I have been in a Warranty dispute with DJI regarding a failed firmware update which resulted in a crash.

  

After numerous failed attempts to update to V01.04.0200 and final success after using an older version of DJI A2, I discovered that the added features of V01.04.000 & 001 were missing. I.e. no Quick shots or Pano modes.

  

Unknown at the time, Obstacle Avoidance was also missing and I crashed into a tree. Not the twiggy variety, a fully leaved Australian Gum (which is non deciduous).

  

I have watched several YouTube videos of OA demo’s and they show the AC coming to a halt well in advance of colliding an object.

  

I was flying in Cinematic mode, and the AC suffered considerable damage.

  

I maintain that the upgrade failure was the cause of the crash, and submitted the Flight Record for detailed analysis to DJI.

  

So my question is simply, “Can the Flight Record confirm if Obstacle Avoidance was on and working at the time of a crash”?

  

The following is the reply from DJI Customer Service justifying their rejection of a Warranty claim.

  

In this case, even though the aircraft could sense the obstacles, the aircraft couldn't avoid them promptly, as the braking distance for the aircraft is extended in Cinematic mode.

Hi Aussie, I'm sorry to hear about the accident. From your post, you have contacted our support and applied the data analysis, right? If so, may I know your case number? We'll check it for you. Thanks!

DJI Diana Posted at 2018-4-16 17:59
Hi Aussie, I'm sorry to hear about the accident. From your post, you have contacted our support and applied the data analysis, right? If so, may I know your case number? We'll check it for you. Thanks!

Dear DJI Diana
I have contacted support, and have had numerous discussions via emails with them.
I am unconvinced of that analysis of the Flight Record confirmed that the OA was working. I remain certain it was not. Hence my post to see if any members can advise me if the FR contains such details.

I would be interested to understand how you would know that OA was missing from a firmware update.
It is easy to tell if OA is not working because there is an indication both on the Remote screen and on the screen of your phone/tablet to indicate if it is working. On your phone/tablet, the OA indicator would have turned red if it was off or not working. Also, after a firmware update, it is a good idea to go through all your settings so when you went into the OA settings you should have seen if they were on or off.
I am not disputing what you are saying but there are a few things that you could have done to determine if OA was on or off. It also tells you in the manual that when using Cinematic Mode, the braking distance will be greatly extended to allow for smoother camera movement so there would not have been a sudden brake.
None of us would have any idea if a firmware update was complete but we do assume that if there are no errors during the update, and we check all the settings afterwards and there are no error messages then it is all good to go.
Most reasonable drone pilots would deliberately avoid obstacles and hope that OA works when there is an object that you haven't seen.

Jenee 2 Posted at 2018-4-16 20:09
I would be interested to understand how you would know that OA was missing from a firmware update.
It is easy to tell if OA is not working because there is an indication both on the Remote screen and on the screen of your phone/tablet to indicate if it is working. On your phone/tablet, the OA indicator would have turned red if it was off or not working. Also, after a firmware update, it is a good idea to go through all your settings so when you went into the OA settings you should have seen if they were on or off.
I am not disputing what you are saying but there are a few things that you could have done to determine if OA was on or off. It also tells you in the manual that when using Cinematic Mode, the braking distance will be greatly extended to allow for smoother camera movement so there would not have been a sudden brake.

Jenee2
Thank you for your response. Re your comment that confirmation of the OA working would be an indication on the Remote screen. There were NO red indicators on either the Remote or the iPad mini 4.
I agree, I should have walked in front of the Mavic to see if the OA was working, but sadly, i only found out when it hit the tree. There were other things missing after the update (as per my post). Re your statement that if there were no error messages, then all is good to go.  Clearly in my case that was not the case.
My original question remains, "can or does the FR confirm if the OA was functioning." If it was, I suggest the collision would/should not have occurred.