Welcome Inspire Pilots!
Join our free DJI Inspire community today!
Sign up

Battery Fail

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Sep 15, 2015
Messages
14
Reaction score
1
Age
42
Went out to fly my Inspire 1 today and came home without it.

Flight path from DJI app :


(increase res to 1080p and use full screen to see better; sorry about the watermark - evidently frickin Apple makes it almost impossible to record the screen. I should have gotten an android tablet instead of apple)

Started flight at 68%... was just going to do a circle to run the battery down and then put a new one in. As I'm flying, at ~1:20, the battery drops immediately down to 5%... I get a landing gear lowering alert and beeping. I start to freak naturally, spin the drone back towards me and make a run for it. Unfortunately I'm at a "low" (160 feet) height, it starts to drop rapidly to about 60 feet and crashed into a tree (you can see it "tumble" on the flight path).

It was about 4:30 so it started to get dark by the time I located it from the flight path and it's about 40' up in a tree.

So, yes, I should have had a full battery, but my question is what is my recourse? Seriously, batteries should not be failing causing our craft to crash. I can understand pilot error, but it's unreasonable to have to "worry" about a battery failing like this. I don't know how the internal software can have such a false reading like that: fly away your at 60%... whoops... changed my mind... your at 5... think quick!

Any suggestions from those that have unfortunately been through similar? I will mention I'm fairly experienced with 26 flights on this for a total of 3+ hours (over the last two months) along with years of RC airplane flying. I've NEVER run into this before.

I plan to go out early tomorrow morning to see if it fell from the tree or I can get it down.

Pretty annoyed that this is NOT my fault and there is not much I could have done to avoid. I was very close to getting it out from over the trees. You cannot make accurate decisions if the company is not making technology that gives you accurate information.

Little frustrated, so thanks for the help. BTW, I have four batteries all with under 10 flights on them, so I have not done a "full discharge" cycle yet.

P.S. The camera broke off and I found it on the ground. Looked to be ok minus the broken plate that connects it to the craft. Will have to try when I can, hopefully, retrieve the craft.
 

Attachments

  • inspire1.jpg
    inspire1.jpg
    3 MB · Views: 73
  • inspire1_1.jpg
    inspire1_1.jpg
    1.4 MB · Views: 68
Last edited:
"diddy dump, dump, dump, another one bites the dust". :p

That was a pretty stupid move, so much for "flying in a quick circle"
You are almost 200ft high and FOUR football fields away, and moving away at 20+ mph!


When I'm doing realty, I often use a pack on a house, shut down everything to drive to another home a short distance away, then fire up the used pack with 60% with never a worry, (I keep on eye on the battery meter of course).

The guys like you though, the ones we read about "sudden batt fail" ALWAYS fail to mention that your pack was from a day or two ago (or more old). You admit to have a full pack but yet fly your old pack that high and that far away. Then, in a shocking twist, you claim that it wasn't your fault. Of course it was, that was a perfect demonstration of user error.

It sucks that your first post on this site is of such sad nature, but good Karma will follow you because you were kind enough to share your mistake, so others can learn.

How much for your remaining batteries shipped to IL? :D
 
Last edited:
Yup its well documented on this site not to fly with batteries less than 100%. Personally i do it all the time but only on the same day and ive never had a problem.

Some other users on this site are convinced that this issue happens only when you let the automatic discharge time kick in.

Also, from what you said, you have not done the full discharge to below 5% (starting from 100%) all in one go then recharge right away as indicated by DJI. This needs to be done on new batteries too.

Dont trust new batteries either for at least several flights.

Know your craft and be mentally prepared for what you would do if something like this happens. From what i saw you had time to get it back. It crashed with 3% left on the battery so if you had just given it more power (because it was trying to autoland it doesnt hold the elevation) you could have gotten it away from the trees and landed it.

Sorry to hear about your troubles too btw but dont let it deter you. These things are awesome.
 
I would have immediately switched to atti mode and got out of them trees.
I hope you get her back today, good luck. :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: dracip.lm
Thanks for the criticism from some and understanding/support from others.

I'm aware that using a "less than 100%" battery was not brilliant and own that. I'm annoyed that in this tech era a manufacturer develops a battery that does not know how much power is left in it until you're in a compromising position.

I shoot video and Sony/Canon have had intelligent batteries for years that inform you of the "exact" amount of power left. You don't start shooting and the battery says "changed my mind, I've only got 8 seconds left." That's definitely a pathetic flaw on DJIs end.

Regarding getting it back down, I was VERY close to getting it out from over the trees... I was only about 15 feet from the clearing. I agree the wise move would have been ATTI and then it probably would not have lost the height I needed to get it clear.

Anyway, in a strange, but oddly not completely unexpected change of events, I went back this morning with a ladder and other supplies and the drone was gone. I searched around the area and only found a propeller. I wish there was a way to turn off the [bright] beacon... no doubt it was spotted by someone and taken. Bright white in pitch black was easy to see at 500 yards.

Posted to craiglist in a couple different spots and will see if that yields anything. Ultimately it's not of a huge amount of value to someone being broken, missing the camera and with no RC. I offered a cash reward which is.

We'll see what happens. If no response from anyone, I've not decided if I'll replace it or not. It's a lot of fun, however maybe it's not meant for me to have one! On the plus side, if I replace, I only need the craft as I have three batteries, the camera (which seems to be ok), RC etc. If anyone can suggest where I can pick up just the drone itself, that would be awesome.

Thanks.
 
Thanks for the criticism from some and understanding/support from others.

I'm aware that using a "less than 100%" battery was not brilliant and own that. I'm annoyed that in this tech era a manufacturer develops a battery that does not know how much power is left in it until you're in a compromising position.

I shoot video and Sony/Canon have had intelligent batteries for years that inform you of the "exact" amount of power left. You don't start shooting and the battery says "changed my mind, I've only got 8 seconds left." That's definitely a pathetic flaw on DJIs end.

Regarding getting it back down, I was VERY close to getting it out from over the trees... I was only about 15 feet from the clearing. I agree the wise move would have been ATTI and then it probably would not have lost the height I needed to get it clear.

Anyway, in a strange, but oddly not completely unexpected change of events, I went back this morning with a ladder and other supplies and the drone was gone. I searched around the area and only found a propeller. I wish there was a way to turn off the [bright] beacon... no doubt it was spotted by someone and taken. Bright white in pitch black was easy to see at 500 yards.

Posted to craiglist in a couple different spots and will see if that yields anything. Ultimately it's not of a huge amount of value to someone being broken, missing the camera and with no RC. I offered a cash reward which is.

We'll see what happens. If no response from anyone, I've not decided if I'll replace it or not. It's a lot of fun, however maybe it's not meant for me to have one! On the plus side, if I replace, I only need the craft as I have three batteries, the camera (which seems to be ok), RC etc. If anyone can suggest where I can pick up just the drone itself, that would be awesome.

Thanks.
These inspire batteries are a much more complicated piece of technology than your camera batteries. You also didn't follow the manufacturers recommendation for calibrating the batteries before use.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Damien
People say don't fly a partial battery because they don't understand the cause of the problem and haven't made the connection so they err on the side of caution. It's a firmware bug, it should only happen when the battery enters self discharge mode and isn't fully charged before use. Sometimes when this bug occurs it will continue to occur for that battery every time you use it until the reset procedure is performed, which is fully charging it and then fully discharging it till it powers itself off in one use.

I fly partial batteries all the time starting at full charge and making a short flight and using it again later for another short flight, sometimes even 3 or more a couple days apart on the same battery. Ive never had this issue in a year of flying unless the battery self discharging was the reason it was at a partial charge, those batteries have this sudden drop bug occur every time I've used them.

FYI I do run older firmware but I find it unlikely batteries with new firmware are having this problem without the self discharge feature being the reason. At any rate if you're curious or don't believe me it's easy enough to test, let a battery self discharge and use it to fly low and slow in case you lose power and need to land quickly. I'm betting it will happen every time like it does for me. I'd be interested what someone with the new firmware experiences, though I'm pretty sure it will be the same. Set the self discharge time in the app to 10 days to lessen the likelihood of this happening and always make sure to fully charge a battery that self discharges before using it.
 
There might be some differences in opinion here, but you might be better off to follow DJI's official guidelines and not fly a partial charged batterie. Following someone's opinion will not help you in case of a crash or warranty claim.
 
There might be some differences in opinion here, but you might be better off to follow DJI's official guidelines and not fly a partial charged batterie. Following someone's opinion will not help you in case of a crash or warranty claim.
Like I said it's easy to test and honestly due to the different firmware versions I recommend you do test it safely as I described previously just in case results are different in your version. It's %100 consistent results and easily repeatable in my tests however so use the info how you will. If you have enough batteries where you can use them for short fights and recharge it before needing to use again then you won't have to worry about it. I'd guess most people would rather be able to use one battery for multiple short fights however.
 
  • Like
Reactions: turbodronepilot
Thanks for the criticism from some and understanding/support from others.

I'm aware that using a "less than 100%" battery was not brilliant and own that. I'm annoyed that in this tech era a manufacturer develops a battery that does not know how much power is left in it until you're in a compromising position.

I shoot video and Sony/Canon have had intelligent batteries for years that inform you of the "exact" amount of power left. You don't start shooting and the battery says "changed my mind, I've only got 8 seconds left." That's definitely a pathetic flaw on DJIs end.

Regarding getting it back down, I was VERY close to getting it out from over the trees... I was only about 15 feet from the clearing. I agree the wise move would have been ATTI and then it probably would not have lost the height I needed to get it clear.

Anyway, in a strange, but oddly not completely unexpected change of events, I went back this morning with a ladder and other supplies and the drone was gone. I searched around the area and only found a propeller. I wish there was a way to turn off the [bright] beacon... no doubt it was spotted by someone and taken. Bright white in pitch black was easy to see at 500 yards.

Posted to craiglist in a couple different spots and will see if that yields anything. Ultimately it's not of a huge amount of value to someone being broken, missing the camera and with no RC. I offered a cash reward which is.

We'll see what happens. If no response from anyone, I've not decided if I'll replace it or not. It's a lot of fun, however maybe it's not meant for me to have one! On the plus side, if I replace, I only need the craft as I have three batteries, the camera (which seems to be ok), RC etc. If anyone can suggest where I can pick up just the drone itself, that would be awesome.

Thanks.

It's not one of your sony/canon cameras, It's not a flaw, it's operator error. You even said you owned that, yet you turn right around and blame DJI for your problem. It's not their fault. Read your manual. Page 49 in your pre flight checklist

And it could be an easy 500-1000...for a damaged airframe that can be scavanged for parts.
 
Thanks for the criticism from some and understanding/support from others.

I'm aware that using a "less than 100%" battery was not brilliant and own that. I'm annoyed that in this tech era a manufacturer develops a battery that does not know how much power is left in it until you're in a compromising position.

I shoot video and Sony/Canon have had intelligent batteries for years that inform you of the "exact" amount of power left. You don't start shooting and the battery says "changed my mind, I've only got 8 seconds left." That's definitely a pathetic flaw on DJIs end.

Regarding getting it back down, I was VERY close to getting it out from over the trees... I was only about 15 feet from the clearing. I agree the wise move would have been ATTI and then it probably would not have lost the height I needed to get it clear.

Anyway, in a strange, but oddly not completely unexpected change of events, I went back this morning with a ladder and other supplies and the drone was gone. I searched around the area and only found a propeller. I wish there was a way to turn off the [bright] beacon... no doubt it was spotted by someone and taken. Bright white in pitch black was easy to see at 500 yards.

Posted to craiglist in a couple different spots and will see if that yields anything. Ultimately it's not of a huge amount of value to someone being broken, missing the camera and with no RC. I offered a cash reward which is.

We'll see what happens. If no response from anyone, I've not decided if I'll replace it or not. It's a lot of fun, however maybe it's not meant for me to have one! On the plus side, if I replace, I only need the craft as I have three batteries, the camera (which seems to be ok), RC etc. If anyone can suggest where I can pick up just the drone itself, that would be awesome.

Thanks.

These guys used to sell them.
Inspire 1 only
DJI Inspire 1 Quadcopter as spare kit w/ Props/Case/Gimbal NO Remote/Charger/Battery - DJI Inspire 1 - Got Heli RC LLC US$2,150.00
I think DJI will, also
 
There might be some differences in opinion here, but you might be better off to follow DJI's official guidelines and not fly a partial charged batterie. Following someone's opinion will not help you in case of a crash or warranty claim.


There is NO difference of opinion here.
SultanGris is 100% right.
The folks with the problems have been using packs that self discharged.
It's a really stupid idea to have self discharging packs and there should be a option to turn it OFF. I have never let my packs self discharge, and never will.
 
That's 100 percent BS is is not the fault of the pilot. It's the fault of DJI and there Broken battery management system that has put numerous machines in the ground.
There's no reason in the world a pilot can't put a battery showing over half charge in the machine and fly it.
Call DJI tell the you want the machine replaced, they know they screwed this battery managment up big time.

The whole battery managment this is stupid there are millions of Lipo cells out there without any managment system, DJI we can manage our own batteries!

Replace our batteries!
 
That's 100 percent BS is is not the fault of the pilot. It's the fault of DJI and there Broken battery management system that has put numerous machines in the ground.
There's no reason in the world a pilot can't put a battery showing over half charge in the machine and fly it.
Call DJI tell the you want the machine replaced, they know they screwed this battery managment up big time.

The whole battery managment this is stupid there are millions of Lipo cells out there without any managment system, DJI we can manage our own batteries!

Replace our batteries!
You obviously need to practice flying more and you wouldn't have crashed your inspire. Also read the manual because you obviously did not read the instructions.

I have had many of these sudden drops already and Ive never crashed so you just need to go burn off some batteries and practice more so you are ready when it happens.
 
You obviously need to practice flying more and you wouldn't have crashed your inspire. Also read the manual because you obviously did not read the instructions.

I have had many of these sudden drops already and Ive never crashed so you just need to go burn off some batteries and practice more so you are ready when it happens.


Well Greg, that is the stupidest post I have read all weekend.
And considering the wide variety of folks who post here, that's quite an accomplishment.
You clearly know nothing about rc and lipos and are new at this.
I don't even know why the heck I come here. I try and help when I can, but just lose it when I see so many idiotic posts. I'm just not cut out for this virtual internet crap where anyone from anywhere can post outrageously stupid stuff and believe it's the actual truth. I have been a volunteer instructor at our local Hobby Town for 18 years now and you simply just don't see this special kind of stupidity in "real life", (only on the internet).

I have NEVER done any battery firmware updates or any discharge/calibration bs.
I have 448 flights with zero battery problems. I know how many mAh goes into my packs, how many comes out, and how much is left. It's very simple stuff but DJI messed it up by targeting morons who have no clue about electric rc and lipos.

This battery management system that Mike just ripped is clearly the worst mistake dji has made! And having lemmings as 60% of your clients adds up to ALOT of unnecessary problems! **** these stupid battery packs, I have been flying 6s 5000 lipos in planks and helis for years with zero problems and zero self discharges - lol

If dji would have supplied one of these $20 gizmos, you guys might actually have a clue by now what is actually going on with your packs.

d_zpsj2cwddif.jpg


FWI - battery telemetry has been around for many years, and dji's works well. I can confirm all it's readings with "real world" data.
 
Last edited:
Well Greg, that is the stupidest post I have read all weekend.
And considering the wide variety of folks who post here, that's quite an accomplishment.
You clearly know nothing about rc and lipos and are new at this.
I don't even know why the heck I come here. I try and help when I can, but just lose it when I see so many idiotic posts. I'm just not cut out for this virtual internet crap where anyone from anywhere can post outrageously stupid stuff and believe it's the actual truth. I have been a volunteer instructor at our local Hobby Town for 18 years now and you simply just don't see this special kind of stupidity in "real life", (only on the internet).

I have NEVER done any battery firmware updates or any discharge/calibration bs.
I have 448 flights with zero battery problems. I know how many mAh goes into my packs, how many comes out, and how much is left. It's very simple stuff but DJI messed it up by targeting morons who have no clue about electric rc and lipos.

This battery management system that Mike just ripped is clearly the worst mistake dji has made! And having lemmings as 60% of your clients adds up to ALOT of unnecessary problems! **** these stupid battery packs, I have been flying 6s 5000 lipos in planks and helis for years with zero problems and zero self discharges - lol

If dji would have supplied one of these $20 gizmos, you guys might actually have a clue by now what is actually going on with your packs.

d_zpsj2cwddif.jpg
LIke I said. Read the manual (and follow what is says) and practice flying your AC. Nothing idiotic about that. It is very simple. If the original poster of this thread had done either of those he would not have crashed his AC either. Please refrain from calling people out. I am guessing I have a lot more experience than you.
 
LIke I said. Read the manual (and follow what is says) and practice flying your AC. Nothing idiotic about that. It is very simple. If the original poster of this thread had done either of those he would not have crashed his AC either. Please refrain from calling people out. I am guessing I have a lot more experience than you.

You are a funny and clueless individual telling Mike to go practice, and if you're telling me to do the same, I giggle at your stupidity. I'm out of this thread, go read this thread if you want to actually learn something about I1 packs.
This was started waaaaay back in APRIL, giving dji plenty of time to come out with the new 180w supply !!! http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/member.php?u=593963
 
  • Like
Reactions: Waldemar54
You are a funny and clueless individual telling Mike to go practice, and if you're telling me to do the same, I giggle at your stupidity. I'm out of this thread, go read this thread if you want to actually learn something about I1 packs.
This was started waaaaay back in APRIL, giving dji plenty of time to come out with the new 180w supply !!! http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/member.php?u=593963
OK resorting to calling me names has really shown me your intelligence level. Everyone has a right to their opinion. Did you even read this this whole thread? My opinion stands. If he had calibrated his batteries and followed the manual as well as done a little more practice in emergency procedures this would not have happened.
 
  • Like
Reactions: IrishSights
Guys,

I believe this thread has now served its useful purpose and so I'm locking it.

Additionally, there will be no further abusive posts from Carlsberg.

Thread now locked.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
22,277
Messages
210,655
Members
34,330
Latest member
GRQLarae44