Export to Litchi

Chris Reudenbach

2026-05-04

Source: vignettes/uavRmp_3.Rmd

Introduction

Originally, both the planning and output of the control files with uavRmp was intended for terrain and surfaces with high relief energy. The package supported direct upload to the 3DR Solo drone and the CSV based interface of the Litchi software for DJI drones, respectively.

At the time this workflow was designed, Litchi was mainly used as a waypoint execution and mission management tool. Systematic mapping flights, terrain-aware planning, and 3D preview functionality had to be prepared externally. In this context, uavRmp provided a relevant planning layer by generating terrain-aware survey routes and exporting them as Litchi-compatible CSV control files.

This role has changed substantially. Since the introduction of the new Litchi Hub in 2025, Litchi itself provides browser-based flight planning, area mapping for photogrammetry, Google Earth based 3D planning, 2D/3D flight simulation, KML/KMZ import for mapping areas, and improved mission management. Litchi also supports user-provided elevation data for mission planning. In the classic Mission Hub workflow, elevation data can be imported as Digital Elevation Models in Esri ASCII Grid format (.asc) using the WGS-84 coordinate system. In the newer Litchi Hub, additional map and overlay functionality is available, including GeoTIFF overlays.

Consequently, the Litchi export functionality in uavRmp is no longer required for standard rectangular or polygon-based area mapping missions under ordinary terrain conditions. For many routine DJI mapping applications, such missions can now be created directly in Litchi Hub.

The uavRmp workflow remains relevant for specialised use cases, for example when flight lines must be generated from a custom terrain model, when terrain-following behaviour has to be controlled explicitly before import into a flight app, when reproducible mission generation from R/GIS data is required, or when survey geometry has to be derived from external geospatial analysis rather than drawn manually in a web interface.

PixHawk based UAVs

The PixHawk based UAVs can be flown directly from QGroundControl.

Note: If a higher resolved terrain model is to be taken into account for flight planning, uavRmp must be used beforehand to perform this terrain analysis. The generated control file must then be reloaded into QGroundControl as a waypoint file and can then be used as a flight control file.

Open the control file via QGroundControl or one of its derivatives and proceed as usual.

3DR Solo:

solo_upload("export_1001_solo.waypoints")

DJI UAVs as supported by Litchi

For DJI consumer drones, Litchi remains a powerful and comparatively inexpensive flight control and mission planning environment. The output of both QGroundControl and uavRmp planned surveys can be exported as a Litchi CSV control file. After upload or import, the flights are available via the Litchi Mission Hub or the newer Litchi Hub.

For the classic Mission Hub workflow, open Litchi Mission Hub and click on Missions -> Import. Then navigate to the generated control file, for example firstSurvey_1001.csv. To store the mission in the cloud, click Missions -> Save.

For the newer Litchi Hub workflow, open Litchi Hub. Standard area mapping missions can often be planned directly in the browser using the built-in Area Mapping tools. Use the uavRmp export only when the mission geometry, altitude model, or terrain-following logic has been generated externally and must be transferred into Litchi as a reproducible control file.

Current practical relevance of the Litchi export

The Litchi export should now be understood as a compatibility and special-purpose interface rather than as the default planning workflow for all DJI mapping flights.

Use direct Litchi Hub planning when:

  • the survey area can be drawn or imported as a simple mapping polygon,
  • the required flight is a standard photogrammetry grid,
  • overlap, speed, gimbal angle, and capture settings can be configured directly in Litchi,
  • the available Litchi elevation and preview functions are sufficient.

Use uavRmp before Litchi when:

  • flight planning depends on a custom high-resolution DEM,
  • terrain-following altitude logic must be computed explicitly,
  • survey lines are derived from GIS analysis,
  • the mission must be reproducible from R code,
  • flight geometry must be generated automatically for many sites,
  • the terrain or object surface has high relief energy and manual browser-based planning is insufficient.

In short, Litchi Hub now covers many standard mapping and 3D planning tasks directly. uavRmp remains useful where the flight plan is not merely drawn, but computed from geospatial data.