Inspire drift - please help

Lofty Visions · Dec 3, 2015

Hi guys

I have my CASA flight assessment coming up soon so I would really like to get this problem sorted before then.

I have an issue with my Inspire where it drifts a fair bit, especially yawing at slow speeds. Even going forwards with a mild side wind is a struggle to keep straight. Living in the 3rd windiest city in the world doesn't help either!

Are there any settings I can change to help the Inspire stay more locked on to its GPS point? I've done IMU and compass calibrations all by the book and I have plenty of satellites but I did reduce the throttle down, rudder left and backward/left settings from 40 to 30 in order to smooth out the controls a touch. The other settings are brake 90, attitude 100, yaw endpoint 150, gains are all at 100.

At times it's almost like flying in ATTI. I know there's more momentum than a Phantom due to the extra weight but it's a bit of a pain, especially when trying to do the slow speed figure of 8 for the assessment.

I am used to flying in ATTI but I would prefer to get this GPS issue fixed obviously.

Any advice would be very welcome! Thanks

Canuck32 · Dec 4, 2015

Have you done a RC stick cal? Sometimes it can cause a drift issue if they are out of cal.

Lofty Visions · Dec 4, 2015

Canuck32 said:
Have you done a RC stick cal? Sometimes it can cause a drift issue if they are out of cal.

Hmm no I haven't. I will give it a try. Thanks

Scotflieger · Dec 4, 2015

Lofty Visions said:
Hi guys

I have my CASA flight assessment coming up soon so I would really like to get this problem sorted before then.

I have an issue with my Inspire where it drifts a fair bit, especially yawing at slow speeds. Even going forwards with a mild side wind is a struggle to keep straight. Living in the 3rd windiest city in the world doesn't help either!

Are there any settings I can change to help the Inspire stay more locked on to its GPS point? I've done IMU and compass calibrations all by the book and I have plenty of satellites but I did reduce the throttle down, rudder left and backward/left settings from 40 to 30 in order to smooth out the controls a touch. The other settings are brake 90, attitude 100, yaw endpoint 150, gains are all at 100.

At times it's almost like flying in ATTI. I know there's more momentum than a Phantom due to the extra weight but it's a bit of a pain, especially when trying to do the slow speed figure of 8 for the assessment.

I am used to flying in ATTI but I would prefer to get this GPS issue fixed obviously.

Any advice would be very welcome! Thanks

For your test as you will not be filming increase you braking sensitivity to 100 or 110. I recently found my aircraft drifting downwind when yawing in the hover (as though it was in ATTI).

IrishSights · Dec 4, 2015

I also found that too much brake caused drift when yawing in high wind.

I actually first experienced this during my flight exam in 17 kt winds, which was embarrassing! Reducing the braking solved the problem...and I passed!

Lofty Visions · Dec 4, 2015

Thanks fellas but I'm confused from your last two posts. Do I increase or decrease the value? I thought setting it at 90 would decrease the braking, which would make it smoother for filming. I think you mean increase the value to stop the yaw drift?

IrishSights · Dec 4, 2015

Too low a value caused my problem. I increased the value.

Lofty Visions · Dec 4, 2015

Ah got it, thanks. I will have a play with that setting this weekend if the weather improves. Much appreciated

Scotflieger · Dec 4, 2015

Lofty Visions said:
Ah got it, thanks. I will have a play with that setting this weekend if the weather improves. Much appreciated

I think @IrishSights and I are now in agreement. Increase the value to increase braking effect and reduce it for smoother filming. I tend to keep mine high due to the invariably high wind conditions I fly in.

Lofty Visions · Dec 4, 2015

Thanks, it makes perfect sense. I too have to deal with high winds pretty much all the time so I will definitely try it.

The only reason I reduced the expos was because of over sensitive controls causing jerkiness. Do you think I should put them back to 40?

Scotflieger · Dec 4, 2015

Lofty Visions said:
Thanks, it makes perfect sense. I too have to deal with high winds pretty much all the time so I will definitely try it.

The only reason I reduced the expos was because of over sensitive controls causing jerkiness. Do you think I should put them back to 40?

No. Keep your expos to the level you find comfortable for smooth flying. The test is looking for accurate and smooth control. It is not a race and should not be timed. Demonstrating safe flying is the key. Good luck.

Lofty Visions · Dec 4, 2015

Will do, thanks

Canuck32 · Dec 4, 2015

Another trick to give the effect of reduced expos is to increase you RC stick lengths.
directional control adjustment | DJI Inspire Forum

Lofty Visions · Dec 6, 2015

Thanks guys. I got a break in the weather yesterday and tried a few of those settings out. A definite improvement increasing the brake value, although some jerkiness has come back at very low speed. Still a bit of drift but much better than before. I also messed with the expos a bit and found 40 a better bet for low speed work. However, I'm going to drop them back to 30 after the test.

Never got chance to try adjusting the stick length, but I will try next time. Thanks for everyone's help, much appreciated