How to use DronePoint

Plan a lawnmower-pattern waypoint mission for your DJI drone, configure terrain follow and waypoint actions, and export a KMZ file ready to load in DJI Fly.

Contents

1. Draw a polygon

Click the polygon tool in the top-right of the map (the pentagon icon), then click each corner of your field. Double-click or click the first vertex to close the shape. Use the edit tools to adjust vertices afterwards.

Use the Find a place search box at the top of the map to navigate to your location first. The map defaults to satellite view — switch to Terrain or Streets using the layer control.

2. Configure the mission

The settings panel controls how the lawnmower path is generated:

Any setting change automatically re-previews the route.

3. Terrain follow

Enable Terrain follow to vary waypoint heights so the drone maintains a consistent altitude above the actual ground rather than above the takeoff point. This is critical for hilly or sloped fields — without it the drone flies at a fixed height relative to takeoff and may be dangerously close to rising terrain.

Tip If terrain follow produces unexpected height variation, compare two elevation sources for your area. SRTM and Terrarium agree closely in most regions — large disagreements indicate data gaps in one source.

4. Takeoff reference point

The takeoff reference point is the most important setting for accurate altitude control. Every waypoint height in a DJI mission is a relative height above the takeoff point — not above sea level, and not above the field.

When the drone arms, DJI Fly records the barometric altitude at that exact spot and treats it as zero. All waypoint heights in the KMZ file are offsets from this zero. If your planned takeoff reference differs from where you actually arm the drone, every waypoint will be off by the elevation difference — potentially tens of meters on sloped terrain.

By default, DronePoint uses the first waypoint as the takeoff reference. This works when your drone takes off from inside or at the edge of the field. If your actual launch point is different — a road, a parked car, an adjacent field — set it manually:

  1. Click Set takeoff in the sidebar.
  2. Click the exact spot on the map where the drone will arm and lift off.
  3. A marker appears and the preview updates. All waypoint heights are now calculated relative to that location's elevation.
  4. To reset, click Clear takeoff to revert to first-waypoint reference.
Critical Always arm the drone at the exact location you marked as the takeoff reference. If you arm elsewhere, the altitude calculations will be off for the entire mission.
Example Your field slopes uphill. Your takeoff spot (at the road) is 15 m lower than the far end of the field. If you leave the reference at the first waypoint inside the field, the drone will believe it launched 15 m higher than it did — and will fly 15 m lower than planned over the far end. Setting the reference to your actual launch spot corrects this entirely.

5. Waypoint actions Pro

Waypoint actions tell the drone what to do when it arrives at each waypoint before moving on. DronePoint supports the full set of DJI WPML actions, configured per-mission and applied to all waypoints.

Action Description
Take photo Triggers a single photo capture. The primary action for survey and mapping missions.
Start recording Starts video recording. Pair with Stop recording at a later waypoint to capture video segments.
Stop recording Stops an active video recording.
Rotate gimbal Sets the gimbal pitch to a specific angle at this waypoint. Useful for switching between nadir and oblique capture mid-mission.
Hover Pauses at the waypoint for a set duration (seconds) before continuing. Independent of the global hover setting.
Rotate aircraft Yaws the drone to a specified heading before proceeding. Useful for oblique or facade surveys.
Compatibility Action support depends on drone model and firmware. Take photo and Rotate gimbal are supported on all WPML-compatible drones (Mini 4 Pro, Mavic 3 series, Air 3/3S, Mavic 4 Pro, Matrice 300/350). Video recording actions require onboard storage.

6. Preview and export

  1. Click Preview to render the route on the map. Numbered dots mark each waypoint — amber dots mark the start of each KMZ part. Hover any dot to see its full details.
  2. Check the height range in the Waypoint details panel — the min/max values show how much terrain correction has adjusted the flight path.
  3. Click Export KMZ to generate and download the file(s). Download links appear below the buttons.

If only one file is generated it downloads automatically. For multi-part missions, download each part file and fly them in sequence.

7. Why files split at 50 waypoints

DJI Fly and the DJI RC remote become slow or unresponsive when loading KMZ files with more than ~50 waypoints. DronePoint splits large surveys into multiple files, each continuing where the previous one ended.

Fly each part as a separate mission: complete part 1, land, load part 2, fly. Waypoints are numbered continuously across all parts so you can verify coverage on the map before each flight.

Note The 50-waypoint limit is a DJI RC performance recommendation, not a hard WPML restriction. If your controller handles larger files reliably, raise the Max waypoints / KMZ setting.

8. Load into DJI Fly

  1. Transfer the .kmz file to your DJI RC controller or mobile device via USB or DJI Assistant.
  2. Open DJI Fly, go to Waypoint missions, and tap the folder icon to import.
  3. Select the KMZ file. The route appears on the DJI Fly map for review.
  4. Position the drone at the exact takeoff reference point you set during planning, then arm and start the mission.
Safety reminder Always review the full route in DJI Fly before arming. Check for obstacles, verify airspace clearance, and maintain visual line of sight. The pilot is always responsible for safe operation.