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Mavic Loses Connection Over and Over
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Jayc1358
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Frustrated.  My first Mavic starting giving me Esc errors and would not fly until I refreshed the firmware.  It would work until it sat for a few hours then the same.  Esc error.  Have to refresh the firmware. A $1000 drone and this is what I got..  This started on the second day I owned it.  I sent it back to amazon.  There goes my DJI Care Refresh warrenty I bought as well because I can not transfer it to my new one..

Anyway, today bought another one at a big box store and set it up.  All the firmware is current.  I made sure that all the batteries were updated as well.  The mavic flew great all day.  No issues.. That is until I took it to the beach to get some nice sunset shots.

Almost immediatly the connection between the mavic and controller was lost.  I was standing about 10 feet from the thing.  Then it connected.. Then it disconnected.  It landed and I restarted everything.  Restarted my phone.  

Flew a good 4-5 minutes and the cycle started all over again.. Disconnect.. Reconnect.. Return to home.  Just before landing it would reconnect.

I was alone on a wide open beach with nothing around to interfere with the signal.  All batteries were at 100 percent.

I made sure the flat part of the antenna's were facing the mavic..

I really don't want to send this one back if I don't have to.  Is there anything that anyone can suggest?  I will refresh the firmware on the controller tomorrow.  I just cannot believe that I have to go through this with 2 different drones. Especially at this price point.   

Thanks in advance.
2017-6-26
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fansccf11b4d
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Mine has been doing the same thing. Also when I shoot a video it glitches most times. This is my third one. First one I crashed, which worked awesome and no issues. Bought another and had to return it with the this issue. Now #3 is doing the same thing plus the glitches.
2017-6-26
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dronist
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What FW, OS and phoen/tablet are you using?
2017-6-26
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DJI Diana
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Sorry to hear about the issue you are faced with, could you please answer post 3#? Have you treid to re-link the RC to the drone?  As for the DJI Care refresh, I would recommend you send an email about this to djicare@dji.com, see if we can transfer it to your new drone. Normally, as long as you can provide some proofs, we can transfer it.
2017-6-26
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Jelly
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DJI Diana Posted at 2017-6-26 23:24
Sorry to hear about the issue you are faced with, could you please answer post 3#? Have you treid to re-link the RC to the drone?  As for the DJI Care refresh, I would recommend you send an email about this to , see if we can transfer it to your new drone. Normally, as long as you can provide some proofs, we can transfer it.

Thank you all for the replies.  This is the op with a different screen name.  I am on firmware v01.03.0900.  The drone and controller are both on the current firmware.  I am using android and using a samsung galaxy s5.  Like I said I was using it all day and sent it pretty far with rock solid reception.  The all of a sudden later in the day I could not keep it connected.
I will try to reconnect the controller this morning.

About the DJI care refresh.  I spent another 100 registering the new one because the faq's strictly state that you cannot transfer it to a new drone.  On top of that you have to do it within 48 hours and I did not want to get into a back and fourth with support and the 48 hours expire.

2017-6-27
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fallsilent
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 04:01
Thank you all for the replies.  This is the op with a different screen name.  I am on firmware v01.03.0900.  The drone and controller are both on the current firmware.  I am using android and using a samsung galaxy s5.  Like I said I was using it all day and sent it pretty far with rock solid reception.  The all of a sudden later in the day I could not keep it connected.
I will try to reconnect the controller this morning.

Try using the USB connection on the bottom of the controller rather than the micro USB on the side. This might be your problem.

2017-6-27
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Jelly
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fallsilent Posted at 2017-6-27 04:25
Try using the USB connection on the bottom of the controller rather than the micro USB on the side. This might be your problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5t1Lf_dxeHE

Thank you for the suggestion.  I will try to reconnect the controller and then try the usb.  Thanks!
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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fallsilent Posted at 2017-6-27 04:25
Try using the USB connection on the bottom of the controller rather than the micro USB on the side. This might be your problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5t1Lf_dxeHE

The only issue is though that I am not just losing the phone.  I am losing the rc connection as well.  The entire controller goes offline and then sometimes right before landing it says "connecting"  and then connects.. Sometimes it does not and the drone lands.  Thanks!
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 04:33
The only issue is though that I am not just losing the phone.  I am losing the rc connection as well.  The entire controller goes offline and then sometimes right before landing it says "connecting"  and then connects.. Sometimes it does not and the drone lands.  Thanks!

Can you upload the log from a flight where this occurred to PhantomHelp using these instructions and then post a link to it here? That'll give us a little more information about what's going on during the flight that might contribute to the problem.
2017-6-27
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fanscdfb5121
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I had a similar issue. The only thing that has worked for me is to put my phone in airplane mode.

Since I started flying in airplane mode, I have not had any disconnections.
2017-6-27
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Griffith
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Have you tried another completely different location- miles away from the beach?

In my experience RC connection failures at close distance are rare - but do happen.  Since you have changed drones (and presumably RCs), about the only explanation left is RF inteference - which could be at either the RC or the Mavic. (I noted that you stated the antennae were properly aligned.) At the RC end, I always place my phone in Airplane mode. Presumably you're not carrying other RF emitting devices.  At the Mavic end, avoid transmission towers and urban environments.  It appears you were on a relatively deserted beach when one of you incidents occurred, so those two possibles were probably avoided.  The only other (infrequently observed) sources of interference may come from military operations or deliberate interference.  Thus my suggestion to try another remote location - out in the countryside, for  instance.
If you were receiving interferrence at the RC, the Mavic should still be controllable by the RC.  If the inteferrence is at the Mavic (like it seems it may be), the Mavic should execute RTH.

This won't solve your problem,  but it may shed some light on the source.  Some very useful information will also come from the DAT file as droneflying has indicated.
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 04:56
Can you upload the log from a flight where this occurred to PhantomHelp using these instructions and then post a link to it here? That'll give us a little more information about what's going on during the flight that might contribute to the problem.

Flight Log  Here is the first one.  I have a whole bunch from last night but they are all like this one.  Thanks for taking a look
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 04:56
Can you upload the log from a flight where this occurred to PhantomHelp using these instructions and then post a link to it here? That'll give us a little more information about what's going on during the flight that might contribute to the problem.

Here is one about 7 minutes long.  2 return to home from loss of signal.
Flight Log
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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fanscdfb5121 Posted at 2017-6-27 05:01
I had a similar issue. The only thing that has worked for me is to put my phone in airplane mode.

Since I started flying in airplane mode, I have not had any disconnections.

I will try that as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  The phone I am using is not activated.  It has to service.  I have not had it on airplane mode though.  Thanks
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 04:01
Thank you all for the replies.  This is the op with a different screen name.  I am on firmware v01.03.0900.  The drone and controller are both on the current firmware.  I am using android and using a samsung galaxy s5.  Like I said I was using it all day and sent it pretty far with rock solid reception.  The all of a sudden later in the day I could not keep it connected.
I will try to reconnect the controller this morning.

Specifically which Android version are you using? I seem to recall seeing a number of people having trouble with Nougat.
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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Griffith Posted at 2017-6-27 05:16
Have you tried another completely different location- miles away from the beach?

In my experience RC connection failures at close distance are rare - but do happen.  Since you have changed drones (and presumably RCs), about the only explanation left is RF inteference - which could be at either the RC or the Mavic. (I noted that you stated the antennae were properly aligned.) At the RC end, I always place my phone in Airplane mode. Presumably you're not carrying other RF emitting devices.  At the Mavic end, avoid transmission towers and urban environments.  It appears you were on a relatively deserted beach when one of you incidents occurred, so those two possibles were probably avoided.  The only other (infrequently observed) sources of interference may come from military operations or deliberate interference.  Thus my suggestion to try another remote location - out in the countryside, for  instance.

I am going to try airplane mode.  In further research it seems that may help.  The only thing that makes me wonder is why was it flying earlier in the day with what seemed like unlimited range and my phone was not on airplane mode.  I was in a park surrounded by neighborhoods.  Seems like there would be more chance for interference there than at a beach with nothing around.  I was literally the only one on the beach.  
In looking at the log, I was losing signal at a distance of 5 feet.  Come on.  There would have to be a super strong source of interference to kill the signal at a range of 5 feet.  I'm going to try to relink, airplane mode, new usb cable etc..  Any more suggestions would be great.  It shouldn't be this hard I would think.  There has to be a single reason why it was working perfect and now not.
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 05:40
Specifically which Android version are you using? I seem to recall seeing a number of people having trouble with Nougat.

Android 6.0.1 marshmallow
2017-6-27
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Griffith
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 05:26
Flight Log  Here is the first one.  I have a whole bunch from last night but they are all like this one.  Thanks for taking a look

Interesting log. Several items of note:
- Even though you have 16 satellite count, no Home Location was recorded.
- "Downink Restored" indicates the RC was not receiving telemetry - interference at RC end or weak signal.
-  since there were telemetry gaps, we don't know what messages the Mavic may have been sending - thus the importance of retrieving the DAT file from the Mavic.
- One landing was an auto-land the other was a forced landing.  The latter sounds like a GEO enforcement action.  I couldn't tell from the map how far you were from the airport, but I believe most Class D airports have a 2-mile restriction and 5 mile warning zone.
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 05:45
I am going to try airplane mode.  In further research it seems that may help.  The only thing that makes me wonder is why was it flying earlier in the day with what seemed like unlimited range and my phone was not on airplane mode.  I was in a park surrounded by neighborhoods.  Seems like there would be more chance for interference there than at a beach with nothing around.  I was literally the only one on the beach.  
In looking at the log, I was losing signal at a distance of 5 feet.  Come on.  There would have to be a super strong source of interference to kill the signal at a range of 5 feet.  I'm going to try to relink, airplane mode, new usb cable etc..  Any more suggestions would be great.  It shouldn't be this hard I would think.  There has to be a single reason why it was working perfect and now not.

You're right: even very strong sources of interference shouldn't be a problem at those ranges, and there don't appear to have been any near you anyway. Besides the suggestions already mentioned that you said you plan to try (relinking, new cable, etc.), if you'd be willing to upload a DAT file from one of these flights I'll take a look at it and see if there's anything in it that might indicate what the problem is. And yes, to the best of my knowledge Marshmallow should be fine.
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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Griffith Posted at 2017-6-27 05:51
Interesting log. Several items of note:
- Even though you have 16 satellite count, no Home Location was recorded.
- "Downink Restored" indicates the RC was not receiving telemetry - interference at RC end or weak signal.

How do I get the dat file?  I will upload it to the same site?
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 05:54
You're right: even very strong sources of interference shouldn't be a problem at those ranges, and there don't appear to have been any near you anyway. Besides the suggestions already mentioned that you said you plan to try (relinking, new cable, etc.), if you'd be willing to upload a DAT file from one of these flights I'll take a look at it and see if there's anything in it that might indicate what the problem is. And yes, to the best of my knowledge Marshmallow should be fine.

How to I get it and where to I upload it?
2017-6-27
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Griffith
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 05:45
I am going to try airplane mode.  In further research it seems that may help.  The only thing that makes me wonder is why was it flying earlier in the day with what seemed like unlimited range and my phone was not on airplane mode.  I was in a park surrounded by neighborhoods.  Seems like there would be more chance for interference there than at a beach with nothing around.  I was literally the only one on the beach.  
In looking at the log, I was losing signal at a distance of 5 feet.  Come on.  There would have to be a super strong source of interference to kill the signal at a range of 5 feet.  I'm going to try to relink, airplane mode, new usb cable etc..  Any more suggestions would be great.  It shouldn't be this hard I would think.  There has to be a single reason why it was working perfect and now not.

5 feet loss of signal would certainly require hefty interference - or a strong signal on the same frequency.
It would still be interesting (and telling) if these problems disappeared if you went back to your previous location.
BTW, I routinely fly with an old S5 - no sim, few apps.
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 06:00
How to I get it and where to I upload it?

Use these instructions and then upload it to DropBox (or something similar). It would best if you could pick the file for one of the same flights for which you already posted a link to the corresponding TXT log file for comparison.
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Griffith Posted at 2017-6-27 05:51
Interesting log. Several items of note:
- Even though you have 16 satellite count, no Home Location was recorded.
- "Downink Restored" indicates the RC was not receiving telemetry - interference at RC end or weak signal.

Ocean City Municipal Airport isn't far from where he was flying in that entry, but the GEO data for that area seems to be a little quirky: there's no entry for that airport, but there are some centered over the ocean east of his location, including one Enhanced Warning Zone that appears to include the location of that flight. I can only speculate that it's DJI's attempt at covering a non-circular area using GEO's somewhat limited capabilities.
2017-6-27
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Griffith
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 06:07
Ocean City Municipal Airport isn't far from where he was flying in that entry, but the GEO data for that area seems to be a little quirky: there's no entry for that airport, but there are some centered over the ocean east of his location, including one Enhanced Warning Zone that appears to include the location of that flight. I can only speculate that it's DJI's attempt at covering a non-circular area using GEO's somewhat limited capabilities.

The Enhanced-Warning zone must be the "unpaved airport" :-)  since OXB is paved.
2017-6-27
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Jayc1358
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 06:07
Use these instructions and then upload it to DropBox (or something similar). It would best if you could pick the file for one of the same flights for which you already posted a link to the corresponding TXT log file for comparison.

Here are the .DAT files from last night.  Thank you all
DAT Files
2017-6-27
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Jayc1358
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Griffith Posted at 2017-6-27 06:12
The Enhanced-Warning zone must be the "unpaved airport" :-)  since OXB is paved.

Next time I am going to go to the south end of ocean city and see if that gets me out of the warning zone
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Jayc1358 Posted at 2017-6-27 06:29
Here are the .DAT files from last night.  Thank you all
DAT Files

DAT file FLY028 shows very much the same thing you described (sporadic connection loss), but unfortunately doesn't really explain why it occurred. What it does show that's interesting is that your signal strength (the red line below) goes from essentially 100% to 0% in an instant. Then the signal spontaneously returns to 100% even though your location hasn't changed significantly. That makes me think it's probably not some external source of interference between the Mavic and controller, though I suppose it could still be something that's broadcasting intermittently.

In any case, the suggestions to try flying elsewhere and to put your phone in airplane mode seem worthwhile. If you still have a problem I'd recommend contacting DJI and seeing if they can offer an explanation, because other than a problem with the remote or the aircraft -- which also seems unlikely given this is your second system from a different merchant -- I'm at a loss to explain the problem.

signal_loss.png
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 07:55
DAT file FLY028 shows very much the same thing you described (sporadic connection loss), but unfortunately doesn't really explain why it occurred. What it does show that's interesting is that your signal strength (the red line below) goes from essentially 100% to 0% in an instant. Then the signal spontaneously returns to 100% even though your location hasn't changed significantly. That makes me think it's probably not some external source of interference between the Mavic and controller, though I suppose it could still be something that's broadcasting intermittently.

In any case, the suggestions to try flying elsewhere and to put your phone in airplane mode seem worthwhile. If you still have a problem I'd recommend contacting DJI and seeing if they can offer an explanation, because other than a problem with the remote or the aircraft -- which also seems unlikely given this is your second system from a different merchant -- I'm at a loss to explain the problem.

I really appreciate you looking into it.  I just flew 3 batteries worth of flying around my neighborhood and did not have a single drop in signal.  I did have my phone on airplane mode for the first time.  I went as far as 8000ft away and had a great signal.  

I am encouraged by this however yesterday afternoon I was flying around here and did not have any issue.  It was only when I went to the beach which I cannot imagine having more interference that my neighborhood, but I guess anything is possible.  

I will try to go to the beach again tonight to see if I get the same interference.  Hopefully it was something as simple as airplane mode but we'll see.

Thanks again to you and everyone else that helped me figure this out.  I'll let you know how the test goes later today.
2017-6-27
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Griffith
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Hopefully it was something as simple as airplane mode but we'll see.

I hope you're correct.  The loss of signal on the Mavic end is generally not susceptible to interference from your cellphone.  However, you were very close to the Mavic when the incident occurred.  Good luck.  

DroneFlying,  thanks for the analysis.  Just thinking about the label RC-sigStrength.  Jelly should have been getting a strong carrier signal from the RC, but local interference might have rendered the RC data stream unintelligible.  So I'm guessing that RC-sigStrength is more like a (inverse) measure of data error rate.  Make sense?
2017-6-27
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DroneFlying
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Griffith Posted at 2017-6-27 11:09
Hopefully it was something as simple as airplane mode but we'll see.

I hope you're correct.  The loss of signal on the Mavic end is generally not susceptible to interference from your cellphone.  However, you were very close to the Mavic when the incident occurred.  Good luck.  

Make sense?

Yes, and you may be right, though if the disconnects are caused by interference from the phone I'd have expected the problem to be a bit more frequent. For example, in the flight I analyzed there were only two gaps in the connection during the entire flight, both of which were relatively short. It's as good a theory as any I can come up with, though.
2017-6-27
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Griffith
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DroneFlying Posted at 2017-6-27 11:18
Make sense?

Yes, and you may be right, though if the disconnects are caused by interference from the phone I'd have expected the problem to be a bit more frequent. For example, in the flight I analyzed there were only two gaps in the connection during the entire flight, both of which were relatively short. It's as good a theory as any I can come up with, though.

Interestingly, after I posted that comment, the same thought crossed my mind.  In relation to that, I thought of all the data DJI GO is sending to the cloud in the background.  I wonder if that or some other background app (like Mail) was doing something at the time to cause phone data transmission.
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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Griffith Posted at 2017-6-27 11:31
Interestingly, after I posted that comment, the same thought crossed my mind.  In relation to that, I thought of all the data DJI GO is sending to the cloud in the background.  I wonder if that or some other background app (like Mail) was doing something at the time to cause phone data transmission.

I bought that phone specifically to use with the Mavic.  It has no cell or data plan.
2017-6-27
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TheMann00
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-27 12:48
I bought that phone specifically to use with the Mavic.  It has no cell or data plan.

I have had very similar issues with my Galaxy Note 5.

Zero issues with iPad, other than sometimes I want to see the controller, and not lug around the iPad, extra cable, and holder assembly.

Talked to DJI today, and was told that the Note 5 is not on their recommended list.

?!

This isn't some kind of old flip-phone... How would something this new (but not bleeding edge new tech) not work??
2017-6-27
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Jelly
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Well, I took the Mavic back to the same beach, same time of day, and guess what?   Not a single issue.  No drops, no warnings, seemed like I could have flown it as far as I wanted to.  I really did push it too.  Line of sight unobstructed is quite far having the ocean right there so I really tested it and didn't have a single issue.  The ONLY thing I did different was put the phone on airplane mode.

I don't get it.

I want to thank all of you for the help in trying to understand the issue and with the suggestions.  I don't understand why it works now.  The thing I keep going back to in my mind is that is was working with airplane  mode off most of the day.  It wasn't until I went to the beach that it was getting interference.  

I will post back to this thread if the problem comes back but I hope it really was that simple.  Thanks again!
2017-6-28
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Pitando
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fallsilent Posted at 2017-6-27 04:25
Try using the USB connection on the bottom of the controller rather than the micro USB on the side. This might be your problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5t1Lf_dxeHE

USB on the side is very very bad.
Use always the bottom one.
2017-6-29
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W.T. Foxtrot
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I have experienced a lot of RC disconnects and also "strong wireless interference" -- 10 feet away, using the big plug on the back, and my device in airplane mode, in a variety of locations.  So, unfortunately, don't count on these things solving your problems.
2017-6-29
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TheMann00
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Pitando Posted at 2017-6-29 00:30
USB on the side is very very bad.
Use always the bottom one.

Is this an known issue? Should we be getting replacement controllers?
2017-6-30
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VMav
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Jelly Posted at 2017-6-28 19:32
Well, I took the Mavic back to the same beach, same time of day, and guess what?   Not a single issue.  No drops, no warnings, seemed like I could have flown it as far as I wanted to.  I really did push it too.  Line of sight unobstructed is quite far having the ocean right there so I really tested it and didn't have a single issue.  The ONLY thing I did different was put the phone on airplane mode.

I don't get it.

Cell phone, even without service, always connected to the carrier tower so you can call 911 even without subscription to your mobile plan or you can receive "presidential alerts".

Putting cell phone is airplane mode actually shuts down RF modem, WiFi transmitters.

Question is why it does interference? Because it's totally different frequencies - the only answer to that might be that quality of phone transmitter is low and it produces wide spectrum spurs or something like that.  
2017-6-30
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djiuser_9cOTlbx2Mo7q
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I just had this happen to me, unfortunately i wasn't as lucky. I brought it out to show a friend. Figure one lap around the trucks should show him it flies. As soon as I pushed forward I lost control while in sport mode. Signal gone, response gone, i start mashing the emergency cutoff button and it just kept going well over 200ft away slamming into a steel wall of a building.
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