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Operator Manual Skydio X2D INTL WARNING: Please read all documentation provided with your Skydio X2D. For additional safety and operating resources and information visit: Skydio.com/support Effective date: March 20, 2023 Vehicle version: 21.3.87 Enterprise Controller version: 21.3.36 Document version: 1.3...
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1-SEP-2023 settings menu, Step 2 - Select the Controller tab, Step 3 - Select Button Mapping Added info to the Flying over water section of the safety section. Skydio 1-SEP-2023 recommends a satellite count of at least 20 when flying over water.
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Change Log continued Revision Date Page Description 1-SEP-2023 Replaced security key with encryption fob 1-SEP-2023 Step 7 - updated copy to say Repeat steps 1-6 on the remaining arms Deleted copy in Step 2 and set aside - you will reuse it. New screws are contained 1-SEP-2023 in the repair kit 1-SEP-2023...
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Overview Payload Bay The Skydio X2D payload bay interface is located on the top of the drone and consists of an indented area with recessed USB Type-C electrical interface receptacle, weatherproof cover, and 4 recessed mounting nuts. The payload bay is designed to accommodate third-party payloads with the following limitations: •...
Step 3 - Select Button Mapping CAUTION: Skydio Enterprise Controller is not weatherproof. Do not operate in any precipitation, including rain, fog, snow, or similar environments. Do not rest the controller in sand, dirt or on similar terrain where particles can get trapped in the fan.
• Fly cautiously around reflective surfaces such as still water or mirrors • Before flying over water, ensure your drone has GPS lock. Skydio recommends a satellite count of at least 20 when flying over water. Launch and land your drone over a dry surface •...
• the battery lights will begin to flash WARNING: Skydio X2D batteries are seated using magnets that may potentially attract metallic debris. Prior to installing your battery, visually inspect the magnets and connector pins, to ensure that they are clean and free of debris or damage.
When the controller is powered off, you can view the controller’s state of charge by pressing the power button. WARNING: Do not fly when the Skydio Enterprise Controller battery is low. If the controller reaches low battery level when in flight, pilot the drone to a safe location and land immediately.
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Step 6 - Gently push the antennas inward to release • Guide into a vertical position Step 7 - Power on your Skydio X2D • Press and hold the power button on the battery for 3 seconds TIP: This is the suggested order of operations when assembling your X2D for the first time. It is not necessary to unfold the X2D arms and antennas prior to installing the battery and powering on the drone.
Updates from Skydio contain important enhancements and fixes designed to improve performance, optimize flight controls and features for the operation of your Skydio X2D offline system, Enterprise Controller, and Dual Charger. You can update your vehicles and Enterprise Controller in any order, however it is important that you update the Dual Charger last.
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• Allow up to five minutes for the update to complete • During this process, your controller may restart multiple times Step 9 - Verify that the version number matches the version number provided by Skydio Skydio X2D INTL - Operator Manual...
Pre-flight Configure Maps Import custom QGC and Mapbox tiles to the Skydio Enterprise Controller via a USB-C drive or SD memory card reader. Import maps Step 1 - Load your map files onto a USB-C flash drive or SD memory card...
Step 3 - Remove the Encryption Fob when the lights turn off • you only need to provision the system one time • Skydio X2D media will now be encrypted WARNING: provisioning the system for encryption pairs that particular fob to the vehicle, so it is important to store the Encryption Fob with the vehicle.
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When Disable Encryption is selected, all media captured will not be encrypted. To enable or disable encryption: Step 1 - Power on your Skydio Enterprise Controller • Wait for your X2D to connect Step 2 - Select the INFO menu...
Minimal or Disabled obstacle avoidance settings are used to navigate tight spaces and should only be used if you are an experienced pilot. Skydio recommends turning down Controller throttle, roll and pitch sensitivity to the lowest setting and proceeding at a max speed of 2 mph (1 m/s).
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Return Speed - set the speed the drone will fly when returning Low Battery- Skydio will automatically return to a Home Point when the battery capacity is sufficient to return and land. Setting persists across flights and power cycles. Enable within the Return Behaviors menu •...
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• Uses GPS sensors instead of vision system to navigate WARNING: GPS Night Flight mode requires flying without obstacle avoidance. Skydio X2D may drift slightly when in GPS Night Flight mode, take extra caution when flying in this mode and do not stand near the vehicle.
Skills Skydio offers a range of manual and autonomous controls called flight skills. Select your desired skill and Skydio X2 will intelligently fly itself to get the best shot. Access available skills by selecting the Skill Menu and adjust the controls by selecting the Skills settings.
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Step 8 - Launch To Land: There are no autonomous landing features while in Attitude Mode. You will need to manually disarm as Skydio X2D will not automatically detect touchdown. Step 1 - Fly to a clear, level, and safe landing area...
Skydio fleet. ATAK provides geospatial information about your drones and controllers for increased situational awareness in the field. To access the Skydio ATAK offline integration, ensure that you are using the correct Enterprise Controller model. Locate the model on the back of the Enterprise Controller. Compatible units will include SBR or S at the end of the model number.
3. Inspect battery - Skydio X2D uses magnets to seat the battery that may attract metallic debris. Visually inspect the battery and connector pins to ensure they are free of debris and damage. Verify the battery is fully seated in the vehicle prior to takeoff.
• X2D will arm and ascend to 10 ft (3 m) and hover in place NOTE: Skydio X2D requires a stable GPS connection to fly greater than 33 ft (10 m) above the launch point. To fly higher than 33 ft (10 m), lateral flight in all directions may be required to establish heading.
* HDR is not supported in all video resolutions and framerates. ** Skydio X2D can record video in either AVC (H.264) or HEVC (H.265). Different mobile devices and personal computers have different compatibility with these encoding standards. Be sure to choose the encoding standard that is best suited to your desired workflow.
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Flight Superzoom Zoom out to an equirectangular view of your surroundings. Skydio X2D uses six, 4k navigation cameras to create this omni-directional view in real-time, allowing you to maximize your in-flight situational awareness. To zoom out to Superzoom, place your finger on the right controller wheel, then pull it to the right.
Flight Map view Select the map icon for map view, for the GPS location of your controller, Skydio X2D, and the launch are all indicated on the map. • Select the map icon to exit map view • Long-press on the map and select Fly Here Now from the menu. Skydio X2D will warn you if the selected...
X2 will capture continuous shots along a user defined spline with complex, cinematic, and KeyFrame smooth camera motion. Uses Skydio Beacon or the Enterprise Controller as a GPS tracking device. Scout allows you to follow and track a GPS position at long-range without manually locking onto a Scout subject.
Flight Orbit Point Skydio X2D will rotate around a user-selected point-of-interest in either a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction, keeping the point in the center of the frame enabling situational awareness, surveillance, and over-watch of any structure or locale. Step 1 - Select Orbit Point from the Skills Menu...
To visually track a subject, select the Track in Place skill, identify a subject of interest, then fly the drone to within 100 ft (30 m) if your subject is a person or 140 ft (40 m) if your subject is a vehicle so that Skydio X2 can detect it.
• If a waypoint is added after a mission is complete, the flight will restart before including the newly added waypoint NOTE: Waypoints are created using GPS coordinates. Skydio X2D must have a good GPS signal prior to executing a waypoint mission.
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Waypoints Adjust the Waypoint settings menu to further customize the mission behavior. Speed - set the speed at which Skydio X2D will move between waypoints. Lost Comms - defines the lost link protocol if the signal connection to the controller is disrupted during a mission: •...
Scout flight skill simplifies the tracking of moving subjects to offer real-time situational awareness. Scout allows you to track and follow a GPS position at long range, with the ability to adjust and reposition your drone on the fly. Skydio Scout supports GPS tracking of the Skydio Enterprise Controller or Skydio Beacon.
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• Default maximum range value is 246 ft (75 m) • Skydio X2 can not manually fly or track past the maximum range • If the inflight position is beyond the Maximum Range value, X2 will attempt to fly towards the tracked subject at...
Enable GPS Night Flight when flying in low-light conditions. When in this mode, Skydio X2D will disable obstacle avoidance and use GPS sensors, instead of its vision system, to navigate. Skydio X2D will display an alert message if the environment is too dark to fly using the vision navigation system and will prompt you to fly using GPS Night Flight.
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Take extra caution when piloting the vehicle to avoid obstacles and stay clear of people. Visibility Improve visibility by enabling infrared or visible strobe lights. Skydio X2D strobe lights meet the FAA requirement of being visible at a distance of 3 statute miles.
Home Point or specified location NOTE: If the return type is set to GPS but the Skydio X2 enters a GPS denied situation your drone will return to the last known GPS point using vision navigation. If a GPS link is not re-established your drone will return to the launch point using vision navigation.
NOTE: setting a Home Point is only available during the day, you cannot set a Home Point at night. Ensure that there are no obstacles (e.g., people, animals, etc.) in the drone’s return pathway. Skydio X2 will retain its current obstacle avoidance setting when returning.
Be careful not to accidentally touch the controller joysticks while X2 is performing a case landing. To reduce the chances of canceling a Case Landing due to an accidental nudge, Skydio will require one second of joystick inputs to unlock from the case. Re-initiate a Case Landing by tapping the blue case icon.
Step 2 - Select your desired media Step 3 - Select delete INFO: Connecting via USB to a computer that does not supply charging power will cause Skydio X2D to run off of battery power and may drain the battery.
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• Decrypted media will remain decrypted INFO: Windows computer, your Skydio X2D will serve as an external drive. For Mac, use the Photos app to transfer your footage to your desired location (the Photos app is included with any current Mac, or are available from the macOS App Store).
Dismantle Skydio X2D Step 1 - Power off Skydio X2D • Press and hold the battery button for three seconds Step 2 - Power off Skydio Enterprise Controller • Press and hold the power button for three seconds • Select Power Off...
Skydio X2 never had GPS • If Skydio X2D never obtains a strong GPS signal, you may not be able to set a Home Point, fly to a waypoint, or return to Controller/Home. If your Return Type is set to Vision, however, you will be able to reliably return to the Launch Point using the vision navigation system.
Low battery When Skydio X2D battery is low, there will be a series of notifications and actions to ensure a safe landing: • X2D will assess your altitude and distance from the Home Point, and warn you when it is time to return home. It is recommended that you initiate a return or land at this time, however you can choose to keep flying.
60%. This self- • While charging, the Skydio X2D or X2D Dual Charger discharge helps retain capacity over the life of the should be in an open area as it is normal for the battery and may take several days to complete.
Arm clamps If during your pre-flight inspection you observe that the arm clamps on Skydio X2D are not tight, you should inspect and tighten the tension bolts on the clamps. This process involves loosening and tightening the tension bolt set screws.
WARNING: Propeller blades are sharp. Handle with care. Always ensure X2D is turned off before replacing the propellers to avoid injury. Do NOT attempt to replace the propellers while the Skydio X2D is powered on. Doing so is an extreme safety risk and may lead to serious bodily harm or injury.
Format memory cards Skydio X2D has two SD memory cards, one for storing media and another for recording flight logs. Each card will need to be formatted separately as-needed. Before formatting your SD card, please ensure any data has been copied or saved on another device.
• you cannot export and charge your controller simultaneously Step 2 - Select the INFO menu Step 3 - Select Skydio Support Logs Step 4 - Insert a memory drive into the controller Step 5 - Select Export to drive Step 6 - Navigate to the folder you want to export your flight logs to and select Allow.
Resetting Skydio Enterprise Controller If your Skydio Enterprise Controller is in an unresponsive or other off-nominal state, you may need to perform a hard reset. This will power off the controller and allow you to reboot, hopefully resolving any issues.
Troubleshooting Weak signal For best signal quality, always maintain a direct line of sight between the controller and Skydio X2D. When flying at close range high altitude, point the controller cover toward the drone for maximum wireless performance. When flying at max range, point the controller cover toward the drone while also keeping the controller as far away from your body as possible.
Skydio will either repair, replace, or refund your Skydio X2D at its own discretion. Warranty benefits are in addition to rights provided under local consumer laws. You may be required to furnish proof of purchase details when making a claim under this warranty.
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Changes or modifications not expressly approved by Skydio could void the user’s authority to operate these devices. These devices have been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules.
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