Would stopping the motor damage it?

[AndyS]

I was flying in some really windy conditions near the coast today, the P3P coped extremely well to be honest, way better than I was expecting. Unfortunately on my last flight, as I started the rotors a gust of wind caught the bird and flipped it on to it's side. It was as the rotors were starting up, so not at full speed. The bird just leant to one side and as the 2 props on the leading edge touched the ground, they stopped the motor completely.

There was no damage to the props, and there are no cracks on the the 2 arms on the side that touched the ground. As soon as it happened I quickly killed the power. I've just done a quick test in the car park near my home to make sure it flew ok and while it seemed like the VPS was doing a rubbish job of keeping it steady, it did look like it was trying to at least. Maybe the compass was off or something...

Just wondering if a sudden stop on the rotors would do lasting damage to them ?

 

[noiseboy72]

Possibly, as the windings can be distorted by over torque. TBH, your issues are more likely due to the need to carry out a full IMU calibration following your mishap!

 

[AndyS]

Good point about the IMU calibration, I just got it home and did a quick flight without really checking anything in the settings. Should know better- the pre-flight checklist was quickly forgotten!

I'm hoping the motors aren't affected tho, it all happened in the space of a few seconds before I powered down. Aren't these motors just magnetic with nothing actually spinning them though, no cogs mechanically turning them I mean. Not sure if that's a good or bad thing...

Will do the IMU tomorrow I think and report back.

 

[Altanore]

The ESC's would fry before the motor would. Which would mean a $500 or so new mainboard. :-(

 

[4wd]

With some of the earlier phantoms the ESCs would pop in no time if a motor was stalled, however the P3 is supposed to have a smarter arrangement which diverts the power.
Just as well since they are now integrated in the main board rather than an easily replaced separate item.
If it hits something or topples over you still want to shut off immediately using a CSC.

 

[Daninho]

Of course the ESCs, if you are lucky the ESCs are ok.

 

[Wibble]

Mine did this - my fault was on uneven ground. Motors stalled very briefly. I have had plenty of great flights since.

 

[AndyS]

Happy to report that following an IMU calibration and the gimbal calibration, I took the P3P out for a 15 minute flight this morning and had no issues at all. VPS appears to be holding it rock steady at low altitude and GPS took over higher up. All the props seem to be rotating at the same frequency and sound fine.

Must be more careful on uneven ground in future!

 

[DroningOnAndOn]

On my third flight I went to land and whilst carefully positioning the P3P I went to touch down. As it just touched, it decided to adjust itself slightly (on grass) and naturally flipped over straight onto the props. I freaked out, instantly grabbed it to avert any burn outs and they again spun up with the P3P in my hand. It was fine as I grabbed the leg and just shut it off with the TX.

I now land via the 'grab the leg whilst hovering method' which works perfectly.

I am very experienced with landing 3D RC helis (I have not tipped over since I was brand new) and it was the P and not me that tipped it over. I wasn't very happy as I spent the week wondering if it would still work ok. Had a couple of flights today and everything seemed ok.

Lesson learned!

I wonder if it was the VPS that did it...

 

[AndyS]

Glad your quad is ok!

 

[DroningOnAndOn]

Yeah I was really nervous something may have been damaged. I imagine it's just how you felt as well! My props were ok (no visible cracks or even scratches) but I replaced them just in case as it's so new and quite expensive (I may likely keep them as spares).

I did the same and did an IMU/compass calibration after the flip and thankfully it flew great today.

 

[AndyS]

Yeah, I've just invested in some quick release prop guards to prevent it happening in the future. The fixed ones are just annoying so I took them off.

 

[grrquadman]

AndyS:
-
+1 on the pop on / off prop guards... (!)

 

[Larry L]

Happy to report that following an IMU calibration and the gimbal calibration, I took the P3P out for a 15 minute flight this morning and had no issues at all. VPS appears to be holding it rock steady at low altitude and GPS took over higher up. All the props seem to be rotating at the same frequency and sound fine.

Must be more careful on uneven ground in future!

Andy, you might want to turn VPS off outside. You can get some undesired effects if flying over certain objects. It is used for flying inside without GPS. If you have GPS outside, that will hold your position.
Glad you did not suffer any damage.

 

[edonovanl]

I agree - quick-release prop guards so you can use them when you want, and turn off VPS, and not likely any damage to the motors or escs....

 

[AndyS]

Thanks Larry I guess it makes sense not having it on where there is gps coverage to hold it steady, I'll give it a try next time