FPV Drones
In April 2022, I got to fly to North Dakota with several of Northeastern University’s Drone Club (NUAV) pilots and race drones in the Collegiate Drone Racing Competition (CDRC).
For those unfamiliar with First Person View (FPV) drone racing, pilots build a drone with a camera, wear goggles to see through that camera, and use a remote controller to manually pilot the drone.
We then fly alongside other pilots through obstacles to see who can complete a lap the fastest.
A group photo from the competition.
Racing Drone Specs 👀
The moment Ian (pilot name FlyGuyIan) flew into a net close to our pit station.
We each built our own drones and competed with pilots from around the United States! I put together my own quadrotor using the best gear I had available:
Kakute F7 Flight Controller
x4 RDG 2207 1300KV Motors
HobbyWing 4-in-1 40A ESC
ImmersionRC Ghost Atto Receiver
Eachine TX805 VTX
RunCam Racer Nano 3 Camera
HyperLite Floss 3.0 Frame
Taranis QX7 RC
FatShark HDO2 Goggles
NUAV’s awarded trophies alongside some top-performing drones.
At the end of the competition, Northeastern University placed 2nd as the fastest team! Unfortunately out of 47 pilots, I placed 40th, but for my first competition, I’m proud of the result.
The drone I competed with was not my first. In the Fall of 2020, I completed my first drone and flew it a handful of times. Through this experience, I built my fundamental knowledge of quadcopter technology that prepared me for Northeastern’s drone club and CDRC.
Competition Results and Early Beginnings
My first drone after I finished building it in my freshman dorm.
This is What Practice Looks Like
Me practicing in the Velocidrone simulator