The dreaded horizon tilt

[GreggC]

Hey guys,
I've searched and searched and have not found a definitive fix.
My horizon tilts at random then corrects itself,
Ive done the IMU cal several times, the gimbal cal several times
all in a perfectly level surface.
Any ideas ??

 

[jasonb777]

mine has been that way since September or so through all the different firmwares. I finally got it to work right on the latest firmware somehow. During IMU calibration I faced the phantom due north, ever since then the horizon looks level now. Try downgrading the firmware and then upgrading, and then the IMU calibration with the bird pointed north. I followed every thread and post on this issue and nothing ever seemed to work, but somehow this did.

 

[eaglegoaltender]

Just a "shot in the dark" - do you have any lens filters on the camera that may have possibly thrown it out of balance/level intermittently while maybe changing direction etc. when flying? About all I know with that scenario is sometimes a "counter weight" is needed to level out the camera. As said - just a thought that perhaps its the camera giving you illusion of an actual "tilt" of the bird. Or do you actually see the Phantom flying at angle at times and not just the view as seen via your device?

 

[GreggC]

Due North,
Interesting,
Definitely worth a try,
Thank you.

 

[GreggC]

Just a "shot in the dark" - do you have any lens filters on the camera that may have possibly thrown it out of balance/level intermittently while maybe changing direction etc. when flying? About all I know with that scenario is sometimes a "counter weight" is needed to level out the camera. As said - just a thought that perhaps its the camera giving you illusion of an actual "tilt" of the bird. Or do you actually see the Phantom flying at angle at times and not just the view as seen via your device?

I just yesterday used a filter for the first time,
Still had the tilt,
This issue has been since new.

 

[GreggC]

I guess I can use my hand held GPS to determine due North ??

 

[GreggC]

I had the crazy idea to cal the gimbal with one side of the Phantom shimmed ever so slightly,
That idea didn't hold water because the tilt is not consistent, during the flight the horizon goes from tilt to level. However it is predominately tilted.

 

[Lonewolf]

If your "COLD" IMU cal didn't fix it try this. In the GoApp camera menu you'll see an icon for obtaining a grid on your screen. Click on it. Next, go to the MC Settings Menu & find the Gimbal settings icon. Click on it. Now go to the setting for Gimbal Roll Settings. Once there, adjust the roll till your satisfied with the level.

 

[GreggC]

If your "COLD" IMU cal didn't fix it try this. In the GoApp camera menu you'll see an icon for obtaining a grid on your screen. Click on it. Next, go to the MC Settings Menu & find the Gimbal settings icon. Click on it. Now go to the setting for Gimbal Roll Settings. Once there, adjust the roll till your satisfied with the level.

I've done that,
Problem is my tilt is random, so when I add in adjustment to counter act the tilt
I then have the problem in the opposite direction !!
Although there is a chance I added too much,
today I go into the app and only add the smallest increment,
Worth a try.

 

[Lonewolf]

I've done that,
Problem is my tilt is random, so when I add in adjustment to counter act the tilt
I then have the problem in the opposite direction !!
Although there is a chance I added too much,
today I go into the app and only add the smallest increment,
Worth a try.

Hope it works out for you. If not, then there are other issues going on.

 

[SouthernPhantom]

Spin your bird around when it's doing that. It could be compensating for a strong wind. If so, you'll see it tilted one way facing the east (for example), and the opposite way to the west. North and south should be fine.

If it's not too serious, you can correct it by cropping slightly while editing (still shots at least, and video with a good editor).

Even though that's a minor pain, if everything else is working perfectly (too much tinkering can wreck other things), it's not a bigger deal than all those photographers who never hold their regular cameras level. Just look at Facebook!

 

[GreggC]

Spin your bird around when it's doing that. It could be compensating for a strong wind. If so, you'll see it tilted one way facing the east (for example), and the opposite way to the west. North and south should be fine.

If it's not too serious, you can correct it by cropping slightly while editing (still shots at least, and video with a good editor).

Even though that's a minor pain, if everything else is working perfectly (too much tinkering can wreck other things), it's not a bigger deal than all those photographers who never hold their regular cameras level. Just look at Facebook!

Good advise,
Thank you.

 

[alirz]

Good advise,
Thank you.

I have had the tilt from day one. Spinning the P3 is a temporary fix.. The tilt comes back after a few minutes.

As for the tilt due to wind compensation, that should not be the cause. The gimbal is there to keep the camera level and its failing to do so.

 

[Oso]

Hey guys,
I've searched and searched and have not found a definitive fix.
My horizon tilts at random then corrects itself,
Ive done the IMU cal several times, the gimbal cal several times
all in a perfectly level surface.
Any ideas ??

My advice is to send it in for repair if you are still able to do that under warranty.

You have probably seen in the dozens of related threads that it is unlikely you will be able to correct this particular drifting horizon issue where your horizon is tilted one way, then level, then tilted the other way as you yaw. Sometimes it seems fine on one flight and you get your hopes up, but then suddenly it's not fine and your hopes are dashed.

Most people who are not impacted will routinely tell you to do a cold IMU calibration (perfectly level!!!), gimbal roll adjustment, mid air gimbal calibration, it's the wind, it's the props, fix it in post, etc. All could be valid for a simple static horizon tilt. A random and dynamically changing horizon tilt is entirely different. You have already tried them all anyway, right? Multiple times, right? Still no change. Do you feel in your heart that these things will ever work for you? If you've tried them repeatedly and know they wont work, then send it in now.

I was the same. On mine, my horizon would even change just by moving between app menus with no stick input at all. I just kept trying that same assortment of "fixes" thinking it would work one day or that the next FW update would fix it for me. Then it was too late for me to send in. That's why I tell everyone who asks about this particular persistent horizon issue to send it in before it's too late for them.

That being said, as unlikely as it sounds I do remember one person a while ago who actually was able to fix his by doing an IMU calibration while facing due North. I seem to recall it may have been bbfpv but I'm not certain. It didn't work for me, but perhaps will for you. It's worth a shot.

Good luck sir.

EDIT: It wasn't bbfpv as I stated incorrectly. It was @Kman who fixed his by facing north. Here's his post:

I'm sorry I'm tired of the tilted horizon | DJI Phantom Forum

 

[bbfpv]

My advice Gregg is to send it in for repair if you are still able to do that under warranty.

You have probably seen in the dozens of related threads that it is unlikely you will be able to correct this particular drifting horizon issue. Most people who are not impacted will routinely tell you to do a cold IMU calibration (perfectly level!!!), gimbal roll adjustment, mid air gimbal calibration, it's the wind, fix it in post, etc. All are valid for a simple static horizon tilt. A random and dynamically changing horizon tilt is entirely different. Do you feel in your heart that these things won't work for you? If so, then send it in.

I was the same. I just kept trying those things thinking it would work one day or that the next FW update would fix it for me. Then it was too late for me to send in. That's why I tell everyone who asks about this particular persistent horizon issue to send it in before it's too late for them.

That being said, as unlikely as it sounds I do remember one person a while ago who actually was able to fix his by doing an IMU calibration while facing due North. I seem to recall it may have been @bbfpv but I'm not certain. It didn't work for me, but perhaps will for you. It's worth a shot.

Good luck sir.

Nah, wasn't me. But I fixed mine by doing a gimbal cal while hovering. Of course that was many FWs ago, so who knows what changes were made to gimbal code since.

 

[Oso]

Nah, wasn't me. But I fixed mine by doing a gimbal cal while hovering. Of course that was many FWs ago, so who knows what changes were made to gimbal code since.

Sorry sir for tagging you in error. Thanks for responding.

 

[bbfpv]

Sorry sir for tagging you in error. Thanks for responding.

No worries.

 

[SouthernPhantom]

I have had the tilt from day one. Spinning the P3 is a temporary fix.. The tilt comes back after a few minutes.

As for the tilt due to wind compensation, that should not be the cause. The gimbal is there to keep the camera level and its failing to do so.

Not disputing what you say at all.

I'm simply saying, from my personal observations with my own P3P, on most days I have no tilt.

When there's a clearly a strong wind overhead, I can see a distinctly different tilt depending which way it's pointing.

I agree with your comment about the gimbal. But as we've read in other posts, these are not military or industrial grade machines. They're lightweight mass-produced hobby-copters. The little gimbals do the best they can dealing many diverse outdoor situations.

 

[GreggC]

I have until mid April under warranty,
Ill play with it and If I can't figure it out, Ill go for the warranty thing.

 

[jagman]

Just a thought...... Had a sort of similar issue but wonder if it might be the blades are damaged or need replacing? I noticed the copter tilting at the rear and once I replaced the rotor blades it cleared it up? Just a thought....