Flying a first-person view (FPV) remote controlled aircraft with goggles is an immersive experience that makes you feel as if you’re really sitting in the cockpit of the plane or quadcopter. Unfortunately, while your wearing the goggles, you’re also completely blind to the world around you. That’s why you’re supposed to have a spotter nearby to keep watch on the local meatspace while you’re looping through the air.
But what if you could have the best of both worlds? What if your goggles not only allowed you to see the video stream from your craft’s FPV camera, but you could also see the world around you. That’s precisely the idea behind mixed reality goggles such as Apple Vision Pro and Meta’s Quest, you just need to put all the pieces together. In a recent video [Hoarder Sam] shows you exactly how to pull it off, and we have to say, the results look quite compelling.
[Sam]’s approach relies on the fact that there’s already cheap analog FPV receivers out there that act as a standard USB video device, with the idea being that they let you use your laptop, smartphone, or tablet as a monitor. But as the Meta Quest 3 is running a fork of Android, these devices are conveniently supported out of the box. The only thing you need to do other than plug them into the headset is head over to the software repository for the goggles and download a video player app.
With the receiver plugged in and the application running, you’re presented with a virtual display of your FPV feed hovering in front of you that can be moved around and resized. The trick is to get the size and placement of this virtual display down to the point where it doesn’t take up your entire field of vision, allowing you to see the FPV view and the actual aircraft at the same time. Of course, you don’t want to make it too small, or else flying might become difficult.
[Sam] says he didn’t realize just how comfortable this setup would be until he started flying around with it. Obviously being able to see your immediate surroundings is helpful, as it makes it much easier to talk to others and make sure nobody wanders into the flight area. But he says it’s also really nice when bringing your bird in for a landing, as you’ve got multiple viewpoints to work with.
Perhaps the best part of this whole thing is that anyone with a Meta Quest can do this right now. Just buy the appropriate receiver, stick it to your goggles, and go flying. If any readers give this a shot, we’d love to hear how it goes for you in the comments.
I started running FPV with Epson Moverio bt-100 with external video adapter board in 2011. 10 years later I upgraded to a Moverio bt-40 for the increase in resolution and native external video input.
With the Moverio’s AR you have real world vision so youre actually FAA compliant without a spotter. Mixed reality still requires a naked eye spotter under current regulations.
If you decide to do this and your local laws require having a spotter then you will still need one, regardless of whether you do mixed reality or not. Keep that in mind. Having a spotter is, IMO, a good idea regardless because it is a second pair of eyes that can (and should) look where the pilot isn’t looking or can’t look/see.
(And don’t forget your insurance and drone registration, if required – many countries require that these days.)
Be a responsible citizen and don’t spoil this hobby for everyone else even more than it is already because of idiots doing stupid and dangerous things.
Oi!!! Where’s ya drone loicense?!?
Is there anything cheaper that can still display the usb video input in front of your eye? Maybe a monocular eyepiece so you can still see with the other eye, or some glasses where only the area of the screen is covered. There’s no essential need to replace directly looking at the surroundings with using a camera view of them and then picture in picture the actual fpv. An electronic viewfinder like the modern cameras use instead of mirrors would be fine.
What about latency of the FPV feed?
Tested it – It has about the latency that the passthrough has + a little more. Usable for slow flights but hard to steer my tinywhoop through the Apartment..
Used the UVC OTG 5,8G 56CH for 18 euros from aliexpress though..
Have you seen skylens?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogtlJ91Fc_s
you should look into the damage that can occur to the lenses in direct sunlight exposure
Except, that is sun rays will get on inside lens, of quest (just shine on inside) – it will leave burns on headset’s matrix…