Motor shut down in cold weather??

[Kilrah]

Well, in theory if you strictly follow basic safety principles flying in foggy conditions would be such a big no-no that it's not even a scenario that could be considered, so...

They talk about cold batteries, reduced run times etc. But nowhere do they warn specifically about the dangers of fog

The manual is pretty clear about "don't fly in fog".

 

[dss123]

Well, in theory if you strictly follow basic safety principles flying in foggy conditions would be such a big no-no that it's not even a scenario that could be considered, so...


The manual is pretty clear about "don't fly in fog".

I wonder if that is more to do with keeping eyes on the AC though?

It was more "morning mist" than fog really. Certainly not thick fog.

And the drone was very close, maybe 30m straight up and clearly visible at all times.

 

[RayOZ]

I should've asked this earlier, why didn't you keep the flight logs? That's a big mistake.
Regardless of what the first tech support said, the flight log could have been used to determined if there was a hardware malfunction or software bug, which in that case DJI would have to replace under warranty. In such incidents, the flight logs helps us understand the behaviour of the drone in different scenarios.
If DJI were to determine it might be a warranty case, they would've asked for the flight logs.
You've basically lost the evidence that could've prove if you were innocent or guilty for the crash.

 

[HiYa]

What temperature did you fly on?

 

[dss123]

Quick update for those who may be interested....

DJI have sent me graphs showing the relative motor currents from my AC at the time of the failure. They show an increasing current and also a variation between motors.

So this indicates prop icing... apparently.

So I am happy to conclude that this is what caused the motors to cut out. And happy that I can avoid this happening again in the future.

While air temps were maybe hovering around zero degrees which , on their own, should not have been a problem, it was the combination of cold AND damp (fog) that likely caused the issue.


As a novice pilot, it frustrates me that the potential for this to happen is not made very clear in the basic flying instructions.

Instructions seem to focus on all the fancy features of the AC without dealing with fundamentals like prop icing and motor shut down in cold weather!


It's only by having a motor failure, crashing my drone and then posting on this forum have I learned about this issue.


You live and learn I suppose.


Dunc

 

[RayOZ]

Good to know what happened.
I think the information would’ve been available if you search google hard enough. People tend not too look for the negatives (what might go wrong) until until something goes wrong.
Possibly, when the drone first takes off, the props starts from room temperature as it was taken outside, which cause water from fog to condensate. Then when it cools, ice forms.

 

[dss123]

Good to know what happened.
I think the information would’ve been available if you search google hard enough. People tend not too look for the negatives (what might go wrong) until until something goes wrong.
Possibly, when the drone first takes off, the props starts from room temperature as it was taken outside, which cause water from fog to condensate. Then when it cools, ice forms.

I think that's exactly what happened....

Expensive lesson learned.

 

[Zoomaj]

Hello this happened to me yesterday, I'm afraid I wasn't so lucky and my drone crashed really bad to the point where it doesn't connect to the controller anymore.

 

[Zoomaj]

I was about 3 Mins into my flight, going nice and steady, I actually saw the drone plummet out of the sky, it just fell straight down, all 4 legs have impact damage, and the gimble as well. Iv emailed dji support but reading from the replies in this thread it looks like they won't do anything

 

[Zoomaj]

I just wish rather than plummet from the sky it would just land or something, after the initial error it took a further 7-10 seconds until it fell out from the sky

 

[Zoomaj]

Well, in theory if you strictly follow basic safety principles flying in foggy conditions would be such a big no-no that it's not even a scenario that could be considered, so...


The manual is pretty clear about "don't fly in fog".

View attachment 58479

Wish I read that before!

 

[dss123]

I just wish rather than plummet from the sky it would just land or something, after the initial error it took a further 7-10 seconds until it fell out from the sky

Yes, this is exactly what happened to me....

I don't really understand how just shutting off the motors is an acceptable "safety mechanism" for a drone who's props have started icing up?

Surely just reducing power to the motors and forcing a quick, but controlled landing would be a better option?

I also don't think the dangers of flying in cold + fog are really stressed in the basic flying instructions. But I've had that debate with DJI.

I'm afraid you will be charged for a repair if DJI suspect the air temp was below zero.

I was charged a few £££ for parts, but then £50 for the service fee, £30 for postage, then VAT. So it was over £100 and I only really broke a prop.

I will personally NEVER fly in cold temps again unless I know the air is very dry.

Dunc

 

[Zoomaj]

Hello thanks for getting back to me, yes definitely switching off mid flight is definitely not a good idea! It should just land straight away, iv done over 245 flights with over 20 hours flying experience! I'm very careful when flying and wasn't going to fly yesterday but it just looked so beautiful with the fog and snow, first proper crash and it's not working at all, did you have dji refresh? Also how much do you think it will cost to repair? My drone has suffered some major damage, il post close up pictures after, it fell straight on concrete, I'm from near Manchester up north, is the Dji repair centre in UK? I wouldn't mind paying upto £250 to get it repaired, your right about the hazards of flying in cold weather definitely not advertised at all, iv flown in cold dry sunny days with 0c no problems at all, i guess the fog condensated the drone or turned them into ice on the props, I watched it fall Infront of my eyes! Very sad day! Considering how expensive these things are!

 

[raven swe]

uk repair centre is in Holland I think

 

[Zoomaj]

Right attached is the damage pictures close up guys, any ideas how much dji will charge for repair?

 

[Zoomaj]

Iv just had an email from UPS delivery, so how does it work pal? Do I post the drone to dji? Before they fix it will they give me a quote? Or do they just fix it and bill me? How long does the whole process take? Sorry for asking so many questions! But I'm kind of going through what you have been through, so I appreciate the help. Thank you for your help and assistance in this matter

 

[JDawg]

https://www.amazon.com/Rain-X-800002250-Glass-Treatment-Trigger/dp/B000BVRZ74

 

[Simk1n]

My Mavic 2 also had motor current warning in december, -7 and fog. Props coated with ice but it did not shut of the motors, i landed it myself.

So never ever fly in cold weather and fog.

 

[Zoomaj]

My Mavic 2 also had motor current warning in december, -7 and fog. Props coated with ice but it did not shut of the motors, i landed it myself.

So never ever fly in cold weather and fog.

No ways! After getting the current error how soon did you land it? After I got it, it dropped out of the sky literally about 7-10 seconds later, but I did bring it down from 40 metres to like around 15-20 metres in that time, if it landed on grass I might have been OK. Yeah I guess lesson learnt never fly in the cold and fog!

 

[Simk1n]

No ways! After getting the current error how soon did you land it? After I got it, it dropped out of the sky literally about 7-10 seconds later, but I did bring it down from 40 metres to like around 15-20 metres in that time, if it landed on grass I might have been OK. Yeah I guess lesson learnt never fly in the cold and fog!

I don't remember how long but maybe 20-30 sec. This was my first test flight and I was only gonna fly it within a few meters just to test the drone. Luckily the motors did not stop.