How to: Quadcopter
It seemed only right after the WatchDrone project I finished a few weeks ago to go in-depth into how drones actually work. I’ve split the topics into two parts to prevent a massively long post. Part 1 (this post) will go into the electronics and hardware on board a drone that actually make it fly. Part 2 will cover the video systems used to control drones beyond LOS (Line of Sight) flying. Quick disclaimer: you’ll need some basic electronics/engineering knowledge to fully understand some parts of this article. The DJI Mavic Pro Frame There is a range of different types of multirotors, designed for specific purposes. They can be classified by the number of motors (and rotors) they have. Octocopters have eight motors, and are mainly used for carrying large payloads, such as cine-cameras. Their high motor count means they can lift greater weights, and have redundancy in case a motor or speed controller fails mid-flight. This gives them a higher mass, and therefore ...