Losing Connection Behind Mnt Ridge?

[PalmettoAerial]

So I have made a few more flights and I am getting much better at controls & tweaks .... but I do notice that I easily lose my Connection with the drone if I fly it out and get behind a ridge. We are talking in the 500-700 meter range. Why is that.

I have tried to "sink" the copter behind a ridge on a few occasions in an effort to get a really nice vertical reveal and fly it low over the ridge and trees back towards my location.

But, like clockwork, when I drop it down it begins to short out and soon after screen goes black, RTH sequence intitiates ...

What can I do about this. If I was pushing tj envelope Dist wise I wouldn't be concerned but the drone has always been relatively close when I attempt this.

 

[msinger]

I do notice that I easily lose my Connection with the drone if I fly it out and get behind a ridge. We are talking in the 500-700 meter range. Why is that.

You're allowing an obstacle to come between the remote controller and your Mavic. For the strongest possible signal, that path should always be clear.

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[4wd]

You need to be careful about RTH height in this sort of situation too because it will just turn directly for home with no regard for tall trees in the way.
The RTH will theoretically ascend if obstacle detected but plenty of ways that can go wrong.

 

[Mr. Salty]

Why is that.

Radio waves cannot pass through rock.

I've been inside a cave with a friend of mine. We both had portable ham radios. As soon as he was around a bend in the passage there was no signal between the radios at all, even though we were only 30 feet apart.

 

[PalmettoAerial]

You need to be careful about RTH height in this sort of situation too because it will just turn directly for home with no regard for tall trees in the way.
The RTH will theoretically ascend if obstacle detected but plenty of ways that can go wrong.

I thought about that. Set it to 250m I believe to compensate ... would that solve that issue?

 

[PalmettoAerial]

Radio waves cannot pass through rock.

I've been inside a cave with a friend of mine. We both had portable ham radios. As soon as he was around a bend in the passage there was no signal between the radios at all, even though we were only 30 feet apart.

D@mn. Didn't realize it was that black & white.

I do realize there should be a obstruction free communication, but I was assuming since the ledge was as close as it was to me that there would be a stronger connection.

 

[FlyGuy8675309]

D@mn. Didn't realize it was that black & white.

I do realize there should be a obstruction free communication, but I was assuming since the ledge was as close as it was to me that there would be a stronger connection.

It really depends on the composition of the obstruction. Sometimes the radio signals can penetrate, sometimes they can't.

 

[rydfree]

D@mn. Didn't realize it was that black & white.

I do realize there should be a obstruction free communication, but I was assuming since the ledge was as close as it was to me that there would be a stronger connection.

As stated , radio waves do not penetrate rock or other dense materials so you must keep LOS between the drone and controller . Water also blocks radio waves so keep in mind that trees and other vegetation contain a lot of water . Put many meters of vegetation between the controller and Mavic and poof , there goes your signal . You can sometimes luck out if there is something high such as a building off to the side that the signal can reflect off of and still make contact with the Mavic that is behind a dense object but LOS is key to RC radio communication .

 

[Owen Manderfield]

When I fly behind an object I do it using waypoints in Litchi - setting the connection loss action to continue mission.

It's a bit unnerving as you go effectively blind (and no control) while the Mavic is behind the object but (assuming you've set the mission up correctly) it all comes back once it's clear of the obstruction.

Getting the heights right is the tricky bit. Best to fly the mission once with the heights say 50ft higher that you want. Review the footage from the SD card (the phone/tablet won't have the full flight) then adjust heights and keep flying until your happy (or run out of battery)

 

[PalmettoAerial]

It really depends on the composition of the obstruction. Sometimes the radio signals can penetrate, sometimes they can't.

So I've seen a few diff types of antenna boosters. Do those work in general. Would they work or help in this situation

 

[Flycaster]

So I've seen a few diff types of antenna boosters. Do those work in general. Would they work or help in this situation

Nope, once there is a solid obstruction, (building, mountain, hill, dense foliage/trees) you will probably lose connection.

If you want to do the revel shot as mentioned, try to fly from the other side of the ridge/hill,
That way, you will have connection.

 

[gnirtS]

Microwaves aren't going to burn through rock of any thickness. It's the same band as consumer WiFi and look how badly that handles walls. No booster will help.
2.4ghz needs line of sight. That means through air.

 

[CC Rider]

When it's all said and done, the Mavic generally does an outstanding job with signal transmission and reception. I never cease to be amazed at what that little bugger can do and get through.

I've dropped behind very heavy tree lines and flown around levels of buildings (haven't tried mountains yet; I'm an East Coast flatlander) and have never had any signal loss problems to date. Same when flying within a sea of wifi broadcasts. Nary a concern for me.

My P4P is not as forgiving. I experience signal losses with it far more than I do with my Mavic, which surprised me at first...and still does. Even when flying both aircraft in the same locations. I assumed the P4Ps Lightbridge/Crystal Sky tech would easily outshine the Mav's wifi, but that hasn't proven to be the case. Not for me, at least. An attempt to search for why has not yielded any answers for me, either. Can't figure it out. I've even reconsidered my purchasing choices, as I can still return the P4P. Jury is still out about what I'll end up doing. Love what the P4P can do, but I'm very used to the Mavic's dependable range capabilities.