P3P No Satellite Signal

[Tigerflyboy]

Dear Members

Just got my second P3P after a tragedy with my first one.
I'm still quite new to flying Uavs, may I beg for mercy if I didn't explain my situation clear enough to interpret.

Box opened, loaded everything. Says in Go App to update firmwares.
got that done.

Went flying it twice in different occasions.
First time, Wind was a bit strong, it started flying away in Atti Mode. Luckily it wasnt too far away, and I managed to fly it back and landed safely.

Today(about a week later) Clear sky, wind speed between 1.0-2.5m/s
got everything set up
Drone with two green, two reds
Go App says aircraft warming up.
waited until it showed Rready To Go
I then realise the map hasnt changed from where I live and where I was about to fly it(about 8 miles away from home)

I then proceed to do the DJI dance to calibrate its location, and did a test before i took off by sliding return to home.
Warning popped up saying(Homepoint not recorded)
I recalibrated the compass, still says Home Point not recorded.

long story short, my dumbself decided it give it a try and swiped Auto T/O
It took off (in P mode) struggled a bit fighting the wind(altitude was less than a Metre off elevation)
I then started to maneuver it(trying to fly a rectangular pattern)
at approximately 30 feet away from me, Go App shows Atti Mode(while the button is still in P mode)
So why not fly it in Atti mode right? since I've done a tiny bit of ATTI mode flying before

about a football field away, it started flying away itself while I tried to fly it back towards me so that I can land it.

It got carried away by wind while I can still visually see it and tried to land it(w/ Go App saying Signal disconnected)
It then landed (3 football fields away from T/O position)

No Crash, totally freaked out....
I then drove to a store to get it checked. what I didn't realise(my bad) that Its not showing ANY Satellite Signal.
No Satellite signal but drone is flashing 2 green, 2 red lights.

I went to DJi website, chatted with customer support and all they replied was (It will automatically load the GPS signal)

At this moment, I'm so lost in life..............

 

[kerrylaw7307]

Tigerflyboy, Sorry to hear of your problems. I will try to analyze your issues one at a time.

1) You said... "Go App shows Atti Mode(while the button is still in P mode)"

It sounds like the Phantom's GPS system is faulty and it is not receiving any satellite data. The Phantom is going into P-ATTI mode. This reference from the manual explains how......
"There are three different states of P-mode, which will be automatically selected by the Phantom 3 Professional depending on signal strength of GPS and Vision Positioning sensors :
• P-GPS: When GPS and Vision Positioning both are available. The aircraft is using GPS for positioning.
• P-OPTI: When Vision Positioning is available but the GPS signal strength is not sufficient. The aircraft is using only the Vision Positioning System for positioning.
• P-ATTI: When neither GPS nor Vision Positioning is available. The aircraft is using only its barometer for positioning, so only altitude can be stabilized.

Clearly, the phantom's GPS is not receiving any satellite data and the Phantom is going into P-ATTI mode. If you see NO satellites in the DJIGO app, then there is definitely something wrong with the GPS system of the Phantom.

2) You said .."I recalibrated the compass, still says Home Point not recorded."
Doing the "dance", ie: compass calibration, does NOT set your home point. Your HOME POINT is set automatically, by the software, when the phantom gets it GPS positional data from the satellites. This is how the HOME POINT is set. NOT by compass calibration.

3) You said... "No Satellite signal but drone is flashing 2 green, 2 red lights."
Is it possible, that the green LEDs were flashing twice? Check out the manual... it says, in P-mode, but with no GPS, the green lights will flash twice. Is this the case? See my attached screenshot.


I think most of your issues are caused by the GPS system not working correctly. And yes, "(It will automatically load the GPS signal)". This is true, IF the GPS system/board is working correctly.

I would investigate the GPS board on your Phantom. It may be damaged. Aside from that, maybe other members have some more insight. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

 

[Latitude 65 Testing]

When the a/c goes into ATTI mode and the switch is set elsewhere I consider that to be an inflight emergency and bring that girl back to see what the deal is. You have nothing to lose by doing a complete recalibration(IMU) and make sure you don't have your phone on you when you cal the compass a distance from any large amounts of metal like a car. Checking function in the F mode setting can help isolate a bad switch although I haven't heard of a mode switch failure yet. Did the lady in the RC tell you that "The home point has been established.." or did it just say 'ready to go?' at the top? Pretty interesting problem....

 

[Tigerflyboy]

When the a/c goes into ATTI mode and the switch is set elsewhere I consider that to be an inflight emergency and bring that girl back to see what the deal is. You have nothing to lose by doing a complete recalibration(IMU) and make sure you don't have your phone on you when you cal the compass a distance from any large amounts of metal like a car. Checking function in the F mode setting can help isolate a bad switch although I haven't heard of a mode switch failure yet. Did the lady in the RC tell you that "The home point has been established.." or did it just say 'ready to go?' at the top? Pretty interesting problem....

I haven't tried checking with F mode yet.
It just said ready to go(which confuses me) because from memory, when it properly working; it should show an H on where the drone is at. So that's when i try to set the home point. But it'll only show me a warning saying: Home point not recorded.

 

[Tigerflyboy]

Tigerflyboy, Sorry to hear of your problems. I will try to analyze your issues one at a time.

1) You said... "Go App shows Atti Mode(while the button is still in P mode)"

It sounds like the Phantom's GPS system is faulty and it is not receiving any satellite data. The Phantom is going into P-ATTI mode. This reference from the manual explains how......
"There are three different states of P-mode, which will be automatically selected by the Phantom 3 Professional depending on signal strength of GPS and Vision Positioning sensors :
• P-GPS: When GPS and Vision Positioning both are available. The aircraft is using GPS for positioning.
• P-OPTI: When Vision Positioning is available but the GPS signal strength is not sufficient. The aircraft is using only the Vision Positioning System for positioning.
• P-ATTI: When neither GPS nor Vision Positioning is available. The aircraft is using only its barometer for positioning, so only altitude can be stabilized.

Clearly, the phantom's GPS is not receiving any satellite data and the Phantom is going into P-ATTI mode. If you see NO satellites in the DJIGO app, then there is definitely something wrong with the GPS system of the Phantom.

2) You said .."I recalibrated the compass, still says Home Point not recorded."
Doing the "dance", ie: compass calibration, does NOT set your home point. Your HOME POINT is set automatically, by the software, when the phantom gets it GPS positional data from the satellites. This is how the HOME POINT is set. NOT by compass calibration.

3) You said... "No Satellite signal but drone is flashing 2 green, 2 red lights."
Is it possible, that the green LEDs were flashing twice? Check out the manual... it says, in P-mode, but with no GPS, the green lights will flash twice. Is this the case? See my attached screenshot.


I think most of your issues are caused by the GPS system not working correctly. And yes, "(It will automatically load the GPS signal)". This is true, IF the GPS system/board is working correctly.

I would investigate the GPS board on your Phantom. It may be damaged. Aside from that, maybe other members have some more insight. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

Hi Kerry
It'll only stay in P-OPTI mode or ATTI

I tried doing the compass calibration because what i saw on the map isn't where its suppose to be at. Theres about an 8 mile difference between two locations.
I've tried resetting homepoint itself. but it just kept showing me the warning(home point not recorded)

I've read some other threads. Some owners got their drone brand new from DJi. had similar issue as mine.
they opened up the drone and found out the GPS/satellite receiver module is installed oppositely or has wiring issues.

 

[kerrylaw7307]

Yes, your GPS board/module is not working. GPS position and compass are two different things. Resetting compass is directional only, will NOT correct location issue( HOME POINT ). That is strictly a GPS board/module not working issue. Pop the top cover, if bird is out of warranty, and look at the module for unconnected wire / cables.. else return to the place it was bought at.

 

[Tigerflyboy]

Hi Guys
An update to my p3p
I switched the top(GPS board) to my 2nd P3P and is working perfectly again.
Only thing is, after all the firmware updates and a while of no flying, it seems to me that during winds less than 16km/h in P-mode
It doesn't hold position as tight as it used to be.