Don't try this at home.......

[Busdriver]

Ok, time to fess up. I've been flying my entire life and I've NEVER accidentally shut down all engines at the same time before. So I'd like to say that I did it on purpose the other day, but my conscious won't let me.

So the bad news is that I, in fact, powered off the RC by accident while flying one of my XSP's.

The good news is that the GO Home Failsafe mechanism works as advertised.

I was performing some flight profile tests and instead of pressing the "Go Home" button, I pressed and held the "Power" button. I was watching the drone so I wasn't surprised when it initiated a Go Home procedure. It was headed straight for a 60ft tree and didn't climb to the expected elevation of 100ft (Autel is sorting that out now). To my surprise, it was non responsive to any control inputs. At that point I realized I was simply along for the ride, and powered back on the RC.Luckily I had selected the slower of the speed settings, otherwise the XSP would have had an "up close and personal" experience with a tree.

All's well that lands well I always say.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

P.S. There is a big class action lawsuit against DJI for claiming their fail safe technology makes it impossible to loose the drone. Guess that's their idea of alternative facts since it doesn't work, according to the lawsuit.

 

[kroorda]

Bus: That's great to know. There has been something I am curious about: As those of us who have flown helicopters know, if a helicopter loses power, it can (with a skilled pilot) autorotate down. I could almost guess the answer as to whether a quad-rotor copter could do the same thing? I wonder if anyone has ever tried it???

By the way, with a helicopter, one must have enough/plenty of altitude in order for autorotation to work. So, I would imagine the same would be true for a quad-copter.

And, no, I'm not encouraging anyone to try it?

 

[Tufargon]

I have shut off the RC a few times and just set it on the ground to show people how it will RTH. Has always worked flawlessly.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

P.S. There is a big class action lawsuit against DJI for claiming their fail safe technology makes it impossible to loose the drone. Guess that's their idea of alternative facts since it doesn't work, according to the lawsuit.

I haven't seen this case, but the failsafe does, in fact, work on all the DJI's I own or have owned. My guess would be it is a frivolous lawsuit because of verbiage on the box. Kind of like how McDonald's was forced to print "HOT" on cups of hot coffee. The one time it happened unexpectedly on my X-Star it never even tried to come home, it just landed itself in the state forest. Some of you guys are really sour on DJI. Do you have a source for the lawsuit?

 

[Busdriver]

I haven't seen this case, but the failsafe does, in fact, work on all the DJI's I own or have owned. My guess would be it is a frivolous lawsuit because of verbiage on the box. Kind of like how McDonald's was forced to print "HOT" on cups of hot coffee. The one time it happened unexpectedly on my X-Star it never even tried to come home, it just landed itself in the state forest. Some of you guys are really sour on DJI. Do you have a source for the lawsuit?

I will admit that just because a lawsuit is filed, it doesn't mean that it means anything. However, specific to this case, here's the latest:

Drone Buyers' Suit Over Autopilot Feature Moves Ahead
By Daniel Siegal

Law360, Los Angeles (April 4, 2017, 6:52 PM EDT) -- A California judge Tuesday rejected Phantom drone maker DJI Technology's bid to escape a putative class action alleging the company falsely advertised that the Phantom 3’s autopilot capabilities prevent it from getting lost, saying the allegations were properly pled.

Before Tuesday's hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl issued a two-page written tentative ruling stating she likely wouldn't dismiss named plaintiff Bradley Telling's suit alleging DJI Technology Inc. tricked consumers by boasting that the Phantom 3's autopilot means the drone “will always come home.”...

Oh, at to the point that that some of us are really sour on DJI, I plead guilty as charged. I can give you my history with them offline.

That aside, I have an issue with ANY company who methods to climb to the top of the heap includes filing frivolous lawsuits rather than through innovation and participating on the competitive playing field.

DJI files patent lawsuit against Yuneec, starting drone industry's first major legal fight
The claim, made in California, asks for a halt on sales of Yuneec drones in the US

They are making a bunch of claims, some of which may or may not have merit. A couple pointed out by my personal
attorney, is the claim that DJI is claiming patent infringement for producing a product with "containing technology in a case."

Really? I don't even know what that means but I think "technology in a case" is pretty broad (think computers, TV's, your watch). What's even more remarkable, is that DJI isn't even claiming they hold the patent on that concept. So I asked, "Then why file a lawsuit that has no basis or ground?" Reply - To try and cripple Yuneec through the extraordinary legal costs associated with defending themselves. I suggested she reduce her fees then. Her response was "Discussing my fees with you are protected under the client-privilege statute - get me another cup of coffee please.

So do I have issues with DJI because of the products they produce? Shoot no, I admire their products. I tried to use them for a funded research project. But for me, the end result rarely justifies the means. Ask the Army and DOD why I am prohibited to own a DJI product. Care to guess who was involved in that study and subsequent recommendations?

There's always more than meets the eye behind the act of printing "HOT" on a cup of coffee.

CAVU