Unscheduled landing

MacDyver · Mar 12, 2016

John Robinson said:
Sorry about your daughter. :-(

Concerning your Inspire 1 I am sorry for the crash. Every time I see another crashed Inspire 1 I get more nervous flying mine. For such an advanced craft with Gps, they seem to crash a lot.

One thing I would like to mention is your prop guards. I zoomed in on your picture and it looks like the ones I bought. When fitted they were so very close to the props. 3 were 5mm from the props and 1 was only 2mm. I tested indoors and noticed that with both the flex in the props and the guards that they actually touched. 2 had noticeable scratches left on the props and guards so I know for sure they touched. I can only imagine at full throttle what damage they could cause. Even if you lost the tip of 1 prop would be enough to cause severe imbalance in the craft.

Obviously I'm not saying that is what happened but maybe you could check what's left of the guards and see if you notice the scratches?

I fixed my guards by heating them with water from a kettle and bent them. Once cooled they are all 15mm from the props and zero chance of hitting any more.

Good luck with your repair.

Kind regards

John

Thank you for your kindness!
The ones I had actually came with the kit and were not very flexible, the props fell well to the inside of the guard, Not saying it could not happen but I have performed more extreme maneuvers than the day of the crash, as for forensics there's not enough of that puppy left to draw any ironclad conclusions, She arrived via FedEx Friday so I won't have any new information until at least Monday.

Moshe Hagshur · Mar 13, 2016

Hi
First sorry for your lost
Just wondering
You mentioned that you were using 14-40
Did you use a balancing ring
Just wondering if 14-40 use , will not avoid warranty, because it's not a supported lens under DJI list

MacDyver · Mar 13, 2016

Moshe Hagshur said:
Hi
First sorry for your lost
Just wondering
You mentioned that you were using 14-40
Did you use a balancing ring
Just wondering if 14-40 use , will not avoid warranty, because it's not a supported lens under DJI list

The Olympus 14-42mm zoom lens is in fact a supported lens.
I used a filter for balance instead of the balancing ring it's either or not both.

pixl45 · Mar 13, 2016

MacDyver said:
The Olympus 14-42mm zoom lens is in fact a supported lens.
I used a filter for balance instead of the balancing ring it's either or not both.

I have that lens, and find it to be a real PITA to use -- the DJI app often confuses my finger taps to zoom with focus points. It's infuriating. If anyone has any tips to make it work, I'm all ears.

MacDyver · Mar 13, 2016

pixl45 said:
I have that lens, and find it to be a real PITA to use -- the DJI app often confuses my finger taps to zoom with focus points. It's infuriating. If anyone has any tips to make it work, I'm all ears.

Fat fingers, I often have that problem with iPhone's etc. You just have to be very careful
.

Lipmunger · Mar 14, 2016

Hi I have a Inspire and really need the caps that the motors mount on, do you have any suggestions?

MacDyver · Mar 14, 2016

Lipmunger said:
Hi I have a Inspire and really need the caps that the motors mount on, do you have any suggestions?

Unfortunately I've already returned everything to DJI.

Chris McCorkel · Mar 14, 2016

MacDyver said:
I live in Miami, 82 degrees outside, Maybe one of those trained eagles attacked it rofl!

Lmao!

John Archer · Mar 14, 2016

Just saw this post. Man my heart goes out to you. I hope DJI does the right thing and ships you a full replacement.
So sad to see a beautiful bird like this in pieces. I am still waiting for better weather to get my V2.0 out. Going to be lots of low level flying before I start reaching up to high. Thank you so much for sharing,and again hope DJI does you right.
Luck to you!

MacDyver · Mar 17, 2016

Crash update, screenshot from DJI Repair tracking page, some personal information removed, so far I haven't received any explanation for the crash.
Product as yet undelivered.

Received On

Payment Status
Free Of Charge
Courier Service

Tracking No.

Received2016/3/14 17:54:15
Repair cost assessed and quoted2016/3/15 12:08:36
Repaired and tested2016/3/16 21:25:51
Product delivered

John Archer · Mar 17, 2016

MacDyver said:
Crash update, screenshot from DJI Repair tracking page, some personal information removed, so far I haven't received any explanation for the crash.
Product as yet undelivered.

Received On

Payment Status
Free Of Charge
Courier Service

Tracking No.

Received2016/3/14 17:54:15
Repair cost assessed and quoted2016/3/15 12:08:36
Repaired and tested2016/3/16 21:25:51
Product delivered

Copyright © 2016 DJI All Rights Reserved.

I will be watching for any updates from you as far as the reason your bird crashed, Sounds like DJI is taking care of you. Good to hear!!!

NumberOnePilot · Mar 18, 2016

Dang, this is very unfortunate. Glad no damage to surrounding area including individuals.

X5GEE · Mar 18, 2016

MacDyver said:
So i've been flying near my home all weekend, properly calibrated IMU, freshly charged battery, Fl 375 AGL, 11 mph winds in the air for about 5:00 and.....
Any suggestions before sending it off to DJI for analysis?
btw I had the Olympus 14-42 lens attached.

Curious ... the aerial images are taken in .jpg? Not RAW? Looks like the quality from my phantom 3 camera.

MacDyver · Mar 19, 2016

X5GEE said:
Curious ... the aerial images are taken in .jpg? Not RAW? Looks like the quality from my phantom 3 camera.

Probably because I'm an amateur not a professional photographer, everyone has to start someplace.

MacDyver · Mar 19, 2016

Through "repair inquiry" I've determined that DJI has "repaired" my sUAV and it is enroute back to me via FedEx, however I received no follow up so I sent the following, obviously some information is removed but most will get the gist of the communication.
RE: 160.....
Thank you for the repair/ replacement of my drone however I'd like to know
1. Why did it fall from the sky and crash?
2. Will my Olympus 14-42mm zoom lens attached to the aircraft when it crashed be replaced or compensated for?
Thank you for your prompt reply

MacDyver · Mar 21, 2016

Thank you for contacting DJI NORTH AMERICA, you emailed a inquiry regarding the follow questions:

1. Why did it fall from the sky and crash? ESC Error

2. Will my Olympus 14-42mm zoom lens attached to the aircraft when it crashed be replaced or compensated for? Thank you for your prompt reply

Unfortunately DJI NORTH AMERICA cannot reimburse/replace you regarding the Olympus 14-42mm zoom lens third party item.

Am I totally happy? No!
Can I live with the results yes!
Current thoughts, if your sUAV crashes under warranty even if it's through no fault of your own DJI will not accept responsibility for third party items even if they claim to support said items.
Is there a widespread problem with ESC controllers from DJI?
Should there be a recall or is this an "isolated incident"?
Even more pressing if your UAV causes personal injury or property damage is DJI absolved of culpability?
I for one no longer have the confidence in the product to use it as anything more than a hobby which is extremely disappointing.
DJI could have done some things better concerning customer service and I hope and expect their products and customer service will improve as the company matures. I'll bite the bullet on this one.