Mavic Mini - Real time orientation gauge in the app - not correctly showing orientation

[Denn]

Hello,

I have Mavic Mini and I have noticed (as already reported here) that real time orientation gauge at the bottom of the app screen is showing wrong position of the AC in relation to the RC. So most often when the AC is in front of me, it reads as if AC was somewhere behind me.

By searching thru the posts, it seems that there's some magnetic field produced by RC which confuses compass on my phone (Samsung Galaxy S9), when phone is in its place by the RC.

Just to be clear, the compass on my phone is not faulty. It's working correctly when there's no magnetic fields near.

My question is - except for the fact that this particular gauge is useless because of that magnetic interference towards my phone's compass - am I correct when assuming that this particular gauge does NOT pose any risk in terms of RTH functionality of my MM (assuming that compass on the AC is calibrated 100% correctly)?

 

[Starving Artist]

I do not have this issue with my Samsung Galaxy S7, but I do have it with my iPad. I believe the problem with the iPad is compass calibration or just a poor compass. I have used the RTH several times when the navigation display was off and had no issues. I believe the RTH is locked in when you take off using the GPS coordinates or if you change the RTH coordinates while in flight. The navigation display should not effect the RTH at all.

If you feel your issue is with a magnetic field and your phone, try using a tablet/display holder that fits your phone. It might get you the results you want. Just a thought.

 

[sar104]

Hello,

I have Mavic Mini and I have noticed (as already reported here) that real time orientation gauge at the bottom of the app screen is showing wrong position of the AC in relation to the RC. So most often when the AC is in front of me, it reads as if AC was somewhere behind me.

By searching thru the posts, it seems that there's some magnetic field produced by RC which confuses compass on my phone (Samsung Galaxy S9), when phone is in its place by the RC.

Just to be clear, the compass on my phone is not faulty. It's working correctly when there's no magnetic fields near.

My question is - except for the fact that this particular gauge is useless because of that magnetic interference towards my phone's compass - am I correct when assuming that this particular gauge does NOT pose any risk in terms of RTH functionality of my MM (assuming that compass on the AC is calibrated 100% correctly)?

Correct - it will not affect the aircraft or RTH, just the direction of the aircraft relative to the mobile device. It is not a mobile device compass problem except in the sense that the compass is being affected by the magnetic field from the Hall Effect sensors in the RC sticks. Whether that happens can depend on the exact location of the compass in the phone, and so reversing the orientation of the phone in the RC holder sometimes helps.

 

[slup]

Hello,

I have Mavic Mini and I have noticed (as already reported here) that real time orientation gauge at the bottom of the app screen is showing wrong position of the AC in relation to the RC. So most often when the AC is in front of me, it reads as if AC was somewhere behind me.

By searching thru the posts, it seems that there's some magnetic field produced by RC which confuses compass on my phone (Samsung Galaxy S9), when phone is in its place by the RC.

Just to be clear, the compass on my phone is not faulty. It's working correctly when there's no magnetic fields near.

My question is - except for the fact that this particular gauge is useless because of that magnetic interference towards my phone's compass - am I correct when assuming that this particular gauge does NOT pose any risk in terms of RTH functionality of my MM (assuming that compass on the AC is calibrated 100% correctly)?

This will not in any way effect the RTH possibility or function ... all this is driven out from the Mini's own compass & GPS. To get your indicator point correctly, attach the phone to the RC & calibrate the compass in the phone by doing that "figur 8" movement or just rotate all 3 axis 1-2 times.

*EDIT* ? @sar104 was just a fraction faster ... but now you have a 2 source verification.

 

[Meta4]

except for the fact that this particular gauge is useless because of that magnetic interference towards my phone's compass

Even with the radar display showing an incorrect direction, it's not completely useless.
Home is still the centre of the circle and you can turn the Mini to point toward home and fly there.

 

[cadbob]

I believe there is a bug in the firmware or software or both, I have had it be Red like no compass also. Than work correctly after turning all off and back on again. I'm not sure if it has to do with the order of what you turn on first as I do it different ways each time. I just noticed the behavior the other day and with work and cold weather haven't flown it much. But I will have to experiment more in near future.

R/C A/C Fly
A/C R/C Fly
R/C Fly A/C

My P4 and Go no issues

 

[sar104]

This will not in any way effect the RTH possibility or function ... all this is driven out from the Mini's own compass & GPS. To get your indicator point correctly, attach the phone to the RC & calibrate the compass in the phone by doing that "figur 8" movement or just rotate all 3 axis 1-2 times.

*EDIT* ? @sar104 was just a fraction faster ... but now you have a 2 source verification.

Fractions count...

 

[GerdS]

This problem depends on the position of the magnetic sensor within your specific mobile device. If it is quite near to the remote controller the compass value gets disturbed. Some phones have better compass modules/algorithms than others, e.g. my Huawei Mate 20 Pro has the best compass I have ever seen in a mobile yet.
If I am running a special compass app while the phone is attached to the powered remote, I can see there is distortion indicated by symbol size, but direction is not affected.

You can try to calibrate your phone compass for use with the remote. Prior to takeoff just do 2-3 360° circles with your phone-remote combination held same as you do it for flight.
But don't forget to re-calibrate your phone compass without the remote after flight, in case you want to rely on the compass for other applications such as car navigation.

 

[Denn]

Thx, it's worth to try... tried already calibrating phone compass but not while attached to RC... so I'll try what you've suggested...

 

[GerdS]

Thx, it's worth to try... tried already calibrating phone compass but not while attached to RC... so I'll try what you've suggested...

Ensure that the remote is powered on when calibrating.

 

[Denn]

Ensure that the remote is powered on when calibrating.

Yes, I will try it. Thanks!

 

[Rex Peters]

Hello,

I have Mavic Mini and I have noticed (as already reported here) that real time orientation gauge at the bottom of the app screen is showing wrong position of the AC in relation to the RC. So most often when the AC is in front of me, it reads as if AC was somewhere behind me.

By searching thru the posts, it seems that there's some magnetic field produced by RC which confuses compass on my phone (Samsung Galaxy S9), when phone is in its place by the RC.

Just to be clear, the compass on my phone is not faulty. It's working correctly when there's no magnetic fields near.

My question is - except for the fact that this particular gauge is useless because of that magnetic interference towards my phone's compass - am I correct when assuming that this particular gauge does NOT pose any risk in terms of RTH functionality of my MM (assuming that compass on the AC is calibrated 100% correctly)?

Hello Denn,
I found that if I calibrate my iPhone 7 compass while connected to the controller, the compass indicator works. I have only been out once so I don’t know if the recalibration holds. Once the weather improves, I’ll confirm if the calibration will hold.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Correct - it will not affect the aircraft or RTH, just the direction of the aircraft relative to the mobile device. It is not a mobile device compass problem except in the sense that the compass is being affected by the magnetic field from the Hall Effect sensors in the RC sticks. Whether that happens can depend on the exact location of the compass in the phone, and so reversing the orientation of the phone in the RC holder sometimes helps.

I mount my 9.7” iPadPro above the RC with the Home button on the right side, and frequently end up with the compass direction drifting badly during the flight. Would flipping the iPad so that the Home button is on the left help? Should I be calibrating the compass in the iPad with it mounted and the RC turned on before every flight? It is correct during the first several minutes, but often in unfamiliar territory, it will drift, making it difficult to keep the RC antennas pointed directly at the aircraft, leading to signal loss, or an inability to locate the aircraft in the sky, after looking down at the display. Oddly, whenever I use GO 4 on my iPad Mini, it forces a compass calibration with the rolling red ball on the circle before every use, but not on the iPadPro. Seems that even a properly calibrated iPad compass will drift during flight, if this Hall Effect is present. Any other suggestions to reduce the Hall Effect during flight?

 

[Meta4]

Any other suggestions to reduce the Hall Effect during flight?

It's part of the controller.
All you can do is move the compass sensor in your tablet away from the controller and calibrate the tablet in the controller to make allowances for the controller's magnetic influence.

 

[Denn]

Hello Denn,
I found that if I calibrate my iPhone 7 compass while connected to the controller, the compass indicator works. I have only been out once so I don’t know if the recalibration holds. Once the weather improves, I’ll confirm if the calibration will hold.

Great, I will give it a try today

 

[sar104]

I mount my 9.7” iPadPro above the RC with the Home button on the right side, and frequently end up with the compass direction drifting badly during the flight. Would flipping the iPad so that the Home button is on the left help? Should I be calibrating the compass in the iPad with it mounted and the RC turned on before every flight? It is correct during the first several minutes, but often in unfamiliar territory, it will drift, making it difficult to keep the RC antennas pointed directly at the aircraft, leading to signal loss, or an inability to locate the aircraft in the sky, after looking down at the display. Oddly, whenever I use GO 4 on my iPad Mini, it forces a compass calibration with the rolling red ball on the circle before every use, but not on the iPadPro. Seems that even a properly calibrated iPad compass will drift during flight, if this Hall Effect is present. Any other suggestions to reduce the Hall Effect during flight?

I'm not sure where the compass is in the 9.7 Pro, but I would try flipping it to see if that reduces the effect.

 

[GadgetGuy]

It's part of the controller.
All you can do is move the compass sensor in your tablet away from the controller and calibrate the tablet in the controller to make allowances for the controller's magnetic influence.

Thanks! Can that calibration with the tablet in the controller mount realistically be done while in flight, to reset it, should it go wonky? I'm trying to envision how to do it without losing signal. Certainly worth a try, if flipping the iPad itself doesn't solve the problem, and iPad calibration before launch in the controller with the RC on doesn't eliminate it.

 

[GadgetGuy]

I'm not sure where the compass is in the 9.7 Pro, but I would try flipping it to see if that reduces the effect.

Will give that a try! I had thought it might be from speakers under the passenger seat, while transporting in the car, which are nearby, but it still occasionally happens when flying from home, too. The frustrating part is when it is properly calibrated at launch, but wanders after 10 minutes of flight, just when I really need it! Hall Effect sounds like the culprit, which would be cumulative during flight!

 

[GerdS]

It is not sure what components within the remote are causing compass deviation. The gimbal magnets for the hall effect sensors are just one suspicion.

 

[sar104]

It is not sure what components within the remote are causing compass deviation. The gimbal magnets for the hall effect sensors are just one suspicion.

Are there any other components producing magnetic fields? I can't think of any.