Hi all,

In my quest for mastery of the Inspire 1, I was curious what are acceptable "roll" limits that a perfectly functioning gimbal would have before it goes into "recycle and reset" mode?

The reason I'm asking is that semi-aggressive turns seem to upset the gimbal, leaving me with a tilted view (making me think I'm sliding sideways to the earth! ack!) for a second or two while it resets and then functions normally again.  Pitch and yaw seem to be perfectly flexible to aggressive manuevers.


I've also hand-held the Inspire and tilted the craft side to side as well to test where things seem to be triggering the gimbals limits.  It seems that the gimbal should have a bit more capacity for roll before it gets "upset". Right now it seems a bit limited...maybe 35 or so degress of roll in either direction  before it gets pissy.

It's nothing like the issues I've seen on some videos posted here but I began questioning it after seeing videos of Eric Cheng making his Inspire go absolutely freaking crazy with NONE of the reset behavior from his gimbal.

I've run through the gamut of corrective checks & actions, IMU is calibrated, gimbal is auto-calibrated as well, NOT in FPV mode on gimbal, etc.

Any hints/advice? I'm hoping this is not a RMA situation and if so, hopefully it's just the gimbal assembly for faster resolution!

Thanks very much in advance!

Double check both ribbon wires are completely plugged in for the camera. They are behind the metal plate that you attach the camera to. I had one come loose and at one point I was flying at night, pretty high, and far away when it just rolled over and swore a prop broke or something major happened and only luck was keeping it from dropping like a rock. I landed it and after lots of trouble shooting found the ribbon cable was loose. I pushed it in and everything was fine.

Ok will take a look at that for sure, thanks for the recommendation SkySight !

I was just testing and I definitely have a LOT more room in the roll limits when the Inspire is tilted toward the right, vs left.  Hopefully that cable is loose! Will report back shortly.
--Update--

Yup, they're in there and attached very solidly.  Going to post a sample image of the angle differences I'm getting...

Here's a video that clearly demonstrates the issue...


You'll notice in the first part, I can barely get the front LED to to top of the frame before the gimbal resets.  In the latter part, I'm going WELL beyond that.

As stated above it seems like everything has been checked. so it's looking more and more like I'll be talking to DJI on Monday.  Wish me luck!

Just filmed my gimbal for comparison and mine looks fine so definitely something to pursue with yours I think.

http://youtu.be/bt_chxN0hFo

Jim!  Thank you so much for taking the time to post a response with a video!  This is really helpful!

Repair says they've never heard of this problem (figures, I have bad luck) but I'm working through that process now.  Thanks again!

Me: "Can I return just the gimbal or do I need to return the entire aircraft?"

Rep: "The email I'm sending you will have all the instructions you need."

Well...there wasn't.   Calling back right now and praying I get a different rep.

Also, here's an inflight example of what happens when I move the Inspire sideways at anything other than a slight angle.  Moving to the left is where it really fails.  

Can anyone confirm the version # of firmware for a properly working gimbal?  Mine is 1.05, loader 1.00 using iOS app 1.0.2.  I don't have a version for the camera at all and I'm beginning to wonder if my seemingly successful firmware update actually tanked.

Did they get you taken care of?

Not yet.  The bird is at DJI and I'm awaiting information now about when it will return.

Not yet.  The bird is at DJI and I'm awaiting information now about when it will return.

will@willbarnwe Posted at 2015-3-22 05:36
Not yet.  The bird is at DJI and I'm awaiting information now about when it will return.

Checked mine as well... Sorry... It does seem you may have an issue!

http://youtu.be/hbD0QQsOyFQ

Thanks for taking the time to post and wow, there's PLENTY of range on yours! lol Hopefully, when it comes back, all will be well again.

will@willbarnwe Posted at 2015-3-27 07:21
Thanks for taking the time to post and wow, there's PLENTY of range on yours! lol Hopefully, when it ...

No prob keep us in the loop. Hopefully they get you sorted out! Im interested on learning what it the issue.

jimhare Posted at 2015-3-1 10:43
Just filmed my gimbal for comparison and mine looks fine so definitely something to pursue with your ...

Jim,

Nice of you to do a short video to explain this.  Much easier to understand the issue that Will is experiencing.

jimhare Posted at 2015-3-1 10:43
Just filmed my gimbal for comparison and mine looks fine so definitely something to pursue with your ...

Yours works fine, tried mine and had the same results. Guess he should make a DJI Pitstop?

Update:

3/10 - Inspired signed for by someone at DJI
3/12 - Emailed DJI asking for confirmation of receipt, received timely response that usually it takes a couple days to check unit into system.
3/19 - Received confirmation email: "We have checked your unit into Zendesk, our customer support database."
3/30 - Same status, no update of zendesk support record or any other communication regarding repair status.

I was advised the process takes 3-4 weeks so I'm still in the expected window.  I'm assuming the actual resolution and return of unit will happen somewhat quickly/simultaneously, as I'm sure it's just a matter of someone getting to it.

Trying to keep the faith, but definitely TAKE CARE OF YOUR BIRDS!  At least, until this initial "release" backlog is over and repair becomes a bit of a shorter lifecycle.  

Luckily, I've been out of town for almost 3 weeks and I wouldn't be able to fly anyway.  I go home Friday, and hopefully I'm back up and flying soon after!

Update:

4/7 - Emailed DJI via ticket system, asking for a respone (very nicely!)
4/14 - Still no response, emailed again via ticket system
4/14 - Late afternoon: finally saw an update from DJI.  They determined that my FC350 camera/gimbal was defective, they've repaired, tested/flown and no charge since it's a warranty situation.

THANK THE JEEEEEEEZUSSSS!!!

No indication of when it will ship but hopefully soon.  I'll be glad when this saga is over.  Praying that when I receive it, firmware will be updated to the latest already and that no other issue occurs.  My bird was behaving perfectly other than this gimbal problem so hopefully the bad days are behind me!

Last Update: RESOLVED!!!

Received bird today.  Even though DJI stated they updated the firmware for me, I think that was short of this latest release.  Crossing my fingers that the firmware upgrade goes ok.  Otherwise, just powering on the bird and giving it a handheld test, I can attest to the fact that my gimbal roll limits are amazingly better than when I first got it.  So much so that it's laughable.   Glad this saga is finally over (knock on wood).

will@willbarnwe Posted at 2015-4-18 09:06
Last Update: RESOLVED!!!

Received bird today.  Even though DJI stated they updated the firmware for ...

OH>>> great news! AWESOME>>> now go out.. and fly, enjoy and share videos!! thanks for the update!

Thanks! Vids coming soon, weather permitting, after this weekend!