Water Proofing the MP..

[Cerberus]

I've been wondering lately because my side of the world is having some crazy weather with light rain and drizzles and stuff.

But have anyone ever considering devising a way to water proof our bird somewhat so that it can fly in light rains without us users suffering a heart attack in worrying whether our birds will get soaked to death?

 

[Glasswalker]

Long story short, "Water Proofing" would be nearly impossible with the current mavic design... Without significant major modifications (And major voiding of warranty), just don't fly in the rain unless you have an extra thousand bucks laying around to buy another Mavic

But if you really want to go down that path for the crazy of it then...

You could make it more "water resistant" (especially from downward falling rain) with a few considerations:

- Right now the MP gimbal is likely sensitive to water. This would be difficult to properly protect from rain
- Behind the gimbal is an air intake. This has fans actively sucking in air (and water mist/vapor in rain) into the electronics compartment.
- The SD and USB covers are not water tight, some way would need to be devised to protect them better
- But the good news is the top shell of the mavic is mostly solid. Would need to seal up openeings for sensors (vision etc) and hinges for arms
- Flexible silicone would likely work for some of this possibly.
- The big challenge is the battery compartment.

Now that I'm thinking of it, the best you could realistically achieve is silicone the entry points/joints in the arms. And add a silicone "rain coat" that slips over the back of the body including battery compartment and makes a single seamless surface that can protect it from downward falling rain.

Ultimately you're still going to suck water through the vents though...

Oh, and the motors can't really be protected. That said brushless motors are actually fine to get wet (as long as the water isn't full of electrolytes). But you could make the motors themselves 100% waterproof by potting them (check out DIY Subsea ROV forums, they use brushless motors openly exposed to seawater, which is highly conductive, but with the proper prep the motors are just fine)

Just to confirm, I don't recommend doing this at all... Just don't fly in the rain

(But if you do decide to go do it, take pictures and video and share! lol)

 

[Cerberus]

Long story short, "Water Proofing" would be nearly impossible with the current mavic design... Without significant major modifications (And major voiding of warranty), just don't fly in the rain unless you have an extra thousand bucks laying around to buy another Mavic

But if you really want to go down that path for the crazy of it then...

You could make it more "water resistant" (especially from downward falling rain) with a few considerations:

- Right now the MP gimbal is likely sensitive to water. This would be difficult to properly protect from rain
- Behind the gimbal is an air intake. This has fans actively sucking in air (and water mist/vapor in rain) into the electronics compartment.
- The SD and USB covers are not water tight, some way would need to be devised to protect them better
- But the good news is the top shell of the mavic is mostly solid. Would need to seal up openeings for sensors (vision etc) and hinges for arms
- Flexible silicone would likely work for some of this possibly.
- The big challenge is the battery compartment.

Now that I'm thinking of it, the best you could realistically achieve is silicone the entry points/joints in the arms. And add a silicone "rain coat" that slips over the back of the body including battery compartment and makes a single seamless surface that can protect it from downward falling rain.

Ultimately you're still going to suck water through the vents though...

Oh, and the motors can't really be protected. That said brushless motors are actually fine to get wet (as long as the water isn't full of electrolytes). But you could make the motors themselves 100% waterproof by potting them (check out DIY Subsea ROV forums, they use brushless motors openly exposed to seawater, which is highly conductive, but with the proper prep the motors are just fine)

Just to confirm, I don't recommend doing this at all... Just don't fly in the rain

(But if you do decide to go do it, take pictures and video and share! lol)

Hmm... I was thinking more of using normal house stuffs to do the job..

My thinking (which I see is no where as elaborate and more logical than yours), is to use those plastic foil wrap to wrap the top and sides of the MP body, leaving the bottom un-covered so as to allow wind output from the vents.

To the gimbal, I'm thinking the bubble cover would be great in minimizing the amount of water droplets and rain humidity to get in too much (but clearly your version gave me a much bigger doubt in this for now)..

My biggest concern is the brushless motors which appears to be unprotected from the top.. thats the only thing that kinds of gotten me stumped..

so as you said, I'm stuck without wings on rainy days... staring at my bird (and it staring back at me), in extreme boredom..

Never knew flying the MP meant so much to me...but apparently it does.. haha

 

[Glasswalker]

Hmm... I was thinking more of using normal house stuffs to do the job..

My thinking (which I see is no where as elaborate and more logical than yours), is to use those plastic foil wrap to wrap the top and sides of the MP body, leaving the bottom un-covered so as to allow wind output from the vents.

To the gimbal, I'm thinking the bubble cover would be great in minimizing the amount of water droplets and rain humidity to get in too much (but clearly your version gave me a much bigger doubt in this for now)..

My biggest concern is the brushless motors which appears to be unprotected from the top.. thats the only thing that kinds of gotten me stumped..

so as you said, I'm stuck without wings on rainy days... staring at my bird (and it staring back at me), in extreme boredom..

Never knew flying the MP meant so much to me...but apparently it does.. haha

What you're proposing isn't that different than what I was saying with a silicone "raincoat". Basically the same thing, cover the whole top so it's seamless (protecting the battery seams/connector/cavity, as in water tests I've seen this ends up getting full of water, yes people have tested the mavic in the rain, or simulated rain and there are several videos of it on youtube lol).

You're right, flying with the bubble would help some. At least in light rain/moisture

The one thing that still got damaged in most rain tests was the vision system. You'd need to figure out exactly what's prone to failure from rain there, and protect it somehow.

The other thing you mention is the brushless motors. As I said brushless motors in general won't be hurt by water... Where water causes a problem is if it has electrolytes in it (typically salts, or other contaminants). You can do a test, collect a glass of rainwater, and see how conductive it is... If it's got a low conductivity it probably won't affect the brushless motors at all.

Salt-water (ocean water) has a high conductivity because of the salt content being a good electrolyte. As a result motors that operate in salt water need to be potted correctly to protect the electrical paths from being shorted out. Otherwise water won't hurt the motor itself.

But yes, smart move is just don't fly in the rain lol (regardless of what you do to protect the mavic, flying in the rain is clearly blatent pilot error, and will definitely void your warranty, and may even void DJI Care Refresh) so just don't do it unless you really don't mind replacing your bird

(Trust me I know, I've been going nuts, Weather here hasn't been cooperating either lately, and every day I've had time to fly, couldn't get out, went a week without flying, only got to fly for an hour today lol)

 

[Cerberus]

What you're proposing isn't that different than what I was saying with a silicone "raincoat". Basically the same thing, cover the whole top so it's seamless (protecting the battery seams/connector/cavity, as in water tests I've seen this ends up getting full of water, yes people have tested the mavic in the rain, or simulated rain and there are several videos of it on youtube lol).

You're right, flying with the bubble would help some. At least in light rain/moisture

The one thing that still got damaged in most rain tests was the vision system. You'd need to figure out exactly what's prone to failure from rain there, and protect it somehow.

The other thing you mention is the brushless motors. As I said brushless motors in general won't be hurt by water... Where water causes a problem is if it has electrolytes in it (typically salts, or other contaminants). You can do a test, collect a glass of rainwater, and see how conductive it is... If it's got a low conductivity it probably won't affect the brushless motors at all.

Salt-water (ocean water) has a high conductivity because of the salt content being a good electrolyte. As a result motors that operate in salt water need to be potted correctly to protect the electrical paths from being shorted out. Otherwise water won't hurt the motor itself.

But yes, smart move is just don't fly in the rain lol (regardless of what you do to protect the mavic, flying in the rain is clearly blatent pilot error, and will definitely void your warranty, and may even void DJI Care Refresh) so just don't do it unless you really don't mind replacing your bird

(Trust me I know, I've been going nuts, Weather here hasn't been cooperating either lately, and every day I've had time to fly, couldn't get out, went a week without flying, only got to fly for an hour today lol)

I feel your pain there, Bro... It just feels like time is dragging its feet when you see your bird just sitting there, begging you to fly it (in the rain)..
LOL..

and DJI refresh care is not valid in malaysia.. SO I have to take real care with my bird and pray every flight I have is a smooth and seamless experience with no problems...

;p

 

[GerdS]

Perhaps you should consider buying an amphibic SplashDrone?

 

[Cerberus]

Perhaps you should consider buying an amphibic SplashDrone?

If you can sponsor me one, I'll get it.. HAHA, kidding.. ;p..

 

[larkin]

Word on the street is that the VPS is the first to go in heavy rain because it's the first board that gets fried with the water that eventually gets sucked in through the gimbal vent. I'd like to see the same water stress tests with the bubble cover on.

 

[Cerberus]

Word on the street is that the VPS is the first to go in heavy rain because it's the first board that gets fried with the water that eventually gets sucked in through the gimbal vent. I'd like to see the same water stress tests with the bubble cover on.

Not with my bird you won't ... haha

 

[larkin]

Not with my bird you won't ... haha

Do it for Science.

 

[Cerberus]

Do it for Science.

If science will compensate me with a new Mavic Pro combo package , I will... haha