Restarting the Mavic Mini 2 Mid-Air after CSC

[Rogat19]

What would cause it not to regain flight?

Gravity!

 

[BigAl07]

Lol just told dji it was a fly away and getting replacement. I could try again if everyone thinks I should try

Well you just lost ALL respect points by doing this dishonest tactic. Keep in mind KARMA has a great memory my friend.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Lol just told dji it was a fly away and getting replacement. I could try again if everyone thinks I should try

That is a big dissapointment.

I would be surprised if DJI fall for it being a fly away.
They will almost certainly ask for the logs from the phone and I presume the txt log will show the selection of the Anytime response to the CSC position and the use of the CSC position to stop the motors.
Similarly the DAT from the phone will show the motors stopping in response to the CSC and that the drone may have landed fairly close to the take off point and, possibly, that it was picked up shortly after it landed.
Claiming it is a fly away is deceitful and might constitute fraud.
I would think it would be acceptable to handle this a care refresh replacement but it is not a flyaway. You would have to 'find' the drone for it to be a care refresh replacement. I think you MUST have care refresh in order to be able to buy the flyaway coverage.

That said, from memory, the fly away fee is not cheap. In addition, looking at your photos I am prompted to ask what error messages, if any, does the drone now give, do the gimbal and camera work and is the gimbal damaged?
With it landing on its back I suspect there is a chance that you got away with none of the usual gimbal damage i.e. no torn ribbon cable and no broken gimbal arms.

If there are no error messages and the camera and gimbal are fully functional I would suggest you remove the intact propellors and the remains of the damaged ones and see if the motors will run.
I do not see damage to the arms etc. is that correct? If so and providing you have a decent soldering iron and can solder, then you can perhaps get another experience from this which might be cheaper than paying the flyaway fee i.e. cancel the claim and rebuild the drone, i.e. replace the middle shell which looks to be the only damaged component.

You'd need to carefully check everything, for previously unseen damage, as you dismantle it but it is a fairly simple drone to rebuild. I bought a crashed one for parts and it turned out the only damage was a broken up middle shell, I replaced the middle shell and it now flies a treat. Even if you have to replace the top cover too it is still likely to come in under the Flyaway charge. This assumes new shell parts, which will almost certainly be pattern parts, are good copies.

Of course and just so that you are aware, rebuilding would void warranty etc..

 

[skycam509]

You might think about doing this above a soft surface. Maybe some type of crop? Please post the results and video!

 

[zxcflyer]

 

[Phantomrain.org]

So this is showing the drone being turned off many times over and over again and restarting correct ?

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Mini in the Rain.

 

[SkittleBob]

So this is showing the drone being turned off many times over and over again and restarting correct ?

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Mini in the Rain.

Description says 'Mavic Pro high altitude flight. On the way down props off at 3000 m to save battery, at 1800 props restart and safe landing.'

He also gives short shrift to an unhappy pilot in the comments.

 

[gannp]

The problem lies in whether or not the drone tumbles in the free fall.
If it tumbles then there is a chance it may exceed the angles of tilt within which the drone will permit the motors to restart. So, if you are going to try it, be sure to start HIGH up over somewhere empty of people, property and animals.
Switch the CSC response mode to "anytime". Switch the flight mode cine (slowest flight speeds and lowest angles of tilt before the motors stop etc.) and put the sticks in the CSC position and hold them there. The motors will stop within either 0.7 or 1.7 seconds.
As soon and they stop release the sticks and let them centre.

Look at the screen to see if the drone is tumbling or apparently falling in a flat spin.
If it is tumbling then put the sticks into the CSC position and probably hold them there. If the screen shows the drone stop tumbling release the CSC position IMMEDIATELY and give the drone full throttle. If the drone continues to tumble then I do not know if it is better to try releasing the sticks and then put them back into the CSC position or just hold them in the CSC position and pray.

To some extent you can test what will happen by HOLDING the drone in your hand WITH A FIRM GRASP and wobble the drone to near 90 deg tilts WHILST holding the sticks in the CSC position. MAKE SURE you fingers, wrist and face will not be hit by the props. If the motors restart the drone will fight you, be prepared for this. You would do best to stop wobbling your hand, release the sticks and then hold the throttle closed, that should stop the motors after a second or so, if it doesn't then tilt the drone to 90deg or so. DO NOT release your grasp of the drone UNTIL the motors have stopped, there is no telling where it might go to if you release you grasp with the motors fighting you.

If the screen shows the drone to be falling level or in a flat spin then you are likely to be in a better position but restart the motors with the CSC position fairly quickly, the free fall speed is likely to be quite fast. If the drone was falling in a flat spin then a motor restart will stop the spin, release the sticks as soon as you see that happen and then give the drone full throttle.

The reason I suggest full throttle after a restart is because the motors may restart at idle and idle will not halt the fall. I had this happen with a Phantom 3 and it took me a second or so to realise what had happened. Incidentally the freefall speed of my phantom was, from memory, between 14m/s and 16m/s. I suspect the Mini 2 is more intelligent than the Phantom 3 and may automatically throttle up but if it doesn't you need to know what to do.
If the Mini 2 simply falls level I do not know how you will tell if and when the motors restart, you are on your own there.

Assuming you get a successful restart and regain control I would switch the CSC response back to "Emergency Only" or "Breakdown" ASAP, it is ALL TOO EASY to trigger and motor stop in "Anytime".

If you try this PLEASE post the flight log irrespective of the out come.

Why switch to "anytime"
Isn't "Emergency only" the same thing as far as the drone is concerned? Off is off isn't it?
[honest question I have been trying to get an answer to for a long time.]

 

[Meta4]

Why switch to "anytime"
Isn't "Emergency only" the same thing as far as the drone is concerned? Off is off isn't it?
[honest question I have been trying to get an answer to for a long time.]

No-one really knows what DJI mean by Emergency and how the drone can tell if it is an emergency.
It's better to leave it at any time so that if you need to stop the spinning blades, you can.

 

[GadgetGuy]

No-one really knows what DJI mean by Emergency and how the drone can tell if it is an emergency.
It's better to leave it at any time so that if you need to stop the spinning blades, you can.

On the other hand, if you ever fly backwards, and are orbiting around a subject in a corkscrew, it is possible to inadvertently engage CSC and shut off the motors in flight. Unlikely, but still possible. The risk of that has to be weighed against the need for an immediate shutoff where the drone doesn't perceive an Emergency, whatever that is. I prefer the Emergency only setting. I can still shut off the motors by holding down the left stick for 2-3 seconds, assuming it is in my hand, or already on the ground and cannot descend further. If a helicopter appears out of nowhere, I'm immediately descending below it as fast as possible, but I am not going to shut off my motors in midair!