How can the Mini 2 have same wind resistance like Air 2 and Air 2S

[itismo]

I was wondering how the Mini 2 has the same wind resistance as the Mavic Air 2 and the Air 2s although the latter have more than double the weight of the Mini 2?

 

[Meta4]

I was wondering how the Mini 2 has the same wind resistance as the Mavic Air 2 and the Air 2s although the latter have more than double the weight of the Mini 2?

Because weight of the drone doesn't matter for wind resistance.
How fast the drone can fly is what's important.

DJI have never defined what they mean by wind resistance.
A best guess is the max wind speed in which the drone can hold position without being blown away.
But those numbers that DJI shows for wind resistance are vague and not particularly accurate or useful information.

For the Mini 2 and Air 2 DJI state a Max Wind Resistance of 8.5-10.5 m/s (Scale 5).
This is broad band of wind speeds and not a maximum speed.
The reference to Scale 5 is a Force 5 wind on the Beaufort Scale (that's 8.5-10.5 m/s).

 

[droncek]

They have not the same wind resistance, Air 2 is much better. The same official numbers by dji are strange and not accurate at all in praxis. I have both. When Mini 2 strugles like hell there Air 2 flies normally.

 

[Jack747]

If the device is lighter it also has less surface exposed to the wind

 

[Paint Rock Drones]

While not directly related to the initial question, there is also the issue of resistance to turbulence. I've noticed that when the air is unstable the Mini 2 has much more trouble staying level than the heavier Air 2S. I suppose wind resistance is more important if you are in heavy enough wind to worry about a flyaway, but the ability to remain stable is important if you care about your photo platform.

 

[hiflyer201]

Without any true knowledge of the subject, I have the feeling that the Mini has pitch limitations that will not allow it to fly at the speeds it's capable off against a headwind.

 

[surfbird]

Without any true knowledge of the subject, I have the feeling that the Mini has pitch limitations that will not allow it to fly at the speeds it's capable off against a headwind.

Correct. When it struggles it can suddenly use higher attitude for a while, same with rth. It never go more than 45degrees though. I've done some wp-mission and in virtualstick mode it only allows 20degrees :-/
The mini1 was terrible though, they increased max attitude on the mini2.

That said, the mini2 can handle wind between 8-10m/s very well. I filmed som kitesurfing with it, and it's dead stable.

 

[Artemis]

While not directly related to the initial question, there is also the issue of resistance to turbulence. I've noticed that when the air is unstable the Mini 2 has much more trouble staying level than the heavier Air 2S. I suppose wind resistance is more important if you are in heavy enough wind to worry about a flyaway, but the ability to remain stable is important if you care about your photo platform.

I think thats correct, the mini is pretty great at holding position but the 2s is more stable doing it… stability is not part of the metric

 

[itismo]

Because weight of the drone doesn't matter for wind resistance.
How fast the drone can fly is what's important.

DJI have never defined what they mean by wind resistance.
A best guess is the max wind speed in which the drone can hold position without being blown away.
But those numbers that DJI shows for wind resistance are vague and not particularly accurate or useful information.

For the Mini 2 and Air 2 DJI state a Max Wind Resistance of 8.5-10.5 m/s (Scale 5).
This is broad band of wind speeds and not a maximum speed.
The reference to Scale 5 is a Force 5 wind on the Beaufort Scale (that's 8.5-10.5 m/s).

I thought that more weight means that more wind force is needed to move the object.
I have also taken the drone's maximum speed spec as the actual maximum wind "tolerance" or an indication for how much wind you can still fly the drone in without it drifting away.

The Air 2 can fly faster to than the Mini 2 but still DJI day that they are equal when it comes to wind resistance.

 

[itismo]

They have not the same wind resistance, Air 2 is much better. The same official numbers by dji are strange and not accurate at all in praxis. I have both. When Mini 2 strugles like hell there Air 2 flies normally.

I agree that makes sense, while I do not have the Mini 2 I can imagine that's the case.

 

[Deleted member 93449]

I'm pretty sure those wind resistance numbers are the ideal for a perfectly operating drone with a fully charged battery. The ability to resist wind at the start of a flight might diminish as the battery is depleted.

 

[Meta4]

I thought that more weight means that more wind force is needed to move the object.

That's a commonly held idea but it's not correct.
It works for inanimate objects, like a rock or a piece of paper, but doesn't apply to a powered object like a drone.
The drone provides the force needed to move it and the air mass it flies through could be still or moving which will have an effect on the drone's speed over the ground.

The Air 2 can fly faster to than the Mini 2 but still DJI day that they are equal when it comes to wind resistance.

Just another of the quirks in DJI documentation.

 

[itismo]

That's a commonly held idea but it's not correct.
It works for inanimate objects, like a rock or a piece of paper, but doesn't apply to a powered object like a drone.
The drone provides the force needed to move it and the air mass it flies through could be still or moving which will have an effect on the drone's speed over the ground.


Just another of the quirks in DJI documentation.

Thank you for the explanation, I also believe another factor plays a very important role which is the design/aerodynamics of the drone itself and how well it can make the air "slide" across its body thus needing less power to actually fight incoming winds, correct?

 

[Meta4]

Thank you for the explanation, I also believe another factor plays a very important role which is the design/aerodynamics of the drone itself and how well it can make the air "slide" across its body thus needing less power to actually fight incoming winds, correct?

No ... that's already a factor in the top speed that the drone can achieve in still air.
If you know the drone's still air max speed, you know all you need to understand how well the drone can deal with wind.

 

[Meta4]

I'm pretty sure those wind resistance numbers are the ideal for a perfectly operating drone with a fully charged battery. The ability to resist wind at the start of a flight might diminish as the battery is depleted.

Your drone can fly as fast with a 100% battery as it can with a 10% battery (check for yourself).
If your drone slowed down as the battery runs down, a lot more drones would never make it home and everyone would know this.

 

[Artemis]

Was thinking from and engineering perspective, the ability to fight wind has very little to do with size but has to do with horsepower versus size…. I don’t know but I’ll gander that ratio is even with the 2s while the original mini was underpowered, with that in mind, knowing the SE has the same motors as the mini2 it would also be able to maintain steady flight at same wind speed. It’s just the weight of the 2s that makes it appear more stable… imagine hanging both by a string in wind, even though the 2s has more surface area the mini 2 will get bounced around more

 

[Deleted member 93449]

Your drone can fly as fast with a 100% battery as it can with a 10% battery (check for yourself).
If your drone slowed down as the battery runs down, a lot more drones would never make it home and everyone would know this.

At what point would battery condition and or charge have an impact on drone performance?

 

[Artemis]

At what point would battery condition and or charge have an impact on drone performance?

I’ve seen so many videos that is clear at some point the drone does slowdown somewhere under 10%… might have been 5, pretty sure I remember it being the mini2, he just barely made it back…. To be safe I’ll probably be limiting my flights to 10 minutes before I head back for a battery change…. It’s not something I want to test

 

[surfbird]

At what point would battery condition and or charge have an impact on drone performance?

It gets attitude limited after that.

 

[Chaosrider]

While not directly related to the initial question, there is also the issue of resistance to turbulence. I've noticed that when the air is unstable the Mini 2 has much more trouble staying level than the heavier Air 2S. I suppose wind resistance is more important if you are in heavy enough wind to worry about a flyaway, but the ability to remain stable is important if you care about your photo platform.

That completely explains some undesirable behavior I observed with my Mini-2 when flying in non-trivial wind. 15- 20 mph. I was experimenting with flying close to a tree, and I observed some uncommanded descents.

Tree induced turbulence! The wind was gusty, but nothing more than the Mini-2 had handled before...out in the open. Drone hit tree, fell through tree, been there, posted the video! I thought that a waving branch may have caught it, which may also be true, but that wouldn't explain the uncommanded descents. This does.

The little Mini-2 bounced around through the tree branches for about 80 feet, filming all the way, and then came to rest on a branch about 20 feet up. Rescued by a tree service guy with no damage at all. Which was miraculous.

Thanks for this info!!




TCS