RotorDrone contributor and Roswell Flight Test Crew founder Patrick Sherman interviews Fluidity CEO Scott Parazynski at CES. Their joystick controller, the FTAviator, is compatible with all DJI products and won RotorDrone’s Innovation award this year at CES. All aircraft maneuvers are controlled with the right hand: pitch and roll with conventional joystick inputs, yaw using joystick rotation and throttle with a unique, cantilever mechanism employing the pilot’s thumb and index finger. The left hand controls camera settings, including: taking still photographs and capturing video, camera settings as well as gimbal pitch, in addition to regulating aircraft speed and an auxiliary control button. The FTAviator is powered by an internal battery with a five-hour life. It also incorporates a situational awareness display above the thumb, which indicates the relative bearing of the aircraft and its yaw orientation.
