A Basic Optical Lidar-Based FPV Drone Sport Configuration

This study introduces a basic approach to designing, implementing, and assessing a specialized quadcopter with altitude-hold stabilization, specifically designed for first-person view (FPV) drone racing pilot training. The quadcopter is designed to tackle the challenges of flying and maintaining flight altitude during air hover by utilizing the features of the F405 Flight Controller (FC) stack and the Mateksys Optical Flow 3901-L0X Lidar Sensor. The methodology involved thoroughly selecting components, integrating hardware, and configuring software, specifically emphasizing tweaking the Proportional–Integral–Derivative (PID) parameters for altitude control. Exceptional results were observed in the experimental flight test, which aimed to simulate conditions encountered in FPV racing. The altitude-hold stabilized quadcopter repeatedly demonstrated precise altitude control, strong stability when undergoing rapid changes in altitude, and a high level of response to pilot inputs. The present study contributes to the progress of FPV drone racing technology and facilitates newbie FPV racers into the sport. Integrating the F405 FC stack and Mateksys Optical Flow 3901-L0X Lidar Sensor exemplifies the possibility of the hardware and software configurations. Moreover, this study provides insights into the broader range of applications for altitude control and stabilization algorithms, demonstrating the versatility and accuracy of these systems in practical situations.