Gimbal Malfunction - No crash

[ChrisTranMedia]

Desperate for some guidance here! This Mavic has been flying perfect since I pre-ordered at the launch. Couldn't be happier - until this week. Had flown the drone a few times that day, drove to another spot and forgot to remove the gimbal on power up (not the first time but not at all a regular occurrence). Upon realizing the mistake I pulled it off noticing the gimbal was pointing the camera in weird position and now the app reads the obstruction and overload warning.

VIDEO:

The audio doesn't record with the iPhone but I'm pretty sure the start up sound (musical chime) is now different. This Mavic has never crashed or come into contact with water.

Tried everything in the book to remedy this including DJI's list:

1. Make sure all firmware are updated.
2. Perform IMU Calibration:
Battery is greater 50%
1. Turn on RC and Connect to Mobile device.
2. Place the AC on a level surface with the arms folded.
3. Turn the AC.
4. Launch DJI Go app.
5. Go to MC settings > Advanced Settings> Sensors> IMU Calibration> Start Calibration
**FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS ON DJI GO APP**
6. Calibrate in 5 different directions one after another (follow the direction on DJI Go app)
NOTE:
*Make sure not to start the motors with the Combinations Sticks Command (CSC)
*IMU Calibration will fail if the aircraft is not positioned according to the instruction on DJI GO app.
*If calibration fails, restart the aircraft and calibrate the IMU again.
3. Gimbal Calibration:
Run the DJI Go App > Enter camera view > Tap on drop down menu(three dots at the upper right corner) > Select camera icon > tap Gimbal Auto Calibration.
4. Reset camera settings in your DJI Go APP.
5. Format SD Card.
6. Try to capture another video (see if the trouble still occurs).


Any help would be greatly appreciated! I have a repair email set up with DJI but would love to just fix it on my own. Thank you!

 

[John Locke]

This appears to be a common problem, given the number of postings for "Gimbal Obstruction" symptoms. My Mavic just developed a similiar problem and my Mavic has never been crashed,dropped or mistreated. All of a sudden I pull it out and the gimbal cannot complete the startup exercise when the craft if first turned on. Every 30 seconds it will try again with the exercise, but it won't complete, I get a gimbal obstruction notice suggesting to make sure the gimbal lock is removed, which it is. Pretty strange, this craft has been flawless since I got it Feb 13th. I hasn't got that many flight hours as I don't fly it that much due to my P4 having a better camera. I'm waiting for the new goggles to be released to decide if I want to keep it or not.

 

[ChrisTranMedia]

This appears to be a common problem, given the number of postings for "Gimbal Obstruction" symptoms. My Mavic just developed a similiar problem and my Mavic has never been crashed,dropped or mistreated. All of a sudden I pull it out and the gimbal cannot complete the startup exercise when the craft if first turned on. Every 30 seconds it will try again with the exercise, but it won't complete, I get a gimbal obstruction notice suggesting to make sure the gimbal lock is removed, which it is. Pretty strange, this craft has been flawless since I got it Feb 13th. I hasn't got that many flight hours as I don't fly it that much due to my P4 having a better camera. I'm waiting for the new goggles to be released to decide if I want to keep it or not.

I finally got a reply having sent my drone back to DJI and they're asking for $300+ for repairs. I replied with a list of youtube videos showing the exact some error - which is starting to sound more and more like a software update related issue. Hoping they accept responsibility of the fault.

 

[John Locke]

I finally got a reply having sent my drone back to DJI and they're asking for $300+ for repairs. I replied with a list of youtube videos showing the exact some error - which is starting to sound more and more like a software update related issue. Hoping they accept responsibility of the fault.

So are they saying you crashed it? Why are they saying it's not defective under warranty?

 

[Fulcrum 1]

Failure to remove the gimbal clamp whilst the gimbal motors are powered up and under load will result in excessive heat. More than likely, the gimbal motor is damaged, they are charging you for a gimbal/camera replacement.

 

[ChrisTranMedia]

So are they saying you crashed it? Why are they saying it's not defective under warranty?

Quote Date: 04-06-17
Remarks: Dear Customer, Unfortunately, damage that is not caused by a product malfunction or is out of the warranty period is not covered by DJI aftersales policy. Damage not caused by product malfunction. We'll either repair it or replace it with a product that's new or equivalent to new in both performance and reliability after payment has been received. For more information, please visit (After-Sales Service Policies - DJI) - DJI North America


Item Quantity Unit Price（USD） Total Price（USD）
Mavic Pro Gimbal & Camera 1 179.00 179.00
Service Charge 2 65.00/H 130.00
Freight: 0.00
Total Amount: 309.00
DJI Care deduction： 0.00
Total Payment: 309.00

 

[ChrisTranMedia]

Failure to remove the gimbal clamp whilst the gimbal motors are powered up and under load will result in excessive heat. More than likely, the gimbal motor is damaged, they are charging you for a gimbal/camera replacement.

I thought this was a possibility as well - which totally makes sense. The craziest thing ever was I had overnighted another Mavic from B&H to myself to bring to a project I was traveling to and when it arrived the day before my flight I took it out of the box, updated the software and the gimbal went into the exact same malfunction. Mind blown. Return that right away and found many examples online of the exact same error:

Original Mavic (currently at repair center):
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/66156513/IMG_1669.MOV

Brand new Mavic recorded after taken out of the box:https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/66156513/IMG_1751.MOV

Online examples of the same problem:

shown at 2:46

shown at 1:06

 

[Hammer]

Mine began doing the same thing out of the blue. Any resolution yet?

 

[ChrisTranMedia]

Mine began doing the same thing out of the blue. Any resolution yet?

After about a month of 20 unanswered emails and phone calls to their customer service line where someone promised to call/email me back asap which I received no follow up, the status on my repair changed and I got this email:

"Your product sent back qualifies for repair under warranty. Repair will be finished within three to six business days."

So in the end, no rhyme or reason for successfully getting DJI to repair this malfunction. Also, the drone I was sent in return was brand new. Definitely have not updated firmware!

 

[Hammer]

Thanks for the update. Im going to try a roll back on firmware before I resort to sending it in.

 

[John Locke]

After about a month of 20 unanswered emails and phone calls to their customer service line where someone promised to call/email me back asap which I received no follow up, the status on my repair changed and I got this email:

"Your product sent back qualifies for repair under warranty. Repair will be finished within three to six business days."

So in the end, no rhyme or reason for successfully getting DJI to repair this malfunction. Also, the drone I was sent in return was brand new. Definitely have not updated firmware!

That's EXACTLY what happened with my Mavic in April. After asking them to justify wanting to charge me to repair my "Gimbal Obstruction" flaw, they re-evaluated the drone and found nothing had been harmed in any way. My craft looked like new when I sent it in, flown 50 times, 90% hand caught landings. They also sent me a brand new craft with different serial number that needed to be activated. It took about 4wks to finally get the craft back. During this time I called twice and chatted online twice with DJI Cerritos. The new craft worked fine, and I just recently flew it with the DJI goggles, which worked good.

 

[ChrisTranMedia]

That's EXACTLY what happened with my Mavic in April. After asking them to justify wanting to charge me to repair my "Gimbal Obstruction" flaw, they re-evaluated the drone and found nothing had been harmed in any way. My craft looked like new when I sent it in, flown 50 times, 90% hand caught landings. They also sent me a brand new craft with different serial number that needed to be activated. It took about 4wks to finally get the craft back. During this time I called twice and chatted online twice with DJI Cerritos. The new craft worked fine, and I just recently flew it with the DJI goggles, which worked good.

Did you update the firmware? I'm not trusting it at the moment but I could just be overreacting. Also, what are the true advantages to updating - like does it really even matter?

 

[ChrisTranMedia]

Thanks for the update. Im going to try a roll back on firmware before I resort to sending it in.

Let me know how this goes! I tried this on both the malfunction Mavics to no help. The glitch seemed to be different, but inoperable nonetheless.

 

[John Locke]

Did you update the firmware? I'm not trusting it at the moment but I could just be overreacting. Also, what are the true advantages to updating - like does it really even matter?

I never update firmware unless there's a compelling reason, and it's been thoroughly validated by this forum. That's why I don't like sending my craft in for repair, they seem to always replace the craft with new firmware. DJI has a nasty habit of releasing firmware that isn't fully tested. They also add things that many pilots don't want and never tell you until you discover them. Don't get me wrong, I love DJI products, but the company isn't run like an American company where software integrity can be assumed from countless hours of testing and thorough usage before released to the public.

 

[Landlord]

The gimbal obstruct malfunction is a known defect affecting up to 5% of the Mavics shipped at the beginning of this year.

It's totally on DJI but they are being huge cunts about making it right. Very demonstrative of corporate values that just don't match the global marketplace.

It will be DJIs undoing as soon as a competitor catches up with them in R&D. If I could get my money back for my Mavic and buy a working product of comparable function from a competitor I'd do it in a heartbeat.

Quote Date: 04-06-17
Remarks: Dear Customer, Unfortunately, damage that is not caused by a product malfunction or is out of the warranty period is not covered by DJI aftersales policy. Damage not caused by product malfunction. We'll either repair it or replace it with a product that's new or equivalent to new in both performance and reliability after payment has been received. For more information, please visit (After-Sales Service Policies - DJI) - DJI North America


Item Quantity Unit Price（USD） Total Price（USD）
Mavic Pro Gimbal & Camera 1 179.00 179.00
Service Charge 2 65.00/H 130.00
Freight: 0.00
Total Amount: 309.00
DJI Care deduction： 0.00
Total Payment: 309.00