I have some serious problems with my Smart Controller

michael13mavic · May 30, 2020

I bought my drone is the end of last year. I recently experienced some serious problems with my drone. My drone had lost connection with my smart controller during flights twice. Normally I wouldn't see the live feed from my controller, but after a couple of seconds I would regain the connection with my drone and the RTH would be activated. However, this happened when it happened again, I lost connection with my drone for more than 2 minutes. Basically, I didn't get RTH signal and I don't see the live feed, but I still get an update on the altitude and distance of my drone on my screen. The only way I solved the problem was to restart my controller during the mid-flight. After restarting, I then regained the connection with my drone. My question is has anyone experienced this type of problem before? if you did, how did you solve it?

If the drone requires a repair, does my Care refresh cover this type of incident?

Meta4 · May 30, 2020

michael13mavic said:
My drone had lost connection with my smart controller during flights twice. Normally I wouldn't see the live feed from my controller, but after a couple of seconds I would regain the connection with my drone and the RTH would be activated. However, this happened when it happened again, I lost connection with my drone for more than 2 minutes. Basically, I didn't get RTH signal and I don't see the live feed, but I still get an update on the altitude and distance of my drone on my screen. The only way I solved the problem was to restart my controller during the mid-flight. After restarting, I then regained the connection with my drone. My question is has anyone experienced this type of problem before? if you did, how did you solve it?

michael13mavic said:
Basically, I didn't get RTH signal and I don't see the live feed, but I still get an update on the altitude and distance of my drone on my screen. The only way I solved the problem was to restart my controller during the mid-flight. After restarting, I then regained the connection with my drone. My question is has anyone experienced this type of problem before? if you did, how did you solve it?

It sounds like you only lost the downlink but not the uplink.
If so, you were on the edge of losing all signal but still have complete control.
This is completely normal and a warning to bring the drone back closer.
Your recorded flight data would confirm if this was the case.

michael13mavic · May 30, 2020

Meta4 said:
It sounds like you only lost the downlink but not the uplink.
If so, you were on the edge of losing all signal but still have complete control.
This is completely normal and a warning to bring the drone back closer.
Your recorded flight data would confirm if this was the case.

Where can I check my flight date?
I tested my M2P again yesterday. I lost the signal again when the drone is probably 70 metres high above me. even after I brought my drone back to the ground, I still couldnt get any live feed on my RC.

Meta4 · May 30, 2020

michael13mavic said:
Where can I check my flight data?

Go to DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help
Follow the instructions there to upload your flight record from your phone or tablet.
That will give you a detailed report of the flight.
You can come back and post a link to the report it provides if you need help analysing it.

michael13mavic · May 31, 2020

These are the log flights I got from 2 different flights.

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

The first link is when I lost the live feed from my controller during mid-flight, I waited for 2 minutes and then decided to restart my controller as I thought I lost my drone already.

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

This link shows that I regained the connection after I restarted my SC, followed by the activation of RTH.

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

This is another time when I was practicing my drone in ATTI mdoe and i got the same error happening again

Be aware that I replaced the sports mode with ATTI mode as I need to gain my pilot license. In New Zealand, we are required to do our flight test in ATTI mode to prove that we're a competent RPAS pilot. (would this be a hidden issue with the problem that I'm experiencing with my drone? I changed the settings back in January and I've done countless flights with this setting in the past)

Meta4 · May 31, 2020

michael13mavic said:
The first link is when I lost the live feed from my controller during mid-flight, I waited for 2 minutes and then decided to restart my controller as I thought I lost my drone already.
This link shows that I regained the connection after I restarted my SC, followed by the activation of RTH.
This is another time when I was practicing my drone in ATTI mdoe and i got the same error happening again

None of these shows the issue you described.
They just show you flying until you either lost signal or switched off the controller.

If you had lost downlink, the drone would react to your controls or just hover waiting for you.
You have the loss of signal action set to RTH so if you lose signal, the drone would returm.

michael13mavic said:
Be aware that I replaced the sports mode with ATTI mode as I need to gain my pilot license. In New Zealand, we are required to do our flight test in ATTI mode to prove that we're a competent RPAS pilot. (would this be a hidden issue with the problem that I'm experiencing with my drone? I changed the settings back in January and I've done countless flights with this setting in the past)

That would make no difference.

michael13mavic · May 31, 2020

Meta4 said:
None of these shows the issue you described.
They just show you flying until you either lost signal or switched off the controller.

If you had lost downlink, the drone would react to your controls or just hover waiting for you.
You have the loss of signal action set to RTH so if you lose signal, the drone would returm.

That would make no difference.

Thank you. Would there be some connection issue with my Smart Controller? I've attached the close-up image of the controller. Basically I didn't get the live feed even my drone is right next to the controller.

GKomar · May 31, 2020

“DJI GO 4 isn’t responding” messages, loss of control. Luckily at all times that this happened the M2P was just hovering. I had to shut GO 4 down, and restart to get control back. Sent it to two different shops to rebuild the software. $100 each time. The second time was a charm. Tested the Smart Controller, then sold it. No thanks.... Standard (old) controller with an iPad works like a great for me.

Drbobk · Jun 1, 2020

I didn’t see anyone mention it yet, so I will. When your drone is far from you, the antennas should be aiming down. When it’s above you, they should be straight out like in your photo. I assume you know that, but it’s worth mentioning.

michael13mavic · Jun 3, 2020

Drbobk said:
I didn’t see anyone mention it yet, so I will. When your drone is far from you, the antennas should be aiming down. When it’s above you, they should be straight out like in your photo. I assume you know that, but it’s worth mentioning.

No. I tend to use it when it's up

maybe that would be the problem?

Drbobk · Jun 4, 2020

michael13mavic said:
No. I tend to use it when it's up maybe that would be the problem?

The signal basically emanates from the flat side of the antennas, not the pointy ends. So as the drone gets further away, having the antennas aiming down exposes the flat side to the drone for the best signal. When it's almost directly above you, point them out straight so that the flat sides are oriented toward the drone above you.

Bgsaizr · Jun 7, 2020

michael13mavic said:
I bought my drone is the end of last year. I recently experienced some serious problems with my drone. My drone had lost connection with my smart controller during flights twice. Normally I wouldn't see the live feed from my controller, but after a couple of seconds I would regain the connection with my drone and the RTH would be activated. However, this happened when it happened again, I lost connection with my drone for more than 2 minutes. Basically, I didn't get RTH signal and I don't see the live feed, but I still get an update on the altitude and distance of my drone on my screen. The only way I solved the problem was to restart my controller during the mid-flight. After restarting, I then regained the connection with my drone. My question is has anyone experienced this type of problem before? if you did, how did you solve it?

If the drone requires a repair, does my Care refresh cover this type of incident?

I had this exact thing happen to me several times. It completely stopped happening after I bought faster read and write Micro SD cards. I was recording everytime when this happened and when I ditched the 8+ year old Micro SD cards the problem vanished.