Brand new P2V+ v3 flies erratically

[BVIJIM]

Hi All,

Just purchased new drone from DDM Racing (via Amazon). Have logged over 100 flights/batteries on previous P2V+ v2(?).

While I love the GPS improvements (have lots more satellites than I ever had before), the new guy just won't hover in one place. And if I yaw, it moves as much as 20 feet. And It goes up and down on its own, especially if I move it in any direction. A little gust of wind and it shakes around and sounds like a hornet's nest

For what I use it for (close work to buildings, trees and frequently with strong gusty winds), I'm afraid it will crash all by itself.

I've flown it four times (hand catching) and I haven't dinged it at all. I've calibrated the compass before every flight to see if that helps, I've calibrated it 3 times through the assistant and even done a full IMU calibration.

In fact, out of the box, as I was setting it up, it asked for an IMU calibration. Something my previous drone never requested.

On my old MAC computer I'm still running OS 10.6.8 (snow leopard) and when I tried to download the new version of Assistant, Assistant crashed every time I tried to open it so I'm running the version of Assistant I downloaded in Nov, 2014. Could that be a problem?

I'd return it in a flash, but as I live in the Caribbean and paid high shipping and import fees and return shipping is expensive I'm not eager to do that. Plus I need it for work.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks,

BVIJIM

 

[Mako79]

I think your box got dropped in shipping and caused the IMU to go funny. The IMU is a bunch of balancing sensors. You usually do an IMU calibration after a heavy bump.

You have a poorly calibrated IMU. How long did the Adv IMU take to complete and did you get the temp warning? The phantom's internals heat up quickly especially if you have a vision plus. The wifi module runs hot and it sits right next to the NAZA, which houses the IMU. Heat affects the IMU sensors.

Find a level surface - levelled with the horizon. The more levelled, the better the yaw. Make sure its levelled in all axis and keep her still - no bumps or vibrations etc.
Make sure the phantom has NOT been flown an hour. You need the phantom to be cooled.
Start the Phantom assist and go to the Adv IMU screen. Plug phantom in and power her up a do the Adv IMU IMMEDIATLEY - this will prevent the MC temp warning appearing. It should only take about a minute or 2 to see the green ticks. The quicker the calibration, the more accurate she will be.

 

[msinger]

BVIJIM, if the advanced IMU calibration does not resolve that issue, then check out this thread. Some people found their Naza unit was not level -- so, they had to open their Phantom, place a level on top of it, and put shims under the landing gear to ensure it was level before doing the advanced IMU calibration.

 

[BVIJIM]

hmmm. Here's my report back:

As Mako79 suggested, I tried to precisely level the drone before doing an IMU calibration. Placed a sheet of glass across the 4 motor shafts (props off) and tried to level it with the level in my iPhone as well as "hotshoe" levels from my still cameras. Got within a 1-degree level or better. Turned on drone with software already in place. Did the advanced IMU calibration. Even though the drone was in an air-conditioned room, hadn't flown in over 12 hours and it was less than 60 seconds from turning it on to starting the IMU calibration, the software still said it was too hot. I proceeded anyway and it took about 2.5 minutes to calibrate,

Have done two flights since. The first in an open field with little to moderate wind. Did a compass calibration there. The drone did a much better job of holding altitude and not drifting too much on yawing L & R. But still not perfect.

Later flew it out over the water in front of my house and it tended to drift more on yawing, but maybe not as bad as before the most recent IMU calibration, but not good enough.

But still gotta love all the satellites I get now, I'm not as paranoid about sudden loss of GPS lock and the drone quickly drifting away on the Trade Winds, like it tended to before.

But still not happy with the drifting and changes in altitude as I fly.

Tomorrow is a still and video shoot of a house located on a small cliff over the sea. Wish me luck!!

Thanks,

JIM

 

[N017RW]

What type of altitude 'drift' are you experiencing?

In what conditions?

Some drift is to be expected and can vary with ambient conditions.

 

[Mako79]

hmmm. Here's my report back:

Even though the drone was in an air-conditioned room, hadn't flown in over 12 hours and it was less than 60 seconds from

JIM

60 seconds is still too long.
It only takes about 20 seconds (depending on your ambient temps) for the MC warning to appear.
You need to do it the MOMENT you turn it on.

But in saying that, 2-3 minutes to do the adv calibration isn't so bad. Just retry again but do it quicker.

And also, can you film the drift you are referring to. All phantoms without the Vision guidance will drift.