Hi,

First of all, I would like to mention that I have flown almost 40km with spark with no major issues, which had changed today.

I have been flying along the beach and taking panoramic pictures for about 4 min. I did 4 of them and executed 1 dronie. When I was calling the drone back to do the rocket suddenly it fell .I could see 2 elements falling at two different speed. When I went to crash site I saw almost untouched spark and the battery around 10m from it. Battery had a bubble (like plastic not fit)  on the one side and as it was also crashing on the sand it was highly unlikely this is the damage caused because of hitting the ground. To be honest i dont know what to think on this situation as it clearly created a hazard and might also explain other losses when the drone is not in lane of sight.

I would like to know how i can proceed now ?
1. Is this warranty covered issue ?
2. Drone itself doesnt show any damage and after plugging second battery it works normally. Can I still fly it ?
3. How do I prevent this situation in the future ?

Thanks for your help in advance

This quite much looks like the first battery was not properly fixed to the Spark and fell off during flight. And if the fixing mechanism on the battery is damaged it should not be used any more. Concerning the Spark I would recommend watching its flight behavior closely for a while if really all is well. In case of doubt better send it in for check. And to answer you last question: Always check before take off if the battery is really well fixed on the Spark.

Sorry to hear about the crash accident. We don't suggest to keep flying, please send in the drone for evaluation and data analysis to avoid any potential damage. Warranty depends on the result of data analysis. Repair center will take care of it.

Based on the information you just provided, looks like the battery was not clipped in properly.  Make sure the battery is securely attached before flight.  As for your spark, remove and inspect all props for broken clips and make sure the motors are turning without any noise (make sure no sand got into them).  Reattach props and enjoy.

Swelling is one of the common failure modes of Li-Po batteries. I think most probably at least one of the cells swelled under load and popped the whole package off. I cannot see how this could have been caused by improper installation of the battery: it either positively and properly clicks in place or it doesn't at all, IMO.

Zbig Posted at 2017-9-20 05:03
Swelling is one of the common failure modes of Li-Po batteries. I think most probably at least one of the cells swelled under load and popped the whole package off. I cannot see how this could have been caused by improper installation of the battery: it either positively and properly clicks in place or it doesn't at all, IMO.

This was my initial thought as well.

DJI Mindy Posted at 2017-9-20 04:57
Sorry to hear about the crash accident. We don't suggest to keep flying, please send in the drone for evaluation and data analysis to avoid any potential damage. Warranty depends on the result of data analysis. Repair center will take care of it.

Hi Mindy,
Thanks for fast response.

Could you advice on the next steps please ?

I have already contacted dji support
I bought the drone in authorized reseller in Indonesia and I will be there for 1 day only and I will move back permanently to Poland so I will have no possibility to pick it up from Indonesia.

Will authorized reseller accept my warranty in PL ?
Can i send the drone directly  to repair center and get it shipped to PL ?

As far as I know warranty is only valid in the area of purchase.
At least, that is what I was told by DJI sales.
If you did purchase Care Refresh also, that you can take with you to some other country (as far as I know)
Not sure how DJI will respond to this specific case of course.
Flight logs might be handy if you can download them already.

Oh, and do you happen to have made a picture from the battery?
Sometimes a picture says more than 1000 words

Sparky_17 Posted at 2017-9-20 05:00
Based on the information you just provided, looks like the battery was not clipped in properly.  Make sure the battery is securely attached before flight.  As for your spark, remove and inspect all props for broken clips and make sure the motors are turning without any noise (make sure no sand got into them).  Reattach props and enjoy.

Hi Sparky,

Thanks for your feedback.


I did check the
battery as my pre flight check and it was firmly mounted.
Im just thinking if the mounting of the battery is well designed. As mentioned before i flew 120 flights and did 40km without an issue ..
Also I would assume that in case of the unmount due to wrong installation battery would slip out and remain untouched when hitting the sand

My battery shows no sign of damage except of the mentioned small regular bubble and missing clip .

can you share a picture of the bubble as this might be an issue with the battery internals (swollen battery).  this is just an assumption but could make a better assumption if you provide us a picture.

Sparky_17 Posted at 2017-9-20 05:37
can you share a picture of the bubble as this might be an issue with the battery internals (swollen battery).  this is just an assumption but could make a better assumption if you provide us a picture.

Hi ,

Pics here
https://ibb.co/gOakik
https://ibb.co/fpDub5

IIs there a way i can extract a flight log using iphone or android ?
Are they stored on SD card ?
Thanks

It may be just me but I can't determine where there is a "bubble" forming on the battery.

Having a lot of computer experience (my career), most lipo battery failures that I've encountered include "swelling".  I could envision a "swelling" causing the battery to disconnect, but it's difficult to discern in the images.

Maybe 'bubble' isn't the right word, but there is a clear seam separation, which likely has pushed out the battery clip on that side, causing it to detach from the Spark mid flight.

Flight or App data should show at least one of the cells  unbalanced, over/under voltage?

fans99779563 Posted at 2017-9-20 05:13
Hi Mindy,
Thanks for fast response.

The Support will start a case for you and tell you how to send the drone in. Sorry to say that DJI does not provide Global Warranty, you can only claim warranty service in the corresponding repair service center. For your case, you may need to send the drone to HK and the drone can only be shipped to an address of the area which is covered by this repair center.

fans99779563 Posted at 2017-9-20 05:54
Hi ,

Pics here

The flight data can be extracted, here is a video for your reference.

Sounds like having the support team analyze your situation is likely the way to go.

In the meantime,  for the rest of us with some curiosity to learn some more about what happened in your situation and maybe do a little crowdsourced investigation, you could upload your flight record from your phone/tablet to the following site and then provide the resulting link to your logs here.

http://www.phantomhelp.com/LogViewer/Upload/

Kloo Gee Posted at 2017-9-20 20:36
Sounds like having the support team analyze your situation is likely the way to go.

In the meantime,  for the rest of us with some curiosity to learn some more about what happened in your situation and maybe do a little crowdsourced investigation, you could upload your flight record from your phone/tablet to the following site and then provide the resulting link to your logs here.

Hey,
I will do this once I will go back and have access to computer as now i have only iphone and android with me

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-9-20 19:32
The Support will start a case for you and tell you how to send the drone in. Sorry to say that DJI does not provide Global Warranty, you can only claim warranty service in the corresponding repair service center. For your case, you may need to send the drone to HK and the drone can only be shipped to an address of the area which is covered by this repair center.

Hi Diana,

So what is the suggested way of proceeding as Im confused now

1. I will take my drone do Poland and send it to HK once support will ask me to do so. I will ask somebody of my friends to recieve it in indonesia where I bought it

2. I will return the drone to the shop I have bought it and the shop will need to proceed with the warranty process as i will not have any possibility to extract anything

3. I will sent it to HK and you will send me back the fixed drone to Poland and I will cover the shipment costs

Thanks for your suggestion in advance

fans99779563 Posted at 2017-9-21 00:03
Hi Diana,

So what is the suggested way of proceeding as Im confused now

If I were you, I would choose the first one. Besides, I would recommend you export the data first, provide the data to the support for analysis before you send the drone in. Have you got a case number from them? If yes, please provide me with it.

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-9-21 01:17
If I were you, I would choose the first one. Besides, I would recommend you export the data first, provide the data to the support for analysis before you send the drone in. Have you got a case number from them? If yes, please provide me with it.

Hi Diana,

Case no 752302

fans99779563 Posted at 2017-9-21 02:30
Hi Diana,

Case no 752302

Okay, just checked this ticket, we've replied your email, please check it.

Hi Guys,

I have extracted all data here:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/uf1f4s2drg8kf90/AADfkQMRXpB6m5q7kr9zSrQ7a?dl=0

I didnt have time just to dump the accident data and i have extracted all. The event of the crash is
20/09 15:27. Flight VIC distance 220m flight time 5 min

Regards,

fans99779563 Posted at 2017-9-25 18:10
Hi Guys,

I have extracted all data here:

Thanks for the update. I would transfer the data for you.

Hi All,

So the finalization of the story is the following (based on the feedback from DJI)

APP account: Czajfoos@outlook.com    incident date: 20/09/2017 13:27 (GMT+8)

1. The aircraft was working in GPS mode and resonde to RC command actively;
2. Pilot pushed pitch stick forward and throttle stick down, the flight record was disconncted at 04:23 with the height of 89 meters while flying forward and descending, disconnected point:-37.8022586,148.7420694;

They have the flight data (not whole as they are not able to maitain their logs properly), but conclusion is the following

1. Aircraft was responsive all the time before disconnected
2. Based on the GPS read they can map the surface to see that there is no obstacles near (it was on the beach)
3. Based on the flight data there was no wind or other errors
4. I think if there would be a collision there are some other errors showed on app

Conclusion:
1. They are not able to point any mistakes from the pilot side
2. They are not able (or don't want to) verify if this is the Dji fault

Then its pilot fault by definition (which result of 30% proposal which i find quite offensive)

I'm just wondering what could be a potential pilot fault when aircraft suddenly disconects on 89m alt and with the clear of obstacles area where it was flown.