Chapter 1: Setup
ParaDrone controls a glider by pulling on the left and right toggles.
How to attach ParaDrone depends on the design of the glider. For skydiving clip it to your leg
straps. For paragliding either mount it like a flight deck, or make a long ParaDrone to go under
your legs.
Do not take off with ParaDrone attached. Launch first, and then only when flying safely should
ParaDrone be attached. It’s not going to help on launch, and will just get in the way.
Chapter 2: Autopilot
ParaDrone is designed to autonomously fly and land at a designated landing zone. It will
attempt to fly a standard landing pattern including downwind, base, and final legs.
Landing zone is set using the android app under settings. Drag the map to be centered on the
intended landing zone, and rotate the map to align the arrow with the landing direction (into the
wind). The app will attempt to fetch ground elevation from the internet, but can be set manually
if needed, or if internet access is not available.
Autopilot will not make any turns below 15m. It will begin flaring at 6m above ground level.
If GPS signal is lost for X seconds, ParaDrone will enter a slow right-hand spiral. This is to keep
it from flying far away from the LZ in case of lost signal.
Planner
The planner uses waypoints and dubins paths to approximate paraglider flight paths. It can be in
one of several modes, depending on location, landing zone, and user input. Modes include:
● Idle - toggles to neutral position
● RC - remote control override (lasts for 10 seconds from last control input)
● Auto - autopilot engaged but no plan
● Str - straight ahead
● NaiveL, NaiveR - naive path plan (left or right turn)
● DubinL, DubinR - dubins path plan (left or right turn)
● Waypoint - downwind, base, final waypoint plan
● Final - final approach, toggles up (100ft AGL)
● Flare - toggles down! (20ft AGL)
