FPV Combat
What is FPV Combat? In a nutshell: aerial combat of RC aircraft that are observed from the 'pilot' perspective. It's different to long existing 'ESA Combat' (or 'ACES') - where areoplanes are dragging special streams, which pilots try to cut each other while fighting. Rather than streams - a IR sensors and diodes are used - similar to the 'Laser Tag' game.
To start you need a RC flying model (preferably matching one of existing classes, but for home fun anything will do) with FPV gear (camera + goggles) and FPV Combat system. This system is mounted on board, and it equippes your model with sensor and IR diodes (which act as 'guns') and a board that controlls the game and communicates with the rest of the aircraft (which allows to add game parameters to the display in goggles - OSD, or other effects like randomly shaking the steering planes upon being hit by an oponent). On top of that - you need to add a small 433MHz radio communication module, so model can talk to each other. This allows models to 'know' who and when is firing a shot, and who might be hit at the time. Based on that - a score is calculated, and in case you received a hit - your 'HP' will decrease.
I had multiple projects in this, FPV Combat is now divided into two main classes: Warbirds (IIWW fighters) and Basic/Raputs (small, triangle-shaped 'flying wings' that are based on a design called 'Raptus'). Currently I am only participating in that second class - I find these wings compact, simple, cheap, easy to fix, fast and ensuring that everyone has similar flight parameters.
Below you'll find some random pictures of last 2 championships (in 2024 it was held in Weilmünster, Germany, and the year befor it was in Brzeziny, Poland), and an example footage of what is being seen in the goggles - you can observe how the score are displayed, and how the dealt and received hits are being visualised.
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