Hi,

I have recently purchased an Inspire 2 and I have a problem with what the system believes is the compass.
I have calibrated both the IMU and the compass but still the aircraft is moving over to ATTI mode from GPS and is giving me a compass error.
With the aircraft on the ground everything looks good from the systems menu (IMU and compass sensor status). When I take off it randomly gives me compass error messages and the aicraft is drifting  and sometimes moves in small circles. Also, when it is indicating GPS lock it still turns counter-clockwise slowly.

I'm writing this from a location where I don't have the rig so right now so unfortunately I cannot post any logs but maybe someone has an idea about what is causing this still?


Best regards,
Johan

Have you tried calibrating your RC sticks?  Mine changed in the last update.

fansa84fe8a4 Posted at 2017-12-4 07:19
Have you tried calibrating your RC sticks?  Mine changed in the last update.

Thanks for the input but it strikes me as odd that the sticks would generate a compass error...?

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-4 07:35
Thanks for the input but it strikes me as odd that the sticks would generate a compass error...?

When mine slowly circles and drifts, especially in hover, it seems related to the RC sticks out of cal.

I don't know if the compass is just overly sensitive now with the firmware switch as it pops up far too many interference and compass errors, yet if flies okay, not great as it is shaky as with the P4 firmware matters.

fansa84fe8a4 Posted at 2017-12-4 08:04
When mine slowly circles and drifts, especially in hover, it seems related to the RC sticks out of cal.

I don't know if the compass is just overly sensitive now with the firmware switch as it pops up far too many interference and compass errors, yet if flies okay, not great as it is shaky as with the P4 firmware matters.

I also have a Mavic and that machine flies very well and is really stable.

I'm hoping to also get some input from someone from the DJI staff. I have prepared the Flight Logs and the Black Box data for upload.

Hi Johan,

Are you flying in a large open area or are the building, trees etc. surrounding the area?
How often has it done this?
Does this always occur in the same place?
Do you always calibrate your compass there before taking off?
Which mobile device are you using?
What was the weather like, was it cloud/overcast?
Did you check the KP index for the day?

I get the feeling there could be more than one ghost in your machine here. A stick calibration certainly wouldn't hurt.

Mark G.

Mark Guille Posted at 2017-12-4 09:43
Hi Johan,

Are you flying in a large open area or are the building, trees etc. surrounding the area?

Hello Mark and thanks for your input.

This has happened both days I have attempted flight. Everythings looks fine before take-off but mid-air these random compass errors occur. Yesterday I could actually sense a pattern; when the drone was facing a certain direction (east), the errors occured.
Both times I flew here where I live and I have had zero issues with the Mavic. I live close to a lake and theres a lot of forest here. No other houses or facilities within the nearest kilometer.
I usually do not calibrate (the Mavic) too often. Only when I travel far away. My Inspire 2 is brand new.
I am currently using a Lenovo tablet.
Weather was very nice. Moonlight / starlight.
KP values were very good yesterday. Worse this evening but I am not doing any flying today.

PS. Controller calibrated now too. DS.

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-4 11:30
Hello Mark and thanks for your input.

This has happened both days I have attempted flight. Everythings looks fine before take-off but mid-air these random compass errors occur. Yesterday I could actually sense a pattern; when the drone was facing a certain direction (east), the errors occured.

Hi Johan,

So you have flown here twice and had the same thing happen both times?
This is getting confusing when you say you are not having the issue with Mavic, they are two different machines,
If you are surrounded by trees, this could affect the GPS reception which in turn, could cause the switch from GPS to Atti.
If you have a bad compass calibration I would expect to see such symptoms, it may be worth doing a clean compass cal away from all metal surfaces, whilst holding the AC above your head to avoid buried objects

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-4 11:30
Hello Mark and thanks for your input.

This has happened both days I have attempted flight. Everythings looks fine before take-off but mid-air these random compass errors occur. Yesterday I could actually sense a pattern; when the drone was facing a certain direction (east), the errors occured.

Hi, Zadde. Please try to change a place without interference for check. Did you update you inspire to the latest firmware? If not, please upgrade it and check if it helps. Keep us updated, thanks.

DJI Elektra Posted at 2017-12-4 19:51
Hi, Zadde. Please try to change a place without interference for check. Did you update you inspire to the latest firmware? If not, please upgrade it and check if it helps. Keep us updated, thanks.

Hi DJI Elektra,

Last night I recalibrated IMU (inside my house, on the floor) then went to another site, calibrated the compass. All looked well on the ground and when hovering about 3 meters above take-off spot. (Hovering is stable when it has a GPS lock)
However, when flying away and making turns, the same issue "Compass Error - ATTI mode" appears.


I find this very strange because values of both compass and IMU are showing "Excellent" on the ground.

Yes, updating everything to latest firmware was the first thing I did when unboxing/setting up.

It seems you should send it back to DJI for repairs. It seems that it is always best to support local dealers. In a case like this, my local dealer would have tested the drone before handing me the keys. If I have any issues subsequently, they will be the first port of call.

DTK Posted at 2017-12-7 12:57
It seems you should send it back to DJI for repairs. It seems that it is always best to support local dealers. In a case like this, my local dealer would have tested the drone before handing me the keys. If I have any issues subsequently, they will be the first port of call.

Thanks for your input and just for the record; I am keeping a close dialogue with my supplier regarding this issue.
I figured I'd also turn to the forum, which I did by posting here, to rule out any possibilities of known bugs, software related problems etc. Never underestimate the power of a united crowd

The last thing I will try now is to travel to an open remote location with little to no interference and recalibrate the compass there. Hope is fading but I guess it's worth a shot.

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-6 22:33
Hi DJI Elektra,

Last night I recalibrated IMU (inside my house, on the floor) then went to another site, calibrated the compass. All looked well on the ground and when hovering about 3 meters above take-off spot. (Hovering is stable when it has a GPS lock)

I agreed with DTK. Please contact our support and send it back for check: http://www.dji.com/support.

Hi guys, I just realized the most obvious thing, which I for some reason did not reflect over before. The Compass sensors only display Compass1 and there should be another Compass there. One is missing.
I guess sending it in is inevitable.

:-/

I2 only has one compass.

If you are still having problems, then find a wide open grassy area well away from power lines and try a compass cal there. When you do the calibration, make sure you have nothing metal or magnetic on you or in your pockets, also once you start the calibration put the rc unit on the ground and take a few steps away from it. Leave your phone in the car, and stay a good distance from your car too.

I had a similar issue after a compass cal once back in february, it said everything was fine, but started toilet bowling once it lifted off and move a few feet... I eventually realised the problem was the gloves I was wearing when I did the calibration. I'd overlooked that they had first finger & thumb that could be pinned back for Shooting - there were two magnets in each finger and thumb

Good luck.

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-20 12:37
Hi guys, I just realized the most obvious thing, which I for some reason did not reflect over before. The Compass sensors only display Compass1 and there should be another Compass there. One is missing.
I guess sending it in is inevitable.

The Inspire 2 has 2 IMUs but only one compass. The P4P is the one with dual compasses.

Electro-Nick Posted at 2017-12-20 14:27
I2 only has one compass.

If you are still having problems, then find a wide open grassy area well away from power lines and try a compass cal there. When you do the calibration, make sure you have nothing metal or magnetic on you or in your pockets, also once you start the calibration put the rc unit on the ground and take a few steps away from it. Leave your phone in the car, and stay a good distance from your car too.

Thanks guys for the input. I just figured since it displays "Compass1", there should be 2 of them. I also googled "Inspire 2 compass screenshot"and saw pictures of 2 but you may be right still.

Anyway, after having DJI review the logs and doing all what has been asked of me in terms of troubleshooting, sending it in for repair is inevitable.

I have tried calibrating at various locations with the exact same result. When turning the AC around its own axis (horisontally), the compass error occurs at a certain point. This happens even when calibrating.
My Mavic is never doing this so I'm actually convinced that there is a hardware fault.
DOA...

*sigh*

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-20 22:09
Thanks guys for the input. I just figured since it displays "Compass1", there should be 2 of them. I also googled "Inspire 2 compass screenshot"and saw pictures of 2 but you may be right still.

Anyway, after having DJI review the logs and doing all what has been asked of me in terms of troubleshooting, sending it in for repair is inevitable.

I have an Inspire 2. It has one compass, two IMUs. The  P4P has dual compasses and dual IMUs.

The flight pattern you describe is characteristic of a compass rather than IMU issue and you may well have a problematic compass if the problem persists if you fly at another location.

Bringing this thread up again.  I have one Inspire 2 with compass issues- has an issue almost every flight in multiple locations with no metal during calibrations.  These locations have been hundreds of miles apart. Multiple issues in southwest Oregon, in south central Oregon, in central Oregon, and in northwest Oregon.  My backup Inspire has no issues and I am very careful to remove any metal from myself and check my surroundings before calibrating.  Both are hooked up to Cendence controllers with Crystalsky units.  
All are running current FW.  

fansac4922d6 Posted at 2018-2-17 10:44
Bringing this thread up again.  I have one Inspire 2 with compass issues- has an issue almost every flight in multiple locations with no metal during calibrations.  These locations have been hundreds of miles apart. Multiple issues in southwest Oregon, in south central Oregon, in central Oregon, and in northwest Oregon.  My backup Inspire has no issues and I am very careful to remove any metal from myself and check my surroundings before calibrating.  Both are hooked up to Cendence controllers with Crystalsky units.  
All are running current FW.

Hey buddy,
I totally feel your frustration as I have processed that what you are describing for a LONG time, including 2 repair-tours to the EU repair center in Holland.
It ended up with replacement of the main controller module.
In my case, when rotating the aircraft around its own horizontal axis, it gave me a compass error before completing 360 degrees, every single time.
I'm not sure if you have the exact same issue but if you can determine if you see a pattern like this, or if you hover with it and from there rotate horizontally to complete 360 degrees and that way can force it to generate "compass error", I think you may have to send it in for diagnostics/repair (assuming you have done IMU + Compass calibrations correctly).

Good luck!

Zadde Posted at 2018-2-22 21:38
Hey buddy,
I totally feel your frustration as I have processed that what you are describing for a LONG time, including 2 repair-tours to the EU repair center in Holland.
It ended up with replacement of the main controller module.

I sent it in already.  I'll mention it to one of my contacts at DJI.  

Thanks!

Use Cfixer =)

Zadde Posted at 2017-12-8 01:30
Thanks for your input and just for the record; I am keeping a close dialogue with my supplier regarding this issue.
I figured I'd also turn to the forum, which I did by posting here, to rule out any possibilities of known bugs, software related problems etc. Never underestimate the power of a united crowd

My friend you have a problem there, you should not have to go to the middle of the desert in order to make it work. I use the I2 in the middle of the city or the mountain does not matter, it always should have good satellite reception and work well, that's what you paid for. I know it is painful and DJI support is worse than horrible and they do not care at all of their customers but if is not working ok then you may have an accident and that would be worse.
Good luck with that, i hope you can solve the problem.

Did you ever get your problem fixed? We get the same errors in urban environments. We fly  professionally for tv shows.

Any update to this?? I got a Compass 1 Disconnect error during the middle of a flight literally in the middle of nowhere. This thing has been flawless since day 1, never crashed, always gentle use. It still flew fine, but a red light came on steady and it wanted me to land. Once landed it wouldn't let me calibrate it, or fly, only option was to reboot. Rebooted, and I didn't fly it again but the error was gone and it was ready to go. Seems fine this morning, will try it again and if I have the error will deal with it, hoping it was a fluke. hmm. I wonder if this is a bug in the new firmware or recent 10 app updates that have nothing to do with the inspire?

lolders Posted at 2018-10-6 04:46
Any update to this?? I got a Compass 1 Disconnect error during the middle of a flight literally in the middle of nowhere. This thing has been flawless since day 1, never crashed, always gentle use. It still flew fine, but a red light came on steady and it wanted me to land. Once landed it wouldn't let me calibrate it, or fly, only option was to reboot. Rebooted, and I didn't fly it again but the error was gone and it was ready to go. Seems fine this morning, will try it again and if I have the error will deal with it, hoping it was a fluke. hmm. I wonder if this is a bug in the new firmware or recent 10 app updates that have nothing to do with the inspire?

You are flying with latest .200 Firmware?

Nicksons Posted at 2018-10-6 21:25
You are flying with latest .200 Firmware?

I am assuming so, I had it hooked up to the Assistant yesterday and it said it was up to date. I use an iPhone 10 App all up to date

lolders Posted at 2018-10-7 04:36
I am assuming so, I had it hooked up to the Assistant yesterday and it said it was up to date. I use an iPhone 10 App all up to date

You may need to downgrade to .100 using assistant, this should fix the issue... if not you will have to send in your aircraft...

Had the same issue, can't believe it, my bird coming back from DJI since july they don't want to sell me a new compass

fans3509fdbd Posted at 8-31 07:10
Did you ever get your problem fixed? We get the same errors in urban environments. We fly  professionally for tv shows.

Hey, sorry for a late response. I haven't been online on the forum for quite a long time.
I finally got my aircraft repaired after 2 tours to the repair center. The main controller unit was replaced and since then it works much better. I can't say it works flawlessly, as sometimes (rarely though) the AC indicates that it loses GPS lock due to magnetic field interference (which is the same error I got from the faulty compass unit).