DJi Mini 2 is now available for purchase.
So many people will want to use it for mapping too.
So when will it be possible to use with drone deploy?
When will you support It?
Thank you!
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Considering it took DJI almost nine months to release the SDK support for the first Mavic Mini so that drone flight software vendors could integrate its unlikely that the Mini 2 is going to be supported anytime soon. Neither DroneDeploy or Pix4D have had any interest in supporting the original and even Litchi which supported the Spark, which was completely unworthy of mapping, just released support for the original Mini about a week ago. It takes quite a bit of time, resources and testing before a drone can be fully supported. Neither drone has obstacle avoidance which may have something to do with it so I wouldn’t be surprised if it is denied support.
Hello! The SDK is already released. When Drone Deploy will support Mini 2? Tks
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The Mini 2 SDK has not been released and is not anticipated before Q2 of 2021. The Mavic Mini 1 SDK is what got released and it did not include waypoint use so autonomous mapping flight solutions will not be supporting it until that happens.
Há alguma atualização sobre o uso de mapeamento no mini 2?
Are there any updates on using mapping in mini 2?
I would not expect the Mini 2 to be supported for cached waypoints. DJI has still not released the SDK that allows that functionality and it doesn’t appear that even Dronelink is supporting it yet but the latest reports I see are from 6 months ago so it might be worth contacting them.
hello!
I have a question, is there any application that supports DJI Mini 2 for planning flights with autopilot (for mapping). If there is, what is the name of this application? If not, when can we expect such an application?
EDIT:
I just clued in that I was referencing the original Mini. The Mini 2, Mini SE and Air 2S are not supported by any automated software at this time. Supposedly they will release the SDK at the beginning of next near but personally that would be surprising… I’ll leave the content below for Mavic Mini users…
At this time Dronelink is the most popular but be aware that you will need at least the Elite Hobby version ($99) for very basic mapping or the Growth Business plan ($39.99/month) to get some of the options that DroneDeploy has. Also understand that this is a joystick waypoint solution which is automated but requires that the drone and RC stay in contact or it will pause the mission. I don’t think this is too much of a problem with a Mini as they don’t go to far before you loose VLOS so make sure to follow that regulation. Last but not least they do not have a processing solution for the monthly plans but you can process your images in any photogrammetry software that supports UAV imagery.
Hello, now that the Mini 2 SDK has been released, should we expect to be supported anytime soon?
Regards
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I would wager it’s unlikely. Although SDK’s are coming out you have to look at the developer notes to see if the waypoint functionality has been added. The Mini 2 release was only for Android which is unlikely to be developed for first. Also, on the Air 2 they are reporting an issue with getting attitude data from the gimbal/camera so mapping is not an option anyways. The iOS SDK has no mention of the Mini 2 or Mini SE and I don’t see waypoint functionality on either OS version. I’ll share a link once they have uploaded to the cloud.
Dronelink Now fully (Waypoints) supports the Mavic Mini 2 in Android only for now
Seems to me that this is the only decent flight planning app that supports the Mini 2 ATM.
Even terrain follow works.
Now before people ask, Why do you guys keep wanting support for the mini, well its simple.
First, some of our customers missions are so simple we could do them right there on the spot with the mini when we go to quote, by the time we quote them we already have the data to start the processing saving an extra trip out there to the goonies, also quotes are way better and more accurate when we have a 120m altitude “3d quick flight map” done of the actual location instead of google earth crappy imagery
2, on complicated flights with CB radio towers nearby or super steep hillsides that the terrain following does not always get right, the mini serves as a sacrificial drone, if I send it on the mission flight path and it doesn’t return due to crashing on a hillside or a radio tower wire somewhere at least it wasn’t a $100k bird, it if comes back then the flight path is safe and I can send out the big birds relaxed enough to know all is well, also when flying over “rural” country there’s always “the bored idiot guard with the shotgun/.22 cal” issue, if we hear shots while flying to/from the takeoff/job area we know that flight path is hot and not to send the bigger birds out until we figure out who didn’t get the memo we were flying there today.
And 3, and most important, regulations, the mini 2 is small enough to be classified as a toy, as such we do not need to file or request any flight permits to fly it, as long as we abide by the “under 249 grams rules”, some jobs end up costing 2x as much just from the permit issue alone, this allows us to do certain jobs that would be near impossible to get a permit and the customer gets a lower price, everyone is happy
Someone calls the cops, they see its a toy drone they leave, or worst we get a warning and by then were done with the job and leaving anyway, we try that with our big birds and its 25 minutes of paperwork and explaining how we have permission to fly and if you get an ahole cop not even then.
So yeah… mini support please and FAST.
They support joystick waypoints, not onboard cache like DroneDeploy and others like Pix4D use.
I agree the Mini 2 definitely has it’s place and for us it is indoors but I can see mapping or modeling something small of 5 acres or less.
This is never a good idea. You should have adequate planning in place that you should know nearly every detail of the site before you ever takeoff. Simply going straight up and looking at the horizon for obstacles should tell you everything you need to know. If you are just taking a glance and figuring out where you might conflict you are asking for it. As for the idiot with the shotgun we all know it’s a federal offense and if it is going to happen it won’t matter if you scouted or not.
This is not true. If you are flying for any kind of compensation you are flying under Part 107. Even though you don’t need to register a mini/micro drone you still have to file for LAANC authorization when in controlled airspace whether you are claiming 107 or recreational. Every drone has to do this. If the site doesn’t have LAANC then you still need to file through DroneZone.
For those that want to fly over/near people you now need to have prop guards and that will put you over 249g. Especially those of you outside of the United States which have a slightly bigger battery.
Responding best I can: (not sure how to use the quote option so i will do my best)
“They support joystick waypoints, not onboard cache like DroneDeploy and others like Pix4D use.”
Actually, i just flew a mission not 1 hr ago, if its joystick then its the most intelligent joystick I’ve ever seen as drone was out of line of sight
As for the sacrificial drone… we have adequate planning but we do not fly in “nice” flat rural zones, these are horrible places in valleys and gulleys with almost literal 90 degre flat angle mountain walls on some places, theres just no way to scout it entirely, also sometimes we just cant reach the site as its over a hill and theres no roads nearby, so we have to send and pray, not ideal but we do charge quite a bit for these services, as for the shotgun i know they aren’t supposed to but they still do, most are super redneck the law matters little to some of these guys, at least drone related law anyway
as for the permits to fly, we do not fly ours in restricted airspace, its more for urban areas like building inspection, where theres no people nearby but you do not want to climb the roof of the warehouse to inspect it.
And finally, not all our clients are in the US, when flying in Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala etc, big drones are always an issue, small drones they just don’t care, not to mention we can FLY with the minis and do the job where the other drones are restricted to battery ground shipping due to battery size and aircraft onboard allowance.
For example we just had a job in the Yucatan peninsula, the nearest non 4x4 road was 1.5km away from where we needed to fly, there were a couple of small cb and internet radio towers scattered, the mini worked great there, sent it first, no problems and it came back, then we sent in the big birds, we used to send a mavic 2 pro but this is just as good and a lot cheaper. (our M600 has no collision avoidance sensors)
The only issue we have, and always have had is the birds, they are super territorial in some places, weve lost 2 mavics due to that, they know better than to mess with the M600 and the M300 but the small drones are always a problem.
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They 100% use joystick waypoints and there’s nothing special about it. It’s basically just block coding. All they’ve done is partially assemble blocks so you can build off them. Besides the potential for complete loss of control anything with a long arc is a little choppy. This doesn’t happen near as bad in Litchi. The main point of contention for me is that if the RC loses connection or dies you are 100% dependent on whether or not the DJI system does it’s job. With onboard points you could turn off your controller and it will finish the mission and return.
I’m not sure what you mean by the drone was out of line of sight?
Downtown Austin and San Antonio are no piece of cake (for allot of reasons) so I understand how tough planning can be sometimes. Are you making the flight plans and sending them out to pilots? Or is someone planning and flying?
That’s no joke. I don’t know if I am more worried about helicopters or red-tailed hawks.
This is good news. The Air 2S is also listed but limited to manual flight at this time. I don’t know how soon after drone deploy might adopt it, but Litchi is always pretty quick on these kinds of things. I suspect they might also show up on Dronelink.
Any news on Mavic Mini 2 compatibility? Are there any expectations or estimates?
Related news. Now 3rd party testing starts.
Still hoping for Mini 2 support. Been trying the mission planning in Drone Deploy and it’s the best interface and app I’ve tried. Too bad I can’t fly the missions…
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