More and more areas of our lives are being conquered by drones. Therefore, it was only a matter of time before drones would also be found in sports. In the beginning, racing drones were designed and tested by individual hobbyists, but now such drones are produced by specialized companies. The racing drones are lighter, smaller and more maneuverable than conventional camera drones and can reach over 200 km/h.
What exactly is meant by a drone race?
Drone racing is an event where drone owners hold indoor or outdoor races. This happens, for example, in empty warehouses, parking garages, parks or meadows. Drone racing is also called FPV racing in addition to drone racing. The abbreviation FPV stands for “First Person View” and means that the participants of the race perform a flight from the perspective of a pilot with appropriate video goggles.
During the race, the participants / pilots do not watch from the ground what the drone does in the air, but they control the device live and see everything from the view of the quadrocopter. The drones have to be steered through a course and are of course faster and more maneuverable than an ordinary drone.
What is a quadrocopter?
A quadrocopter is a drone with 4 rotor blades and it belongs to the so-called multicopters. The quadrocopter (quadcopter) is the most common form of copter. However, there are also tricopters with only 3 rotor blades, hexacopters with 6 or octocopters with 8 rotor blades. The rotor blades are driven by small electric motors. In each case, two motors rotate clockwise and the other two motors rotate counterclockwise.
Which drones are suitable for FPV racing?
If you want to buy a flying object for racing, you can choose between a professional, expensive racing drone or the cheaper FPV racing quads. The DJI FPV Combo is the first racing drone with goggles for beginners and offers ease of use and many convenience features.
The new DJI Avata from drone manufacturer DJI is also particularly interesting. It is the ideal drone for racing enthusiasts. The FPV remote control is revised and the new FPV video goggles – DJI-Googles 2 is included with the purchase. Intuitive maneuvering and control is possible with the DJI Motion Controller.
FPV System & Technology
With this technology, which makes it possible to follow the “first person” flight action, high-quality components should be used right from the start. They can be used well for later models and add to the fun of FPV racing. The video goggles are the most important and most expensive part of a racing drone. Good goggles include the Fatshark goggles, DJI Google’s goggles, or the Orqa goggles. A good camera is also necessary in FPV racing, for good image quality and lighter weight.
