PaulKerry Posted at 2016-2-20 05:59
On the whole, I would have to agree with Dave.

If anyone would be nervous about making flights, I w ...

I agree with Paul on this 100%.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-2-19 14:00
Very well said Dave !

Thanks!


Dave

PaulKerry Posted at 2016-2-19 13:59
On the whole, I would have to agree with Dave.

If anyone would be nervous about making flights, I w ...

Thanks! I disagree with one word and that is when you said "ever". Nothing is perfect and you know that. For crying out loud even the space shuttle exploded and there's been plenty of 747s crashed, and multi million dollar military drones go down quite often.

Dave

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-2-19 14:28
I wrote a huge long reply to this then just accidentally closed the wrong box.
I'll just say that  ...

I have had that happen.

Dave

DJI-Dave Posted at 2016-2-20 09:00
Thanks! I disagree with one word and that is when you said "ever". Nothing is perfect and you know ...

So true, even my prior company I worked for had an engine fall off a 747 after takeoff and it came crashing to the ground in the Alaska forest

PaulKerry Posted at 2016-2-19 21:25
You are quite right. My apologies. A very poor choice of phrase.

What was in my mind was more abou ...

OK, well I'm glad we got that settled. Carry-on


Dave

It's very clear that these issues are extremely rare and while they are devastating to the few that are affected, we need to be careful not to suggest they are widespread.  

From what I've seen DJI hasn't ever abandoned a customer.  Sometimes it takes a frustratingly long time to achieve resolution but look at the impossible position DJI are in.  All someone needs to say is "flyaway" and DJI have to  separate real issues from pilot error.  

This isn't to diminish anyone's personal experience, I just want to put it in perspective.
And Ed, Dave, Ken. Tim and the rest have the most difficult job of all, dealing with all of us head on!   

mattsimok33@gma Posted at 2016-2-19 12:57
That was my concern which is why I didnt post any lost and found signs, at the result of being res ...

but see, this is exactly why the FAA has made it mandatory for pilots to register and label their drones. It's times like these for people to be responsible for their actions and their equipment, given a malfunction or pilot error- it is not anyone elses fault for flying your drone into their world and causing financial problems.  If you don't want to be financially responsible, get your bird insured!

mattsimok33@gma Posted at 2016-2-16 13:25
I'll share the details...

It was a typical day of flight nothing out of the ordinary, battery leve ...

Just curious did you have the Calibrate Map coordinates(for china mainland) on or off

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-2-18 20:13
The app will record the data up until the lost signal. So if he shuts the app off it will still ke ...

Agree with you Ken , my p1.0 purchased in 2013 my p2.0 in late 2013 and my over one year old inspire one are all still in fine condition never a fly away etc.  
I had one disconnect of video and then an rc disconnect when I was testing the video distance capability of the inspire over water.. My flight record was still recorded even though the pilot app was black screen, when the rc disconnected seconds later is when it stopped recording the flight to the pilot app.
Also Im one whom does not do compass or imu calibrations very often sometimes for several months, the last two firmware updates I did no imu or compass recal  and they flew fine... I did check the values !
After receiving my inspire both phantoms were shelved almost, I've pulled out the old p1.0 and flew it with no more than a battery charge, no imu or compass cal it flew perfect held position and performed flawlessly even doing an RTH at the end of the flight, same with my p2 not one malfunction flying after sitting for several months.
This is my experience so far and the inspire seems to hold the imu and compass values as well.
If I travel more than 150 mi from my last compass cal I do one, if my bird gets bumped around in travel or I had a minor no damage crash again I do a compass cal and the imu.. And for most it's probably a good idea to recal the imu and compass after you upgrade the firmware just to be safe and to get used to doing it right !   

DJI-Dave Posted at 2016-2-19 14:44
Do not be scared to fly...
DJI sells thousands of these things world wide every day.
I wish DJI wo ...

Read my post, I've flown rc for over 40 years  purchased the first p1 in 2013 then a p2 and in December 2015 the inspire.... You couldn't find a better more complete well designed reputable major player in the rc multi rotor camera platform industries than Dji, name ONE ? Anyone care to tell me what company is in the lead then ? Anyone... That's right Dji is way ahead of the pack in terms of innovation with thousands maybe millions of very happy satisfied customers.. I'm one.  Ken, Dave, Tim, and dji  April ....just a few that I believe deserve some thanks for placing themselves directly in the line of fire dealing with problems of flying vehicles.. oh my...
Thanks Guys you are good !

R&L Aerial  Posted at 2016-2-19 16:20
That's true right now but it won't be long there will be there will be a lot of competition. It on ...

Samsung over took Apple, ha ha ha that's a good one !  Where, in turkey ? Still laughing.....

mattsimok33@gma Posted at 2016-2-19 15:53
Let me address a few things. The IMU was calibrated as well as the compass its part of my pre flight ...

If an IMU and Compass Calibration are part of your 'preflight', then I guarantee that is where you went wrong. There is simply no reason to calibrate the compass at each flight. All you are doing is introducing a new opportunity for failure at every turn.  Get a good calibration and leave it alone.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-2-19 07:28
I very much doubt that losing his aircraft was due to a aircraft malfunction fly away. Actually i h ...

Hi Ken,

I am certainly not interested in getting in to a silly argument over who is correct but must say that I have had a "NON pilot" induced fly away, here is the results from DJI:

It's not very clear, we think the GPS module and acceleration sensor were not performing normal.
Please check the analysis result below:
FLY016 is the crash flight log:
1. before crash, pitch and roll were controllable;
2. during the whole flight, the GPS signal was 0; according to the picture, the flight environment was open area; it seems the GPS module was not performing well;
3. according to the flight log, there is no sign of RC signal lost;
4. the aircraft kept with a 0.7m/s when the pitch stick got 100% input; which indicated the acceleration sensor might had some problem;
Thanks & best regards,
DJI Product Application Technical Support

It has happened Ken, so a blanket statement saying otherwise is not correct. YES, I do not understand how things go wrong for a few whilst the majority are fine but it does happen. Look at my current thread after version update 1.8.1 - gimbal is now stuffed yet the majority of customers do not have an issue.
I realise you guys are at the coal face and do your best so this is certainly not an attack on you, just a suggestion that not all fly aways and issues are are due to pilot stupidity.

seanemclean@gma Posted at 2016-4-12 10:43
If an IMU and Compass Calibration are part of your 'preflight', then I guarantee that is where you ...

There is simply no reason to calibrate the compass at each flight.......Really ?????
My understanding is that you should calibrate the compass when flying at a location away from where you previously calibrated.

As you don't know where mattsimok33 flies, how often he flies or why he flies his I1 how can you possibly comment on his situation or guarantee that this was the reason for his lost bird.

You seem to know more than DJI, DJI Ken, DJI Dave or DJI Tim about the I1 as none of these suggest this being the cause of the loss.

Gary

seanemclean@gma Posted at 2016-4-12 10:43
If an IMU and Compass Calibration are part of your 'preflight', then I guarantee that is where you ...

Yup - have to agree with that!

I would say EVERY single claims of  a 'flyaway' on forums I have always seen the words "So I calibrated the compass as usual before take off".........

This is so badly flawed, when will DJI give out sensible advice and tell people the more you calibrate the damn compass the more chance you have of introducing a problem?

Calibrate in a good area, free from magnetic interference then LEAVE IT ALONE !!!!!
Check your mod values before every single take off and if any of them are out - DON'T FLY.  Re locate and check them again.

The last time I calibrated my compass was the last firmware update before the end of 2015 - so that would have been December.
Since then I have traveled over 1,500 miles and never calibrated and never had any issues.

GazFromBrum Posted at 2016-4-12 19:19
There is simply no reason to calibrate the compass at each flight.......Really ?????
My understand ...

Seans advice is spot on.

A compass calibration is simply calibrating the magnetometer for the Earths magnetic flux - this DOES NOT CHANGE significantly over long distances!
By calibrating blindly in an unfamiliar area you have no idea what you are introducing. You maybe standing on top of a buried car for all you know. You then do the calibration (with buried car beneath you) and the Inspire 'thinks' its got a good calibration.
You then take off and get clear of the buried cars magnetic influence. Now all that is acting on the Compass is the Earths true flux. Unfortunately, it is now so out of whack all hell breaks loose. The aircraft goes into TBE and a less experienced pilot suffers a crash or what they describe as a 'flyaway'

Absolutely no need to calibrate every single time you change location.

I had a very disappointing case myself I just had a broken arm and they didn't even fix it sent me back the drone after five months then charge me and told me that I needed to replace a scratched from the drone unnecessary charges but after five months of waiting I would think DJ I would at least have some type of compensation their compensation was to send me some propellers what the hell do I need with propellers of the drone is broken

GazFromBrum Posted at 2016-4-12 14:19
There is simply no reason to calibrate the compass at each flight.......Really ?????
My understand ...

Yes, that is correct.  You should only calibrate the compass when traveling a significant distance (i.e., hundreds of miles or more), or when the app tells you to, or after a firmware update.

As for me knowing more than DJI? Hardly. See DJI Ken's Assessment: " I bet every single time it comes down do the operator not calibrating the IMU or compass correctly."  A compass calibration, specifically, is incredibly important to safe and reliable operation.  Every time you do it, you're introducing risk, especially in a new environment where you simply do not know what is in the ground near you, or what interference is nearby.  Going through a silly 'preflight' and recalibrating everything in an unknown enviroment is not only completely unnecessary, it's also could be dangerous.  Calibration should be a known good.  Do the IMU at home on a surface you know is completely level. Need to redo a compass? Go out into the middle of a field that you know is free from obstruction and underground infrastructure.  Then leave it alone until one of the criteria above are met (and even then, only if you are seeing erratic values in DJI GO).

I've done a compass calibration one time on my Inspire.  That's it.

seanemclean@gma Posted at 2016-4-13 11:22
Yes, that is correct.  You should only calibrate the compass when traveling a significant distance  ...

To be honest my niggle is that you state you can guarantee the reason for the fly away is the fact he calibrated....... there's no possible way you can guarantee anything...... now advising against such practice and reasoning why is fine but don't make such sweeping statements when you can't possible guarantee anything of the sort.

As for only calibrating in the middle of a field you KNOW is safe....... how in the world can you guarantee any location is safe and free from interference....... unless you bring along a metal detector or ground penetrating radar and survey the area.

GazFromBrum Posted at 2016-4-13 12:03
To be honest my niggle is that you state you can guarantee the reason for the fly away is the fact ...

Sorry, I meant guarantee figuratively (and thought that would have been obvious enough).  Nearly every flyaway story starts with someone having done a fresh calibration.

Metal detectors and ground penetrating radar are a bit overkill, don't you think? It's fairly straightforward to find a safe place to calibrate, and I'm not going to explain something that rudimentary to you.  The likelihood of finding such a place every single place you fly? Probably pretty low, and increases your chances of a poor calibration that doesn't become evident until you are airborne.

The party I'm interested in is the location and our existence of the famous flight logs that would indicate whether the fault was due to pilot error or flight controller malfunction.?  I am particularly interested due to, in the past, having had a very reliable S1000 Premium with A2 and all bells and whistles like the IOSD and A7S gimbal,etc.  After about 200 flights without issue whatsoever, suddenly on a practice flight the bird just went me and nearly your itself to pieces of not for me luck and lots of hours on a stimulator over the years I was somehow able to put it down without even breaking props!  That being said, I know I can never trust this flight controller again, at least until I can review the logs that very well should have been recording via the iOSD device but upon connecting it up to my PC I get no response whatsoever.  Needless to say that aircraft /controller combination is STILL benched until further investigation reveals what the heck happened completely out of the blue (ie been an r/c pilot for nearly two decades and slowly transitioned to multirotor from a much more involved routine of flying 3D style single-rotor helicopters -- those who know what this is so understand why I call it REAL flying.  Multirotor flying is more relaxing and calming typically speaking.

So  what of the flight logs???

I have yet to purchase my inspire 1 pro. That is to say I am not a customer yet. With that being said, the dialogue from the DJI reps really actually makes me nervous to purchase, though i understand their POV. I experienced the same thing with HP. After I sent my computer into them, it came back with more problems that they were willing to fix. My point is that they weren't willing to admit that their product had a flaw. I sort of see the same here in this thread from the DJI reps. That makes me nervous.

For most people, if their product works great,  they're just going to use it. They're not going to make many complaints if minor. I just would like to know that if my product fails, If It Fails, that DJI will rectify the situation.

Just because a tree falls in a forest and you don't see it, doesn't mean it doesn't make a sound.

PS:  I still can't wait to fly one!

Stephen Marley Posted at 2016-4-11 21:25
Just curious did you have the Calibrate Map coordinates(for china mainland) on or off

Hi Stephen,

The "calibrate Map Coordinates for China" option, I have mine turned off as I'm not in China but do you think this could cause this? Just curious as I'm not too sure what this is about. If you know something we don't, please share.

Regards
Mark G.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-2-18 19:13
The app will record the data up until the lost signal. So if he shuts the app off it will still keep the flight logged.
I think a lot of RTH failures can be caused by losing signal and it goes into RTH mode, then the operator may panic and start pushing buttons, hitting the RTH button, shutting off the app and other various things. If it regains signal while your doing all those things its possible to cancel RTH, set a new home point, or maybe even drive it into a wall because it regained RC control but not video.

Ken my Inspire lost signal today never returned home never to be seen again. I had perfect visual and line of sight until disconnect and then the bird disappeared.

I own 5 phantoms, an s1000 and a Mavic. I have a pilot license including 333 and a remote license.

This has never happened to me what do you suggest. I'd say that it should have returned home. I have been flying for years very knowledgeable of equipment and calibration process.

fanse25f4de1 Posted at 2017-3-5 05:07
Ken my Inspire lost signal today never returned home never to be seen again. I had perfect visual and line of sight until disconnect and then the bird disappeared.

I own 5 phantoms, an s1000 and a Mavic. I have a pilot license including 333 and a remote license.

Very sorry to hear of the flyaway In the future maybe get a Trackimo device, they work great and do not interfere at alll with the RC or video signal .  There is a thread on this topic on the forum as well. ( link below )

Once again sorry , hopefully it is found , ( hope you had your name and phone number etc on the aircraft. ) , also a bump for you.
trackimo


donnie

mattsimok33@gma Posted at 2016-2-19 11:57
That was my concern which is why I didnt post any lost and found signs, at the result of being responsible for damage, I can only hope and pray no one was hurt. Generally these things are reliable, but electronics fail

My biggest concern would be the inability to take responsibility for any damage that I may have caused.  When I experienced a random NFZ auto-landing (DJI revised the firmware to prevent this from happening in the future)...the least of my concerns was the cost of the aircraft. My first priority was making sure nobody was hurt, and no other property was damaged.  

I hope more people will start thinking this way, as it will improve all of our judgement and risk assessments.

You know what? I think the whole thing is just a fantastic business (mainly for DJI of course!). And we, who love new technologies are seduced by such a great flying device. But we have to face the truth and admit the technology of these UAVs is still not where it should be. An Inspire flying away?? What is that?!? This is a quite expensive gadget and some of us are doing real efforts to get the money and finally own one of these fantastics flying objects. But, is it really worth all the money? I would have thought these drones are so safe they would never just fly away? Neah, it can't be true that paying so much, we still have to complete a silly-looking compass callibration before flying or watch out there are no metal objects in our pockets (WTF!), or make sure there are no electromagentic fields around us. -I once owned a P2V and it was too stressy to constantly fear the thing could do his own thing (and it actually did once and crashed into a tree). My advise: think twice before spending so much money. But still: DJI seems to me the best brand.

fanse25f4de1 Posted at 2017-3-5 05:07
Ken my Inspire lost signal today never returned home never to be seen again. I had perfect visual and line of sight until disconnect and then the bird disappeared.

I own 5 phantoms, an s1000 and a Mavic. I have a pilot license including 333 and a remote license.

I am sorry for this happening, thee has to be a reason why it did not come back to the home point.
Here is the link to start a case, http://www.dji.com/support

Also, as Donnie said, a GPS tracker is a really great tool,
And if you sync your flight records and provide your email used for the GO app I can review the flight to see if I see anything unusual.

Donnie Stugots Posted at 2017-3-6 05:29
Very sorry to hear of the flyaway In the future maybe get a Trackimo device, they work great and do not interfere at alll with the RC or video signal .  There is a thread on this topic on the forum as well. ( link below )

Once again sorry , hopefully it is found , ( hope you had your name and phone number etc on the aircraft. ) , also a bump for you.

Thanks Donnie

DJI-Ken Posted at 2017-3-6 07:56
I am sorry for this happening, thee has to be a reason why it did not come back to the home point.
Here is the link to start a case, http://www.dji.com/support

Ken,

My business partner and I have started a case and are getting no info back. Can you help figure out what is going on?

Here is the case number-   CAS-493817-R7H3G7 CRM:0170000000259

F4D Studio Posted at 2017-3-21 11:34
Ken,

My business partner and I have started a case and are getting no info back. Can you help figure out what is going on?

Already answered your PM and notified management.

R&L Aerial  Posted at 2016-2-19 15:20
That's true right now but it won't be long there will be there will be a lot of competition. It only took 5 years for Samsung to overtake Apple.

What???  Maybe in the number of crappy phones sold - look at where the over 95% of the profits in the smart phone industry end up.  Apple owns the smart phone industry - they just don't make millions of crappy slow phones for the masses - they concentrate on taking all the profits with the best product.  There still, to this day, is no mobile processor that can top what Apple puts out - 8 cores this and GHz that - read the benchmarks.

http://fortune.com/2016/11/04/apple-smartphone-profits/

These are the stories that keep me from adding their latest to the Inspire and Phantom fleet. Between their lack of customer service and the FAA Im not sure which one out to ground us quicker. Hope you have a successful conclusion to you situation.

DJI-Dave Posted at 2016-2-18 14:03
And if you see disconnected do not turn off the app, rather hit the RTH button.

do not turn off the app...BINGO!

mattsimok33@gma Posted at 2016-2-19 11:53
Let me address a few things. The IMU was calibrated as well as the compass its part of my pre flight ritual. Also the RTH was pressed after it was gone for minutes, so if It was returning home it would have been seen long before I pressed it. I have seen videos of Inspire's flying away on video, so It is not unheard of.

I was also not well taken care of, my issue has finally resolved almost 2 months later and compensation that barely justified what happened. I had to negotiate my compensation every single step up of the way, I had to purchase a new craft because I could not risk losing clients and was not taken care of at all in a timely fashion. I FINALLY was given scraps, after being a loyal customer for so long I am and was beyond dissapointed. DJI's strategy worked, leave customers unhappy long enough and they will eventually settle on something. I have had my P1 fly away, I've had my Inspire Fly away, and my new inspire spin out of control hitting a tree, fortunately it is fine and I WILL not wait for DJI to replace that one. ( at least I have the flight log for the spin out)  

How far was your bird? What was the RTH altitude set to?  just curious and I won't be back accusing you of anything.

mattsimok33@gma Posted at 2016-2-15 19:25
I'll share the details...

It was a typical day of flight nothing out of the ordinary, battery levels had been checked, everything was charged, no issues whatsoever. I had about 20 Satellites connected I was taking some photographs looking at my screen and back at the aircraft. Upon looking back down at my screen I noticed the DJI go APP said it was disconnected. I wasn't concerned, I simply turned the app off, and back on, but there was no aircraft conneceted. This took about 30 seconds to 1 minute, at this point when I looked up the aircraft was gone. Mind you the battery was at 76%, and the voltage was totally fine. The flight logs never recorded presumbly due to the midflight disconnect. The RTH was set well above the height of any trees, and the GPS point had been recorded. The remote also showed no aircraft connected.

Hmm. Very interesting. I've had many disconnects and the craft always returns. The only two instances I didn't physically get the craft back was because it ran into hillsides on the way home (pilot error). I recovered my craft in both instances. Repaired and the birds have been fine since. 789 flights logged on Go/Go4 now and counting...

Please keep us posted about the explanation for your loss.

Hello everyone! I have a question. Does the Inspire 1 V2 have dual IMU's and dual compasses like the P4? It seems we hardly hear about flyaways of the P4's in comparison to the P3 and below.  I would really like an Inspire they've always just looked so slick to me BUT if the P4 pro has twice the technology, it makes it a hard decision. Also does the Inspire 2 have the dual IMU's and Compass? Thanks!

I'm afraid the I1 V2 does not have duel IMU's. However, I believe the most recent version I2 does.  

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-2-18 13:28
I very much doubt that losing his aircraft was due to a aircraft malfunction fly away. Actually i have never seen a P3 or Inspire equipment failure proven flyaway. I bet every single time it comes down do the operator not calibrating the IMU or compass correctly.

AND, I just went through all the OP's ticket info and the long time period was mostly due to back and forth communication. And he says weekend responses go unanswered. DJI USA support center is closed on the weekends !

I just experienced a fly away and loss of my Inspire 1 after installing a new Zenmuse3 zoom lens and updating the craft and camera. It's a  horrible feeling and now I'm at a  loss of both the craft and a brand new NINE HUNDRED DOLLAR LENS!