Losing Video Mid-flight

[Richard E]

We are trying to get video production going for use in topographic surveying with a Phantom 3 4k unit and have been testing it out using Litchi. For some reason the video keeps shutting down within 5 minutes or less of flight time. We do not lose connection with the drone but I am wondering if the camera itself is working from a separate WiFi connection with a shorter range. Can anyone give me suggestions on what to look for that might be causing this issue and some possible solutions, i.e. adding a signal booster to the 4k camera or the remote.

Also on a related issue, when operating in FPV mode using goggles we have not been able to tilt the camera view as it always reverts back to a 45° angle as soon as the dial is released. Is there a way to adjust the settings to turn off the automatic tilt adjustment that it does in FPV mode?

Thanks in advance for any and all helpful replies.

 

[Nightwolf]

if the camera itself is working from a separate WiFi connection with a shorter range.

it is. You are still recording video even if you can't see it, not sure if that helps

 

[Richard E]

I just reviewed the MP4s that were generated from the last three attempts. Each only had about a 2 minute duration and the third is apparently corrupted because I can't even get it to play on any of the several video players I have installed. All three files are close to one gig of space used on a 30 gig card that was installed directly into the camera.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

Can anyone give me suggestions on what to look for that might be causing this issue and some possible solutions, i.e. adding a signal booster to the 4k camera or the remote.

That's not all that unusual. Your video signal typically will drop out before your control signal does. There's a number of relatively easy antenna modifications available for the controller that are designed to extend both the control signal and video signal. Cost for those antenna mods will run you $50 - 150. Which of those mods is actually better depends on who you talk to. If you have a solid control signal and your only concern is improving the 2.4 ghz video signal, you can get an antenna mod for for that for well under $50. Good luck.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

Maybe I misunderstood your post. Are you losing the live video feed after several minutes, or does the camera stop recording after several minutes? Just want to clarify which problem you're having.

 

[Fly Dawg]

We do not lose connection with the drone but I am wondering if the camera itself is working from a separate WiFi connection with a shorter range.

The camera itself does not work on a separate transmission. The video that is transmitted back to the device does. If you are speaking of the recorded video, you might try a faster card, especially if you are recording in 4k resolution. The max continuous record time is approximately 4 min, before it starts another file.

 

[Richard E]

Running with scissors, to answer your question yes the video stops recording at around the 2 minute mark. The thing that is perplexing is that with this same unit but using the DJI software we were able to record during manual flights for up to 20 minutes but now since switching to Lichti software it is only going for 2. The boss insists on using his LG android phone to run the program on and it doesn't have enough memory space to have both DJI and Lichti at the same time. I am trying to resolve this issue since we have a client wanting drone video of an apartment complex that is fairly extensive and two minutes isn't nearly long enough to cover that.

We have an antennae upgrade that we have not installed yet so I will get that installed and see if it helps.

Thanks again for the assistance.

 

[Fly Dawg]

I have heard of a similar issue previously, but never with Litchi, which I fly exclusively with. Personally I rarely if ever exceed 3 min on a single video, but have never had an issue such as you describe with Litchi. I don't think this is software related..On another note, are you flying and recording manually or autonomously with Litchi. Since you stated flying manually with Go, that might make a difference, but wouldn't swear on it.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

Running with scissors, to answer your question yes the video stops recording at around the 2 minute mark. The thing that is perplexing is that with this same unit but using the DJI software we were able to record during manual flights for up to 20 minutes but now since switching to Lichti software it is only going for 2.

Thanks for clarifying that important point. That's different from the usual FPV video feed disconnection issue. I'm not very familiar with Litchi, but it sounds like the problem may be related to that app. Others here more familiar with Litchi can provide better direction on that subject. You didn't say what the phone specs are, or how much memory it has. All of that could be contributing to the problem although, I believe someone commented that you can't run both Litchi and the Go app at the same time. If that's true, then that may be a bigger factor. Again, I'm not well versed in Litchi, so I'll refer you to others here who are. Good luck sorting out the problem.

 

[Richard E]

Yes we have only flown using manual control so far. I have been wanting to attempt an autonomous flight test run but I think the boss may be afraid that the drone will fly away never to be seen again. But I will be curious to see if it continues to cut off the recording prematurely while operating in autonomous mode.

 

[Fly Dawg]

But I will be curious to see if it continues to cut off the recording prematurely while operating in autonomous mode.

That is why I asked the question. It would depend on the mission settings for the video to "cut-out" in autonomous flight. It does happen but usually it is an error in the mission plan. That is quite odd that it stops recording after 2 min during manual flight. Can it be safely assumed that you are using the same recording format, frame rate and resolution for both Litchi and Go with the same SD card in the aircraft?

 

[Richard E]

I believe that the format, frame rate and resolution have been the same but cannot say 100% for sure since I haven't always been there operating the drone. We changed over to Litchi software in an effort to record in virtual reality mode using goggles. But that hasn't worked out due to the gimbal pitch issue I mentioned earlier. I haven't been able to play with the software much myself and so I don't know whether or not he has changed settings or done something to cause this issue.


Now he is asking me to try finding goggles that don't need to use a phone or tablet to give you VR video output. Is there such a thing?

 

[Fly Dawg]

Now he is asking me to try finding goggles that don't need to use a phone or tablet to give you VR video output. Is there such a thing?

Not that familiar with goggles. Personally, I find them a bit cumbersome and I like to have visual, even at long range. That said, I can't answer that question, however I will throw in the fact that even if you found them, I do not see how you would get to any App Related controls that might be needed during flight. ( IE Changing video resolution, setting still image resolution..etc..etc...) The first ones to look at would be here: DJI Goggles - Immersive FPV Goggles

That would be the first look anyway......

 

[RunningWithScissors]

Running with scissors, to answer your question yes the video stops recording at around the 2 minute mark.

Hey, Richard, this is a real long shot but, just for the heck of it, what's the file size of those two minutes videos? I doubt I have the answer, but thought I'd ask anyway.

 

[Richard E]

Hey, Richard, this is a real long shot but, just for the heck of it, what's the file size of those two minutes videos? I doubt I have the answer, but thought I'd ask anyway.

They all were around one gig in size. One was only 800k. Is there a limit to the size of the files?

 

[RunningWithScissors]

They all were around one gig in size. One was only 800k. Is there a limit to the size of the files?

I could be mistaken but, I thought I heard that the fIle limit was something like 4gb. Even if it is, you're not even close to that. Sorry, it was worth a shot.