MP RC disconnects

[borislip]

I've been flying this bird for a rather long time (2 years or so) and never experienced this before...

The RC and the MP link drops, out of the blue, at short distance, with no warnings and a perfectly good reception previously indicated. The MP initiates RTH a few seconds after. Powering the RC off and then on again reestablishes the link, RTH can be cancelled at thia point, regaining full control, and perfect reception.

I didn't switch firmwares on neither the MP nor the RC for at least a year, same goes for a (modified) GO4, so an update suddenly causing this is out of the question. RF interference seems unlikely, at least i really can't think of a potential source (my own phone? but this would have happened before, and it didnt). Can't think of any other ideas on why is it happening.

Can't extract any logs from anything for the next week (AFK), so can't even try to start looking at those.

Any ideas? This kind of link drops can easily result in a loss of MP, something i really wouldn't want to happen.

 

[Thomas B]

From time to time my desktop computer needs a force restart/permission repair due to not following programming in the OS. Not sure how that would be done other than some way at your computer, but might be worth investigating.

 

[borislip]

Force restart/permissions repair on what? The RC? I don't get it, TBH.

 

[Thomas B]

Force restart/permissions repair on what? The RC? I don't get it, TBH.

First on your computer then do the controller and bird through that while connected to your computer.

 

[borislip]

I seriously don't get what you refer to here. I have no knowledge of any possibility to run any kind of permissions reset on neither the RC nor the MP (although, they do run Android internally, as far as i know). Nor the issue i am getting seems any related to any kind of permissions errors.

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

It is hard to speculate on what might have caused your lost link. We recently had a Mavic 2 Dual client experience something very similar to what you have described. He sent it to DJI for warranty service and they replaced a failing main controller. If you continue to experience this issue I would recommend you send it in for diagnosis and repair. Best of luck. - Janelle

 

[Thomas B]

I seriously don't get what you refer to here. I have no knowledge of any possibility to run any kind of permissions reset on neither the RC nor the MP (although, they do run Android internally, as far as i know). Nor the issue i am getting seems any related to any kind of permissions errors.

Just my thoughts related to the system ( drone and controller + any other device (phone, tablet, etc) not following the directions that were programmed into them. Maybe do one of the available “downgrades” to earlier version, after which you could reinstall up to date programming.
If this fails, or you just don’t want to do it, then Florida Drone Supply has the best answer IMHO.

 

[Texas Mavic]

Firmware issue.

 

[borislip]

It is hard to speculate on what might have caused your lost link. We recently had a Mavic 2 Dual client experience something very similar to what you have described. He sent it to DJI for warranty service and they replaced a failing main controller. If you continue to experience this issue I would recommend you send it in for diagnosis and repair. Best of luck. - Janelle

My bird is obviously out of warranty, so sending it out to DJI is unlikely to be an option. Also, i rather strongly suspect the RC being at fault, not the bird (speculation/gut feeling only - mainly based on the fact restating RC helps), so maybe the first thing to try would be to pair with another RC. But that would require a reliable reproduction of the issue, which i don't have. ****.

 

[borislip]

Firmware issue.

As i already mentioned, i am on the same FW set for over a year. Could still be a FW issue, but whats the trigger?

 

[borislip]

Just my thoughts related to the system ( drone and controller + any other device (phone, tablet, etc) not following the directions that were programmed into them. Maybe do one of the available “downgrades” to earlier version, after which you could reinstall up to date programming.
If this fails, or you just don’t want to do it, then Florida Drone Supply has the best answer IMHO.

You are being just as helpful, more or less, as an internet tech support that tells you to reatart your computer and maybe reinstall Windows :-(

 

[madkaw]

Are you on Android or Apple?

 

[Former Member]

2 things. The battery on your controller could be failing or shorting out. That would cause it to stop transmitting, but be able to be restarted after it powers off. Also, your 5 way switch board/MicroUSB charging port might be shorting out. Which port do you connect with?

I have also seen bad cables cause the controller to short out and shut down or stop transmitting and also phones causing the controller to shut down.

 

[borislip]

Are you on Android or Apple?

Unrelated, read the OP

 

[Former Member]

It is hard to speculate on what might have caused your lost link. We recently had a Mavic 2 Dual client experience something very similar to what you have described. He sent it to DJI for warranty service and they replaced a failing main controller. If you continue to experience this issue I would recommend you send it in for diagnosis and repair. Best of luck. - Janelle

This is a real possibility, but it would be a problem with the core board not the main board that would cause the drone to stop receiving the signal.

OP, this above is possible if your fan is not working. The core board will overheat within 2-4 minutes, and cause signal loss. Sometimes the video feed stops as well. Sometimes telemetry stops. It all depends what part of the core board takes the brunt of the overheating.

Put the drone on a table with the props off. Wait up to 4 minutes for the drone to get warm. If you dont hear the fan come on, thats your problem.

 

[borislip]

2 things. The battery on your controller could be failing or shorting out. That would cause it to shut down, but be able to be restarted after it powers off. Also, your 5 way switch board/MicroUSB charging port might be shorting out. Which port do you connect with?

I have also seen bad cables cause the controller to short out and shut down, and also phones causing the controller to shut down.

So what you are essentially saying here is that the RC momentarily loses power one way or another, which causes this? But wouldn't the RC LCD (or whatever it's display type is called) reset or become garbled if that would be the case? Cause it didn't.

I've happened to use the 'OTG' (micro to micro USB) cable the first time and regular micro USB cable the second time, so probably not that part shorting out.

A failng battery in the RC? Sounds far fetched, but hey, as long as i am able to open that thing up (i am sure there are some youtubes on where the clips are), getting a new battery off amazon and soldering it in probably worth a try.

 

[borislip]

This is a real possibility, but it would be a problem with the core board not the main board that would cause the drone to stop receiving the signal.

OP, this above is possible if your fan is not working. The core board will overheat within 2-4 minutes, and cause signal loss. Sometimes the video feed stops as well. Sometimes telemetry stops. It all depends what part of the core board takes the brunt of the overheating.

Put the drone on a table with the props off. Wait up to 4 minutes for the drone to get warm. If you dont hear the fan come on, thats your problem.

Testing the fans now (on both the bird and the RC, who knows...)

Edit: Bird fan kicks in, airflow from the fan (underneath the bird) feels normal. RC fan - still waiting.

Edit2: RC fan kicks in, airflow feels normal.

 

[Former Member]

So what you are essentially saying here is that the RC momentarily loses power one way or another, which causes this? But wouldn't the RC LCD (or whatever it's display type is called) reset or become garbled if that would be the case? Cause it didn't.

Not necessarily. The LED has nothing to do with the transmission signal. In fact, what does the display read when the drone disconnects? "Disconnected?"

A failing battery in the RC? Sounds far fetched, but hey, as long as i am able to open that thing up (i am sure there are some youtubes on where the clips are), getting a new battery off amazon and soldering it in probably worth a try.

Your first statement was that "I've been flying this bird for a rather long time (2 years or so) and never experienced this before... " which immediately told me that you have used it alot. There is no guarantee that the battery in the controller will last forever. In fact, if it has been left in the heat or cold too many times, it will eventually discharge alot faster than it used to.

Do controller batteries fail? They sure do, but not for at least a couple or few years if taken care of. I have replaced a bunch, both on Phantoms and Mavics.

If youre going to try and replace it yourself, take baby steps. The controller has alot of fragile ribbon cables inside, and if you nick one of them, or break off a connector, it will just rub salt in the wound.

 

[Former Member]

Testing the fans now (on both the bird and the RC, who knows...)

If you get a blinking yellow tail light after it heats up, thats your culprit. @Florida Drone Supply nailed it.

 

[Former Member]

Yawn. Its past my bed time.