I have recently had the courage to fly my PH3SE in the follow me mode while sailing a yacht. The mode seemed to work OK until the AC just stopped and hovered. The app was showing strong GPS signal. Once the AC had stopped the RH stick had no effect LH stick worked OK. In order to resolve the issue I had to come out of FM and return the AC manually and reset FM mode. Can anyone tell me why this is happening.
phantom 3 SE stops and hovers in follow me mode
- Thread starter BS293
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msinger
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Follow me mode uses the gps signal from your phone /tablet , sounds like it lost that signal , gps signal showing in the app is from your Phantom
I have never had much success with my SE and follow me mode it always tells me it has a week signal even when it’s basically sitting on my shoulder
Oso
Premium Pilot
If I remember correctly, that is the message you see if your mobile device does not have GPS such as a WiFi only iPad for instance.
On my P3S, I have tried the Follow/Track modes with DJI GO, Litchi, and AutoPilot. Both GO and Litchi had trouble maintaining a lock and would often do what you describe - stop and hover. I would often get the week signal message. I found them basically useless for Follow/Track missions.
AutoPilot, on the other hand, has been rock solid for my Follow missions (cycling, Nordic skiing, snowmobiling, and walking). It has NEVER lost track of me in almost 100 Follow Mission flights. There are some drawbacks though: It has a steep learning curve since it is highly customizable; It’s iOS only; It uses a non-Standard UI; and support can be spotty.
Hope you this helps.
Chris
AutoPilot, on the other hand, has been rock solid for my Follow missions (cycling, Nordic skiing, snowmobiling, and walking). It has NEVER lost track of me in almost 100 Follow Mission flights. There are some drawbacks though: It has a steep learning curve since it is highly customizable; It’s iOS only; It uses a non-Standard UI; and support can be spotty.
Hope you this helps.
Chris
Thanks for all of the replies, it looks like the SE was not such a good buy after all. I was thinking of changing to the Mavic Pro in the hope that this might be better. The controller in my case is coupled with an iPad mini 3 cellular version, with GPS, but without a sim card fitted. Having looked at the data log it shows that GPS signal was lost momentarily on several occasions. I assume that the SE does not regain follow me automatically when the signal returns? I want to use the ac from a yacht under sail so it is imperative that follow me works properly.
My Phantom, unlike your ac, is also operating in the very restrictive CE mode that is imposed on all European drones! So if it stops following me its not long before its out of range. We had to carry out a very rapid crash turn in the yacht last time out in order to recover the drone before the signal was lost when it would have retuned home to the takeoff point. I basically need it to follow me and to return to the controller if anything goes wrong.
AutoPilot has dynamic home point so the home point updates constantly. I have had my P3S out almost 3700m from the takeoff location, however, I usually have it around 20m out and I monitor the battery closely so I am landing to swap batteries before I get to critical levels.
The newer version of GO (GO 4) has a better Follow/Track system. Regardless, good luck with whatever you decide.
Chris
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No, just newer drones. I have a Spark and have used GO 4 in Follow mode with it, but still prefer AutoPilot.
If you are going to try AutoPilot, I suggest you read the manual.
Flight School - Hangar
Also, if you decide to try it, take it slow and test it out in a wide open area to see how it works with different settings. I did a lot of testing before I found settings that worked for me.
Chris
If you are going to try AutoPilot, I suggest you read the manual.
Flight School - Hangar
Also, if you decide to try it, take it slow and test it out in a wide open area to see how it works with different settings. I did a lot of testing before I found settings that worked for me.
Chris
The AC will stop and hover in follow me mode if it is further away from the phone/tablet than the preset distance. This can happen if GPS is weak or lost on your device or if you are travelling faster than what the AC can fly to try and keep up.
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