An easy way to connect your camera with a hot shoe to your Reach.
http://tuffwing.com/support/reach_geotag_event_hot_shoe_cable.html
The results are impressive. Here’s a sample data set: TuffWing: Example data set: Reach precision GPS
Pix4D Quality Report: http://tuffwing.com/support/flight1b_report.pdf
We’re writing documentation as fast as we can.
-Brian
Brian,
Thank you for sharing this! Maximum XY error is just 8cm!
If you do not mind we will showcase this in our blog 
Hi Igor,
You are welcome. Please add it your blog. We are also working on documentation to show exactly how we process the RTKLIB data and generated the geotags.
Thank you for creating an excellent, affordable product.
Brian
Tuffwing
Well done guys. Out of interest, have you had any experience with camera integrations/Reach and the fast motion of a fixed wing flight? We are finding more exaggerated error values when operating at 20m/s as opposed to a typical multirotor flight at 5m/s.
Also, what is the maximum speed that the Sony camera will allow you to fire when the hotshoe is attached. We find that we were capped at 1/300 second which is not fast enough for decent photogrammetry.
I reply to your flash question here :
Hi Brian, building a UAV Mapper at mo and have a Reach to fit What speed do you fly at?
Ta,
Con.
Hey Connor,
Usually 15 ms. It has throttle nudge enabled, so if you move the throttle stick above 1/2 airspeed will start to increase. I’ll increase it if the plane is loaded or it’s windy.
-Brian
Cool thanks, just trying to get a handle on speed setting for waypoint mapping. I fly 5-6ms mapping with the X8+ so good to know what speed you are getting good results. I have a Sony a5000 which doesn’t have a hot shoe (have been using interval app and GCPs) - grrr need a 6000 now! Also what’s your general shutter speed for tuffwing mapping on the sony? Have a couple of MAPIR Survey2 cameras NIR/RGB I plan to fly too
Thanks Again,
Con.
Manual Mode
1/800
F8
ISO 100 - 800
I can make openings for up to 4 GoPro size or 1 Sony mirrorless. You might need two bodies…
Does the new Reach / Flash trigger cable only work with Sony cameras? Specifically which ones?
Or does it work with other brands too?
Thanks, great work
The Reach cable works with most any hot shoe. They all work the same.
That’s an expensive cable for sure but I will most likely end up buying 2! huge fan of the TuffWing and will be ordering 1 in the spring. Like the modular simplicity and of course the price point.
Is the length of the cable a factor for this level of precision? Probably negligible up to a certain length but I am curious and it is not my area of expertise.
The cable length doesn’t matter, but the distance between your antenna and camera does. I used the stock Reach antenna right over the camera for testing. I don’t know how errors on the ground will relate to camera offset from the antenna.
Right! The actual sensor point can be calculated and added as an offset in post to achieve highest accuracy. I have not go to this point yet but it seems definitely worth trying.
Thanks for the quick reply, look forward to adding a TuffWing to my business. I am sure you will be plenty busy after the expo!
