We are flying a DJI M300 in a remote location, with the RS3 on a known point and local NTRIP. We fly the same polygon we have been flying with the DRTK and have switched up to the EMLID RS3. The site is around 600m downhill from the base station and our landing/VLOS point. The DRTK never drops RTK fix, but with the RS3 it loses RTK at the bottom half of the site. I thought we should get better reception with the RS3, is there a connection setting we could be missing? We don’t have issues at other sites, but as soon as the drone drops over the edge of the hill it loses RTK with the RS3. Is the DRTK leveraging the RC to connect to the drone? Anyone have similar?
Yes, your RTK connection from the RS3 to the M300 is via the RC unit. You need to make sure you don’t stray too far from the RS3 and lose the wifi connection. If that’s an issue, then you need to have a wifi hotspot or wifi router covering the area between the RC/pilot and the RS3 base.
Thanks for the replies, apologies, but I think I’m missing a piece here. To be clear though I don’t have an issue with the connection between the RC and the base. I position myself with the RC above the site <50m from the base. We input our known base position using the EMLID flow app and start it logging, then connect the base to the RC using the custom network on the RC. As I understand it at this point we are using the RS3’s wifi to connect the base to the RC and the RC is passing corrections to the drone? Is this incorrect and the base needs to have better/direct connection to the drone? I have been flying sites with this same setup and only here where the drone is further away do we have issues.
The base and the drone are the only two things that are not easily connected, and it is when the drone drops over the hill from the base that it drops RTK, at this point though it still has connection with the remote. This is a site that I fly exactly the same flight plan with DJI’s DRTK2 and don’t have an issue. If a hotspot is need in situations where the drone is further away from the base, I’m assuming a phone or iPad won’t help, does anyone have recommendations on what works. We are mostly working in remote areas and I would prefer not to have to run the genset all the time. Thanks again
Jake
You are correct that the base is connected to the RC and the RC uploads the corrections to the drone. The base is not communicating with the drone directly.
That being the case, if you are loosing fix when the drone gets far away, the breakdown is between the RC and the drone.
Also, I would not push the connection from the base to the RC anywhere near 50m. Maybe 10m max if you are using the hotspot on the Emlid.
Thank you for adding more information for more context.
Yes, it is correct. In this case, the base is connected to the RC with a local network, and the RC is connected to the drone using telemetry with radio waves.
I second @dpitman’s comment that when the drone loses its connection as it gets farther away, the issue lies between the remote control and the drone.
As you pointed out, you previously conducted a flight in the same area using DRTK, which operated smoothly. The problem may not be solely from the setup or location but could also be due to factors like obstacles or varying sky visibility at the time.
It might be worth checking if all available GNSS constellations are selected:
Another thing is to record raw data logs for PPK as a backup of the survey. This way, you will have data for PPK after the survey and the possibility to improve the results if needed.
Jake, to improve your distance when using local NTRIP, you can use a wireless router between your RS3 and M300 controller. This will enhance your distance by a good margin (to walk around). It truly depends on the router but this can give you 200-300’ of free range to move around. When using local NTRIP and having your controller connected directly to the RS3, the distance is VERY limited and therefor you must stay very close.
