Frequent Compass Calibration?

[nicshow]

I’m visiting in Chicago and I’ve had to frequently calibrate the compass in order to fly - maybe 6 times at least over three days. And half of those times the calibration attempt failed repeatedly. I updated software and thought that helped but about the third time powering on after the update was asked to recalibrate again. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced this at my home. Do I have a technical problem to be addressed or is it just an issue with lots of city interference?

 

[msinger]

When you're seeing a prompt to calibrate the compass, it's most often a sign that nearby interference is negatively affecting the compass. See more details here:

DJI Mavic Compass Calibration Guide | Mavic Help

Mavic Help is a site for help with DJI Mavic drones. Find the latest fixes, how-tos, guides, accessories, modifications, and more.

www.mavichelp.com

 

[Cafguy]

I vote for interference. Thats too unusual Take it somewhere else and see if it tells you the same.

 

[AMann]

What are you taking off from? Sidewalks and other concrete surfaces often have compass interfering steel wire mesh in them. Buildings have massive steel girders, and hoods and roofs of cars are also bad places to take off from.

Here’s a fun IOS app with a library of physics related tools to map magnetic interference around you (Check out the Magna-AR tool), and also check your GPS signal reception, among other things:

‎Physics Toolbox Sensor Suite

‎This app uses internal smartphone sensors to collect, display, record, and export .csv data files. See www.vieyrasoftware.net to (1) read about case usage in research and development, and (2) get lesson plans for educators of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields...

apps.apple.com

 

[GregS]

I have taken my drones: Mavic Pro v1 and P4P v1 from Illinois to Oregon several tiimes and did not need a compass calibration. Has to be interference

 

[Talldiver]

My M2P also requires frequent calibration yet the M3P never requires it even when I take off from the same location. I just give up and do the re-calibration so as not to waste time.

 

[waynorth]

My M2P also requires frequent calibration yet the M3P never requires it even when I take off from the same location. I just give up and do the re-calibration so as not to waste time.

I have three Mavic 2 drones with the same firmware.
One of them asks for calibration almost every time I power it up. But when I check the sensor state in the app, everything is fine, compass shows green - no interference. The red arrow in the radar and map display also show the correct heading.
I take off and fly and it behaves perfectly.
The other two drones never show compass error, unless i power them up very close to ferrous metal.

I have heard of other people having this error with the Mavic 2, so it is likely a bug causing it to give a false error message. Check the sensors state and heading in the map display.

 

[Meta4]

My M2P also requires frequent calibration yet the M3P never requires it even when I take off from the same location. I just give up and do the re-calibration so as not to waste time.

I have heard of other people having this error with the Mavic 2, so it is likely a bug causing it to give a false error message.

This is a case of DJI being stupid.
For years their manuals spread misinformation telling you that you had to recalibrate the compass if you didn't fly for 30 days or if you travelled >50 km (30 miles) from the previous takeoff location.
This was completely false and there was no physical reason to recommend it.
But for the Mavic 2 and one of the Air series, DJI forced the flyer to carry out a completely unnecessary recalibration for either reason.
They dropped this for later models and probably also dropped it in later production runs.

 

[offtheback]

I have three Mavic 2 drones with the same firmware.
One of them asks for calibration almost every time I power it up. But when I check the sensor state in the app, everything is fine, compass shows green - no interference. The red arrow in the radar and map display also show the correct heading.
I take off and fly and it behaves perfectly.
The other two drones never show compass error, unless i power them up very close to ferrous metal.

I have heard of other people having this error with the Mavic 2, so it is likely a bug causing it to give a false error message. Check the sensors state and heading in the map display.

My Mavic 2 Pro asks for a calibration each time.I've read that this is a bug.Flown 100+ times with no incident without calibration.