
Do you have another drone? Preferably a camera drone such as the DJI Mini 2? Then use it to search for your lost drone. Of course, this doesn't always work, but any other way to find your drone is better than nothing.
Conclusion:
The best tip is and remains proper preparation! Be it with a GPS module, a beeper or simply with good planning!
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