Too many crashes

[sar104]

I’ve had two mavic platinum pros crash on me so far and thank God they were covered under warranty .You may think these things are very dependable they are not . Once again you may think that they’re dependable they are not . They’re not perfect ,if yours hasn’t come down and crashed it’ll come down and crash. I have had 2 spiraled out of control and come down and crash . In a Clear open area .
For whatever reason electrical / Circuit board problem or rotor problem etc. I don’t know there should be some sort of diagnostics thing to plug into it prior to flight takeoff like you do in a car that finds the errors . Hopefully before it becomes a crash .
On top of that they’re overpriced .
My two cents.

That kind of spiral event sounds suspiciously like the result of yaw errors arising from an incorrectly initialized IMU heading. If so, then it's not a hardware fault - it's more a result of the lack of instruction from DJI on how to avoid it.

 

[Droneflyer]

That kind of spiral event sounds suspiciously like the result of yaw errors arising from an incorrectly initialized IMU heading. If so, then it's not a hardware fault - it's more a result of the lack of instruction from DJI on how to avoid it.

You guys have an answer for everything.
DJI must’ve seen something because it was covered under warranty thank God .

 

[Kombucha]

Flying indoors in the dark doesn’t help

I had a spectacular crash with my Tello. Tried to do the toss and fly in the dark. Given that it is optically stabilized the effect was predictible. It flew as hard as it could until it shredded 3 props.

New props and all is fine. Won’t do that again...

 

[sar104]

You guys have an answer for everything.
DJI must’ve seen something because it was covered under warranty thank God .

They have been quite consistent in covering that class of event under warranty. The general assumption has been that it is because they haven't addressed the issue at all in the manual, and so you can follow all their guidelines to fly and still end up with a serious flight control problem.

 

[SteveCA]

They have been quite consistent in covering that class of event under warranty. The general assumption has been that it is because they haven't addressed the issue at all in the manual, and so you can follow all their guidelines to fly and still end up with a serious flight control problem.

Interesting... Do you know what we should do to make sure the IMU is functioning properly before flying?

 

[JDawg]

Interesting... Do you know what we should do to make sure the IMU is functioning properly before flying?

Sar104 - Is this the problem that happens when your compass is pointing the wrong way before takeoff?

 

[sar104]

Interesting... Do you know what we should do to make sure the IMU is functioning properly before flying?

Sar104 - Is this the problem that happens when your compass is pointing the wrong way before takeoff?

Yes - it's the issue that get's discussed over and over again. If the compass is wrong at power up then the IMU is initialized incorrectly. When the aircraft takes off and the magnetic interference goes away, the compass changes to reading correctly but the IMU doesn't - causing yaw errors. The simplest test is to check that the aircraft orientation arrow in the app is pointing in the same direction as the aircraft on the ground, relative to north. If it's not - move the aircraft, reboot, and check again. Do not calibrate at that point unless the app still requests it after the arrow is pointing correctly.

 

[JDawg]

Yes - it's the issue that get's discussed over and over again. If the compass is wrong at power up then the IMU is initialized incorrectly. When the aircraft takes off and the magnetic interference goes away, the compass changes to reading correctly but the IMU doesn't - causing yaw errors. The simplest test is to check that the aircraft orientation arrow in the app is pointing in the same direction as the aircraft on the ground, relative to north. If it's not - move the aircraft, reboot, and check again. Do not calibrate at that point unless the app still requests it after the arrow is pointing correctly.

Hard to believe DJI does not say something about this. I was not aware until following one for your sleuth threads and now it is at the top of my pre take off list.

 

[SteveCA]

Yes - it's the issue that get's discussed over and over again. If the compass is wrong at power up then the IMU is initialized incorrectly. When the aircraft takes off and the magnetic interference goes away, the compass changes to reading correctly but the IMU doesn't - causing yaw errors. The simplest test is to check that the aircraft orientation arrow in the app is pointing in the same direction as the aircraft on the ground, relative to north. If it's not - move the aircraft, reboot, and check again. Do not calibrate at that point unless the app still requests it after the arrow is pointing correctly.

I have taken off from concrete piers where it was not possible to avoid the dreaded compass error. In my hyperlapses I have seen yaw errors where the aircraft turn ever so slightly over the course of several minutes.

The aircraft always seems to behave properly in flight even though it may turn a bit when hovering.

Have you seen other issues under these situations? I’m okay with a little unintended yaw but want to know what else to look for.

 

[sar104]

I have taken off from concrete piers where it was not possible to avoid the dreaded compass error. In my hyperlapses I have seen yaw errors where the aircraft turn ever so slightly over the course of several minutes.

The aircraft always seems to behave properly in flight even though it may turn a bit when hovering.

Have you seen other issues under these situations? I’m okay with a little unintended yaw but want to know what else to look for.

The FC seems to be able to cope with small compass errors (< 45°) but it won't fly well. Anything larger than that and you risk uncontrolled flight. If you have ATTI mode set as an option on the RC mode switch then you can switch to that and prevent the FC from losing it, but otherwise you are in trouble.

If you are getting compass errors before takeoff then that is a definite problem and you really shouldn't launch. The ones that cause the most problem are when the FC doesn't detect a problem with the magnetometer data and simply initializes incorrectly. Then you don't get the yaw errors until after takeoff, by which time it is often too late to fix if you can't select ATTI.

 

[sar104]

Hard to believe DJI does not say something about this. I was not aware until following one for your sleuth threads and now it is at the top of my pre take off list.

I agree. I do not understand why they have not given advice on that. It's one of the commonest causes of crashes and they mostly end up covering it under warranty.

 

[SteveCA]

The FC seems to be able to cope with small compass errors (< 45°) but it won't fly well. Anything larger than that and you risk uncontrolled flight. If you have ATTI mode set as an option on the RC mode switch then you can switch to that and prevent the FC from losing it, but otherwise you are in trouble.

If you are getting compass errors before takeoff then that is a definite problem and you really shouldn't launch. The ones that cause the most problem are when the FC doesn't detect a problem with the magnetometer data and simply initializes incorrectly. Then you don't get the yaw errors until after takeoff, by which time it is often too late to fix if you can't select ATTI.

Thanks for your reply. I will set my tripod switch to activate atti mode. Can this be done in Go4 or does it require DJI assistant?

 

[sar104]

Thanks for your reply. I will set my tripod switch to activate atti mode. Can this be done in Go4 or does it require DJI assistant?

Mavic 2 Atti mode

 

[Rockowe]

The magnetic interference issue is almost completely preventable with a couple of simple checks before takeoff, but those are nowhere to be found in the instruction manual, so it's arguably not pilot error. Flying in high winds is entirely pilot error.

Launching away from Magnetic disturbance is a Matter of Moving your Legs -

Some pilots Just Take off - Before establishing GPS connectivity on the ground - and simply cannot control the Drone in ATTI mode (in Light or moderate wind)

MAINSTREAM TIP - WAIT FOR FULL GPS before Launching-

Launching in High wind - is Easily recoverable - unless you'r in a Hurricane or Tornado - or in the ALPS

This Drone can Fight off 72km/hr Winds - Just switch to sport Immediately (ensure U Do have GPS) and it will stabilize - … Maybe at a DISH angle that's absurd - … but it 95% of the time WILL STabilize -


By the Way - I fly Daily and I last Crashed over 18months Ago-

… so in the Spirit of Selling yr Drone off - as an 'Uncrashable' - Know that Many drone Pilots DONT just CRASH -

 

[m0j0]

Not a good idea to fly with compass errors, even if they go away after being airborne. You could end up with bad compass bias where the AC thinks the compass is correct but it really isn't.

I would say most of the time I experienced a compass error was a function of the location I was flying. They were all P3 series. I have never had a compass error with the MP. That said if you have a compass error on the ground do not launch. Absolutely do not calibrate your compass. Change your location and start over.

 

[SharkHunter2012]

Folks, this is a great conversation. I think it's a bit arrogant to say "I dont Crash". I would bet that thought it is true there is a lot of people talking about crashes, those of us that have damaged a Drone for whatever reason can always deep down know the cause. But simpler thing can be done to save your investment. My mantra is to "stay one mistake away from a crash" simply put, ALWAYS DO A PRE-FLIGHT CHECK this is important. If flying to close to objects backup a bit, no need to get so close. Flying to close to the trees, backup so to not hit the one twig that takes out a prop. Dont hover so close to the water without some kind of safety net, I dont need to list it all. The software reports will prove if you are crashing all the time or ever your not experienced enough.
Ok that's my 2cents. Enjoy the skys, protect your gear and dont get into trouble with the law so we all dont have to pay by over regulation