The DJI Mini 4 Pro is tough, and this guy just went and demostrated it.

Don’t think that you will always be so lucky, there are many cases of damage from small falls and collisions.
The drone body is very fragile because the drone should weigh less than 250g. The fastening of the beams is made specially fragile so that they break and not the beams themselves, this is the most common failure. The camera gimbal often breaks and cables break. Falling on soft grass in the forest is not at all the same as falling on asphalt...

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 00:20
Don’t think that you will always be so lucky, there are many cases of damage from small falls and collisions.
The drone body is very fragile because the drone should weigh less than 250g. The fastening of the beams is made specially fragile so that they break and not the beams themselves, this is the most common failure. The camera gimbal often breaks and cables break. Falling on soft grass in the forest is not at all the same as falling on asphalt...

But in the video the guy poured water AND flour into the motors and continuously crashed it into the tree, which is a hard surface, and only until lots of crashes did the drone actually encounter some damage.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 08:33
But in the video the guy poured water AND flour into the motors and continuously crashed it into the tree, which is a hard surface, and only until lots of crashes did the drone actually encounter some damage.

I didn't talk about engines. Perhaps after he filled them with water and covered them with flour, they were able to work for SOME time, but the question is what will happen to them next?
I talked about the drone falling; when the drone falls onto a hard surface, the beam mount easily breaks; this was made specifically as a fuse. Replacing it is simple and not expensive, but it breaks)))

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 08:38
I didn't talk about engines. Perhaps after he filled them with water and covered them with flour, they were able to work for SOME time, but the question is what will happen to them next?
I talked about the drone falling; when the drone falls onto a hard surface, the beam mount easily breaks; this was made specifically as a fuse. Replacing it is simple and not expensive, but it breaks)))

He did say in the video that he waited two weeks to see for any long term damage after the water and flour, and only then did he conduct the crash test. Also, when I fly, I make sure that underneath the drone is grass or sand or bush or something soft, so it doesn't fall on a hard surface.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 08:42
He did say in the video that he waited two weeks to see for any long term damage after the water and flour, and only then did he conduct the crash test. Also, when I fly, I make sure that underneath the drone is grass or sand or bush or something soft, so it doesn't fall on a hard surface.

I'm not sure that such a test did not have a bad effect on the drone and perhaps 2 weeks is a short period. It’s interesting to fly in the city and shoot films, there is a hard surface everywhere, and in nature there is not soft grass everywhere. I recommend not to hope that there will be no consequences if you fall; it is better to avoid falls in every possible way.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 08:53
I'm not sure that such a test did not have a bad effect on the drone and perhaps 2 weeks is a short period. It’s interesting to fly in the city and shoot films, there is a hard surface everywhere, and in nature there is not soft grass everywhere. I recommend not to hope that there will be no consequences if you fall; it is better to avoid falls in every possible way.

So when I fly over rocks with my Mini 4 Pro I put it on C or N mode when obstacle avoidance is on, and the obstacle avoidance will bypass or stop in front of any object in sight, plus obstacle avoidance works in all directions.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:20
So when I fly over rocks with my Mini 4 Pro I put it on C or N mode when obstacle avoidance is on, and the obstacle avoidance will bypass or stop in front of any object in sight, plus obstacle avoidance works in all directions.

You shouldn’t rely entirely on sensors; they don’t see small obstacles, especially in the forest. Watch a lot of videos of accidents.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 09:26
You shouldn’t rely entirely on sensors; they don’t see small obstacles, especially in the forest. Watch a lot of videos of accidents.

With the Mini 4 Pro?

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:26
With the Mini 4 Pro?

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dji+mini+4+crash

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 09:29
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dji+mini+4+crash

He must have been 1 in 31287 pilots who got unlucky.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:30
He must have been 1 in 31287 pilots who got unlucky.

Why alone? Watch all videos)

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 09:31
Why alone? Watch all videos)

Ok, fine I will. But there are still many more videos under https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dji+mini+4+pro+obstacle+avoidance

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:32
Ok, fine I will. But there are still many more videos under https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dji+mini+4+pro+obstacle+avoidance

Funny) half of these videos end in an accident or fall. And what's the point of watching a video of a drone avoiding obstacles? We are talking about the fact that the drone DOES NOT ALWAYS do this and this must be understood and taken into account.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 09:42
Funny) half of these videos end in an accident or fall. And what's the point of watching a video of a drone avoiding obstacles? We are talking about the fact that the drone DOES NOT ALWAYS do this and this must be understood and taken into account.

But I thought DJI themselves announced that the obstacle avoidance of the Mini 4 Pro WILL ensure a safe and flawless flight.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:32
Ok, fine I will. But there are still many more videos under https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dji+mini+4+pro+obstacle+avoidance

You can't be sure that during your flight the drone will see all the obstacles and it won't happen like in the video)

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:45
But I thought DJI themselves announced that the obstacle avoidance of the Mini 4 Pro WILL ensure a safe and flawless flight.

This is not so, read the instructions, it just says that the operation of the sensors is limited and that the pilot is responsible for flight safety. The sensors do not work 100%, no one talked about this.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 09:47
This is not so, read the instructions, it just says that the operation of the sensors is limited and that the pilot is responsible for flight safety. The sensors do not work 100%, no one talked about this.

But they might be a sensor upgrade on the Mini 5 Pro which should come out in less than half a year.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 09:50
But they might be a sensor upgrade on the Mini 5 Pro which should come out in less than half a year.

It's ridiculous to hope) Even Mavic 3 cannot recognize small obstacles and gets into an accident in the same way. There is NO such thing as 100% reliability, especially with drones. In addition, mini 5 is not expected this year)

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:02
It's ridiculous to hope) Even Mavic 3 cannot recognize small obstacles and gets into an accident in the same way. There is NO such thing as 100% reliability, especially with drones. In addition, mini 5 is not expected this year)

But the reason OA is better on the Mini 4 Pro than on the Mavic 3 is because the Mavic 3 by far is a bigger drone, and the drone's body gets in the way of the sensors, so you can forgive the Mavic 3 because it has an excuse.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:04
But the reason OA is better on the Mini 4 Pro than on the Mavic 3 is because the Mavic 3 by far is a bigger drone, and the drone's body gets in the way of the sensors, so you can forgive the Mavic 3 because it has an excuse.

This is absolutely false. Mavic 3 has more advanced sensors, with higher resolution and a better processor for signal processing, but they cannot guarantee the detection of small obstacles, and besides, all this is very dependent on lighting; in the dark and at twilight, the sensors are useless. But even in bright sunshine, it can also blind the sensors and they will not see obstacles, even large ones.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:09
This is absolutely false. Mavic 3 has more advanced sensors, with higher resolution and a better processor for signal processing, but they cannot guarantee the detection of small obstacles, and besides, all this is very dependent on lighting; in the dark and at twilight, the sensors are useless. But even in bright sunshine, it can also blind the sensors and they will not see obstacles, even large ones.

Wait, so are the sensors fisheye cameras or LiDAR?

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:11
Wait, so are the sensors fisheye cameras or LiDAR?

sensors fisheye cameras

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:11
Wait, so are the sensors fisheye cameras or LiDAR?

Sometimes it's useful to read the instructions)

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:12
sensors fisheye cameras

Oh. LiDAR is better coz it sends rays of light out and measures the time it takes for the light to bounce back to the sensor, that’s how LiDAR measures the distance between itself and an object. It also works in any condition.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:14
Oh. LiDAR is better coz it sends rays of light out and measures the time it takes for the light to bounce back to the sensor, that’s how LiDAR measures the distance between itself and an object. It also works in any condition.

I know how lidar works
Can you imagine how to implement lidar in such a small body and weight?

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:15
I know how lidar works
Can you imagine how to implement lidar in such a small body and weight?

Good point, but they could do it with a big drone like the Mavic 3 Pro. Anyway if an iPhone 15 Pro has LiDAR then it proves that it doesn’t use up that much space or weight.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:16
Good point, but they could do it with a big drone like the Mavic 3 Pro. Anyway if an iPhone 15 Pro has LiDAR then it proves that it doesn’t use up that much space or weight.

No, even Mavic 3 cannot integrate lidar.
You simply don’t understand how lidar technology works to build a three-dimensional image that a drone needs to fly. In a phone, the lidar is primitive and measures the distance to one point, and the drone needs to constantly scan the space 3 60 degrees)

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:21
No, even Mavic 3 cannot integrate lidar.
You simply don’t understand how lidar technology works to build a three-dimensional image that a drone needs to fly. In a phone, the lidar is primitive and measures the distance to one point, and the drone needs to constantly scan the space 3 60 degrees)

LiDAR, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, works by emitting rapid pulses of laser light and measuring the time it takes for these pulses to bounce back after hitting objects. This data is then used to create detailed and accurate 3D maps or models of the surrounding environment, including details about the distance, size, and shape of objects. LiDAR systems typically consist of a laser, a scanner, and a specialised sensor, and they are widely used  in applications such as autonomous vehicles, archaeology, forestry, and urban planning.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:16
Good point, but they could do it with a big drone like the Mavic 3 Pro. Anyway if an iPhone 15 Pro has LiDAR then it proves that it doesn’t use up that much space or weight.

All DJI drones have a bottom sensor that works like an echo sounder and measures the distance when landing, this is the same primitive analogue of lidar. It only works on the surface and does not distinguish details and only at a distance of up to 12 meters.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:23
All DJI drones have a bottom sensor that works like an echo sounder and measures the distance when landing, this is the same primitive analogue of lidar. It only works on the surface and does not distinguish details and only at a distance of up to 12 meters.

Those are then ultrasound sensors.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:23
LiDAR, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, works by emitting rapid pulses of laser light and measuring the time it takes for these pulses to bounce back after hitting objects. This data is then used to create detailed and accurate 3D maps or models of the surrounding environment, including details about the distance, size, and shape of objects. LiDAR systems typically consist of a laser, a scanner, and a specialised sensor, and they are widely used  in applications such as autonomous vehicles, archaeology, forestry, and urban planning.

I said that I know all this) I’m an engineer)
Look at the photos of lidars to see how they look and you will understand the difference. And then think about how much computing power the drone must have in order to build a 3D map around the drone at 360 degrees several times a second)))

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:27
I said that I know all this) I’m an engineer)
Look at the photos of lidars to see how they look and you will understand the difference. And then think about how much computing power the drone must have in order to build a 3D map around the drone at 360 degrees several times a second)))

It is possible, though it will consume a lot of battery.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:28
It is possible, though it will consume a lot of battery.

This is impossible in such a body and weight, energy consumption is trivial compared to other problems.
But if you are a specialist and think this is possible, I think DJI will be happy to hire you.

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:24
Those are then ultrasound sensors.

No, the first DJI drones had ultrasonic sensors, then they abandoned them; now they have infrared ones.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:30
This is impossible in such a body and weight, energy consumption is trivial compared to other problems.
But if you are a specialist and think this is possible, I think DJI will be happy to hire you.

Well, maybe not. How about ultrasound?

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:32
No, the first DJI drones had ultrasonic sensors, then they abandoned them; now they have infrared ones.

So is Infrared easier to handle

USER001 Posted at 3-26 10:32
Well, maybe not. How about ultrasound?

No, this is not a suitable technology at all, it can only work at very short distances, very strong interference and insufficient resolution. Everything is not simple, otherwise it would have been realized long ago.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:34
No, this is not a suitable technology at all, it can only work at very short distances, very strong interference and insufficient resolution. Everything is not simple, otherwise it would have been realized long ago.

But if the system scans the infrared sensors every millisecond, it could potentially work.

Serg SSA Posted at 3-26 10:34
No, this is not a suitable technology at all, it can only work at very short distances, very strong interference and insufficient resolution. Everything is not simple, otherwise it would have been realized long ago.

Yay I just got enough points to get to level 4