One main limitation I see with my Mavic Air 2 drone is that signal drops quickly when line of sight between drone and pilot is blocked. For example:
- drone signal drops sharply when drone is lowered while far away
- drone signal drops sharply when there is an object between the pilot and drone that is higher than drone's height (i.e. tall building, mountain, etc.)
- drone signal drops sharply when pilot's altitude is lower than surrounding objects (i.e. ground level near taller buildings)

The main problem with all of the above cases is line of sight, which needs to be unobstructed between the drone and the pilot. Admittedly this idea is somewhat complex to implement, but could be a game-changer if implemented. What if the drone (at operator's request) could release a tiny sub-drone whose only purpose is to serve as the antenna (repeater) for the communication? This sub-drone module could be as small as the cheap micro-drones, and its position could even be controlled manually by the pilot (to simplify software). Most common use cases would be:

- raising the submodule higher temporarily to create a clean line of sight to the operator while the drone is descending far away
- leaving the submodule midway between the operator and drone while the drone flies further out (i.e. around a building)

I understand that this would introduce new issues, including sub-module's own battery life which could result in it falling and losing the drone but these can be mitigated by limiting time the sub-module can stay separated before automatically forcing return-to-drone and limiting range between the sub-module and drone.

According to local laws and regulations, which only allow VLOS and a specific transmit power this will be impossible for the private hobby drones.
Even if DJI has implemented Occusync 2.0, which is btw the best remote link on the market, it is limited by the hf physics, because the higher the frequency
the more it will be disturbed and affected by obstacles.

Nevertheless it is a good idea.

What you are proposing is too complex and expensive to make any sense in a consumer drone.
And it's not going to be legally useable without a BVLOS waiver.

I see, thanks for clarifying.

The concept is interesting, but would contravene the laws on keeping the drone in line of sight at all times. I like your thinking, but I doubt your idea will go much further

So weed is legal in your state, correct?The concept is crap, deploying mini drone, return to drone, you can see a micro drone at a distance and fly it separately from the primary, how does this solve VLOS?

An easy way to increase signal range is to find an elevated places to operate your drone from.  Operating from a place that is higher than the area you want to fly aids in both signal quality and distance.  It does so by increasing LOS and the need for your signal to pass through objects as frequently.

Hello there melheor. Thank you for reaching out and for these information you have posted. The signal between the drone and the remote controller is most reliable when the antennas are positioned in relation to the drone as depicted below. Thank you and fly safe always.