DJI Air 3 for photogrammetry? Litchi? Dronelink?

[@gadgetguy9984]

One minor correction. You miscalculated the photo interval. 1 minute 55 seconds is not 105 seconds, but 115 seconds. 115/24 is every 4.8 seconds, rounded up to 5 seconds in between photos, instead of 4 seconds. Otherwise, wonderful video tutorial!

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Thanks for pointing this out, you´re spot on!!! Nevertheless for the setting for the timed shots I would prefer not to round it up to 5 sec: 105s / 5s = 21 photos, but instead go with 4 sec: 105 / 4 = 26 photos (rounded). But now you made me curious to know how strict we have to stay to the number Dronelink calculated (24 photos)! As soon as weather permits, I´ll fly another mission with timed shots set to 5s, trying to stitch the picture in WebODM with 21 photos, and post my findings here.

[@NETKANALTV]

Thank you for your great work and valuable efforts 👍

[@CarlRay5522]

Need a little more help with thus drone and the DJI Pilot 2 app so we have the stock app on the newest controller. Great job.

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Thanks for your feedback! Are you planning to upload a Litchi Mission (KMZ) into the Pilot 2 app? What I have read so far, the DJI Pilot 2 app is only compatible with enterprise drones, but not with consumer drones like the DJI Air 3 - or is there a workaround?

[@Chief.Surveyor.AliQassim]

Well done, you helped me a lot with this explanation

[@vince-n]

I tested waypoints on the air 3 and I much prefer litchi on my m3p with rc pro

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Yes, indeed litchi is easier to use! Just out of interest: will the litchi mission be uploaded to the m3p? With my Mavic Air 2, the litchi up won´t upload the mission upfront, but instead will give constant commands from the App (via the remote), which (depending on signal strength) leads to jerky videos, especially when cornering. In contrast, waypoint missions with the Air3 seem to be uploaded upfront, resulting in buttery smooth videos without any jerks!

[@-oacgiaphuc-3654]

Dronelink does not free

[@KrisnaDinata-k7d]

Bagaimana Cara Masukan Misi Yang Sudah di Buat Dari dronelink ke DJI air 3

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

As described in the video, you have to draw the dronelink flightpath (manually) in Litchi, export the Litchi mission, convert it into a KMZ file and then import it into the DJI RC2 controller.

[@WoodRobinson-oi8wi]

Great walk through! Does the air 3 accomodate terrain follow mode or a DEM modeled elevation change? I'm hoping to map some topographically diverse landscapes.

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Hi @WoodRobinson-oi8wi, just double-checked my flight logs from recent mapping missions, but when using waypoints the Air 3 will keep the exact altitude as defined in the mission. It seems terrain follow mode is only available for DJI Enterprise Drones: www.heliguy.com/blogs/posts/benefits-of-terrain-mode-with-dji-drones-for-aerial-surveying#:~:text=Terrain%20Follow%20allows%20the%20drone,as%20hilly%20or%20mountainous%20regions.

[@WoodRobinson-oi8wi]

@@stefanwoermcke6828 Thanks Stefan! I know terrain aware limits that - but i'm wondering if there's a back end way of setting altitude for each waypoint in Litchi? For example, could one add an elevation point at several waypoints according to an imported DEM?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

@@WoodRobinson-oi8wi Good question - in Litchi you can import DEM files, but I am not sure how this will affect the Waypoint Mission: even if you´re take-off spot according to DEM is e.g. 400m above ground, your Drone will mark the take-off spot as 0m.. and if the first waypoint is according to DEM 450m above ground we have a problem.. Do you have a DEM file at hand? Would be interested to know how this will change your waypoint mission planning!

[@mougenotbruno2534]

why this video said DJI AIR 3 and you select cameras mavic air 2?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Hi, short answer: Dronelink does not support the DJI Air3, so closest model to pick was the DJI Air 2, and this setting works quite well ! Long Answer: since last year DJI decided to provide mobile SDKs only for Enterprise drones from DJI. With this decision made, third party apps developer like Dronelink cannot create apps to control the latest consumer drones like DJI Air 3, DJI Mini 4 pro etc. anymore. So to get a flight path to cover the entire area to map I did a bit of testing, and finally figured out that selecting „DJI Air 2“ as camera settings works best. Nevertheless Dronelink cannot control the DJI Air 3, and therefor we have to re-draw the flight path in Litchi. Not the perfect solution, but as long as DJI won‘t change their mind we have to live with this workaround.

[@mougenotbruno2534]

@@stefanwoermcke6828 thank you for your answer.Your video are nice but I have difficulties to follow with video,ages probably,do you have like a power point of that explanation to use AIR 3 for photogrametrie .like a course?Im ready to paid

[@OlivierGalizzi]

Wait I don’t understand how you go from Dronelink to litchi ?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Hi @OlivierGalizzi, unfortunately from Dronelink to Litchi is a manual step: you have to draw the flightpath in Litchi, trying to match the path as closely as possible to the Dronelink path. It doesn´t have to be "pixel perfect", but as a minimum keeping the number of turns suggested by Dronelink should be good enough. Another user mentioned the possibility to do a direct export from Dronelink as a KMZ file ("Google Earth export"), but for this to work you need the "elite plan" from Dronelink: app.dronelink.com/pricing/hobbyist/compare

[@juliogarciadelapena7145]

Thank you for such an interesting procedure, Great job, I missed how do you export form dronelink to litchi. What format and how do you do it?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Hi @juliogarciadelapena7145, unfortunately you can´t export the plan from Dronelink to Litchi. My approach (as described in the video): have two browser windows (Dronelink and Litchi) side by side, and then draw the flightpath manually in Litchi. Doesn´t need to be 100% the same as in Dronelink, but as long as you have more or less the same pattern in Litchi you should be fine!

[@SiamakSadati]

Thanks for your creative tutorial, I have a question about air3 that didn't find in Internet and its the time between two photos in air3 in 48mp mode , in air2 it takes about 3 seconds to take a picture and be ready for next shot and because of that in most cases I couldn't fly faster than 7m/s , so I want to know is air3 faster in this case or not in case of improving my mission coverage

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Hi @SiamakSadati , just did a quick test: 48MP Photo (single shot) takes around 2 sec with the Air 3!

[@SiamakSadati]

@stefanwoermcke6828 Thank you so much,so in this case, it's a great improvement and makes it capable of capturing photos in 10m/s flying mission, and with extra battery capacity it can double the coverage in single mission. I should consider buying air3 as soon as possible ✌️

[@dronearon3085]

Dronelink can convert to kml kmz waypoint why use litchi

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Thanks for the hint, depending on your dronelink plan (starter/elite/..) it seems possible. Nevertheless keep in mind if you do a direct import from a dronelink export to the controller, DJI will convert straight lines into curved lines, which is not optimal for a field mapping. This is also mentioned here, and obviously the same problem for Mavic 3 pilots: forum.dji.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=286066 So this is the reason I added additional waypoints to the edges of my flight path in Litchi, to straighten the lines as good as possible, as described in my video in chapter 2 (Flight planning with Litchi).

[@dronearon3085]

@@stefanwoermcke6828 ok tq info

[@IdenticXP]

Thought about upgrading for the new mapping season, ended up buying a used M2Air. Just not having to do all those steps saves me a lot of time. Well, i bought the Air 3 too..But for me while the M2A is mapping 😅

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Hi, I have the same setup: still have my old Mavic Air2 and the new Air3, and recently did a side-by-side comparison, mapping the same field with the MA2 and the Air3: it was a cloudy day, and some pictures from the MA2 (controlled via Dronelink) where a bit blurry, while pictures from the Air3 (controlled by waypoints, as described in the video) were all crisp and clear. So if you have both drones available, consider using the Mavic Air 2 for sunny days, and the Air3 for challenging weather conditions: the better sensor of the Air 3 will definitely give you better photo quality in those conditions, which should also help when stitching the photos afterwards! And if you follow the described steps several times, you'll get used to it, and it will become a fast and standard process. On top, the longer battery life of the Air3 will give you the ability also to map larger fields in one flight.

[@IdenticXP]

@@stefanwoermcke6828 Granted, flight time would improve. I can do 10ha @ 30m as a detailed base layer for spot spraying (object base image classification via QGis) of thistles in corn. For basic scouting i do 30ha @ 80m, which easily fits one battery per run

[@nickalex636]

Dronelink has export waypoints, can that feature not be used? Any update on a quicker easier way? ​@@stefanwoermcke6828

[@DeeKay33]

So do you have to buy the litchi app for $25?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

For litchi it seems you can create an account without paying for the Litchi App - which makes sense as without the app you won´t have the benefit of automated syncing: flights planned on the desktop will be automatically available on the Litchi App. For our use case we don´t need the litchi app, as we only use the export function

[@DeeKay33]

Also do you have to pay for a dronelink account?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

I´m afraid dronelink does not offer to create an account for free

[@danyloandrade3559]

Muito Obrigado 👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@lucabracco422]

Wenn ich die DJI RC an den PC anschließe, sehe ich die Ordner nicht und weiß nicht, was ich tun soll. Ich habe gelesen, dass man die Entwicklerfunktion freischalten muss, aber nicht, wie man sie aktiviert. kannst du mir helfen? When I connect the DJI RC to the PC, I don't see the folders and don't know what to do. I read that you have to unlock the developer function, but not how to activate it. can you help me?

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Arbeitest Du auf einem Mac oder Windows? Auf dem Mac muss man zuerst "Android File Transfer" herunterladen und installieren, den DJ RC2 einschalten und per Kabel anschließen. Je nach Version des Macs (auf meinem MacBook 2016 zeigt Android File Transfer die Ordner sofort an, auf meinem MacMini 2020 muss ich das Kabel mehrmals ein- und ausstecken) sieht man dann die Ordner, und kann Dateien per Drag-and-Drop verschieben, wie ich das im Video auch mache. Are you on Mac or Windows? On Mac you have to download and install "Android File Transfer", then power up the DJ RC2 and connect it via cable. Depending on the version of the Mac (on my MacBook 2016, Android File Transfer will immediately display the folders, on my MacMini 2020 I have to plug-in/out the cable several times) you see the folders , and you can drag-and-drop files as you can see in my video.

[@lucabracco422]

Ich arbeite an Windows@@stefanwoermcke6828

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

Leider habe ich keinen Windows PC zum testen, aber eigentlich sollte das für die DJI RC2 so funktionieren: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jInYf4l5gaahna8si=feFO5wrAcEXAMrlF Vielleicht mal einen anderen PC (wenn vorhanden) nehmen? Beim iMac (M3) habe ich es trotz installierter Software (Android File Transfer) und mehrfachem Ein- und Ausstecker noch nie geschafft, die Ordner der RC2 anzuzeigen! Und da schon bei MacOS drei verschiedene Rechner sich komplett anders verhalten, kann ich mir vorstellen, dass der DJI RC2 auch bei Windows "wählerisch" bzgl. der Hardware ist?

[@Chief.Surveyor.AliQassim]

Thank you sir, but there is no option for air3

[@stefanwoermcke6828]

I guess you´re referring to options to choose the air3 in Dronelink? Yes, that´s correct, and this is why I had to draw the path manually again in Litchi, as shown in the video

[@Chief.Surveyor.AliQassim]

Great, so thank you very much. I have a controller RCN2. I implemented all the steps as they are, but the problem is difficult to deal with using the controller. When the number of points exceeds 100, there is no smoothness in dealing with the controller. hung or freeze "The controller automatically restarts after importing kmz file ." @@stefanwoermcke6828