M2EA Gimbal Issues

overdrive148 · May 28, 2022

Hi there!

Long story short, I'm having some issues with my M2EA. Here's what I've been through:

Turn aircraft on ahead of mission next week for patches, firmware, calibration etc.
Gimbal cannot receive MC Data
Solution: Check the 8-pin plug that connects the damping plate and the aircraft. Ensure that none of the pins are loose. If the problem persists, contact DJI Support
Attempt to recalibrate gimbal.
Checking Failed: Unable to perform check under current gimbal status. Adjust gimbal status and try again.
Check gimbal status in the main menu - Gimbal I: N/A
Power cycle the aircraft/SmartController
Issue still persists
Use DJI Enterprise Assistant to reinstall current firmware
Issue still persists
Recalibrate IMU and Vision System
Issue still persists
Reinstall firmware and recalibrate IMU
Issue still persists
Reset DJI Pilot app on SmartController
Issue still persists
Remove microSD card, reinsert, remove, reformat, reinsert
Issue still persists

The aircraft has less than 10 flight hours on it and has been in a case with the gimbal lock secured on the front. I took it on a flight recently and flew it elsewhere and returned with it and it has been in the case for about 2 weeks since then. The aircraft was new to me about a year ago and has historically had no issues and has been operated in a clean environment with no sand/grit/dust/etc to interfere with the gimbal.

On startup, the gimbal moves to the extremes and then recenters itself as usual. The controller commands to move the gimbal do nothing. Starting the gimbal calibration moves the gimbal once, and then stays at 10% after the Checking Failed error above happens. The gimbal stays locked to the drone orientation while the aircraft is being moved instead of following the horizon.

Any ideas? I'm at a loss, this has never happened to me in ~5 years of flying DJI products and I'm not sure about opening the aircraft case to check the 8 pin connector that the error is talking about.

GadgetGuy · May 29, 2022

Contact DJI Support!
They'll get you set up with a replacement.

overdrive148 · Jun 14, 2022

Update: Contacted DJI Support. They recommended that I send the aircraft in which I did. After they went through and reproduced the errors above, they determined that the "IMU Module was malfunctioned which caused APP Error code: IMU Error". They are repairing the IMU Module ($14), Gimbal Axis Arm Module ($146), Gimbal Flexible Flat Cable ($5), with a repair service fee of $130.