Disabling GO HOME on Low Battery Level

[Marlin009]

I've seen this recommended several times and I'm trying to understand the logic behind it.

In my case, it seems having it on couldn't hurt: New flyer, Phantom 2 V2, no FPV, basic setup.

I do not fly that far away but sometimes far enough that I can't see if the lights start flashing red to indicate it has hit the first level.
In fact on the few flights I've made I find myself bringing it back just to have a look at the battery indicators. Paranoid much?
If it did hit low battery and start to go home, I think I would realize something was going on and could then switch to ATTI and bring it in quickly.
This may be a bad assumption on my part.
If I have it off, it could hit that level and if it were too far to see it, I would not know and gravity would eventually do it's thing. :shock:

Am I missing something?

 

[johnp44]

Hi,

I agree with you but would be interested to learn what the other reasoning would be for not enabling the go home option.
So put me down in the I have it enabled column.

Cheers,

JohnP

 

[The Editor]

You are right to be cautious and for many the low battery go home feature is a security - Nothing wrong with that.

For many of us however, we prefer to have TOTAL control over the craft rather than the flight controller telling us we should land and then doing it for us.

Personally, I have disabled everything battery level associated due to the fact that if my aircraft hits critical battery voltage and starts to land there is nothing I can do about it. I would prefer to destroy a battery by taking it under 3v per cell and just make it back rather than have the craft auto land in the middle of a lake somewhere.

 

[Marlin009]

I understand wanting to maintain control. I was under the impression, from what I've read, that if it goes into GO HOME because of low battery you can still apply power and steer in ATTI mode. Perhaps that is not the case. :?:

In the assistant there is a check box next to low battery level to go home, but not next to critical level (I do not have the Phantom connected).

 

[msinger]

Marlin009, if you switch to ATTI while your Phantom is returning home, you should have full control again. If you reach the critical battery state, your Phantom will land at its current position. While you cannot disable that auto land feature, you could give it full throttle to help steer to a safer landing spot.

 

[Marlin009]

Marlin009, if you switch to ATTI while your Phantom is returning home, you should have full control again. If you reach the critical battery state, your Phantom will land at its current position. While you cannot disable that auto land feature, you could give it full throttle to help steer to a safer landing spot.

Got it. Thanks.

 

[Mako79]

Flick the right toggle to ATTI and back up to GPS and this will CANCEL the auto-RTH. You can then now fly back with GPS.
And just a reminder, once it hits the battery hits the lowest threshold, it will start slow descending to land. You can still control her but you must give it more throttle to keep altitude.

 

[Meta4]

I agree with you but would be interested to learn what the other reasoning would be for not enabling the go home option.

I've seen a pilot bringing his Phantom home when auto go home cut in and flew into a tree that the pilot was steering around.
I disabled auto go home because I like to be able to control my Phantom since I can see and steer a lot better than it can.

 

[crash1sttime]

I've seen a pilot bringing his Phantom home when auto go home cut in and flew into a tree that the pilot was steering around..

That was me, well a similar thing anyway, I was pulling back on the stick to bring it back when low battery RTH kicked in an it shot back at high speed into a tree behind me.

Needless to say LBRTH is now turned off.

You can't disable auto land on low battery but as said you can throttle up should you need to.
If you can't see your lights then run a stop watch with a count down, may give you a better idea of when your battery is running low

 

[herein2014]

I keep a very close eye on my battery percentage, and I try to never be in the air below 40% but twice I've been caught below 35%, I just switch to ATTI and fly it home manually before RTH kicks in at 25%. I do leave the RTH enabled though, just as a final fail safe.

 

[Marlin009]

Flick the right toggle to ATTI and back up to GPS and this will CANCEL the auto-RTH. You can then now fly back with GPS.
And just a reminder, once it hits the battery hits the lowest threshold, it will start slow descending to land. You can still control her but you must give it more throttle to keep altitude.

Thanks, that's what I thought. This brings up another question/observation. Playing around with ATTI this weekend I noticed it flies much faster than GPS. I assume it would use less power without the GPS corrections being made giving a better chance of making it home.

BTW - Is your name in reference to a boat?

I've seen a pilot bringing his Phantom home when auto go home cut in and flew into a tree that the pilot was steering around..

That was me, well a similar thing anyway, I was pulling back on the stick to bring it back when low battery RTH kicked in an it shot back at high speed into a tree behind me.

Needless to say LBRTH is now turned off.

You can't disable auto land on low battery but as said you can throttle up should you need to.
If you can't see your lights then run a stop watch with a count down, may give you a better idea of when your battery is running low

Well that's a couple of good scenarios to support turning it off.

Funny you mention the stopwatch, it's on my wrist. I think I've started it every time I've flown. I've yet to remember to look at it after I land. WTF? :roll:

 

[PhantomFanatic]

Why not just get the data streaming back to you so you could read the battery voltage even if you couldn't see it?

 

[Marlin009]

Why not just get the data streaming back to you so you could read the battery voltage even if you couldn't see it?

Oh, I'll get there.

 

[Meta4]

Playing around with ATTI this weekend I noticed it flies much faster than GPS. I assume it would use less power without the GPS corrections being made giving a better chance of making it home.

The Phantom gets its forward motion from tilting. No tilt and the Phantom will just hover or go up and down.
The angle of tilt in Phantom mode is quite limited. In atti mode the Phantom will reach a greater tilt angle than in Phantom mode, making it considerably faster.

 

[mendezl]

When I started I used a timer on my phone... then timer on my pebble watch.

I could get 15 minutes of regular flying... so I set the timer for 13 minutes as a back up to remind me to get home at that time. Once 13 minutes I would keep the phantom within 100 feet fore the next minute or so to keep a close eye on battery lights etc. Never got cought out far with low battery this way.

Now I have FPV with IOSD battery life data... and I still use timer on phone as a backup reminder to get home. I also use the timer for different situations. If Im doing a distance run I put timer for 4 minutes, I fly straight out until 4 minutes alarm or until battery is at 65%.

Also, if you are flying short trips in different locations with same battery I use a timer for 13 minutes and start stop at each location. That way I know how much flight time I have left. Ok that is enough on the timer thing.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

For a Timer you could check out the 'Hover' app for iOS and Android. I believe the creator is a member here. There are a couple of threads here about it. It is simple, useful and free.

 

[bschaub]

I always use a timer velcro'd to my controller. I return at 11 minutes giving me plenty of time to land. at times I fly quite a ways out over the Pacific and always in GPS mode. The P2 is basically a dot. 11 minutes is plenty of time for me if I have a flight plan thought out. I have five batteries.

 

[msinger]

If you choose to use a timer, keep in mind that wind, temperature, and other factors can decrease your usual flying time.