Compass Calibration

[DownunderPhantom]

Hi everyone,

Three days and 5 flights after I bought my P2VP I had a mishap descending while in RTH mode, it came down heavily and the result was a bung gimbal, the place I bought it from had the gimbal repaired under warranty. The gimbal works as it should now but about every 2nd or 3rd flight I get the message in the app "compass calibration required".

Just before sunset today I did the phantom dance to calibrate the compass and after acquiring 9 satellites I flew for about 12 minutes with no issues but when I landed and powered down the motors the message came up again. In the pic is the message but you will also notice that there are no satellites even though the P2VP is on and has just landed and has an un obstructed view of the heavens.. I have replaced the gps antenna in my fc40 after the original was cracked and was wondering if that may also be the prob with the P2VP. As it is still under warranty I am very hesitant to pull it apart. Yes I am worried about a fly away while this problem persists... Any thoughts or suggestions...

 

[DCGOO]

I don't think compass calibration has anything to do with GPS. I would suggest doing the compass dance at some other nearby location, free of any magnetic influence and see if you can't get a better compass lock. Remember, you don't have to re-calibrate every time you go out. As long as you not traveling hundreds of miles between flights, you should be fine. The problem I had once, was forgetting to remove my magnetic cover cell phone case from my belt. Also make sure you are a ways off from any vehicles or other large structures. Sometimes magnetic influence is not always visible, so try somewhere else if it continues to give you fits.

You actually told your dealer you had a hard landing, and they fixed your gimbal? Boy, what dealer was that? Heheh!

 

[Dirty Bird]

Check these:

**Check the compass connectors (on the leg and internally) and make sure they are securely connected.

**Attach to the Assistant and observe the compass readings. If outside specs, the compass may have become gaussed and require demagnetizing.

**The compass may have failed and require replacement.

If you are exposing your Phantom to close proximity to ferrous metals, this may be normal. When I flew from a bridge deck, on every flight I got the compass warning. Steel in the bridge decking was apparently messing with the readings. Don't launch from ferrous metal surfaces.

 

[DownunderPhantom]

Thanks for the replies guys.

The problem started as soon as I got it back from repair.

With the initial problem it failed under RTH when it should not have so was covered under warranty, it was either that or give me back my money because one of the features (RTH) it boasts about did not
function as it should.

The compass calibration has happened everywhere I go, even in a cemetery, and yes I do calibrate most places, away from metal objects and remove objects from my pockets because I travel long distances so I do the dance not matter what.

After I took the pic of the message I re calibrated as it advised regained satelites (strange that I lost them anyway) and lifted off for a few minutes. What I also noticed then was that when I activated home lock or course lock, nothing happened, it just flew normally, it was as if it had not been activated in the software so when I arrived home I checked and it was in NAZA-M mode and IOC was activated.