Mavic 4 Pro having Obstacle Avoidance Issues

[LapetusOne]

The drone is 3 days old, and it's exhibiting a weird, wavy, stop-start type of behavior when flying forward. Like it senses something, slams on the brakes, then starts going again.
I thought it was the sun hitting the sensors, so I tried flying at all different angles to the sun, and it happened in all of them.
This only happens in NORMAL mode; it will not happen in SPORT mode. I don't think the drone is going fast enough in CINEMATIC mode to trigger it.

Here's a video of it happening.

IMG_2789

This is "IMG_2789" by Scott Wild on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

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Here's a closer one:

IMG_2790

This is "IMG_2790" by Scott Wild on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

vimeo.com

Any ideas on how to get rid of this?
I just updated the drone and controller to the latest firmware today.

 

[PINEBARON]

Seems to be a common problem with recent batches. Did you do drone and controller compass calibration? Others say you need to fly close to the ground for a while to help it learn; I have no idea if thats the case. Try compass calibration.

 

[MS Coast]

Seems to be a common problem with recent batches. Did you do drone and controller compass calibration? Others say you need to fly close to the ground for a while to help it learn; I have no idea if thats the case. Try compass calibration.

Calibrations aren't the answer. Apparently the obstacle avoidance system needs to train itself during flight to avoid those false obstacle detections. If you watch the screen, you'll see the yellow and red arcs appearing to indicate where the drone is sensing an obstacle. Ten minutes of rambling flight about 10' AGL over a large field cured the problem completely in mine. Others report the same results.

There's been another thread here on this same topic for weeks. It's probably better to keep the discussion going there.

F

Mavic 4 Pro - Obstacle Avoidance Issues

Jun 17, 2025

So I received my Mavic 4 Pro yesterday. Upon flying for the first time, though, every time I hovered, the obstacle avoidance warnings would turn yellow and/or red in the back of the drone. As soon as I moved, it went away but would come back on after about 5 seconds of hovering. Since it was my first flight with the new drone, I didn’t fly far and I could see there were no obstacles (trees, birds, power poles, etc.) that should have been causing this. Never had this happen with previous drones, so not sure if there is a way to try to recalibrate the sensors, or if I should return it as...

• fgphoto
• Replies: 79
• Forum: Mavic 4 Pro

• 

 

[LapetusOne]

There are no yellow or green arcs appearing on the screen during this behavior.
I'll go to an open field and fly around tomorrow and try to train the system.

 

[GadgetGuy]

There are no yellow or green arcs appearing on the screen during this behavior.
I'll go to an open field and fly around tomorrow and try to train the system.

If it doesn't happen in Sport mode, that's because OA sensors are off.
Turn off the OA sensors while flying in Normal and Cinematic modes to eliminate the problem, until you can otherwise resolve it.

 

[Cafguy]

There is a place in the field where we fly that everyones DJI slams on the brakes... We found that there was a Galvanic reaction indicator sending info from its little box in the ground and causing the trouble.
You could have some strange equipment like that around you. Your problem pops up often on the forum and is most always the sun or low light.
Firmware problems are the second most likely followed by a loose or dirty battery. There is no O.A. in sport mode so you wouldnt detect a problem that way. Your best bet.....Move to a new location and see if its still happening. If so re-install all firmware and that should clear the error....If not you have a bad sensor and your Drone needs to go to DJI for replacement.

 

[PINEBARON]

Calibrations aren't the answer. Apparently the obstacle avoidance system needs to train itself during flight to avoid those false obstacle detections. If you watch the screen, you'll see the yellow and red arcs appearing to indicate where the drone is sensing an obstacle. Ten minutes of rambling flight about 10' AGL over a large field cured the problem completely in mine. Others report the same results.

There's been another thread here on this same topic for weeks. It's probably better to keep the discussion going there.

F

Mavic 4 Pro - Obstacle Avoidance Issues

Jun 17, 2025

So I received my Mavic 4 Pro yesterday. Upon flying for the first time, though, every time I hovered, the obstacle avoidance warnings would turn yellow and/or red in the back of the drone. As soon as I moved, it went away but would come back on after about 5 seconds of hovering. Since it was my first flight with the new drone, I didn’t fly far and I could see there were no obstacles (trees, birds, power poles, etc.) that should have been causing this. Never had this happen with previous drones, so not sure if there is a way to try to recalibrate the sensors, or if I should return it as...

• fgphoto
• Replies: 79
• Forum: Mavic 4 Pro

• 

Never had to train either of my drones A3S or the Mavic 4 Pro; both were spot on from day one in any location in the US and Canada, open areas, built up areas, local, rural or mountain and lake. This 10' AGL is very strange to me however may be true for new production batches.

 

[MS Coast]

Never had to train either of my drones A3S or the Mavic 4 Pro; both were spot on from day one in any location in the US and Canada, open areas, built up areas, local, rural or mountain and lake. This 10' AGL is very strange to me however may be true for new production batches.

It didn't happen to me with ten other DJI models, only with the Mavic 4 Pro. The recent reports here are all for the Mavic 4 Pro.

I suspect it's related to the environment in which the first flights are done rather than production differences. In some situations, the OA system (AI capabilities?) sorts itself out and in others, it needs to be flown in an area where the ground is visible and detectable to the OA system for a bit.

My initial flights were hovering above the launch point to check control functions and then up to 100' or so through a gap in the tree canopy and flight over a mostly wooded area. Flying it in an open field at 10-15 feet above the ground for several minutes.

What were the conditions were your early flights with the Mavic 4 Pro? Open with few obstructions?

 

[PINEBARON]

What were the conditions were your early flights with the Mavic 4 Pro? Open with few obstructions?

Inside (for testing, we have high ceilings) then Open, with and without obstructions such as decks/roofs/posts/exterior walls, trees/branches at low AGL (0-75') and then clear upto max AGL (393') and everything in-between both during day and nighttime; zero issues anywhere all in Normal mode only. All aside the RTH in these drones is mind-boggling, so different than having to land my RC planes, into the wind, emergency landings, dead stick landings etc. none of that tension with these new drones.

 

[MS Coast]

Inside (for testing, we have high ceilings) then Open, with and without obstructions such as decks/roofs/posts/exterior walls, trees/branches at low AGL (0-75') and then clear upto max AGL (393') and everything in-between both during day and nighttime; zero issues anywhere all in Normal mode only. All aside the RTH in these drones is mind-boggling, so different than having to land my RC planes, into the wind, emergency landings, dead stick landings etc. none of that tension with these new drones.

Early flight in an open area without obstructions may explain why you didn't see the OA issue I had.

 

[Cafguy]

All aside the RTH in these drones is mind-boggling, so different than having to land my RC planes, into the wind, emergency landings, dead stick landings etc. none of that tension with these new drones.

The field where I fly uses the E-flight apprentice to teach the new pilots. It has RTH! It actually even does a little pattern and lands on its own! I thought about getting one BUT they are fomies and I like to build what I fly. Very nice planes tho (for a fomie)