Will drone shut off while flying when I put throttle all the way down for a quick descent?

[K9VXV]

I've always been a little weary just because this is how my Syma's would do their shutdown so I have learned, in that respect at least to only hold the stick down in two second intervals. I need to get smoother at my stick control and I try not to take it anywhere I can't retrieve it but I worry about emergency situations and am always wondering these questions myself so thank you to everyone for your answers.

If a Phantom is toppled completely over or it has a hard impact do the motors stop? Do they stop if they can not turn at a certain speed?

 

[Fruxen]

I thought it wasn't good to do a max straight down or straight up.......... I really don't know why I just thought you were always supposed to have some lateral movement, however small ??

I used to have a less advanced drone that became very unstable when descending straight down at max speed. My Phantom 4 seems to handle it but I still hate that wooshing sound from all the turbulence, to me it's the sound of a drone falling to the ground like a leaf. Feels better to descend at about half speed. But I do understand that if this was an actual technical issue with the later Phantoms it would be a widespread knowledge.

 

[ScouseMouse]

A rapid vertical descent nearly always makes the AC unstable because of prop-wash which is why some lateral movement is recommended as it negates this effect and looks much more professional. Prop-wash isn't present when ascending.

 

[avark]

That advice is from the bad old days of vortex ring state (VRS) issues with earlier Phantoms, such as the P2. It's not a problem with modern versions.

Why doesn't vortex ring state affect the later Phantoms? Because it is an aerodynamic product, it is my understanding that VRS affects any aircraft with rotors. Thanks.

 

[ScouseMouse]

Yes I would be interested to know the answer to that too!

 

[N017RW]

Reduced descent speed in firmware and motor tilt added to mounts in/on arms.

 

[sar104]

Why doesn't vortex ring state affect the later Phantoms? Because it is an aerodynamic product, it is my understanding that VRS affects any aircraft with rotors. Thanks.

The explantion given was that the prop angles were adjusted slightly (angled outwards) on the later models to produce more divergent flow below the aircraft. That, combined with a lower maximum descent rate was apparently successful in mitigating the problem.

 

[avark]

Thanks, N017 and sar104. Interesting information. I was thinking "how can that be" but then realized standard helicopter maneuvering is done by the rotor tilts by varying blade pitch throughout its rotation. But with these, RPM changes instead of angle of attack. Thanks for your info.

 

[DanMan32]

I've always been a little weary just because this is how my Syma's would do their shutdown so I have learned, in that respect at least to only hold the stick down in two second intervals. I need to get smoother at my stick control and I try not to take it anywhere I can't retrieve it but I worry about emergency situations and am always wondering these questions myself so thank you to everyone for your answers.

If a Phantom is toppled completely over or it has a hard impact do the motors stop? Do they stop if they can not turn at a certain speed?

You can't compare a Syma to a Phantom. On a Syma, throttle is actual throttle in that it directly controls rotor speed. On Phantom it is altitude control.

Motors are not shut down due to obstructions like Syma does. I suspect that's to allow for recovery should the AC be airborne and obstruction only temporary.

 

[ScouseMouse]

Nice to know how they've addressed the issue. Another reason for me to upgrade!

 

[blackcrusader]

Left stick locked down only ever does a descent. Never a CSC which requires left throttle to be in a different position.

I often do a full left throttle locked into position from max height 1640 foot. Never an issue.

 

[Rizan Mazlan]

No it wont but check the mode cause i forget to put it in normal mode and it went strait to the ground and gimbal broke. If ur batery died land it somewhere u know so u could go there and take it also print out a sticker that says ur name and phone numner on it.

 

[miogpsrocks]

Whether the quad is on the ground or in your hand it can no longer descend and you are able to use the left throttle to shut it down.

So if you put the throttle in full down position for 3 seconds and the sensors detect that no decent is happening, then it will shut off the motors? This could be on the ground or in your hands? Very good information to know.

 

[miogpsrocks]

Do you really think that DJI designers would make the standard method for descending kill your motors?
If it did, we would all have lost our Phantoms on the first or second flight.

I honestly don't know, that is why I asked and why I always decent for only 2 seconds at a time max in the past to avoid possibly having it shut down in midair. I have had other RC flying models turn off in the air before.

 

[miogpsrocks]

I thought it wasn't good to do a max straight down or straight up.......... I really don't know why I just thought you were always supposed to have some lateral movement, however small ??

Thank you for the tip. I will try this next time. I was at the park once and it kept doing the corkscrew like crazy when I was going straight down.

 

[tevek]

So if you put the throttle in full down position for 3 seconds and the sensors detect that no decent is happening, then it will shut off the motors? This could be on the ground or in your hands? Very good information to know.

Correct sir, it senses that since it has stopped descending, it will enable you to shut down using the throttle stick. If you are hand catching, assume the statue position as any movement will mess with the drone's head and create a bit of havoc.

 

[HWCM]

No it wont but check the mode cause i forget to put it in normal mode and it went strait to the ground and gimbal broke. If ur batery died land it somewhere u know so u could go there and take it also print out a sticker that says ur name and phone numner on it.

Modes do not matter. It still will not cut the motors. You had other issues. If your battery died,then of course it will crash. That is operator error and a completely different issue. [emoji16]

 

[Mudge]

Will drone shut off while flying when I put the throttle all the way down for a quick descent?

Let's say drone is up very high taking some pictures and I notice the battery is getting low and I wanted to bring it back quickly.

When I put throttle down for the drone to descent, could this accidentally shut the drone completely off in midair leading to a catastrophic crash or does the drone recognize that its still in the air and not shut off when you put the throttle all the way down like it does on the ground?

I have both the FC 40( Phantom 1 drone with camera) and the Phantom 3 standard.

Thanks.

I believe in order to stop the motors in flight you have to do something with the left stick and the RTH button. I'm not sure exactly but I remember getting some information on it a while back. You have to do something that you would not normally do when flying.

 

[danny lewis]

Will drone shut off while flying when I put the throttle all the way down for a quick descent?

Let's say drone is up very high taking some pictures and I notice the battery is getting low and I wanted to bring it back quickly.

When I put throttle down for the drone to descent, could this accidentally shut the drone completely off in midair leading to a catastrophic crash or does the drone recognize that its still in the air and not shut off when you put the throttle all the way down like it does on the ground?

I have both the FC 40( Phantom 1 drone with camera) and the Phantom 3 standard.

Thanks.

I would have lost mine long time ago

 

[Biffer]

I think I read in one of these discussions talk about how some "sport pilots" would turn off their drones let them drop and then start them back up? More fun than I want to have....