Base Station Backpack
July 2013
Contents
Introduction
Because I want to be able to travel and do some Quad Aerial Videos I decided to build a ground station backpack. I have seen a few and found a great video from Juz70 on his backpack build so I took the components I had already collected and started looking for an appropriate backpack. This sounds easy enough but it turns out, not so much. The first thing I needed was a pack that would completely open so I could build or buy a patch antenna inside and open it up completely to the sky. The second feature I needed was the ability to hold all the stuff and hopefully clips, hooks or straps that I can use to hold the quad itself. What I ended up with was a pack from SwissGear ($69) which was designed for a skateboarder. It has all the appropriate pockets, zippers all the way open and has a pair of straps to hold a skateboard or a Quad!
 
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| The pack all loaded up |
What's Inside
Inside my pack you will find the following:
| Item (as of June 22, 2012) | Price | Quant | Sub-Tot |
| 8dBi Patch Antenna or IBCrazy Cross Hair Antenna | $ 46.99 | x1 | $ 46.99 |
| 1.3ghz Receiver | $ 49.99 | x2 | $ 99.98 |
| Eagle Systems - Eagle Eyes Diversity | $ 99.99 | x1 | $ 99.99 |
| FatShark Base Goggles | $249.99 | x1 | $249.99 |
| RMRC FPV1000 DVR | $ 99.95 | x1 | $ 99.95 |
| Nanotech 3300mAh 3S 35C Lipo Pack | $ 21.25 | x1 | $ 21.25 |
| 8inch RMRC LCD Monitor | $ 99.95 | x1 | $ 99.95 |
| Polaroid 50" Tripod | $ 19.95 | x1 | $ 19.95 |
| Total- | $738.05 |
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| All unpacked (shown with the IBCrazy Cross Hair Antenna) |
The Build
The build was very simple. I had a piece of 1/8" melanine in the shop so I cut it to fit in the most rear, full compartment. This is what I mount the antennas, RX number 1 and the Eagle Eyes Diversity module to. I added Scotch Dual Lock (super velcro) to the board to mount the diversity module and RX. This panel then fits snugly in the pack and keeps the patch antenna high enough to aim well.
Additionally I built a simple RX mount on the 8" monitor that doubles as a battery mount. The last bit was I hot wired (burned) a few holes through the pack in various places for cabling.
About the Antennas
Because I use this pack for both my Penguin FPV plane and my Quads, I have different antennas to use. The Penguin runs a circular polarized (CP) Clover Leaf on the plane and two CP antennas on the ground station. These are an IBCrazy Cross Hair on RX1 and an IBCrazy Skew Planar on RX2. The Quad uses a standard antenna on the VTx, an RMRC 8dbi patch on RX1 and a standard on RX2.
The reason for the different set-ups is toughness and range. The Penguin has much longer range and altitude and the CP antennas work well for this. The quad spends nearly all its time inside 2000 feet (~600m) and it is much easier to carry the standard antennas without damaging anything. The CP Clover Leaf and Skew Planar are made from thin wire and are easily damaged.
Parting Shots
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| Set to go! |
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| Travel Ready! |
See Also
Vendors used for this Project
Comments? Questions?
