Flying indoors

[r4nd0m]

I tried to fly indoors today and hence have disabled all sensors to not interfere - unfortunately the Mavic behaved the opposite really ...

I fly a lot of stuff indoors from other drones to helicopters so I wouldnt consider myself not being proficient ...

however, it seemed like the Mavic developed a mind of its own at one stage, from pushing back from an obstacle to landing itself, wanting to ascent again though I tried to keep the throttle shut etc ...

jumping on the DJI chat only returned the option to get it sent in for diagnosis ... so I thought I have a look at the logs to see if I can spot something ...

well ...

its starts off with Atti mode and an assisted takeoff - not sure if this is expected, indoors with no GPS I would expect something like normal mode and surely no assisted take off ...

at the point it gets really awkward I can see it flicking from ATTI to GPS - barometer and GPS altitude being well off potentially explaining why it self landed or tried to recover though I had throttle shut already ...


all in all looks all a bit odd - question obviously: is there an option to completely disable everything and being able to just fly it indoors without any interference by anything the DJI puts into the firmware?

cheers
r4n

 

[DesertWindAero]

I tried to fly indoors today and hence have disabled all sensors to not interfere - unfortunately the Mavic behaved the opposite really ...

I fly a lot of stuff indoors from other drones to helicopters so I wouldnt consider myself not being proficient ...

however, it seemed like the Mavic developed a mind of its own at one stage, from pushing back from an obstacle to landing itself, wanting to ascent again though I tried to keep the throttle shut etc ...

jumping on the DJI chat only returned the option to get it sent in for diagnosis ... so I thought I have a look at the logs to see if I can spot something ...

well ...

its starts off with Atti mode and an assisted takeoff - not sure if this is expected, indoors with no GPS I would expect something like normal mode and surely no assisted take off ...

at the point it gets really awkward I can see it flicking from ATTI to GPS - barometer and GPS altitude being well off potentially explaining why it self landed or tried to recover though I had throttle shut already ...


all in all looks all a bit odd - question obviously: is there an option to completely disable everything and being able to just fly it indoors without any interference by anything the DJI puts into the firmware?

cheers
r4n

Something is definitely wrong. Talk to DJI support.


Sent from my iPhone using MavicPilots

 

[ablack]

In deference to the post above from DesertWindAero, something is definitely wrong with the Mavic and the ability fly indoors. The drones keep bouncing all over from OPTI to ATTI or partial GPS to OPTI or ATTI or any other combination you can come up with and the drone then becomes unstable, unresponsive and uncontrollable usually leading to crashes for even experienced pilots. This is a fault of the product, firmware or software, but bottom line is an issue with this product and DJI either needs to fix this or quit advertising and touting their vision sensor technology.

 

[r4nd0m]

Well thats what I think and to me it looks like all the fancy bits cant really be disabled - I jumped on a chat session but all that was offered was the option to send it in to diagnose it ... I dont need to diagnose it looking at the logs the first time I can see that something doesnt add up here ... people reporting sensors still acting or preventing flying close to objects or climbing above a certain hight tells me there is more active than potentially should - so software- but where to turn to get this addressed? I can fly a 700 size helicopter in my lounge or a hand size 15£ model quad but not the Mavic without acting up?

 

[alexanderguelph]

I had a similar issue just a couple hours ago which I am about to post about. Tried hovering with poor GPS signal to see about stability. Decided to bring it down right away but even holding the throttle closed it came down to the ground, touched the ground skittered along sideways then lifted up suddenly and accelerated sideways and backwards lightly crashing into a low wall. I was lucky, there was no damage to the drone outside a few broken props but I am baffled that holding the throttle all the way down for over five seconds did not shut the rotors off.



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[JohnP]

I had a similar incident yesterday. Took off indoors, got spooked by some odd behavior. I was able to get it close enough to me to grab. Don't think I'll be trying to fly indoors again.

 

[alexanderguelph]

In deference to the post above from DesertWindAero, something is definitely wrong with the Mavic and the ability fly indoors. The drones keep bouncing all over from OPTI to ATTI or partial GPS to OPTI or ATTI or any other combination you can come up with and the drone then becomes unstable, unresponsive and uncontrollable usually leading to crashes for even experienced pilots. This is a fault of the product, firmware or software, but bottom line is an issue with this product and DJI either needs to fix this or quit advertising and touting their vision sensor technology.

I read in a different thread that there is no way to switch exclusively to ATTI mode and we may always be subject to jumpy behaviour in poor GPS signal areas until later software changes.


Sent from my iPhone using MavicPilots

 

[r4nd0m]

To be fair - today I got the 'ultrasonic module error' warning on my 4th flight and checking it with my iphone doesnt pick up anything as it did previously when I recorded the mavic to apply for care refresh ... I am charging the batteries now to go back to its original version try record the ultrasonic again if that works I'll upgrade to the latest without the 0.0200 step and compare if it fails I know where the issue is ...

 

[Qoncussion]

I had the issue on my Phantom 2, years ago, where it bounced from GPS to ATTI. This resulted in very erratic flights. In the IMU calibration screen, I could see that the compass Mod value was off - way too high. I took a magnet and rubbed it in a circular motion over the compass several times to degauss the compass. This fixed the problem. You have to be sure you hold the magnet the right way, or you can make matters worse. I did it with the IMU screen live in front of me, so I would know when I got it right. Hope that helps.

Kevin

 

[r4nd0m]

It looks like a hardware issue downgrade/update isnt showing any improvements with regards to ultrasonic - not sure what else might be affected by false data potentially being created in the flight controller - looks like RMA

 

[Tarpon42]

Did any of you get the "Magnetic Interference" error when trying to fly indoor in ATTI mode?

 

[J-Dub]

question obviously: is there an option to completely disable everything and being able to just fly it indoors

No way to fly in ATTI-mode safely with GPS satellites being picked up indoors. The satellite signals get inside thru windows, inside my little living room I always pick up 5-8 sats, thereby causing the Mavic to constantly switch between ATTI, OPTI and GPS modes. Without a disable GPS switch, we are forced to play outside...

 

[jpbluzharp]

In deference to the post above from DesertWindAero, something is definitely wrong with the Mavic and the ability fly indoors. The drones keep bouncing all over from OPTI to ATTI or partial GPS to OPTI or ATTI or any other combination you can come up with and the drone then becomes unstable, unresponsive and uncontrollable usually leading to crashes for even experienced pilots. This is a fault of the product, firmware or software, but bottom line is an issue with this product and DJI either needs to fix this or quit advertising and touting their vision sensor technology.

Man, it's disheartening but good to hear about all these indoor problems! I was beginning to think it was me. Tried for about an hour two days ago in a rusted hulk of a brick building covered in graffiti. Beautiful decay in all its glory but flying inside was a heart stopping nightmare even in tripod mode! The Mavic just wouldn't obey stop commands and would suddenly shift directions and accelerate.. we're talkin' brick and steel vs plastic... I was fortunate not to crash but probably lost two years off my lifespan!

You have to take some risks with these things to get great shots but.. it comes at a price.

This is a test from the location. I wanted to try a few sound effects against a series of somewhat random shots.. You'll see a runaway Mavic at the end...

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[ablack]

Man, it's disheartening but good to hear about all these indoor problems! I was beginning to think it was me. Tried for about an hour two days ago in a rusted hulk of a brick building covered in graffiti. Beautiful decay in all its glory but flying inside was a heart stopping nightmare even in tripod mode! The Mavic just wouldn't obey stop commands and would suddenly shift directions and accelerate.. we're talkin' brick and steel vs plastic... I was fortunate not to crash but probably lost two years off my lifespan!

You have to take some risks with these things to get great shots but.. it comes at a price.

This is just a small test from the location. I wanted to try a few sound effects against a quick sampling of the footage..

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Great video and I am glad you survived your ordeal. Sad really that the same level of stability we've come to expect from DJI and GPS stability hasn't fully translated over to flying even partially indoors. I know the technologies are always maturing, but it needs to get to the point that no matter where you are flying you have stability and 100% confidence in flying and movements. Then we will really be able to exploit this technology, but hey autonomous cars are still running red lights and involved in accidents, so we are doing pretty well considering. Fortunately as the military continues to use these products their is a natural technology flow that hits the consumer market.

 

[SamBGb]

There are many many videos, posts etc about instability flying indoors. My mavic is in for repair right now as I tried flying in doors and it started drifting backwards despite me pushing to go forwards and it ended up straight into a wall. It was like it had a mind of its own and no matter what I was doing the mavic was not listening, very strange.

 

[jpbluzharp]

There are many many videos, posts etc about instability flying indoors. My mavic is in for repair right now as I tried flying in doors and it started drifting backwards despite me pushing to go forwards and it ended up straight into a wall. It was like it had a mind of its own and no matter what I was doing the mavic was not listening, very strange.

Sounds very familiar... thanks!

 

[ablack]

There are many many videos, posts etc about instability flying indoors. My mavic is in for repair right now as I tried flying in doors and it started drifting backwards despite me pushing to go forwards and it ended up straight into a wall. It was like it had a mind of its own and no matter what I was doing the mavic was not listening, very strange.

This is exactly the same experience I had and also crashed as a result of the Mavic failing to respond when it took this exact flight pattern. What's frustrating is that DJI refuses to accept responsibility and even claims I had modified the landing gear or some other mod that interfered with VPS. I had just received it brand new out of the box and this was the 2nd or 3rd short flight. If I ever fix my Mavic I'll never trust or try to fly indoors ever again.

 

[domination]

Just to throw in my 2 cents - but it would seem that there a few things to consider at issue versus a DJI defect. To boot, consider no or little/variant GPS signal strength coupled with the following:
1. Metal interference indoors that maybe buried underground or in the walls or roof or somewhere else within the structure 2. Electromagnetic interference - a dwelling is a cocoon of wires in walls, floors, etc. This would include Wifi signal interference.
These 2 conditions may contribute to compass distortion.
Therefore, consider the compass distortion with variant GPS signal strength = unpredictable Mavic behavior. Some on the forum have EE degrees and they can weigh in - but, hey, 6 Bud Lights deep and 420, I've managed to craft this analysis.

 

[jpbluzharp]

Great video and I am glad you survived your ordeal. Sad really that the same level of stability we've come to expect from DJI and GPS stability hasn't fully translated over to flying even partially indoors. I know the technologies are always maturing, but it needs to get to the point that no matter where you are flying you have stability and 100% confidence in flying and movements. Then we will really be able to exploit this technology, but hey autonomous cars are still running red lights and involved in accidents, so we are doing pretty well considering. Fortunately as the military continues to use these products their is a natural technology flow that hits the consumer market.

Edited my earlier response and replaced the video with the "finished" product... Now you'll see me chasing the bird!

 

[Mavicsailor]

Man, it's disheartening but good to hear about all these indoor problems! I was beginning to think it was me. Tried for about an hour two days ago in a rusted hulk of a brick building covered in graffiti. Beautiful decay in all its glory but flying inside was a heart stopping nightmare even in tripod mode! The Mavic just wouldn't obey stop commands and would suddenly shift directions and accelerate.. we're talkin' brick and steel vs plastic... I was fortunate not to crash but probably lost two years off my lifespan!

You have to take some risks with these things to get great shots but.. it comes at a price.

This is a test from the location. I wanted to try a few sound effects against a series of somewhat random shots.. You'll see a runaway Mavic at the end...

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For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

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Really nice video. You obviously put a lot of time and thought into making this.

Just a suggestion for those that dare fly indoors..... turn off landing protection. Downward sensors should still be on as this helps the AC position and stabilize itself in Opti mode. Front sensors can be turned off to stop OA. You still need sufficient light for the downward sensors to stabilize the AC. If flying close to the ground at night you will observe the same instability as when turning off the downward sensors because of low light. Also, not a bad idea to set the Go Home setting to hover, or it may try to climb through your ceiling if it goes into a failsafe RTH because of lose of signal.

Disabling LP eliminates the pause at .5 meters where you have to confirm landing. With LP off, you have full control all the way to landing and it will still gently touch down.
You only need to hold down the stick once the feet are firmly on the ground to stop the props, and can take off immediately as long as the props haven't stopped. This was designed as a final safety confirmation when landing, but could actually work against you if having a difficult time controling the Mavic during landing when you need to get it down quickly.