FPV - GavilanSteinman/skycam GitHub Wiki

FPV, or First Person View will allow the pilot of an aerial vehicle to see what the on-board camera sees while flying. Because the purpose of this project is to create a camera in the sky, having eyes in the camera is essential.

TX RX

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__18972__Boscam_5_8Ghz_200mW_FPV_Transmitter.html

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__18649__Boscam_RC805_5_8Ghz_8_Channel_AV_Receiver.html

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815158161 or http://amzn.com/B0045IIZKU

For the camera I will be using one of the HD camcorders I have. I will follow this tutorial to transmit a feed from the camcorder: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahptkPUG-5k

Clover Leaf Antenna

The clover leaf antenna will more than double the range of the txrx.

How to build: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGm9ESx4yzE

When I build mine I should use black hot glue: http://amzn.com/B0058TX64U

Finally, I should go with a diversity controller if I desire to maximize my range:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx7gMUw1MGw

Frequency

It turns out that the lower the frequency the longer the range. There are other factors that should also be considered, like legality and spectrum saturation.

900 MHz is used a lot in highly populated areas, but there are channels that should still be available. This will take further investigation. 900 MHz is legal to use IF you have your Amateur Radio License, which inexpensive and lasts 10 years. 900MHz should work as far as 10 km, 6 miles. http://vimeo.com/22184151

It should also be noted that at 6 miles a 2.4 GHz control system may not go beyond 1.5 miles, so a 72 Mhz control system may be desirable to be able to control at these ranges.