The number of flight controller meant for First Person View (FPV), and racing drones can be significantly overwhelming, especially for beginners. There are hundreds of drone flight controllers out in the market for sale today.
While this remains to be accurate, looking around, you’ll discover that there’s only a select amount of drone controllers that fit the bill. But the moment you begin gathering clarity of what you want in a drone, your decisions become less daunting.
So, what are you supposed to look out for when in the market for the best flight controllers for first-person view and racing drones? Do printed board circuit boards and other aspects such as firmware matter? This guide explains what you ought to consider when in the market for the best flight controllers, for FPV (First Person View) and Racing Drones.
Flight Controller Processors
Central Processing Unit (CPU) of a computer called the brain. Likewise, the processor is called the brain Flight Controller. Etched perfectly on top of a printed circuit board, processors play an essential role in the flight controller’s proper functioning. The best flight controllers, especially for FPV and racing drones, contain printed circuit boards in them.
There are several processors meant for flight controllers that you can find in the market for sale. There are some with low processing power, while there are others with high processing power. The choice depends on you. If you are a beginner, you better opt for those with the lowest processing power as you climb up the ladder.
If you are not on a budget and an experienced flight controller handler hoping to win a race, then those with high processing powers would be ideal for you. FI flight controllers have the lowest processing speeds and are cheap. F7 ones are quite expensive but compensate for their massive price for high-quality and high processing speeds. They are highly ideal for first-person view and racing drones.
Again, the difference between F1, F3, F4, and F7 flight controllers is the printed circuit boards in them. The more the printed circuit boards in a flight controller, the better its functionality. For the best flight controllers for FPV and racing drones, you better go for F7 flight controllers. They are the best processors in the market, consisting of several layers of printed circuit boards.
Flight controller Firmware
Next, after the processors is the firmware. We define software as a set of instructions or programs found on a hardware device. The firmware provides the required instructions on how a device is supposed to communicate with another hardware device. (ROM) firmware stored in a read-only memory device, usually in the microprocessor’s onboard memory. In short, the firmware does work behind the scenes.
In addition to processor options that you can choose from, there is also different firmware that flight controller operators can choose to run their flight controllers. Different firmware comes with their differences. There are specializations and various features for different applications. For example, GPS-designed iNav is the designer’s backing. On the other hand, KISS is more focused on FPV and racing drones.
The next time you are in the market for some of the best flight controllers for first-person view and racing drones, make sure you go for those with the best firmware. With the best firmware, you are guaranteed better functionality, especially if you are a drone racer. If you aren’t sure which one to go for, then there’s no harm in going for the one with a vast user base.
Selecting firmware with a vast user base might come in handy, especially if you run into problems. You will be in a position to get immediate and helpful answers. For example, if there’s a problem with the printed circuit board, then the answers you get will be quite many.
Flight controller Hardware
Hardware is another essential thing to consider when shopping for the best flight controllers for first-person view and racing drones. System hardware is the physical components of an electronic device. A drone flight controller includes physical parts such as propellers, bearings, motor bell, motor stator, arm, wiring, and electronic speed controllers. Others include the landing gear, antennas, batteries, cameras, and PCBs, to mention but a few.
Hardware is vital in-flight controllers meant for first-person view and racing drones. Otherwise, there would be no drone flight controllers at all. If you understand how to take care of every component found on your flight controller, then it will be easy to maintain and repair them in the event of damage. If a unit stops functioning as intended, then mending them won’t be a problem as such.
With high-quality hardware, your flight controller will be able to control your FPV or racing drones as desired. While several hardware components, such as the ones discussed above, printed circuit boards are arguably essential. Without a high-quality printed circuit board in place, expect the poor functionality of your drone flight controller.
In the flying drone controller, the printed circuit board can distribute power. The distribution of power is mostly from the flight battery to other components found in the flight controller. Printed circuit boards are lightweight and ideal hardware components in drone flight controllers.
Flight controller Sensors
In the current rapidly growing drone market, sensor technologies that we have in place are more than often the unrecognized secret sauce. Different sensor technologies power the drone flight controllers that we have today. Sensors are essential in drone flight controllers. Sensors are devices, machines, or modules that play critical roles.
In drone flight controllers, sensors play essential roles in detecting changes or events in the environment and send information to other electronics. Nearly all flight controllers that we see around have the necessary sensors, such as Accelerometer (ACC) and Gyro (Gyroscopes). Some of the most advanced ones even have sensors such as a Magnetometer (compass) and Barometer. Barometer sensors are also known as barometric pressure sensors.
The primary role of sensors is to measure the movement and orientation of the drone. Some of the best flight controllers for FPV and racing drones are those with sensors in them. Among other components that go into making sensors, printed circuit boards are some of them. Without printed circuit boards, sensors won’t function as intended. Therefore, to ensure that your flight controller works well, make sure the correct components are installed on the printed circuit board.
Flight controller Additional Features
The best flight controller for first-person view and racing drones are those that come with some additional features in them. Some essential features that you need to watch out for include the following:
Blackbox
A BlackBox is useful when it comes to troubleshooting and tuning. A BlackBox records the BlackBox data and stores all the flight logs. These flight logs are stored either on integrated flash memory or an SD card. Many users prefer flash memory since it’s cheaper to use, though it’s limited regarding how long you’ll be able to record. Most of them will capture around 10 to 20 minutes of the flight data. Flight controllers that consist of an in-built SD card reader allow a user to insert an SD card and record for weeks.
Connector types
There are three main types of connectors that you can find in a flight controller. They are through holes, solder pads, and plastic JST connectors. Plastic JST ones are less durable, solder bust is highly robust, while through-holes are highly flexible.
Camera control
As an additional feature, camera control allows a user to configure FPV and racing drones using a radio transmitter.
Boot button
Also known as a bootloader button, this one can put the flight controller into bootloader mode upon being pressed. With this, you can seamlessly “force” flash the firmware if the standard firmware flashing isn’t working.
Soft mounting
As an additional feature, soft mounting is excellent at limiting the vibration transmitted from the drone motor to the gyroscope. Of importance to note is that there are two common types of soft mounting. There are grommets and rubber standoffs.
Summary
It can be a little bit tasking to find the best flight controller for first-person view and racing drones. Much worse, it can be even costly purchasing flight controllers with the wrong printed circuit boards in them. Printed circuit boards are essential when manufacturing a flight controller.
If you are looking to build drone flight controllers, make sure that they have high-quality PCBs in them. We at WellPCB have industry-tested and high-quality PCBs meant for drone flight controllers. Choose us for the best PCBs in the market for your next flight controller project. At your earliest convenience, contact us for immediate assistance.
